Enset is a large, tree-like herbaceous plant that has been cultivated and consumed in the southern and southwestern regions of Ethiopia for centuries. While it is commonly referred to as the “false banana,” enset is actually more closely related to bananas. Unlike bananas, the edible parts of the enset plant are the underground stem and the leaf bases, rather than the fruit.
As the impacts of climate change continue to intensify across East Africa, the government of Ethiopia is increasingly looking to an indigenous enset crop as a key part of its strategy to ensure long-term food security for its rapidly growing population.
“Enset has been the dietary staple and insurance crop for millions of Ethiopians living in the highland regions of the country for generations,” explains Usman Surur, Agriculture and Rural Development Sector Coordinator and Head of Agriculture Bureau at Central Ethiopia State.
“As the climate has become more unpredictable and extreme weather events more common, we are seeing enset emerge as an increasingly important food security crop that can withstand drought, flooding, and other climate-related stresses that have devastated Ethiopia’s traditional cereal and root crops.”
In addition to climate resilience, the state is attempting to ensure food security for Ethiopia. Not only Ethiopia, but we are also working to make the country a beacon of nutrition at the African level, he mentioned.
Adisu Fikadu (PhD), the Coordinator and Researcher of the Enset Project at Arba Minch University, stated that Enset is a remarkable crop that can be grown without the use of chemical fertilizers, herbicides, or pesticides, making it a cost-effective and environmentally-friendly solution for food security.
Unlike other crops, enset can produce a significant yield on a relatively small plot of land. He noted that an area of just two square meters can yield up to 250 kilograms of food from a single enset plant, far exceeding the output of other cereal crops planted for five or ten years.
However, despite enset’s importance, the crop has long been overlooked and underutilized at the national level in Ethiopia. This is beginning to change, as the Ethiopian government and various international development organizations have in recent years started to prioritize enset as a key element of the country’s food security strategy.
Adisu said that this inspiration involves providing training and technical support to smallholder farmers, establishing community-based enset processing and storage facilities, and conducting research to develop higher-yielding and more disease-resistant enset varieties.
In addition to its climate resilience, enset also offers significant nutritional benefits. The underground stem of the enset plant is high in carbohydrates, fiber, and various vitamins and minerals. It can be processed into starchy flour that is used to make a variety of traditional Ethiopian dishes, including the ubiquitous staple food called “kocho.” The leaves and leaf bases of the plant are also edible and nutritious.
Enset is a nutritious crop, providing carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, and minerals. It is particularly rich in vitamin B6, potassium, and manganese, making it a valuable addition to the diet, especially in regions prone to food insecurity, Adisu said.
In addition to its use as a staple food, enset has multiple other applications. It can be used as animal feed, the fiber can be woven into ropes and mats, and the plant’s sap can be used for traditional medicinal purposes. This versatility allows enset to be integrated into various aspects of rural livelihoods. By further exploring the benefits and versatility of enset, Ethiopia can promote sustainable agriculture, ultimately contributing to the country’s overall development and resilience, as he underlined.
Since its establishment, significant progress has been made to develop the region. Among the key initiatives, efforts have been undertaken to prevent the extinction of enset plants and to expand these efforts to various locations. Under the 40:40:20 initiatives, a farmer in central Ethiopia will have 100 enset plants within three years, Usman noted.
Apart from preserving the environment’s beauty, these initiatives play a crucial role in maintaining the balance of the ecosystem and climate, improving soil fertility, and addressing drought challenges, which is part of the green legacy program, he said.
Despite its widespread use in Ethiopia, enset remains an underutilized crop globally. Increased research and investment in enset cultivation, processing, and product development could unlock its full potential, not only in the southern part of Ethiopia but also in other regions with similar agro-ecological conditions, Adisu noted.
State Minister of Agriculture Melese Mekonen (PhD), stated that the national enset development program has been designed and implemented, with extensive activities carried out in the Oromia, Southwest, Central, and Southern regions of Ethiopia.
Historically, enset has been a crucial component of the traditional “enset-based farming system” practiced by state zones like the Gurage, Hadiya, Kambata, and Sidama in southern Ethiopia. In this integrated agricultural system, enset is grown alongside other important food and cash crops. The enset plant’s resilience, ability to be stored for long periods, and versatility in culinary uses have made it a dietary mainstay and a type of “living savings account” for these communities, he said.
Adisu emphasized that enset’s benefits extend beyond food security. The crop also plays a crucial role in maintaining soil fertility and mitigating the effects of climate change, including drought. Moreover, the cultivation of enset is often integrated into agroforestry systems, where it is grown alongside other crops and trees, like coffee, fruit, and spice crops. This diversified approach helps maintain soil fertility, reduce erosion, and enhance the overall resilience of the farming system, making it a versatile choice for farmers.
In the past year, the Central Ethiopia Region planted 87 million saplings, covering 37,000 hectares of land. The plan is to further increase this to over 90 million saplings in the coming year, Usuman mentioned.
The state minister stated that the enset plant has emerged as a valuable food source for over 25 million citizens, offering benefits beyond just nutrition. Currently, enset is cultivated on over 1 million hectares of land, with plans to expand it to 2.4 million hectares in the next seven years.
Additionally, the program aims to increase the number of households benefiting from it from the current 5.1 million to 10 million, he said.
Indeed, the Ethiopian government has set an ambitious target of nearly tripling the country’s enset production by 2030, with the goal of making it a dietary staple for at least 40 million Ethiopians – up from around 20 million currently. This expansion will require significant investments in agricultural extension services, research and development, and infrastructure to process and store enset.
Collaborations with research institutes and universities are also underway to address the diseases related to the plant. Moreover, universities and agricultural research centers are conducting various studies to explore the potential of enset as a source of foreign exchange.
To address the laborious process of preparing food from enset, Adisu stated that the Arba Minch University Research Center is working to reduce the time it takes to turn enset into a consumable food product from several months to just seven days and to further enhance the efficiency of the crop. Also, the government is working to integrate technology and improve efficiency.
Besides, the Ethiopian government’s efforts are focused on ensuring food security, promoting nutrition, and leveraging the enset plant as a valuable resource for economic development and environmental sustainability.
BY FIKADU BELAY
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD SUNDAY EDITION 2 JUNE 2024
