GFRA (Global Forest Resources Assessment). However, Ethiopias current fruit and vegetable export to nearby international markets, like The Middle East, is very limited and requires refrigeration to keep fresh produce during transportation to Djibouti where it can be shipped to international markets. Furthermore, it is used for utilizing the countrys agricultural productivity growth, political commitment, and scrutinize the necessity of mechanized farms at the national level. Globally, it was forecasted that in the coming decades, the world is likely to be not only more populous and urban but also demographically older (FAO, 2017). Their livelihood is mainly based on tilling and herding of mammals and birds with little transformation for a long period of time in history because of religion and cultural preference (Diriba, 2020). Agriculture is the mainstay of Ethiopian economy involving major source of employment and gross national product. Ethiopia encompasses a wide variety of agroecologies and peoples. Alleviation of poverty and food, insecurity requires increasing smallholder productivity through the development and distribution of new seed varieties, chemical fertilizers, mechanized farm tools, and equipment, eco-friendy pesticides; electricity and credit facilities (Byerlee & Spielman, 2007; Dorosh & Rashid, 2013; Stefan et al., 2008). Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features. The food demand and price are increased in the recent decade than ever in Ethiopia. But around 700 million people, most of them living in rural areas are still live in extreme poverty, and more than 800 million people are chronically hungry and 2 billion people suffer micronutrient deficiencies in the whole world. Nachtergaele et al. Science Business. Land-based adaptation and resilience powered by nature. Over the centuries, deforestation, overgrazing, and practices such as cultivation of slopes not suited to agriculture have eroded the soil, a situation that worsened considerably during the 1970s and 1980s, especially in Eritrea, Tigray, and parts of Gondar and Wollo. Ethiopia is home to a large number of people living below the international poverty line, and although the economy is diversifying, farming is still the main source of income for many people. Crop and animal diseases such as fungi, bacteria, viruses, and nematodes; insect pests, rodents, and birds are common problems in Ethiopia. https://www.thegef.org/topics/land-degradation. Ethiopia is relatively close to major export markets such as the Middle East and Europe, Djibouti and Somalia, and can benefit a lot from banana exports. The role of science, technology and innovation in ensuring food security by 2030. The increased population and landlessness of the subsequent farming generations led to unwise use of natural resources in general and forest in particular. Rural aging has major implications on the rural labor force in patterns of agricultural production, land tenure, the social organization within communities, and socioeconomic development (FAO, 2017). How much of Ethiopias land is under cultivation? FAO (2011) and https://blog.agrivi.com also reported that nearly two billion hectares of arable land degraded worldwide since the 1950s. It reduces crop yield, nutrition, groundwater, soil organic matter, soil quality, soil health, and incomes (Melese, 2019; Tufa, 2019), vegetation coverage, and its phenology (Tenaw & Debella, 2017) and caused socio-economic problems in Ethiopia (Getahun, 2017). A rural community settlement has another negative impact on the utilization of farmlands for mechanization. See answer. (, Ethiopian seasonal rainfall variability and prediction using Canonical Correlation Analysis (CCA), Recent experiences in land rental markets in Ethiopia: Impact on equity, efficiency and poverty, Land, land policy and smallholder agriculture in Ethiopia: Options and scenarios, Economics of land degradation and improvement in Ethiopia, The role of livestock in the Ethiopian2 Economy: Policy analysis using a dynamic computable general equilibrium model for Ethiopia. Ethiopia has varies potentials regarding to aggro-ecological zones. Farmland fragmentation in Ethiopia. Agriculture is the backbone of the Ethiopian economy. Figure 1. Required fields are marked *. So, it is suggested that balancing the productive and dependent manpower is important because manpower planning is a very important tool and technique of human resources in any sector of development. The study area was purposively selected, and a simple random sampling method was used to selected households' fatteners from each kebele and interviewed using structured questionnaires. Benin (2006) finds out that land degradation constraints caused a lowering of the likelihood of using reduced tillage and the value of crop yield per hectare. While agriculture currently accounts for about 25% of greenhouse gas emissions, it also offers opportunities to both fight climate change and feed more people as the world's population grows to 10 billion people by 2050. It is also estimated that over 1.5 billion tons of soil per year are lost by erosion and flooding which could have added about 1.5 million tons of grains to the Ethiopian products (Lebeda et al., 2010). The majority of the Ethiopians are farmers but they have not yet secured food at large. 