Forests, water and food security in the northwestern highlands of Ethiopia: Knowledge synthesis

This paper synthesizes the spatial and temporal relationship between forest cover and water, as well as its implications for food security in the northwestern highlands of Ethiopia. Different studies addressing the topic of land cover and hydrology have been reviewed. Analyses of 20-40 year long time series showed little and inconsistent relationships between forest cover change and hydrology on meso-scale (100-1000 km2) watersheds. Spatial studies, however, showed stronger relationships between land cover and low flow features such as grasslands and woodlands. Interviews with local communities suggested land cover change impacts are more pronounced at smaller scale (<100 km2) watersheds; which is consistent with observational studies on small scale watersheds and farm level plots. The stronger relationships between forests and hydrology at smaller scales suggests land management policies should be oriented to farm level conditions, where water is vital for the food security of subsistence farmers who comprise 86% of the population in the highlands.