The Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Affairs Standing Committee of the House said that Ministry of Water Resources has registered commendable results in the accessibility of drinking water and sanitation services.

Member of the Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Affairs Standing Committee of the House hon. Ato Kore Abdella revealed this while concluding the nine-month performance report of 2000 fiscal year of the Ministry of Water Resources submitted to the House of Peoples’ Representatives, in its 24th regular session held on April 15, 2008.

Hon. Ato Kore stated that Ministry of Water Resources has achieved reliable results on accessibility of drinking Water and Sanitation Service to urban and rural dwellers, building the capacity of the Ministry, effective utilization of the budget and tackling water related problems in pastoralist and Semi-Pastoral areas

Besides, the monitoring and following up, realization of Business Process Reengineering reform programme, effective and efficient utilization of current and capital budgets should be improved and continue in strengthened manner, he said.

Meanwhile, various questions were raised by the House to which the Minister of Water Resource, his Excellency Ato Asfaw Dingamo has responded.

His Excellency expressed that in collaboration with the society, the Ministry has exerted its efforts to implement the programmes financed by the World and African Development Banks to avail access to drinking water and sanitation service to rural and urban dwellers situated in different places of the country.

Based on the comprehensive study and design prepared by the Ministry, it has built dams and implemented projects to intensify irrigation development in the country and to be utilized for fishery, agricultural, hydropower and tourism purposes, the report revealed.

As far as ground water is concerned, the Ministry carried out activities in exploiting under ground water from boreholes with a view of avoiding shortage of water and increase the service of drinking water in rural and urban areas financed by World and African Development Banks, the minister said.

With regard to Nile Basin Initiative and Utilization, his Excellency said that Ethiopia has the right to use Blue Nile according to the principle of equitable and reasonable utilization of water resource without causing harm on Nile riparian countries thereby the Ministry has been carrying out five irrigation dams around Blue Nile River to undertake irrigation developments.

Activities of gender and HIV/AIDS, as cross-cutting issues, have been mainstreamed incorporated programmes of water projects through awareness raising lessons as part of to the civil service reform programme being implemented in the Ministry, the report expressed.

With regard to the budget utilization, the ministry has effectively and efficiently used the allocated capital and current budgets, his Excellency stated.

Besides, in order to prevent dams and rivers in particular and the environment in general from destruction and pollution, the Ministry has taken corrective and protective measures, his Excellency remarked.