In Terhonge Kebele of Nor Woreda, mornings used to begin with a burden. Before the sun even rose, women and girls set out on six-kilometer journeys to fetch water. Carrying jerry cans on their backs, they navigated dangerous terrain with little protection—risking injury, assault, and exposure to wild animals.
But over the past four years, that routine has changed. Through support from the Food System Resilience Program (FSRP), a national initiative backed by the World Bank, the people of Terhonge came together to construct a community pond. By hand.
That effort produced more than a water source. The 10,500-cubic-meter pond now supports a network of uses that benefit everyone in the village. Fruit trees and vegetables grow year-round from the irrigation of 96 hectares of land. A community-managed poultry and fish-farming system uses the pond water and recycled waste in a circular system—chicken droppings fertilize fishponds, and pond residue feeds back into chicken coops. It’s a model of sustainability, right at the local level.
But the biggest change may be the one not visible on a map. The walk for water—long, dangerous, and limiting—has all but disappeared. Girls now spend that time in school. Women invest it in farming, in family, in rest. “We’ve gained more than water,” one woman shared.
Terhonge’s story didn’t end with one pond. There are now 58 ponds in Nor Woreda—3 of them in Terhonge alone—and they’ve become examples for neighboring kebeles.
Getu Kora, FSRP’s Program Coordinator, recalls a powerful moment: “Seeing the benefits of the pond, farmers in one of the kebeles raised ETB 180,000 (~$1,423) in a single day and requested assistance to dig a pond in their own community.”
Terhonge has become a practical learning center, where farmers from nearby villages come to see how the pond works, learn from those using it, and return home with new ideas. The project’s design is intentional: targeting women and youth with job opportunities, training, and leadership roles. This isn’t just water, it’s empowerment.
These success stories are the result of an intentional, inclusive strategy. Under FSRP, communities identify their own needs, co-design solutions, and maintain the infrastructure. The approach builds both physical and institutional resilience.
In Ferejat Kebele, the model takes another form. A farmer named Fereja Hussien and his association irrigate land near a river using a diesel-powered pump. With improved potato seed, and access to market through nearby Worabe University, the association earned ETB 36,000 from one harvest. They reinvested part of their profits into group savings, strengthening their plots, their partnerships, and their financial literacy.
