Situation and Trend Analysis of Agricultural Development in Ethiopia

Abstract

The Ethiopian Agriculture sector contributes 32.5 percent to the gross domestic product, 72.7 percent to employment opportunities, and 90 percent of raw materials for manufacturing industries. it is the major source of export revenue including coffee, oil seeds, pulses, flower, chat, fruits & vegetables, and meat & meat products, and accounts for 71.2 percent of the total value of exports in the country. The country has immense potential for agricultural production. despite this potential, however, Ethiopian agriculture has remained underdeveloped and the aggregate rates and intensities of adoption of improved technologies remain low compared to those realized in Asia’s Green Revolution. Several factors, including government expenditures in the sector, especially on extension services, road network, lower levels of rural education, and lack of favorable domestic and foreign price incentives have influenced the wider circulation of improved technologies. The Government of Ethiopia seeks to leverage on developing huge unutilized arable land, modernizing production systems, and improving the uptake of technology. Efforts have been made by the government to improve the performance of agriculture through agriculture and rural development policies and strategies. Ethiopia is currently developing a Policy and Investment Framework to align the financing commitments of the country’s development partners. This research project aims at analyzing the current situation of Ethiopian agriculture and rural development in country. The research was undertaken through a literature review approach. The reviewed literature was thematically collected, summarized, analyzed, interpreted, narrated, and then discussed. Insufficient access to credit, climate change, land degradation and deforestation, lack of integration, lack of irrigation facilities, sudden outbreaks of natural disasters, pests, shortage of technological advancement, and narrow market support are the major constraints in agricultural production and productivity. In this regard, the use of improved seeds is at a very low level and the informal seed system is dominant in the country. Moreover, not all accessible seeds were reasonable for the soil and climate types inside and over the rural communities. On the other hand, few households in all the farming sites found the prevailing price of fertilizer expensive and tough to afford, partly due to restricted access to money. Those that may afford fertilizers were additionally involved concerning the danger of low profitableness given the high price on the one hand and on the other, erratic climatic conditions that could lead on to low outputs. In general, poor farmers who constitute most of the Ethiopian farming community appear to be largely excluded from the input supply system-including seeds and fertilizer as well as credit and financial services. To eradicate and minimize the problems faced in the countries agriculture it is recommended to establish strong and dynamic result-based monitoring and evaluation system, investing more in agricultural research, development of infrastructure like access to road and mechanization of the practice is needed.

Keywords: Agriculture, Ethiopia, production system, improved technologies

DOI: 10.7176/DCS/14-1-05

Publication date: January 31^st 2024