Wheat yield gaps across smallholder farming systems in Ethiopia

Wheat yields in Ethiopia need to increase considerably to reduce import dependency and keep up with the expected increase in population and dietary changes. Despite the yield progress observed in recent years, wheat yield gaps remain large. Here, we decompose wheat yield gaps in Ethiopia into efficiency, resource, and technology yield gaps and relate those yield gaps to broader farm(ing) systems aspects. To do so, stochastic frontier analysis was applied to a nationally representative panel dataset covering the Meher seasons of 2009 and 2013 and crop modelling was used to simulate the water-limited yield (Yw) in the same years. Farming systems analysis was conducted to describe crop area shares and the availability of land, labour, and capital in contrasting administrative zones. Wheat yield in farmers’ fields averaged 1.9 t ha− 1 corresponding to ca. 20% of Yw. Most of the yield gap was attributed to the technology yield gap (> 50% of Yw) but narrowing efficiency (ca. 10% of Yw) and resource yield gaps (ca. 15% of Yw) with current technologies can nearly double actual yields and contribute to achieve wheat self-sufficiency in Ethiopia. There were small differences in the relative contribution of the intermediate yield gaps to the overall yield gap across agro-ecological zones, administrative zones, and farming systems. At farm level, oxen ownership was positively associated with the wheat cultivated area in zones with relatively large cultivated areas per household (West Arsi and North Showa) while no relationship was found between oxen ownership and the amount of inputs used per hectare of wheat in the zones studied. This is the first thorough yield gap decomposition for wheat in Ethiopia and our results suggest government policies aiming to increase wheat production should prioritise accessibility and affordability of inputs and dissemination of technologies that allow for precise use of these inputs

Varietal Adoption, Outcomes and Impact

Parallel to the preceding chapter, we synthesize the results of Chapters 6–17 here. The focus is on outcomes and impacts. Outcomes centre on varietal adoption and turnover; impacts refer to changes in on-farm productivity, poverty and food security. Hypotheses from Chapter 3 are revisited at the end of each thematic section..

Antimicrobial resistance in Ethiopia: A systematic review and meta-analysis of prevalence in foods, food handlers, animals, and the environment

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) has been recognized as one of the greatest global threats for human and animal health. The present review retrieved up to date information on the epidemiology of AMR in the animal-source food chain in Ethiopia focusing on AMR in bacterial species isolated from food handlers, live animals, foods (animal origin and non-animal origin), and in environmental samples. Accordingly, pooled prevalence of AMR in the different sources was estimated. For data analysis, we used random effect meta-analysis and in order to avoid exclusion of studies with zero prevalence of antimicrobial resistance, Freeman-Tukey double arcsine transformation was applied. We identified 152 eligible studies and retrieved 4097 data records (183 in food handlers, 2055 in foods, 1040 in live animals and 819 for environmental samples) which together reported a total of 86,813 AMR tests with 64 different antimicrobial disks for 81 bacteria species. We present the pooled prevalence of AMR for major bacterium-antibiotic combination in different sample types. The pooled prevalence of AMR in bacteria from food producing live animals was 20%. High estimates of AMR pooled prevalence were found in bacteria identified from milk, food handlers and the environmental samples with 29%, and 28% in meat. In foods of non-animal origin, the prevalence was lower with 13%. In milk, the highest AMR estimate was found for penicillin (69%) followed by amoxicillin (51%). Regarding multi-drug resistance (MDR), the overall pooled prevalence was 74% among AMR positive samples. Microbes reported having a higher MDR pattern were: Staphylococcus spp. (96%), Salmonella spp. (81%) and Escherichia coli (77%). The present review revealed a high resistance against commonly used drugs for animal and human treatments and/or prophylaxis. In conclusion, the high estimate of prevalence of AMR observed in bacteria recovered from different sample sources related to the animal-source food chain (food, live animal and environment) can highlight the possible linkage among them. The MDR levels in several bacteria species are a clear indication that the threat is directed to many antimicrobials. Our review demonstrated that the high overall AMR resistance levels call for effective policy and intervention measures, which best address the problem along the food chain through a One Health approach

Got data too poor for time series analysis? Can cluster analysis be a remedy? Studying wheat market integration in Ethiopia

Recent global food price developments have spurred renewed interest in analyzing integration of local markets to global markets. A popular approach to quantify market integration is cointegration analysis. However, local market price data often has missing values, outliers, or short and incomplete series, making cointegration analysis impossible. Instead of imputing missing data, this paper proposes cluster analysis as an alternative methodological approach for analyzing market integration. In particular, we perform cluster analyses on a set of statistical indicators of eight Ethiopian local price series to analyze how they relate to world market prices. Moreover, recognizing several policy regimes in the period 2007-2010 we investigate how market clusters change over time. Results show that in periods with wheat imports via the private sector, several local markets form a common cluster with the world market. In periods with government controlled imports and exchange rate collapse, domestic prices measured by a comprehensive set of characteristics were strongly dissimilar from those of world market prices

