Policies for sustainable land management in the East African highlands

This document presents the proceedings of the international conference held at the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, April 24-26, 2002. The theme of the conference was Policies for Sustainable Land Management in the East African Highlands, which was convened to bring together researchers, policy makers, development practitioners, donors and others to review, discuss and synthesize the findings and policy implications of policy research related to sustainable land management in the East African highlands. The conference also aimed at increasing awareness of policy makers and other stakeholders of the impacts of policies, programs and other factors on land management, agricultural productivity, poverty and food security; to discuss promising strategies to promote more sustainable land management, increased agricultural productivity, and reduced poverty and food insecurity; and to consider priorities for policy action and future research

Policies for livestock development in the Ethiopian highlands

Since 1991, there have been significant changes in utilisation of feed resources in the Ethiopian highlands: while use of communal grazing lands and private pastures has declined, use of crop residues and purchased feed has increased. In addition, although use of animal health services, and adoption of improved livestock breeds and modern management practices have increased, ownership of various types of livestock has declined. Rapid population growth has contributed most to the declining trends in grazing resources and ownership of livestock, showing the negative effects of increasing pressure on already degraded resources in the Ethiopian highlands. Conversely, access to own land, increased participation in credit and extension programmes targeting livestock, and improvement in access to markets have had significant positive impacts on adoption of improved livestock technologies and ownership of livestock. Thus, reducing population growth, and improving access to markets and credit and extension programmes targeting livestock can enhance the role of livestock in improving food security and reducing poverty, especially in the mixed crop-livestock farming systems as exist in the East African highlands

Policies for improved land management and agricultural market development in the Ethiopian highlands

“The objectives of this workshop are to review and discuss the main findings and policy implications of recent research conducted on these topics by IFPRI, Wageningen University and Research Center (WUR), the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Mekelle University (MU), the Ethiopian Agricultural Research Organization (EARO) and other Ethiopian collaborators; to discuss options for improving the development of agricultural markets and land management in Ethiopia, considering different stakeholders’ perspectives; and to develop recommendations for priority policy actions and further research based upon lessons learned from the research and remaining knowledge gaps. IFPRI has worked for more than a decade in Ethiopia studying the root causes of the interrelated problems of famine, rural poverty, low agricultural productivity and natural resource degradation, and helping to identify strategies and policies to overcome these problems. The need for effective and efficient markets for agricultural commodities and productive inputs, as well as effective measures to combat land degradation are clearly recognized by the government of Ethiopia in its current rural development strategy and poverty reduction strategy. Ethiopia has made great strides in recent years in increasing farmers’ access to productive technologies. Yet as we are all increasingly aware, these advances are necessary but not sufficient to achieve the goal of agriculturally led industrialization. Market development and sustainable natural resource management are essential building blocks of a successful rural development strategy, requiring policy makers and other stakeholders to identify and invest in an appropriate mix of institutions, infrastructure, information, and innovation systems. This workshop is intended to help contribute to these important efforts by taking stock of what is known and what we have learned from several years of recent research on sustainable land management and agricultural market development