Under the ownership of the Ministry of Irrigation and Lowlands (MILLs), the construction of the 5.5 Billion Ethiopian Birr Irrigation Development project is underway in the Raitu and Ginir Woredas of Eastern Bale Zone in the Oromia Region. Upon completion, the project will cover an area of 4,146 hectares and will significantly benefit  more than  9,000 pastoralists and semi-pastoralists.

Located at the border of Raitu and Ginir, the Chelchel river (a tributary of the Weyib River) is the site of the Chelchel Dam Construction Project. The Irrigation Development System will be located in Raitu Woreda. The Chelchel Dam will span across 46.5meters high and 681 meters long with a staggering capacity of 50 million cubic meters of water, covering an area of 341.8 hectares. Furthermore, the water will recede up to a distance of 1.5km.

Upon its completion, Raitu Woreda will be able to harvest crops such as maize,  wheat, millet, papaya, banana, onions, and tomatoes twice or three times a year.

The construction of The Dam and Irrigation Development will primarily involve the construction of a 47.5km main canal, which will be followed by the construction of the left and right sections spanning 21.5km and 22.6km respectively. Moreover, a 35.3km second canal and a third canal covering a distance of 168km will be built.

This project has been divided into two lots: Although the first contractor who was in charge of Lot I terminated their contract, in their place, Alemayehu Ketema General Contractor entered into a contract. They have since taken over and are currently mobilizing the necessary resources, machinery, and manpower to resume the work. As for Lot II, Oromia Construction Corporation (whose contract was renewed twice) is in charge and could face difficulties completing the project on schedule if it doesn’t deploy the required machinery promptly.

By the end of March in the current Ethiopian fiscal year, the construction of the project has reached 13.8% in Lot I and 74.75% in Lot II.

A total of 509 citizens, comprising 430 men and 79 women, were employed on a temporary and permanent basis as part of the project. The project has faced several challenges including capacity of sub-contractors, shortage of labor & shortage of machinery.  As a result, discussions were held with the concerned stakeholders to devise solutions in order to address these challenges.

The project commenced in December 2012 (E.C.) and is scheduled for completion by the end of the 2018 Ethiopian Fiscal Year.