Reb River
Encyclopedia
Reb River is a river of north-central Ethiopia
which empties into Lake Tana
at 12°2′N 37°35′E. The river originates on the slopes of Mount Guna
, and flows west through Kemekem
woreda
. It has no significant tributaries.
R.E. Cheesman described the Reb in 1936 as bringing "down quantities of dark sand, and we passed banks of it deposited on the lake shore. The river bar, 600 yards out in the lake, is a semicircle, and parties of travellers with loaded donkeys were passing round it instead of crossing the river." Merchants based in Yifag would transport bars of salt
or amoleh in small boats or tankwas down the Reb to Zege on the lake to trade for coffee
.
The Reb was also the site of one of several stone bridges built during the time of the Jesuit missionaries or the reign of Fasilides
. Consisting of five arches, it was located 24 kilometres (14.9 mi) from the estuary and enabled travel between Gondar
and Debre Tabor
. During the Italian occupation
, the Italians built a bridge over the river with wooden supports, but it was damaged during the British campaign.
On 21 June 2007, the World Bank
announced that it had approved an International Development Association credit of US$100 million for an Irrigation and Drainage project covering the Magech and Reb rivers, as part of the Nile Basin Initiative
. With the goal of increasing irrigated agricultural output, this proposed project will develop incrementally a total area of 20,000 hectares.
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
which empties into Lake Tana
Lake Tana
Lake Tana is the source of the Blue Nile and is the largest lake in Ethiopia...
at 12°2′N 37°35′E. The river originates on the slopes of Mount Guna
Mount Guna
Mount Guna or Guna Terara is a mountain located near the city of Debre Tabor, in Ethiopia, in the Amhara region. It is the highest point in the Debub Gondar Zone....
, and flows west through Kemekem
Kemekem
Kemekem is one of the 105 woredas in the Amhara Region of Ethiopia. Part of the Debub Gondar Zone, Kemekem is bordered on the south by the Reb which separates it from Fogera, on the west by Lake Tana, on the north by the Semien Gondar Zone, and on the east by Ebenat...
woreda
Woreda
Woreda is an administrative division of Ethiopia , equivalent to a district . Woredas are composed of a number of Kebele, or neighborhood associations, which are the smallest unit of local government in Ethiopia...
. It has no significant tributaries.
R.E. Cheesman described the Reb in 1936 as bringing "down quantities of dark sand, and we passed banks of it deposited on the lake shore. The river bar, 600 yards out in the lake, is a semicircle, and parties of travellers with loaded donkeys were passing round it instead of crossing the river." Merchants based in Yifag would transport bars of salt
Salt
In chemistry, salts are ionic compounds that result from the neutralization reaction of an acid and a base. They are composed of cations and anions so that the product is electrically neutral...
or amoleh in small boats or tankwas down the Reb to Zege on the lake to trade for coffee
Coffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
.
The Reb was also the site of one of several stone bridges built during the time of the Jesuit missionaries or the reign of Fasilides
Fasilides of Ethiopia
Fasilides was of Ethiopia, and a member of the Solomonic dynasty...
. Consisting of five arches, it was located 24 kilometres (14.9 mi) from the estuary and enabled travel between Gondar
Gondar
Gondar or Gonder is a city in Ethiopia, which was once the old imperial capital and capital of the historic Begemder Province. As a result, the old province of Begemder is sometimes referred to as Gondar...
and Debre Tabor
Debre Tabor
Debre Tabor is a town and a woreda in north-central Ethiopia. Located in the Debub Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region of Ethiopia, about 100 kilometers southeast of Gondar and 50 kilometers east of Lake Tana, this historic town has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation of 2706 meters above...
. During the Italian occupation
Italian East Africa
Italian East Africa was an Italian colonial administrative subdivision established in 1936, resulting from the merger of the Ethiopian Empire with the old colonies of Italian Somaliland and Italian Eritrea. In August 1940, British Somaliland was conquered and annexed to Italian East Africa...
, the Italians built a bridge over the river with wooden supports, but it was damaged during the British campaign.
On 21 June 2007, the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
announced that it had approved an International Development Association credit of US$100 million for an Irrigation and Drainage project covering the Magech and Reb rivers, as part of the Nile Basin Initiative
Nile Basin Initiative
The Nile Basin Initiative is a partnership among the Nile riparian states that “seeks to develop the river in a cooperative manner, share substantial socioeconomic benefits, and promote regional peace and security”...
. With the goal of increasing irrigated agricultural output, this proposed project will develop incrementally a total area of 20,000 hectares.