Reversing the Degradation of Arable Land in the Ethiopian Highlands

Degraded soils are a major constraint to agricultural production and food security in the southern Ethiopian Highlands. As yields and incomes decline, poor farmers have fewer resources to invest in fertilisers or soil conservation measures, while population pressure forces them to cultivate marginal lands and discontinue fallow and the use of crop residues to maintain soil fertility. The African Highlands Initiative and Ethiopian Agricultural Organisation have set up a participatory research programme on natural resource management, whose main achievements have been to increase the capacity of farmers to solve their problems and encourage various organisations to work together.