Livelihood Profile Tigray Region, Ethiopia

Transcription

1 Livelihood Profile Tigray Region, Ethiopia Draft Gesho and Wheat Highland Zone February Zone Description The Gesho and Wheat Highland livelihood zone is in the south of Ahferom woreda, Ganta Afeshaum and a small part of Werei Lake. This is a mountainous area in a dega agro-ecology zone and has moderate highland temperatures. The prominent mountain in the zone is Emba Ahferom. Annual rainfall is between 600 and 800mm and the clay-rich soil has relatively high moisture retention. Water for human consumption is collected from developed springs and hand dug wells in both the wet and dry season. The production system is mixed farming, with both crop and livestock production. The main crops cultivated are gesho (equivalent to hops) and wheat. Gesho, a species of buckthorn, is a perennial shrub whose leaves are used for the preparation of local beer; as such, it is a valuable cash crop. Wheat is the staple food crop. Minor crops produced are hanfets (mixture of barley and wheat) and horse beans. Hanfets supplements the wheat harvest and horse beans are both a food and cash crop. Agriculture activities are dependant on the main kiremti (long) rains that fall from June to August, although there are periodic showers from April onwards. Oxen provide draft power for land preparation; while plowing is done exclusively by men, all other agricultural work is shared between men and women. Households cultivate their land without assistance from hired labor because land holdings are small. The land is moderately productive, but cash crops occupy less than half the cultivated area. The shortage of arable land makes this livelihood zone permanently in deficit of food crops. The main crop hazards are rodents, aphids and chocolate spot disease. Rodents attack wheat and barley, aphids attack vegetables and chocolate spot affects lentils. Treatment for all pests and diseases is available from the Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Development (BoARD) for cash or credit. The common livestock reared are cattle, sheep and goats (shoats) and chickens. Apart from the oxen, livestock are extremely important to household economy in terms of cash got from sales of live animals and dairy products (mainly butter) from the cows. In normal years, cattle are sold only when they are at least 3 years old, when their reproductive efficiency and labor power is on the decline. Aged oxen are replaced from purchases and mature females are replaced from within the herd. Mature female cattle are hardly found on the market. Shoats are the commonly sold livestock, with peak sales at festival times in response to urban demand. They are typically sold when they are at least 8 months old. During bad years productive cattle are sold because they face increased risk of mortality arising from poor availability of water and pasture. Livestock graze on communal pastures. Animals drink from minor rivers, seasonal pools, and shallow wells in the wet season and from only shallow wells during the dry season. All household members are responsible for herding livestock. The main hazards are pasteurellosis and coccidiosis, affecting shoats and poultry respectively. Treatment is available for cash or credit from the Ministry of Agriculture. Honey from both traditional and modern beehives is a further cash-earner for wealthier households, produced in October and November and sold in December and January. Virtually all households at any level of wealth send out able-bodied males between August and October for labor migration to the sesame producing areas of Humera and Sheraro in western Tigray where they contract for weeding and harvesting work. People also go to Egela in Ahferom woreda in search of casual work. In the reference year, most residents in the zone took loans from the official rural credit program for livestock and beehive purchases. The poor, middle and better-off had access to 1,200 Ethiopian Birr (ETB) to 1,500ETB for cattle and beehive purchases. This loan is to be repaid over 1 to 3 years. All wealth groups have had access to slightly smaller loans for shoat purchases. The loans have a 9% annual interest rate, and repayment of the loan begins 1 year after 1 Fieldwork for the current profile was undertaken in February The information presented refers to September August 2006 (EC 1998), a good year by local standards. Provided there are no fundamental and rapid shifts in the economy, the information in this profile is expected to remain valid for approximately five years (i.e. until 2011). The exchange rate January USD = 8.676ETB.

