Integrating river restoration goals with urban planning practices: the case of Kebena river, Addis Ababa

In the urban environment, rivers are most affected by development mismanagement to the extent that some of the essential services such as habitat for biodiversity conservation, recreation and domestic uses to communities are critically impaired. Consequently, river restoration is presented as practical solution to address urban river degradation issues and to revitalize urban rivers and river buffers. Goal setting along with clear and measurable goals in urban river restoration processes is one of the critical tools to guide restoration activities. This study aims to assess the qualitative effects of clearly defined river restoration goals and analyze their tangible effects on river restoration efforts in Kebena river watershed, Addis Ababa. Qualitative data from expert interviews, stakeholders’ consultation, document review and institutional analysis are used to inform this research. The results show that the Environmental Protection Authority and Structural plan of the city have vaguely defined river restoration goal in the planning and implementation phases of river restoration projects. On the other hand, the goals of different institutions varied in context, while others were redundant and lacked synergy. As a result, urban rivers and river buffers accommodate various land uses that are negatively affecting the potential of rivers and river buffers in benefiting communities. Finally, the study forwarded critical methodological steps to guide the formulation of a well-defined goal and setting priorities for concrete actions to restore the river.