Monday, March 25, 2013

Agriculture in Ethiopia

Agriculture in Ethiopia

Agriculture is the rock-bed of Ethiopian’s economy. It plays a key role both in the development of the nation as well as in the well being of its people. Agriculture employs about 85% of the total population. It generates 45-50% of the total GDP. It is also true that 90% of the country’s foreign currency comes from the export merchandise trade of agricultural products. It also supplies 70% of the raw material required by both heavy and medium scale industries.

Some 55 million of the Ethiopian people live in the rural areas as subsistence agriculture is the basis of their lives. Nevertheless, the rural areas are poor in infrastructure and agriculture is dependent on rainwater and traditional methods farming. Agriculture is also in the hands of small-scale individual farmers who make use of little agricultural inputs. As a result, the production rate is low. Be that as it may, 95% of crop production comes from these small-scale farmlands, which supply 90% of the gross agricultural products; and over 94% of food as well as 98% of the coffee and other crops produced in the country.

No comments:

Post a Comment