Livelihood Profile Amhara Region, Ethiopia

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Dina Booker
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1 Livelihood Profile Amhara Region, Ethiopia North Shewa highland Sheep and Barley Livelihood Zone (NSS) October Zone Description The livelihood zone extends westwards from the edge of the Chefa lowland. It is located in the North Shewa Administrative Zone of Amhara Region. The zone lies in the following woredas: Antsokiya, Eferatana Gidem, Gishe Rabel, Menze Lalo Meder, Menze Mama Midir, Gera Midir, Keya Gabriel, Kewet, Mojan, and Tarema Ber. The highway from Addis Ababa to Dessie crosses part of the zone. Tourist attractions are the Tarema Ber cave, the high mountains of North Shewa including the famous Abuye meda (4000ft.), and Guasa national park (famous for the red fox). The main towns in the zone are Mehal Meda and Debresina. The agroecology is entirely highland dega with eucalyptus and other exotic trees. The temperature is cold and the area receives mm of rainfall. The economy is based on crop production supplemented by livestock production. The land is degraded and the soils have low fertility and crop yields are therefore low without added fertilizer. Agriculture is rainfed and two rainy seasons, kremt and belg, although the big harvest is the meher from the kremt rains. The major crops grown in the area are barley, field beans and wheat. Flax and lentils are also grown for sale. Oxen are the traction power, and land preparation, sowing, weeding and harvesting are only done by the household members: there is no labor hiring t in the zone. However households do have reciprocal social arrangements called debo and jigi in which they contribute weeding and harvesting labor to their neighbors. The household that receives labor provides food. Both chemical fertilizers (Urea and DAP) and home-produced compost are used. African bollworm and aphids are the main crop pests affecting both barley and beans. meda and Debresina. The topography is predominantly mountainous By far the main livestock are sheep, whilst people also own cattle and equines. Sheep are especially sold and occasionally slaughtered during the main holidays, while equines are used as pack animals. Black leg, lumpy skin disease (LCD), pasteurellosis and sheep pox are the major livestock diseases affecting both sheep and cattle. Cows are the only animals milked. Skins, butter and eggs are the livestock products sold to generate extra cash income. Labour migration, firewood and charcoal sales, and wool sales are other sources of cash income. Shoa Robit, Antsokiya, Debre Birhan are places where people go to get employment on weeding and harvesting. The eucalyptus tree is used for firewood sales particularly for the poorer households. Sale of sheep wool as is unique to the area and done by households in each wealth group. It is no coincidence that the Debre Berhan blanket factory is nearby. The zone benefits from the Safety Net programme (PSNP) which targets the very poor and poor households. The PSNP is designed to protect the assets of chronically food insecure households through the provision of food and cash. Vulnerable households participate in public works program for 5 days per person per month. Payment is made in cash (6 birr per person per day), or in food (3kg of grain per person per day). Those who are not able bodied are given the food or cash for free. In the majority of woredas credit is available. Credit is provided through the Federal food security program, and a World Bank project, and an FAO-BSF project, as well as World Vision, the Amhara Credit and Saving Institution (ACSI) and cooperatives. The credit is provided for household packages: livestock fattening/rearing, an agricultural technology package and other agricultural inputs. The credit amount ranges from ETB and sometimes extends to 3000ETB. The interest rate imposed by ACSI is 18% while that of cooperatives is 12.5% and FAO and the World Bank is 9-10%. 1 Field work for the current profile was undertaken in September-October2007. The information presented refers to Oct Sept (EC Tikimt 1998 to Meskerem 1999), 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 2012). ). The exchange rate January USD = 8.676ETB.

2 Markets Market access is patchy. Some of livelihood zone lies along the main motor road, but most of the roads in the livelihood zone are not all-weather roads. The main crops sold are barley, wheat and beans, which in most cases are transported to Addis Ababa. Sheep and chicken are the main livestock sold and are also sent to Addis Ababa. The staple foods purchased are maize and sorghum. Maize is brought to the local markets from Addis Ababa. Most of the paid work (75-85%) is found outside the livelihood zone by the poorer households. Seasonal Calendar There five seasons in the zone. These are: kremt/long rains (June - August), tibi/winter (September - November), meher/harvest (December - February), belg/short rains (a shifting period between February and April), and bega/ summer (end of belg - May). There are two harvests: a small one forms the belg and the main one, meher, form the kremt rains. The main belg crop is barley which is sown in February- March and harvested in July August. The meher crops are barley, wheat, beans, lentils, sown in June and July and harvested in November and December. In December and April, both sheep and cattle are sold. This is when there is high demand for sheep for the holiday celebrations and cattle are required for the upcoming agricultural activities. Cattle are in-heat between June-July, which is the time when the kremt rain starts. The cattle give birth in May-July and milking continues through to February. The labor migration is July November. The main food purchase period starts in April when the stock from the own harvest depletes and ends in November.

Wealth Breakdown Wealth in the livelihood zone is determined by the ownership of livestock (oxen, cattle, sheep, horses), area of land cultivated and number of eucalyptus tree owned.

