Abstract This article presents an assessment of the groundwater resources in the Geba basin, Ethiopia. Hydrogeological characteristics are derived from a combination of GIS and field survey data. MODFLOW groundwater model in a PMWIN environment is used to simulate the movement and distribution of groundwater in the basin. Despite the limited data available, by simplifying the model as a single layered semi-confined groundwater system and by optimising the transmissivity of the different lithological units, a realistic description of the groundwater flow is obtained. It is concluded that 30,000 m3/day of groundwater can be abstracted from the Geba basin for irrigation in a sustainable way, in locations characterised by shallow groundwater in combination with aquitard-type lithological units.