BackgroundIn the rainfed areas, water, not land, is the foremost restraining resources for better agricultural production to satisfy the growing demand of food and other needs. Water harvesting and enhancing productivity of available water, and not volume of yield per units of land, is therefore a better solution for rainfed agriculture. Under these circumstances, it is necessary toimplement efficient and effective integrated water resources management practices. Elsewhere rainfed dependent highland parts of Ethiopia, in the Beressa watershed most of the rainwater lost in the form of runoff particularly during excess rainfall; therefore, the benefit of rainwater during less rainy season is insignificant. The objective of this study therefore was to assess crop water requirement and net irrigation requirement using CROPWAT8.0 model and Rainfall Contribution Index (RCI) for various crops and to describe the benefits of water harvesting and integrated and sustainable water resources management. Crops growing during the month of February to June (less rainy season) are among the highest irrigation requirements.ResultsBased on RCI (as the value far from 1) reflect rainfall contribution is insufficient to satisfy the crop water requirements for the whole growth stages. Therefore, there is a need for supplemental irrigation and rainwater harvesting and a necessity for integrated water resources management. To reduce the intensity of water shortage therefore conservation planning and water management at watershed level in an integrated manner is critical. Similarly, soil and water conservation management practices is essential for the communities to reduce runoff and other resources for future uses and determine the optimal amount of water resources consumption at the irrigation fields is an urgent issues.ConclusionsAs a result, there is a need to do more efforts related to water harvesting and integrated water resources management for the sustainability of agriculture and over all human survival.

中文翻译：

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考虑水文气候情景的水资源综合管理：可持续发展的一个选择

背景在雨育地区，水，而不是土地，是提高农业生产以满足不断增长的粮食和其他需求的最重要的制约资源。因此，集水和提高可用水的生产力，而不是每单位土地的产量，是雨养农业的更好解决方案。在这种情况下，有必要实施高效和有效的水资源综合管理实践。在其他地方依赖雨养的埃塞俄比亚高地部分，在贝雷萨流域，大部分雨水以径流的形式流失，特别是在降雨过多时；因此，雨水在少雨季的好处微乎其微。因此，本研究的目的是使用 CROPWAT8 评估作物需水量和净灌溉量。0 模型和各种作物的降雨贡献指数 (RCI)，并描述集水和综合可持续水资源管理的好处。2-6月（雨季较少）生长的作物灌溉需求最高。结果基于RCI（远非1的值）反映降雨贡献不足以满足作物整个生长阶段的需水量。因此，需要补充灌溉和雨水收集，并需要综合水资源管理。因此，为了降低水资源短缺的严重程度，以综合方式在流域层面进行保护规划和水资源管理至关重要。相似地，