Improved grazing land management is vital to increasing food security and alleviating poverty. It also provides environmental benefits. To address these problems, the national Soil and Water Conservation (SWC) programme in Ethiopia initiated a grazing land management project in 2000. Implementation of the technology includes the initial delineating of the...

Drying meat under natural temperatures, humidity and circulation of the air, including direct influence of sun rays, is the oldest method of meat preservation. However, various methods, typical for different regions, exist to produce dried meat with or without additional treatment. The following examples of dried meat techniques are part...

We cannot talk about food sovereignty without mentioning the role of mass markets on which the majority of people depend on their income and food. These markets have demonstrated their relevance during the COVID-19 era by strengthening rural-urban linkages. Mass markets have been the main avenue through which rural people...

COVID-19 has disrupted food systems in many countries; however, as we are learning, the impacts vary and are driven by a variety of factors. In general, labor-intensive and perishable food supply chains are most susceptible. Agajie Tesfaye, Yetimwork Habte, and Bart Minten provide results from a qualitative assessment of dairy...

Ethiopia has experienced impressive agricultural growth and poverty reduction, stemming in part from substantial public investments in agriculture. Yet, the agriculture sector now faces increasing land and water constraints along with other challenges to growth. Ethiopia’s Agrifood System: Past Trends, Present Challenges, and Future Scenarios presents a forward-looking analysis of...

Using the hay-box chick brooder is a simple technique which conserves the metabolic heat produced by the chicks, and thus keeping them warm. Unlike other brooders, this device does not require coal, oil, or electricity for heating. The following description gives detailed information on how to build and manage the...

Water is one of the most scarce resources for African farmers. Access to enough water in semi-arid regions is a huge challenge and shortages can lead to the loss of lives and livelihoods in times of drought. With climate change, water conservation will only become more imperative. Ethiopia has one...

Many people in Eastern Africa depend on forests and trees to meet various needs. With growing populations, these resources are being rapidly depleted. Many farmers want to plant trees but cannot readily obtain high-quality tree seedlings. Establishing a tree nursery can help to meet this demand and provide you with...

This report responds to heightened concerns over rising levels of farmer-herder conflict across a wide band of semi-arid Africa. We assess the quantitative evidence behind this general impression and review the explanations in the scientific literature, in the light of known issues with long-standing attitudes towards pastoralism and mobile populations....

Increasing tree cover and managing trees better on farms in Ethiopia supports livelihoods and the environment but most tree-planting schemes promote only a few species. This research aimed to understand farmers’ tree planting priorities in Oromia, Ethiopia and address challenges involved in meeting them. Tree species and planting niches were...

“Strengthening the Livelihoods Resilience of Pastoral and Agropastoral Communities in South Sudan’s Cross-border Areas with Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda” is a three-year project funded by European Union that aims to improve governance and conflict prevention to reduce forced displacement and irregular migration in the cross-border areas of South Sudan....

This brief is based on experience gained from the Master’s Programme in Agroecology at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) in particular, and on contributions from our partner programmes at Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU) and Martyrs University in Uganda (UMU). The brief provides an overview of agroecology,...

The project aimed to address the adverse drivers of migration in two target countries, Tunisia and Ethiopia, which are particularly prone to rural outmigration of youth, while at the same time harnessing the development potential of migratory movements. In particular, the project focused on the promotion of innovative mechanisms to...

Positive deviant practices in gender relations and other livelihood aspects being practiced by women and men against the normative gender relations include women assuming the “role of men” in farm operations such as ploughing, harvesting and threshing; women speaking in public; couples sharing every decision and participating together in social...

The Smallholder Farmers’ Data portrait is a comprehensive, systematic and standardized data set on the profile of smallholder farmers across the world. This Factsheet generates an overview on how small family farmers in Ethiopia live their lives by using the Data Portrait, putting an emphasis on the constraints they face, the...

This report unpacks and explores farmer-managed seed systems and their contribution to food and seed sovereignty, including the benefits they provide to farming communities as a part of their sociocultural, economic, spiritual and ecological livelihoods. The report highlights, exposes and explores how these systems work. It builds on reports of...

Recurrent drought, degraded rangelands and reduced access to traditional grazing lands have left pastoral communities in the Horn of Africa’s arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs) more vulnerable and facing severe livestock feed shortages. During dry spells, pastoral communities suffer from food and nutrition insecurity, as well as shrinking incomes occasioned...

The Smallholder Farmers’ Dataportrait of the ESA Small Family Farms Team is a comprehensive, systematic and standardized data set on the profile of smallholder farmers, bringing out the characteristics of family farms across the world. It is designed in such a way that differences between countries and regions can be...

Read the latest publication by Tropical Agriculture Platform – Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems (TAP-CDAIS) project on stories of change. This relates to many stories of personal change, organizational change, changes in attitudes, changes in practice and improvements in livelihoods. Some examples of rich learning experiences started with the...

Awra Amba is an intentional community of around 500 people founded in northern Ethiopia to combat poverty, exploitation and gender inequality. At the heart of this magnanimous project is a simple question: why should any one human being exploit another? This is the question that the founder of Awra Amba, Zumra...