2 disbursement. Repayment of the loans can be suspended in the event of a drought or any major hazard. The Productive Safety-Net Program (PSNP) was initiated in 1997 Ethiopian Calendar (E.C). It is designed to protect the assets of chronically food insecure households through the provision of food and cash entitlements. Households with able-bodied members get access to their entitlements through public works activities. Households without labor receive direct support without participating in public works. In this zone, beneficiaries are receiving substantial food distributions. Markets The main crops sold are gesho, lentils and wheat. Gesho leaves/twigs are harvested three times a year and sold year round. Gesho is taken from the local area to the Enticho market, where it is exported to markets in western Tigray, in Sheraro and Humera, and also to Adigrat and Mekelle. Lentils are sold in the post harvest season from November to January. They are sold to the Enticho market from the local farmers and carried to destination markets in Adwa, Shire- Endaselassie and Mekelle. Wheat is sold in Enticho during the post harvest season. Sorghum and wheat are imported into the zone from May to September during the peak food purchase season. Sorghum is imported from Humera and Egela. The main livestock on the market are shoats, cattle and chickens. Shoats are sold during the festival season in April (Easter/Fasika), September (New Year s/meskerem), and January (Epiphany/Timkat) to the Enticho market. The very poor and poor sell shoats for slightly less than the middle and better-off as the middle tend to sell bigger animals. Cattle are sold between June and July. They are exported to Axum through Enticho and Adwa. Chicken are sold to the closest markets during festival seasons. Butter is sold in Enticho from July to October. Bee colonies are sold by the middle and better-off in June and July. Poor road conditions are the biggest impediment to marketing activities in the livelihood zone. Because there are no roads leading to the livelihood zone, there are no local markets. The closest market for residents is in Enticho. Commodities are transported to and from the market on donkeys. There is labor migration each year from August to November. Residents migrate to Humera, Sheraro (in western Tigray) and Egela. 2 Seasonal Calendar Rainy Seasons Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb Mar Apr May Legend sales planting w eeding harvesting Land Preparation Gesho Wheat Horse beans Livestock sales Livestock in-heat Livestock births Milk production Other Labour migration Local labour Food purchase Hunger season Malaria Honey shoats cattle cattle and shoats Agriculture production is dependant on the kiremti (long) rains that last from April to August. Kiremti is comprised of a two month spell of light rains, followed by three months of heavier rainfall. The land preparation period is relatively short, starting in April and ending in May. Planting begins with the main rains in June. Wheat and horse beans are planted in June, and Gesho is planted in July. The consumption year starts in September with the Gesho harvest. Wheat and horse beans are then harvested in October. Gesho is harvested three times a year in September, January and June. The livestock production season begins with the sale of shoats. Shoats are sold on all main festivals, namely Easter/Fasika in April, New Year s/meskerem in September, and Epiphany/Timkat in January. Livestock births and cattle milk production begins in May, soon after the rainy season. Births last until July, but milk production continues until October. The in-heat period is from May to June. The main source of labor is from migration to Humera, Sherao and Egela in western Tigray for the sesame weeding and harvesting season that lasts from August to October. Honey is harvested from October to November and is sold in December and January. Food purchases start in May and gradually increase until they peak during the hunger season from July to August. Income earned from livestock sales, and labor sales are very important for food purchases during this time. Malaria is associated with the offset of rain.

3 3 Wealth Breakdown The main determinants of wealth are the number of gesho plants and the number of livestock owned. Livelihoods in this zone are highly dependant on access to income to secure food for the household. The main cash crop is gesho and horse beans. Gesho, used for brewing local beer, is the highest income earner in the zone. The very poor do not cultivate horse beans. To increase the amount of land they cultivate, the better-off rent-in land from the very poor. The main crops cultivated for food are wheat, and small amounts of hanfets, teff and barley. The biggest constraint to food security is the shortage of land for cultivation, a situation that is aggravated by high population density. Oxen are important for providing draft power for cultivation of the main crops. The lack of oxen undermines household capacity to utilize available land. Despite the small land holdings, the very poor are renting-out land because they do not have access to oxen to plough their entire land holding. Livestock are also important for income. Cattle are valuable assets that are not commonly sold. They provide security against the worst effects of a bad year and for that reason, households prefer to grow their cattle herds. Oxen and mature female cows are preferably sold when they are no longer productive. Goats are the commonly sold livestock. They are sold to earn income during festive periods and also to cover regular household expenses. Income and food from livestock is earned from shoats slaughter, butter, honey and eggs sales. Bee colonies and butter are sold by the middle and better-off. Livestock holdings are limited by poor availability of grazing land. Some better-off households purchase crop residues. Zero grazing, keeping animals in a pen and bringing food to them, is also practiced. The very poor and poor herd sizes are limited by the lack the capital to purchase livestock. The household credit package provides a means for purchasing shoats. Poor road conditions affect both crop and livestock marketing. Household labor availability is important for access to income in the zone. The search for agricultural labor is the mainstay of the very poor and poor groups household economy. Sources of Food A good year ( ) PSNP is the biggest source of food for the very poor, poor and middle households. It contributes approximately 50% of these wealth groups household food requirements. Wealth groups participating in PSNP have a maximum of three household members each receiving 15kg of wheat, 1.5kg of pulses and 1 liter of oil for working 5 days in a month. PSNP activities in this zone have been extended to 8 months from the normal 6 months in response to the extraordinary needs for food assistance present in this zone. In the graph, food access is expressed as a percentage of minimum food requirements, taken as an average food energy intake of 2100 kcals per person per day.

