Ethiopian Beverage Alliance for Water

Investing in Impact

P4G provided this partnership with US $99,970 in catalytic grant funding.  

The partnership wrote and adopted a Water Assessment Survey (WAS), which was used in selected production facilities to gain input on a roadmap to shape a national agenda around water and translate the shared vision of beverage industry members into action. The WAS provided a sectoral overview of water-use and management efficiency opportunities. It also identified major risks and opportunities for alliance members to pursue concrete, collective action on water sustainability in the operating communities. The survey enhanced industry members’ awareness of and encouraged action to address water security challenges in the beverage industry, including access to water resources, scarcity of freshwater and corporate water use and discharge. 

In August 2021, the alliance held a launch event that brought together industry stakeholders and high-level government officials including from the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Energy; the Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Commission; and the Agricultural Transformation Agency, demonstrating political support for the partnership. The Minister for Water and Commissioner for Environment recognized the partnerships’ successes and potential to provide an effective model for similar alliances addressing water security. Additionally, this meeting established a Steering Committee of EBAW consisting of 9 members from the beverage industry. 

The EBAW has since registered as a civil society organization  and has held meetings with producers to clarify priorities and educate future members about the value of collective action. The partnership hopes to inspire a forum of water alliances to scale up best practices and engage in broad-based projects that could result in significant water efficiency at a country level.