3 What is constraints of Ethiopian agriculture? Ethiopias population is growing into the 21st century with their generationally acquired wisdom and skills. continue to threaten several lives in Ethiopia today. Table 10. Environmental issues such as water pollution (as a result of agricultural and industrial runoffs, etc. Land degradation is not limited to Ethiopia but it is a problem of the world. Ethiopia's HIV/AIDS adult prevalence rate hovers around 1.1%. Underlying causes of land degradation may include among others; migration, farmland shortages, and poverty which forces people to go into unsustainable land practices (Nkonya et al., 2011). Such integration of agricultural stakeholders may improve smallholder livelihoods; shorten food supply chains and impact biodiversity through inclusive and resilient food production way. Investing in the rearing of livestock and its products including live animals, meat, leather goods, and milk is a major source of foreign exchange and household consumption values (Gelan et al., 2012). This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. In 2019, Ethiopia's major goods exports included coffee (28.7%), cut flowers (14.1%), oil seeds (11.5%), chat (10.9%), pulses (7.9%), gold (6.6%), leather and leather products (2.4%). Presented by Dr. Abera Deresa (State Minister, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development) at the 'Dialogue on Ethiopia's Agricultural Development', 12 November 2015, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. AQUASTAT - FAOs global information system on water and agriculture, FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations). Overcoming these challenges is not an easy task. What is Ethiopia weakness? Soil erosion is a serious problem in Ethiopia and requires urgent intervention to secure the food demand of the people (Woreka, 2004). Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. In some parts, utilization of the water resources is hindered because of the undulating topography of the country. (2020) reported that in Ethiopia, land fragmentation resulted in food insecurity and increased the amount of time spent moving from one parcel to another that lowered agricultural output and reduced productivity. Just clear tips and lifehacks for every day. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent. The country is endowed with ample water resources in central, western, and southwestern parts, except dry parts of the northeastern and eastern parts which may even be supplied from the water-rich areas of the country. Did you know that with a free Taylor & Francis Online account you can gain access to the following benefits? The Labor Sorrow It was all started about the tax that laborers are shouldering. Dryland areas in Ethiopia encompass pastoral and agro-pastoral areas in the country and have long been regarded as peripheries especially in economic terms. Arable land is the most basic resource for farmers life which the majority of the energetic Ethiopians lacked or too small to use because it is divided into a number of small-sized parcels, degraded, fragmented and infertile. In Ethiopia, the scarcity of arable farmland and landlessness increased than ever in general and very high in the highland areas in particular (Diriba, 2020). Ethiopia is the country where political unrest occurred for a long period of time that affected agricultural productivity and production in the past and at present. The adverse impact of climate variability varies. Loss of Arable Land threaten world food supplies, Ethiopia - Average consumer prices inflation rate. Major destinations for Ethiopia's exports in 2017/2018 were: Asia 39.8% (of which China accounted for 22.3%), Europe 28.7% and Africa 20.9%. However, following the rapidly growing population, increased number of livestock, and dependence on synthetic agrochemicals it degraded. Particularly, the GOE under the new administration has given renewed emphasis to develop the agriculture sector and ensure food security. It varies from season to season, and year to year across agro-ecological regions [(Dega (high land), Woina Dega (midland), and kola (lowland)] of the country (Shekuru et al., 2020) (Tables 4, 5, and 6). The farmers continued to utilize their ancient system of production despite changing ecological and population pressures. Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet. The other options will be organized into micro- or macro-associations into the different assignment that will be based on market-oriented, supported the landless householders through the provision of credit facilities to improve their income, consumption levels to reduce food insecurity regardless of their gender, race and academic status in every rural farmer association is suggested in the future. Although industrialized agriculture has been successful in producing large quantities of food, the future of food production is in jeopardy due to problems in agriculture. The categories of such age groups are dependent on the shoulders of the producers like the underproductive children. 1. Vertically coordinated, more organized food systems offer standardized food for urban areas and formal employment opportunities for both rural and urban areas. According to the most recent studies, 842 million people or 12 percent of the world's population were unable to meet their . Review, Small farms, smaller plots: Land size, fragmentation, and productivity in Ethiopia, Agricultural innovations for sustainable crop production intensification, Ethiopia: Share of economic sectors in the gross domestic product (GDP) from 2009 to 2019, Family planning and fertility: Estimating program effects using cross-sectional data, The rain doesnt come on time anymore: Poverty, vulnerability, and climate variability in Ethiopia, The impact of farm size on agricultural sustainability, Variability and trends of temperature and rainfall over three agro ecological zones in North Shewa, central Ethiopia, Review of climate change and health in Ethiopia: Status and gap analysis, The impact of agricultural extension and roads on poverty and consumption growth in fifteen Ethiopian villages, Briefing note 5 economic assessment of the costs of deforestation in South-West Ethiopia, Land degradation: A challenge to Ethiopia, Climate change and its effects on vegetation phenology across ecoregions of Ethiopia, Population growth and cultivated land in rural Ethiopia: Land use dynamics, access, farm size, and fragmentation. Most of the Ethiopian farmers have farmland that is fragmented into two to three plots or parcels (Table 3). It is too old in the case of the current context or generations. On the other hand, the agricultural problems in the developed and developing countries like Ethiopia are not the same. Having a natural resource