Two separate but exigent poles at the sole center of agriculture: first the need to boost productivity by implementing multiple of strategies, and second relying on organic agricultural produces aiming to meet the demand from international market and nutritional choice.
Ethiopia’s Climate-Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) strategy on agriculture prioritizes improving crop and livestock production practices for higher food security and farmer income while reducing emissions. According to the strategy, well into the foreseeable future, agriculture will remain the core sector of the economy and provide employment for the vast majority of youths.
It is an impetus towards sustainable and steady growth rates of the agricultural sector – the GTP projects more than 8% over the next five years. It is also vital to boost household income of most families, ensure food security for a growing population and support the growth of direct exports of agricultural products and/or the establishment of more light manufacturing industries.
The CRGE initiative has prioritized the major initiatives to limit the soil-based emissions from agriculture and mitigate the pressure on forests from the expansion of land under cultivation. These initiatives offer combined benefit of supporting economic growth, increasing farmers’/ pastoralists’ income and limiting emissions, boosting productivity and thereby, should be integrated to the priorities to transformation by the Ministry of Agriculture.
It is obvious that having reliable agricultural inputs is fundamental to expedite the country’s economic development and transitions towards industrialization. However, aiming to meet the set goals in accordance with CRGE strategy, it is exigent to focus on inputs with no or minimal carbon emission. Recently, the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) held the first ever national organic agriculture conference.
The conference attracts various participants to discuss thoroughly on how to promote organic agriculture and motivate the farmers practicing organic agriculture. Speaking at the event, State Minister at the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) Sani Redi said that currently, more than 200,000 farmers are practicing organic agriculture in the country. The main objective of the conference is to exchange organic agriculture experience and establish platform on how to intensify the sector, he added.
So far, coffee, oilseeds, honey, spices, among others are the major crops harvested with organic agriculture. These agricultural products contribute the largest share in generating the largest share of the country’s hard currency. “161,113 and 24,936 hectare of land cultivated with coffee and oil seeds via organic agriculture, respectively”. As to him, agricultural products like; coffee, oilseeds and spices, which are cultivated through organic agriculture are showing substantial export demand increment compared to other chemical fertilizer utilizing crop produces.
“Organic agriculture is becoming profitable and successful in the world market due to its healthiness during consumption. It is pro-environment and supports climate resilient green economy.” The Ministry is also working in cooperation with stakeholders to nurture best experiences regarding intensifying organic agriculture, he indicated. The country proclaimed 488/1998 organic agriculture development platform proclamation to promote organic agriculture.
The proclamation indicates that consumers’ demand for organically produced agricultural’ products and foodstuffs is globally increasing and thereby a new market for the country’s organically produced agricultural products is being created. The market price for such products’ is higher, and contributes towards the attainment of better price and economic perspective for the rural population while the way in which they are produced involves less intensive use of land and the protection of biodiversity and the environment.
In response to the rising demand, for such agricultural products and foodstuffs are being placed on the market with labels stating or implying to customers that they, have been produced organically or without the use of synthetic chemicals. On the other side, it should be noted that boosting agricultural productivity is nation’s prior goal to ensure food subsistence and sufficient supply to small and medium scale industries. To attain the aforementioned goal, one of the strategies emphasized is use of improved seeds and fertilizers.
As a result, there should be compromising measure to the aforementioned two poles. As to the state minister, most of the agricultural produces by small holders are free of chemical fertilizers. However, as far as such produces lack international certificate, their demand to the global market tends to be limited. Thus, as to him, it is highly required to implement participatory guarantee system and interconnect the stakes, from producers to consumers and realize trust.
Besides, the lasting solution is promoting natural fertilizes such as compost and shifting cultivation as well as natural soil conservation techniques. Nation has been mobilizing the agrarian community for proper utilization of compost and meaningful results have been scored.
Besides, natural fertilizers are cost efficient due to the fact that they are available to the farmers at ease. Overall, since the globe is looking to organic agriculture, nation’s focus to it is an exigent necessity amid the very agriculture based export income it highly relies on. Mediating the goal to boost agricultural productivity and the need to expedite organic agricultural produces is also the assignment for the sector.
The Ethiopian Herald, January 9/2019
BY TEWODROS KASSA
