The Water and Land Resource Centre (WLRC) Board of Trustees (BoT) held its annual meeting from 20–22 January 2026 at Haile Resort, Arba Minch. The Board reviewed and approved the Minutes of its last meeting, the performance, financial, and audit reports of the Centre for bygone 2025, and the 2026 work plan. They also discussed institutional strengthening and partnership expansion. The BoT Co-Chairmanship was handed over from H.E. Dr. Abraha, the former State Minister for Water Resource Management at the Ministry of Water and Energy, to H.E. Ato Motuma Mekassa, Senior Advisor to the Minister of Water and Energy (MoWE), with the Rank of State Minister. The Board also approved the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) as a new member to the WLRC BOT, representing WLRC’s readiness to work with regional organisations. A Draft protocol outlining the modes for the BOT was also presented and deliberated on. In addition to the Board members, the meeting was joined by representatives from the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (EKN),namely: Ms. Lisan Bijdevaate, First Secretary for Water Affairs at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ethiopia and Ms. Paula Schindeler, Deputy Head of Mission and Head of Development Cooperation at the Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ethiopia. Beyond boardroom discussions, the BOT visited intervention sites in the Hare Catchment, gaining firsthand insight into integrated catchment restoration, irrigation rehabilitation, and water management activities, and observing progress and early results.