itself, may not lead a country to success through increasing production and productivity unless used properly. Register to receive personalised research and resources by email. Agriculture is the backbone of the Ethiopian economy. Ethiopia's development plan has laid out enhancing agricultural production and productivity as one of the major strategic pillars. ), land degradation which often leads to desertification, poor climatic conditions (including severe droughts), etc. But this has been used for fuel as the forest trees diminished. They farm on very small plots of fragmented land and often are used unsuitable primitive techniques that are not effective for their agro-ecological zones (Lebeda et al., 2010). Following climate change, the small-scale, and landless farmers migrate to the urban to seek other employment opportunities, especially male members of rural households, which is leading, in turn, to the feminization of farming in many parts of the world (FAO, 2017). The population of Sub-Saharan Africa countries projected to be doubled by 2050 (increased by 99%) (UNDESA, 2015). It is reported that over the last 4050years, the mean annual temperature of Ethiopia increased from 0.2C to 0.28C per decade (McSweeney et al., 2010). Data on export values of major agricultural exports, exchange rate, gross domestic product and labour force were obtained from FAO, while data on total export and total import values were collected from the annual report of the National Bank of Ethiopia. According to Infomineo (2016), the key agricultural sectors in Ethiopia are the following: Coffee & tea; Ethiopia has a great potential for coffee production, thanks to the country's abundant rainfall, optimum temperatures, conducive altitude, and fertile soil. Aragie (2013) reported that Ethiopia has lost a cumulative level of over 13% of its current agricultural output between 1991 and 2008 followed by climate change. In the coming decades, ensuring food security for the Ethiopians will face great challenges. Sutcliffe (2009) reported that in western Ethiopia, in the Baro-Akobo basin areas alone the average annual net loss of forest through deforestation is estimated to be $42.5 million. This influenced the levels of income, opportunities, and ownership of assets. (, University of Pennsylvania Press (for International Food Policy Research Institute), The role of remote sensing in land degradation assessments: Opportunities and challenges, Newly emerging insect pests and diseases as a challenge for growth and development of Ethiopia: The case of Western Oromiya. ILRI. Particularly in the northern provinces, which have been settled with sedentary agriculture for millennia, population density has caused major damage to the soil's physical base, to its organic and chemical nutrients, and to the natural vegetation cover. Despite numerous challenges of agricultural activities, Ethiopia has marvelous opportunities like a commercial farming investment on fruit, vegetable, ornamental plants, and beef; the huge number of the labor force, water resources, and proximity to the Middle East and other African countries to ship products within a short period of time. According to Diriba (2020), the practice of mechanized agriculture in Ethiopia is estimated at 0.7% for land preparation while it is less than 0.8% for crops thresher machines. major problems of agriculture in ethiopia The aim of this paper is to demonstrate trends and controversies of population growth and . What are the major problems of soil in Ethiopia? Ethiopia is characterized by agricultural challenges and bright future prospects in the sector. Major problems of Ethiopian agriculture; Is agriculture is the backbone of the Ethiopian economy; In Ethiopia, agriculture is accounting for over 50% of gross domestic product and employing over 85% of the labor force. About 0.7% of the country is covered with natural water bodies or lakes (MoWR (Ministry of Water Resources), 2002) which is around 744, 400ha (IUCN (international union for conservation of nature), 2010), and the amount of water it holds is estimated to be 70 billion cubic meters. Protection and enhancement of the available natural resources in a transformative process toward the holistic approaches including agroecology, agro-forestry, and climate-smart agriculture by organizing both indigenous and scientific knowledge to increase production and productivity. By African, standard rural development programme has long history in Ethiopia. Within the country, there is a lack of improved seeds, pesticides, fertilizers and irrigation. The sector accounts for about 10% of Ethiopias export income, with leather and leather products making up 7.5% and live animals 3.1%. Abstract. Machinery including computers: US$1.7 billion (11.4% of total imports) The majority of insect pests of economic importance in Ethiopia belong to the category of regular based on their occurrence as indicated in Table 9. (. These situations have resulted in the losses of resources, the rising tide of hunger and poverty. Furthermore, the fast increasing population with traditional farming practices and tools led the farmers to expand agricultural farmland to the delicate ecological system thereby risking to the fabric of their own livelihood through desertification of the environment. While, Gebreyesus and Kirubel (2009) reported that the heavy reliance of some 85 percent of Ethiopia's growing population on an exploitative kind of subsistence agriculture is a major reason behind the current state of land degradation. The uses of improved drought-tolerant crop varieties are also helpful in saving water. 2 The main contributions, potentials, characteristics and problems of Ethiopian agriculture. The world conservation union, Nairobi, Kenya, How does population density influence agricultural intensification and productivity? These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. It increased by around 70% based on the current estimation backgrounds. 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major problems of agriculture in ethiopia