[27 Mar, 2026]: The BRIGHT project implementers, Water and Land Resource Centre (WLRC) and the Ministry of Water and Energy (MoWE), Ethiopia, convened on 27 March 2026 a High-Level National Consultative Workshop on the Draft National Water Resources Data Management and Sharing Directive, at Capital Hotel, Addis Ababa. The workshop was opened by H.E. Dr. Ing. Habtamu Itefa, following welcoming remarks from Dr. Gete Zeleke (WLRC), both of whom emphasized the indispensability of the Data Sharing Directive as a key part of the requirement to effectively manage Ethiopia’s water resources. The Workshop was also attended by H.E. Ato Mottuma Mekassa, Senior Advisor to the Minister of Water and Energy, with the rank of State Minister, senior decision-makers from basin authority offices, regional bureaus, universities, academia, the Director General of WLRC, BRIGHT Project management staff, and development partners. The program featured technical presentations on the diagnosis of existing data challenges, including legal perspectives, and the core components of the draft directive, followed by extensive plenary discussions aimed at building consensus on the way forward. Participants emphasized the need to address fragmented systems, clarify institutional roles, and establish a centralised framework for water resources data management and sharing.