Addis Ababa — The Green Legacy Initiative has restored dried springs and lakes by allowing water to penetrate deeper into the soil, scholars at Haramaya University told ENA.
Haramaya University Research and Community Engagement Vice President, Yishak Yusuf, said the Green Legacy Initiative is bringing many benefits to the country.
It has, in particular, brought about blessings such as timely rainfall, green vegetation, increased water infiltration, and mitigation of water scarcity, among others.
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According to him, the initiative has restored springs and lakes that had disappeared or dried up.
The development works carried out under the Green Legacy on basins around Lake Haramaya, which had dried up for the past 18 years, have allowed the lake to return to its original state and the water level to increase year by year.
The activities have also helped farmers increase their production and productivity by making groundwater available, thereby ensuring food security, Yishak pointed out.
On his part, Plant Science lecturer and researcher Yonas Moges emphasized the importance of the Green Legacy, which has been appreciated internationally.
He noted Haramaya University as an example of successful efforts carried out in recent years in basins with concrete results.
Natural resource conservation and Green Legacy efforts in the basins have transformed the local ecosystem and enabled the remarkable revival of Lake Haramaya.
Coordinator of the Lake Haramaya Basin Development Project and lecturer Dine Rashid said the works carried out in the watersheds are preventing erosion and allowing water to infiltrate the ground.
He added that this has contributed to making groundwater more accessible, developing irrigation, and increasing forest coverage.
The scholars stated that the university will continue the important work started by the Green Legacy, expand on these positive changes through teaching, and carry out further research and development.
