Dinder and Rahad Watershed Management Projects

Dinder and Rahad Rivers originate in the Ethiopian Highlands and flow northwestwards before joining with the Abbay River downstream of Sennar dam to form the Blue Nile River. The two are seasonal rivers of nearly equal length that cease to flow in the dry season. The catchment of the Dinder River is 16,000 km² while that of the Rahad river is 8,200 km². The Dinder and Rahad Rivers, together with the Abbay River, contribute about 70% of the sediment load from the Eastern Nile. The two rivers traverse, and sustain the biodiversity of the Alatish ad Dinder National Parks located in Ethiopia and Sudan respectively. The two rivers are also important for sustaining the the Rahad-Dinder wetlands, which comprise a large number of ox-bow lakes and cut-off meanders, and supporting social-economic activities in the countries. There has been considerable development of mechanized rain-fed irrigation systems west of Dinder national park in Sudan. Key environmental and development challenges in the two watersheds include poverty, population pressure, deforestation, watershed degradation, soil erosion, river siltation, conflicts between and amongst pastoralists and farmers, and wetland pollution at oil fields. The Sub-basin also has inadequate water resources data and information to support water resources monitoring and development.

The project was one of several priority projects identified by the Eastern Nile states under the Eastern Nile Multi-Sectoral Investment Opportunity Analysis (MSIOA). The project will be used to identify and prepare watershed management projects in the Dinder and Rahad Sub-basins that focus on reducing soil loss from farmlands and communal rangelands, controlling gulley erosion, planting indigenous species of trees on communal lands and forests, re-seeding rangelands, restoring degraded riverbanks, promoting sustainable wetland management, carrying out water resources monitoring and assessment, and building capacity of national and state/provincial officials in Integrated Water Resources Management.

 The project identification and prefeasibility studies were completed in 2015 with funding from the World Bank under the Nile Cooperation for Results Project (NCORE).

Dinder and Rahad Rivers originate in the Ethiopian Highlands and flow northwestwards before joining with the Abbay River downstream of Sennar dam to form the Blue Nile River. The two are seasonal rivers of nearly equal length that cease to flow in the dry season. The catchment of the Dinder River is 16,000 km² while that of the Rahad river is 8,200 km². The Dinder and Rahad Rivers, together with the Abbay River, contribute about 70% of the sediment load from the Eastern Nile. The two rivers traverse, and sustain the biodiversity of the Alatish ad Dinder National Parks located in Ethiopia and Sudan respectively. The two rivers are also important for sustaining the the Rahad-Dinder wetlands, which comprise a large number of ox-bow lakes and cut-off meanders, and supporting social-economic activities in the countries. There has been considerable development of mechanized rain-fed irrigation systems west of Dinder national park in Sudan. Key environmental and development challenges in the two watersheds include poverty, population pressure, deforestation, watershed degradation, soil erosion, river siltation, conflicts between and amongst pastoralists and farmers, and wetland pollution at oil fields. The Sub-basin also has inadequate water resources data and information to support water resources monitoring and development.

The project was one of several priority projects identified by the Eastern Nile states under the Eastern Nile Multi-Sectoral Investment Opportunity Analysis (MSIOA). The project will be used to identify and prepare watershed management projects in the Dinder and Rahad Sub-basins that focus on reducing soil loss from farmlands and communal rangelands, controlling gulley erosion, planting indigenous species of trees on communal lands and forests, re-seeding rangelands, restoring degraded riverbanks, promoting sustainable wetland management, carrying out water resources monitoring and assessment, and building capacity of national and state/provincial officials in Integrated Water Resources Management.

 The project identification and prefeasibility studies were completed in 2015 with funding from the World Bank under the Nile Cooperation for Results Project (NCORE).