3 Wealth Breakdown Wealth in the livelihood zone is determined by the ownership of livestock (oxen, cattle, sheep, horses), area of land cultivated and number of eucalyptus tree owned. The poorer groups do not possess plough oxen. The crop types grown by all wealth groups are the same except the very poor do not grow lentils (an important cash crop). Lack of capital, plough oxen and shortage of cultivated land are factors limiting crop production by the poorer farmers. These households access oxen from the better-off in return for labor, or if two farmers have one ox each they combine them under one yoke to plough both farms (mekenajo). The constraints facing the better off wealth group include shortage of land and the high cost of agricultural inputs, especially fertilizer. The middle and better-off households rentin land from poorer farmers at the price of equal sharing of the harvest. With regard to the livestock, lack of money, feed shortage, quality of local breeds (sheep are small and sell for a low price) and poor veterinary service are the factors which limit production. A mechanism used to share livestock labor and profits is yerbee, in which a wealthier farmer hands some of his livestock, particularly sheep, to a poorer farmer to look after and the two share the offspring equally. The wealthier also negotiate access to the crop residues from the land that they rent-in to help with the feed shortage problem. A few households do petty trading and produce and sell handicrafts. However problems linked to small-scale off-farm income generating activities are lack of money to invest, lack of entrepreneurial skills, poor access to markets and limited networking skills, and cultural influences against such work. Households try to solve their money problems by taking official credit or borrowing money from local lenders. Sources of Food A good year ( ) The main source of food for the middle and the better off wealth group is from their own harvest which accounts for 75-90% of their annual food requirement. The contribution of own crops to food intake declines in the poor and very poor wealth group. The purchase of the staple food (mainly sorghum and maize) is important for the lower wealth groups: the very poor and the poor obtain 30-40% and 25-35% of annual food needs respectively through purchase. Wealthier households buy much less. The Safety Net in the reference year covered 6-10% of the annual food requirement of the poor and very poor. Livestock products make a small contribution to food intake, being mostly sold. 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 Sources of Cash a good year ( ) The graph provides a breakdown of total cash income according to income source. Annual income (ETB) All wealth groups earn some income from crop sales. But in all wealth groups income from the sale of livestock (particularly the sale of sheep) and livestock products is far greater than income from crop production. The middle and better off wealth groups get 55-75% of their income from these sources, the very poor and poor 40-45%. The very poor and poor obtain 25-35% of their cash income from the Safety Net. Agricultural employment income for the very poor and poor wealth group comes entirely from the work migration. Self-employment income mainly from sale of wool. Other income refers to the income from the credit service. Expenditure Patterns a good year ( ) Expenditure on staple food (maize and sorghum) declines sharply from the very poor to the better off wealth group, whilst the non staple food purchase (pulses, sugar, oil) increases from the very poor to the better off wealth group as does expenditure on households items, clothes and social services (health/education).agricultural inputs include chemical fertilizer (Urea and DAP). Other includes ceremonies, festivals and social contributions. Hazards The graph provides a breakdown of total cash expenditure according to category of expenditure. Crop Pest: African boll worm and aphids are the main pests affecting both barley and beans. Frost: As the livelihood zone constitutes very high parts of North Shewa frost damage to mature crops is a common problem. Late onset and early cessation of rain: This has been an intermittent problem but rains are more reliable than further north. Livestock diseases: Black leg, lumpy skin disease (a cattle pox), pasteurellosis and sheep pox are the major livestock diseases affecting sheep and cattle.

5 Coping Strategies Increase in the search for paid work. This means increasing the number of household members who migrate and extending the period of migration by leaving earlier than normal times and staying longer. The place of migration doesn t change in bad years. Households of poorer wealth groups usually apply this strategy. Increase in livestock sales. This is a strategy adopted by better off households. The households increase the number of both sheep and cattle they take to the market. Increasing firewood sales. A strategy of poorer households.. Switching Expenditure. Households of all wealth groups minimize expenditure on some items in order to increase the purchase of staple food. Summary The economy of the zone is based on crop production but livestock production makes a very heavy contribution. The land is degraded and the soil generally not fertile. Nevertheless the main source of food for the poor as well as the middle and the better off wealth groups is their own harvest; for the very poor it is the market and food aid. The major crops grown in the areas are barley, beans and wheat. The main livestock in the livelihood zone are sheep, with some oxen/cattle for ploughing/milk and equines for pack-transport. The sheep are the single highest income earner for all wealth groups. Migrant work, modest crop sales, firewood and charcoal sales, and sale of wool bring further cash. The zone is in the Safety Net programme (PSNP). Households also have access to credit packages. Crop pest, frost, livestock diseases are the major hazards in the zone. Rains can be erratic although drought is rare. During bad times households respond by increase the sale of labor and livestock and switching the expenditure to basic food.

Livelihood Profile Oromiya Region, Ethiopia

Livelihood Profile Oromiya Region, Ethiopia Zone Description Oct 2008 1 Sodo Highland Wheat, Barley and Enset (SHE) livelihood zone is geographically located in west Shoa administrative zone of Oromiya