Innovative haricot beans (Phaseolus vulgaris) seed system for smallholder farmers in Dale District, Southern Ethiopia: Experiences from IPMS

The demand for haricot bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), both in domestic and export markets, has been increasing in the past decade. This development can be exploited by smallholders to increase their income through increased market participation. To assist in this development, the Improving Productivity and Market Success (IPMS) of Ethiopian Farmers Project introduced a participatory market oriented value chain development approach with the key actors: farmers groups, the Woreda OoARD, farmers’ cooperative, Melkassa and Hawassa Agricultural Research Centres (ARC), and the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT). Farmers traditionally used red colored varieties (Red Wolayita), mainly for home consumption. Shortage of high quality seed in the required quantities has inhibited many farmers from growing haricot beans. The problem is furthermore aggravated by the fact that farmers in the southern region do not keep or preserve seed stock until the next season due to the vulnerability of haricot bean seed to storage pests. The project partners introduced/tested various interventions including variety testing, seed multiplication and market linkages using different approaches and tools. Among the five varieties tested, Nasir, Dimtu and Ibado (logomame) were identified as suitable for a more commercial oriented haricot bean production system. However, DRK and Cranscope were found to be less suitable. In 2008, 51 farmers in 7 PAs, organized in clusters, started producing seeds of improved varieties and produced about 83 qt of seeds. In 2009 the number of farmers and PAs had grown respectively to 103 and 11. However, due to poor rainfall no seeds were harvested in the same year. In 2008, the Weynenata cooperative was selected to purchase seeds from seed producers with credit provided from the IPMS innovative credit fund. About 4.3 tones of semi-certified seed were processed/stored and packed in 6,010 labeled packets. Farmers appreciated the labeling, but preferred larger sized packs. An obvious challenge is the variability of rainfall, which affected the viability of the commercialization of haricot bean grain and seed production. Attention also needs to be paid to strengthening linkages between partners; and cooperatives in its marketing role. Linkages between the cooperative and private sales outlets should be considered for the sale of packed seeds

Wheat yield gaps across smallholder farming systems in Ethiopia

Wheat yields in Ethiopia need to increase considerably to reduce import dependency and keep up with the expected increase in population and dietary changes. Despite the yield progress observed in recent years, wheat yield gaps remain large. Here, we decompose wheat yield gaps in Ethiopia into efficiency, resource, and technology yield gaps and relate those yield gaps to broader farm(ing) systems aspects. To do so, stochastic frontier analysis was applied to a nationally representative panel dataset covering the Meher seasons of 2009 and 2013 and crop modelling was used to simulate the water-limited yield (Yw) in the same years. Farming systems analysis was conducted to describe crop area shares and the availability of land, labour, and capital in contrasting administrative zones. Wheat yield in farmers’ fields averaged 1.9 t ha− 1 corresponding to ca. 20% of Yw. Most of the yield gap was attributed to the technology yield gap (> 50% of Yw) but narrowing efficiency (ca. 10% of Yw) and resource yield gaps (ca. 15% of Yw) with current technologies can nearly double actual yields and contribute to achieve wheat self-sufficiency in Ethiopia. There were small differences in the relative contribution of the intermediate yield gaps to the overall yield gap across agro-ecological zones, administrative zones, and farming systems. At farm level, oxen ownership was positively associated with the wheat cultivated area in zones with relatively large cultivated areas per household (West Arsi and North Showa) while no relationship was found between oxen ownership and the amount of inputs used per hectare of wheat in the zones studied. This is the first thorough yield gap decomposition for wheat in Ethiopia and our results suggest government policies aiming to increase wheat production should prioritise accessibility and affordability of inputs and dissemination of technologies that allow for precise use of these inputs.</p

Agricultural mechanization and reduced tillage: antagonism or synergy?

This paper reviews agricultural mechanization and reduced tillage use in the context of sustainable intensification in developing country agriculture. The scoping review includes selected and contrasting cases – including Zimbabwe (manual systems), Bangladesh (2-wheel – single axle tractor systems), India (4-wheel – i.e. 2 axles tractor systems), Kazakhstan (mechanized systems) and Brazil (diverse systems). The expansion of reduced tillage appears strongly associated with the level of agricultural mechanization – facilitated by a number of common drivers and contextualized by the prevailing farm power and intensity of tillage. Soil conservation, timely planting and farm power savings in crop establishment are important drivers for the expansion of reduced tillage across the world, facilitated by conducive markets, institutional and policy environments and the integration of diverse actors to introduce, adapt and promote the necessary components