Organization for Rehabilitation & Development in Amhara

The Organization for Rehabilitation and Development in Amhara (ORDA), with funding from the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF), has been implementing a community Based Biodiversity Conservation project at Mt. Guna in the Amhara region of Ethiopia. Mount Guna is the source of Gumara, Rib, and other rivers which flow down to form the Lake Tana catchment, one of Africa's most unique wetland ecosystems and the source of 50% of Ethiopia's freshwater. The Lake Tana catchment is the source of the Blue Nile River, which, after joining with the White Nile in Khartoum, flows through Sudan to Egypt. This makes Mt. Guna an area of significant international importance. Millions of local communities directly depend on the catchment and its resources for their livelihoods. Despite its importance in the region, Mt. Guna had been an unprotected area and was threatened by increasing challenges such as conversion for agricultural expansion and overgrazing. ORDA, which was founded to empower poor communities and enhance environmental security, helped to establish a formally protected area and to raise awareness and capacity of stakeholders to protect this critical habitat.