Ethiopia's Omo Valley

The travel section of The New York Times posted on 30 October 2017 an article titled "Up Close With the Tribes of Ethiopia's Imperiled Omo Valley" by Andrew McCarthy.

This is a travel piece that emphasizes the ethnic groups of the Omo River Valley. It has some excellent photography.

Ethiopia: Omo River Basin Development and Human Rights

Springer Open Access recently posted an entire book titled River Basin Development and Human Rights in Eastern Africa -- A Policy Crossroads by Claudia J. Carr, University of California at Berkeley.

The book is a detailed analysis of river basin development on the Omo River in Ethiopia. It contains the following chapters:

--At Stake with River Basin Development in Eastern Africa.
--The Persistent Paradigm for 'Modernizing' River Basins: Institutions and Policies.
--The Seismic Threat to the Gibe III Dam: A Disaster in Waiting.
--Transboundary Survival Systems: A Profile of Vulnerability.
--Components of Catastrophe: Social and Environmental Consequences of Omo River Basin Development.
--The Rush to Rationalize: Public Policies and Impact Assessments.
--The Dasanech of the Lowermost Omo Basin: From Adaptation to Development.
--Nyangatom Livelihood and the Omo Riverine Forest.
--Turkana Survival Systems at Lake Turkana: Vulnerability to Collapse from Omo Basin Development.
--Human Rights Violations and the Policy Crossroads.

Ethiopia's Hydropower Projects

The Institute for Defense Analyses published on 24 March 2016 an article titled "Ethiopia Moves Forward on Hydropower Dams" by George F. Ward. 

This piece discusses the Gilgel Gibe III Dam on the Omo River and the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile River.

Kenya's Lake Turkana and Ethiopia's Hydropower Projects

The National Geographic magazine published in August 2015 an article titled "The Last Rites for the Jade Sea?" by Neil Shea.  It discusses the potential impact on Lake Turkana in Kenya of a series of dams on the Omo River in Ethiopia, which supplies 90 percent of the water for Lake Turkana.  It includes an excellent map in the upper left hand corner of the article that can be enlarged.

Gibe III Dam in Ethiopia

The Gibe III dam on the Omo River in southwestern Ethiopia is moving toward completion.  The Washington-based Institute for Defense Analyses published on 26 January 2015 an article titled "African Hydropolitics--Ethiopia's Other Dam" by George F. Ward. 

Because of its environmental impact on the lower Omo River in Ethiopia and Lake Turkana in Kenya, this has been a controversial project.  The author concludes that in spite of these concerns Ethiopia is likely to continue its progress toward an initial operating capability later this year.

Ethiopia's Gibe III Dam and Voices from Lake Turkana

International Rivers published in January 2015 a report titled "'Come and Count Our Bones': Community Voices from Lake Turkana on the Impacts of Gibe II Dam" by Narissa Allibhai.  The report provides the reactions of the Turkana and Marsabit people who live around Lake Turkana in Kenya to the construction of the Gibe III Dam on the Omo River in Ethiopia, which feeds Lake Turkana.

Border Problems in East Africa and the Horn

Foreign Policy Magazine published on 6 August 2014 an article titled "Why East Africa's Borders Are Blowing Up" by Daniel Branch and Jason Mosley.  The article links a series of local incidents and concludes that they are shaping the region's future.

Lake Turkana and the Omo River: Environmental Concerns

The Rift Valley Institute in Kenya published on 3 July 2014 a brief report titled "Lake Turkana and Development Projects on the Lower Omo River" by Sean Avery.  It discusses environmental concerns for Kenya's Lake Turkana following the implementation of development projects on the Lower Omo River in Ethiopia. 

Can New Water Discoveries Save East Africa?

Foreign Affairs published on 8 April 2014 a piece titled "Quenching Kenya: Can New Water Discoveries Save East Africa?" by Brahma Chellaney.  The author points out that East Africa is one of the most water stressed areas of the world but suggests a solution may be the discovery of new underground aquifers.

Controversial Dam on Ethiopia's Omo River

Construction of the Gibe III Dam on Ethiopia's Omo River that feeds Lake Turkana in Kenya has raised a number of concerns by environmentalists and persons concerned with the displacement of Ethiopians who will be forced to move from their homes. For a brief summary of the controversy, see Peter Bosshard's comments here on 6 March 2012.

The Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority published a more detailed report in September 2011 titled Existing Challenges: Plantation Development versus Wildlife Conservation in the Omo-Tama-Mago Complex. Written by Cherie Enawgaw, Derbe Deksios and Girma Timer, it looks at the impact of the dam on wildlife, Omo National Park, Mago National Park and the Kuraz sugar cane project.