Aba Gerima Observatory

Aba Gerima watershed is found in Amhara region, West Gojam zone, Bahir Dar Zuria Woreda specifically in Aba Gerima Gonibat Kebele. It is situated about 15km from Bahir Dar city. The head of the watershed, at its southern part, can be accessed through a road that goes from Zenzelima to Awunhara Monestry, where the boundary touches the road to the north off-ramp at a small village called Aba Dama. Aba Gerima watershed is bounded by two kebeles namely, Gonibat Abagerima to the north and North west and Laguna Abune Hana to the south and south west, but majority of the watershed is found in Gonibat Abagerima kebele. Abagerima watershed covers around 900ha of land. Aba Gerima watershed represents peculiar landscape of the Woreda that looks like plain but when looked very closely, it has rolling scenery. The watershed is part of the Tana sub- basin located nearby Lake Tana. It is a representative landscape of the northern part of Abay basin particularly Lake Tana surroundings. Heterogeneity in landscape is highly observed in the watershed as a result diverse land use systems and land cover types are commonly observed in the watershed most of the watershed is severely degraded by sheet erosion. Basic Information of the watershed Biophysical Information
  • Total Area: 900ha
  • Altitude: 1893-2120m a.s.l
  • Agroecology: Woyna Dega
  • Average Rainfall: 1120mm/yr
  • Average Temperature: 200C
Socio-economic Information
  • Total Population: 1340, Male: 648 ,Female: 692
  • Average family Size: 5.2
  • Livelihood : Mixed farming , khat growing
  • Homestead : Fair back yard management
  • Major Crops: Teff, Fingur Millet, Wheat and maize
  • Productivity: 12qu/ha for Teff, 20qu/ha for Millet, 32qu/ha for Maize
Major Challenges
  • Misuse of natural resources specially surface and ground water
  • Serious sheet erosion
  • Improper ground water abstraction, causing conflict and water resource depletion
Opportunities
  • Suitable for production of improved and high market value crops
  • High potential for homestead development
  • Good experiences in use of shallow ground wells for livelihood diversification