Ethiopia’s Climate-Resilient Green Economy Climate Resilience Strategy: Water and Energy

The Ethiopian Climate Resilience Green Economy (CRGE) is a national cross sectoral strategy of Ethiopia for the period 2015-2025.
The Ethiopian Climate Resilience Green Economy vision is for Ethiopia to become a middle income country by 2025, through rapid economic growth that is resilient to climate change and results in no increase in carbon emissions: the main development agenda of the Ethiopian government is poverty eradication through broad-based, accelerated and sustained economic growth. However, unless steps are taken to build resilience, climate variability and climate change could importantly impact on these objectives.
In this context, the Climate Resilience Strategy for Water and Energy identifies three steps: 1) Identify the economic and social impacts of current climate variability and future climate change on water and energy in Ethiopia (the Challenge); 2)Identify priorities for the water and energy sectors to build climate resilience and reduce the impact of current climate variability and climate change (the Response); 3)Map the necessary steps to finance and implement measures in the water and energy sectors to build climate resilience in Ethiopia (Implementation) and deliver an integrated Climate Resilient Green Economy.
The first step describes the challenge of achieving development goals in the face of an uncertain, complex and changing climate. On the basis of certain climate assumptions (continued increases in temperature across the country, year-to-year rainfall variability; parts of the country could see changes in seasonal rainfall at key times in the year) some consequent implications have been set, which could impact either positively or negatively on economic growth and poverty reduction (higher evaporation, increase of water demand, reduced certainty of the productivity, of irrigation volumes, of rural livelihood and incomes etc.) opening development opportunities like, for instance, the increase of production from hydropower and, depending on the rainfall patter, increased agricultural productivity and more secure livelihood.
Based on the identified assumptions and implications, the strategy sets out strategic priorities as a response in four priority sub-sectors: power generation, energy access, access to water for irrigated and industrial agricultural use, and access to WASH, thus allowing access to more resilient sources, such as groundwater and promoting self-supply.
The final part of the strategy focuses on implementation plans to be developped, in cooperation with Regional governments and partners, to deliver the Strategic Priorities. Those plans include developing investment plans, CRGE Facility funding and other sources of support.