4 Food purchases are significant for all wealth groups. This is the biggest source of food for the better-off as they are not receiving PSNP food. The main food purchased is staple sorghum and wheat. There is very limited purchase of nonstaple food. All groups purchase small amounts of sugar, but only the better-off purchase oil and the very poor are the only group that purchase small amounts of pulses. The high food purchases, especially for the better-off, are indicative of the poor production levels and mean there are high levels of vulnerability to market shocks in this livelihood zone. The contribution of own crop production to household food consumption is modest because of the small land holdings. The contribution increases from the very poor to the better-off respectively. The main crops produced are wheat, and hanfets. Barley and teff are minor food crops. The very poor and poor receive meals during the three months, from August to October, that they are in Humera and Sheraro harvesting sesame. The food the household does not serve the absent household members and the food he receives in his area of temporary residence contributes between 1-4% of food for the very poor, poor, middle and better-off. Livestock products, particularly butter and eggs provide an additional source of food for the middle and better off. Sources of Cash a good year ( ) The graph provides a breakdown of total cash income according to income source. Annual income (ETB) 1,400-1,900 1,750-2,250 3,250-3,750 4,000-4,500 4 Income is very important for household food access in this livelihood zone. An important income source is gesho sales. Gesho is harvested three times in a year, sold in August, October and November, and from February to March. It is used for brewing local beer. The minor cash crop is horse beans which are sold in November and December. Crop sales contribute somewhat to all wealth groups. Income from crop sales increase from the very poor to better-off. The very poor and poor get most of their income from labor sales. An average of one household member migrates to western Humera for weeding and harvesting of sesame from all wealth groups. The better-off migrate for 1 month, the middle for 2 months, and the very poor and poor migrate for approximately 2.5 months. Livestock sales are important for all wealth groups. Shoats are the commonly sold livestock. The better-off sell 3-5 shoats and the middle sell 2-4. The very poor and poor sell 0-2 and shoats respectively. The middle and better-off sell their shoats for slightly more as they sell larger animals. The middle and better off also sell an average of 0-.5 and 0-1 cattle respectively. Income from livestock sales increase from the very poor to better-off. Livestock products contribute a small amount to income for the very poor and poor income, since they are only selling eggs. The amount of income generated for the middle and better-off from the sale of livestock products is much greater. Main livestock products sold by the middle are better-off include butter, eggs and bee colonies. The household credit package is provided to all wealth groups and is used particularly for livestock restocking and purchase of bee hives. Expenditure Patterns a good year ( ) All wealth groups are purchasing staple food. The staple foods purchased are sorghum and wheat. There are limited purchases of non-staple pulses, sugar, and oil. All wealth groups purchase sugar, and only the better-off purchase oil. The very poor also purchase pulses. Livestock restocking and credit repayment is the largest component of other expenditure for all wealth groups. The graph provides a breakdown of total cash expenditure by category.

5 The poor and middle are spending the most on restocking because they are building their livestock holdings.the better off are spending less because they have slightly bigger livestock holdings and have less need to restock through purchase. All wealth groups are repaying credit. Essential inputs purchased include seeds, fertilizer, tools and animal drugs. The better off invest more in fertilizer and seeds purchases to improve their crop production. Household items consist of kerosene, utensils, salt and pepper, and coffee. Clothing represents approximately 10% of purchases in all wealth groups. Social services spending (health and education) are minor, but important expenditure items across all wealth groups. Hazards The main crop hazards are rodents, aphids and chocolate spot. Rodents attack wheat and barley, aphids attack vegetables, and chocolate spot affects pulses. Hailstorm also affects crop production in pocket areas. The main livestock hazards are pasteurellosis and coccidiosis. Pasteurellosis affects shoats and coccidiosis affects chickens. The lack of pasture is a chronic hazard that limits the livestock carrying capacity of the livelihood zone. Malaria is associated with the offset of rain every year. Rain failure is an intermittent hazard that occurs once every three years. Coping Strategies The primary response is to intensify labor migration all wealth groups will intensify the search for income from labor migration. More household members migrate for longer periods and the search for employment widens to places further away from the livelihood zone. The other main coping strategy is to increase shoat sales. Cattle sales, for the better-off, are delayed as a strategy to avoid compromising household capacity to recover from the effects of a hazard and also to protect future productive capacity. Cattle sales are an indicator of both the progressive worsening of a situation and the diminishing capacity of the household to earn income from alternative means. 5 Summary This small mountanous dega zone suffers from acute chronic food insecurity primarily because the limited land available for cultivation cannot support the dense population residing there. In the reference year, the most productive households, the better-off, produced almost a third of their annual household food needs while the very poor produced only one-tenth of their annual food requirements. The main crops produced are wheat, barley, hanfets and horse beans. Because of the perennial poor yields, household livelihood strategies are centred around access to income and food purchases. To increase the amount of food the household can access from their small land holdings, most households use about one third for the cultivation of gesho, a high value cash crop with just over twice the value of the staple food crops. Gesho sales contribute on average on-third of poor, middle and better- off households incomes, and significantly (though less) for the very poor as well. The sale of agriculture labour is the mainstay of the very poor and poor economies, providing for the majority of their income. Livestock sales are more significant for the better-off as they depend on shoat sales for about a third of their income. The better-off purchase nearly three quarters of their food requirements. The other wealth groups rely heavily on food from the PSNP program (which provides about one half of annual food requirements) to supplement what can be grown and purchased. Disconcertingly, there is no market in the zone and residents travel to Enticho to visit the nearest market. Livelihoods in this zone are highly vulnerable to market shocks that affect the prices of food. Climatic shocks that affect labour demand also pose a serious threat to the wellbeing of the very poor and poor.