Organizational Structure

WLRC is organized into six divisions containing 17 units, two on-call/outsourced services, and avenues for ensuring ethical conduct of duty, whistleblowing concerns and handling complaints, as well as regional project offices with community and area development teams at the grassroots The detailed organogram is presented in Figure 1. 

Presently, WLRC has research, administrative, and field staff. In 2021, WLRC had 87 staff members engaged in various research and development activities as well as support functions. Of those, 20 are PhD holders, 25 are with Masters degrees, and 51 hold BSc and below. Each research division leads research projects and activities, but there is a seamless internal collaboration in executing multidisciplinary projects. 

Leadership and executive management are provided by a Director-General who is assisted by a Deputy Director-General for Programmes and another for Administration and Finance. Remaining a fully autonomous entity, WLRC was affiliated with Addis Ababa University (AAU) and it also has a strong working relationship with its international partner and co-manager the Centre for Development and Environment (CDE) of the University of Berne in Switzerland. At the top level of its governance, institutional oversight is provided by a Board of Trustees which is constituted of the State Ministers of the Ministries of Agriculture, Water and Energy, Finance, Innovation and Technology, Ethiopian Environmental Protection Authority, one senior academic staff of the AAU, and the Deputy Director of CDE- University of Bern or his/her representative. The Board is chaired by the AAU Vice President for Research and Technology Transfer. The WLRC Director-General is a Member Secretary to the Board of Trustees. Project Steering Committees and Advisory Groups ply technical quality assurance and advisory roles. The Director-General, supported by the Deputies, is the Head of the Executive Management of the Centre.