Value Chain and Trend Analysis of Agricultural Development in Ethiopia

Background and Objective: Ethiopia has immense potential for agricultural production. Continued efforts have been made by the government to improve the performance of agricultural production through agriculture and rural development policies and strategies. This research project aims to analyze the current trend and value chain of Ethiopian agriculture and rural development in the country. Materials and Methods: The research was undertaken through a literature review approach. The reviewed literature was thematically collected, summarized, analyzed, interpreted, narrated and then discussed. The studied factors regarding agricultural systems are credit, climate change, land degradation and deforestation, lack of integration, lack of irrigation facilities, sudden outbreaks of natural disasters, pests and shortage of technological advancement. Results: Insufficient access to credit, climate change, land degradation and deforestation, lack of integration, lack of irrigation facilities, sudden outbreaks of natural disasters, pests, shortage of technological advancement and narrow market support are the major constraints in agricultural production and productivity. In this regard, the use of improved seeds is at a very low level and the informal seed system is dominant in the country. Moreover, not all accessible seeds were reasonable for the soil and climate types inside and over the rural communities. On the other hand, few households in all the farming sites found the prevailing price of fertilizer expensive and tough to afford, partly due to restricted access to money. Those that may afford fertilizers were additionally involved concerning the danger of low profitableness given the high price on the one hand and on the other, erratic climatic conditions that could lead to low outputs. Conclusion: In general, poor farmers who constitute most of the Ethiopian farming community appear to be largely excluded from the input supply system-including seeds and fertilizer as well as credit and financial services. To eradicate and minimize the problems faced in the country’s agriculture it is recommended to establish a strong and dynamic result-based monitoring and evaluation system, investing more in agricultural research, development of infrastructure like access to roads and mechanization of the practice is needed.