Basin vision
A Mereb basin where conserved highland catchments, secure community water supply, and constructive transboundary engagement support recovery and long-term resilience.
Basin Plans · IWRM Framework
Twelve Basins. One Integrated Vision.
Ethiopia's water future is mapped across twelve major river basins, each with its own hydrology, communities, and challenges. Explore the integrated management plan for each basin — features, targets, and where we are today.
Select a basin
Northern border highlands · Tigray
Mereb
- Catchment area
- 5,900 km²
- Annual yield
- 0.7 BCM
- Plan implementation
- 27%
Key features
- Border basin between Ethiopia and Eritrea, with the Mereb river as the boundary in much of its course
- Highland source areas with significant agricultural and pastoralist communities
- Limited basin-scale infrastructure due to historical and political constraints
- Hydrologically modest but locally important for highland Tigray communities
Thematic issues
- Severe land degradation and reduced groundwater recharge in highland catchments
- Post-conflict rehabilitation of community water supply infrastructure
- Sensitive transboundary status limits joint monitoring and planning
- Limited and outdated hydrological data across most of the basin
Key measures
- 01Restore community-level water supply infrastructure across affected woredas
- 02Implement watershed conservation across degraded highland slopes
- 03Re-establish a basin gauging baseline with portable monitoring
- 04Prepare technical position for any future bilateral basin engagement
Key targets · progressive
- 2027In progress
Restore safe water access for 350,000 conflict-affected residents
- 2030Planned
Bring 120,000 hectares of highland slopes under conservation treatment
- 2035Planned
Establish a documented basin baseline ready for future cooperation
Challenges
- Political constraints prevent formal transboundary planning at this stage
- Recovery investment competes with broader Tigray reconstruction priorities
- Hydrological data gaps make robust planning difficult
Implementation status & updates
27%
- Current phase
- Recovery & data baseline
- Last updated
- June 2025
Mereb basin work is currently focused on community water supply restoration and rebuilding hydrological data. Comprehensive integrated planning is sequenced for a later phase.
Institutions
Water Resources Management Platforms
Integrated basin management depends on the institutions that convene, decide, and act. Five platforms operate across Ethiopia's basins to align government, communities, partners, and technical experts.
- 12Members
River Basin Authorities
Role · Lead implementation of integrated basin plans
Federal authorities responsible for planning, allocating, and regulating water resources within each major basin. The Awash, Abbay, Omo-Gibe, and Rift Valley authorities are operational, with others being established.
- 36Members
Basin High Councils
Role · Multi-stakeholder governance and oversight
High-level basin councils convene federal ministries, regional bureaus, and civil society to oversee basin priorities, endorse plans, and resolve cross-jurisdictional water issues.
- 220Members
Stakeholder Forums
Role · Community and user-group engagement
Sub-basin and woreda-level forums bring together farmers, pastoralists, women's groups, industry, and local government to inform allocation and resolve day-to-day water disputes.
- 8Members
Inter-Ministerial Committee
Role · Federal policy alignment
Brings together MoWE, Agriculture, Finance, Environment, Health, and others to align water-sector decisions with national development, fiscal, and environmental priorities.
- 64Members
Technical Working Groups
Role · Specialist analysis and standards
Cross-institutional working groups on hydrology, irrigation, water quality, climate, and gender provide technical inputs to basin plans and national IWRM frameworks.
Documents
Basin Plan Resources
Foundational documents, manuals, and reports that guide integrated basin planning across Ethiopia. Final basin-specific plans will be added to this library as they are approved and published.
- Coming soon
National IWRM Framework
The overarching national framework for integrated water resources management in Ethiopia, setting out principles, institutional roles, and planning hierarchy.
PDF · 4.2 MB · 2023
- Coming soon
Basin Plan Preparation Manual
Step-by-step methodological guide for preparing an integrated basin plan, including stakeholder engagement, data requirements, and approval pathway.
PDF · 6.8 MB · 2024
- Coming soon
Hydromet & Water Quality Monitoring Guidelines
Standards for siting, operating, and maintaining hydrological and water-quality monitoring stations across the basin gauging network.
PDF · 2.1 MB · 2023
- Coming soon
Water Allocation & Permitting Guidelines
Procedures for volumetric allocation, abstraction permitting, and compliance monitoring under the Water Resources Management Proclamation.
PDF · 3.5 MB · 2024
- Coming soon
Basin Stakeholder Engagement Handbook
Practical handbook for basin authorities and councils on convening, consulting, and reporting back to basin-level stakeholders.
PDF · 1.8 MB · 2023
- Coming soon
Basin Plans Annual Implementation Report 2024
Annual progress report on integrated basin plan implementation across all twelve basins, with status indicators and forward-look priorities.
PDF · 9.4 MB · 2024