Ethiopian farmer Hadgu Desta from the Mesanu Kebele in Tsera Womberta District is anticipating a 50% yield increase in his wheat farming venture after embracing row planting and disregarding broadcasting.

Desta had initially resisted the switch after it was introduced in his region by mid-career student Amlisha Gebregziabher. It took Gebregziabher’s insistence for Desta to transition, although he still had great doubts.

But today, looking at the quality of crops on his field, Desta is happy that he embraced the technique, and other farmers in his neighborhood are learning from him eager to also transform their farms.

Gebregziabher, 29, hails from a small rural village near Wukro town, in the Tigray region, 46 km north of Mekelle. After completing her pre-college education, she pursued further training in crop production and marketing at the Wukro Agricultural TVET College before working in her community as a development agent.

In 2020, balancing her responsibilities as a wife and mother of two, she was admitted to Mekelle University as a mid-career student in Agricultural Extension, supported by SAA. Currently, she is using her Supervised Enterprise Project (SEP) to promote row planting of the high-yielding and disease-resistant Picaflor wheat variety in Mesanu, where most farmers are still practicing broadcasting.

In her project area, broadcasting yields an average of 1.6MT per hectare.  In contrast, row planting promises to increase the output by up to 75%, reaching 2.8 MT per hectare.

For the full story: https://www.saa-safe.org/news/news.php?nt=2&vid=627&lng=usa

Margaret, a widow in Uganda’s Otuke District, faced financial difficulties after her husband’s demise leaving her to rely on subsistence agriculture to feed her seven children. Thankfully, better things were in store for her, and her luck began to emerge in 2018, when she joined the Obang Ber Widows Group, formed with support from SAA under the Nippon Foundation and the local government.

The group provides training in conservation agriculture, market-oriented farming, market survey techniques, and nutrition-sensitive agriculture. This training enabled Margaret to diversify her farming practices and maximize her income, leading her to discover the potential in watermelon, a high-demand fruit in the area. With facilitation from SAA, she acquired irrigation equipment and began cultivating the crop on her four-acre farm in 2019.

Her new enterprise paid off and today she harvests at least 2,500 melons weighing 5kg each, earning her approximately USD1,688 per harvest. Her produce is in high demand, attracting traders from Uganda and Kenya, boosting both local and cross-border trade.

And as she grows, so does her community, where she creates job opportunities for 10 local youth in every harvest season. Meanwhile, inspired by her Nutrition-Sensitive Agriculture training, Margaret recently ventured into food processing and value addition, creating nutritious composite porridge and snacks that earn her USD114 daily. She also educates her community on balanced diets, farming, and gardening, helping reduce malnutrition in children under five through SAA’s Nutrition Model Home, which she hosts.

All these ventures have diversified her income, allowing her to comfortably support her family’s education, healthcare, and nutrition. She is also now constructing rental apartments in Lira City, symbolizing her journey to economic empowerment and hope for other widows and farmers in Otuke.

For the full story: https://www.saa-safe.org/news/news.php?nt=2&vid=632&lng=usa

After earning his bachelor’s degree in agriculture, Michael Asaba volunteered at NARO-MbaZARDI, a public agricultural research institution, for a while before joining SAA-Uganda as an extension worker attached to the Kyendagra Area Cooperative of the One Stop Centre Association (OSCA), through which he has transformed both Kitagewenda community and his own life.

Driven by a passion for community transformation, Asaba noted gaps in access to quality inputs and farming techniques in Kitagwenda, which were promptly addressed by establishing an input shop. This initiative, alongside his extension work, improved access to essential agricultural resources and production knowledge. His journey took a significant leap when he became a Commercial Community-Based Facilitator (CCBF), receiving advanced training from SAA on modern farming tools, agro-input applications, and best practices.

From this training, Asaba introduced tools like jab planters, which streamline planting by digging, planting, and covering seeds in one motion, enhancing efficiency and crop yields. Between August and October 2024, he provided planting services to 13 farmers across 27 acres, reducing labor and boosting productivity. Farmer John Bangirana remarked, “Asaba has truly changed the way we farm.”

Asaba’s input shop has flourished too, recording USD1,017.4 in sales from the last two months alone, while giving farmers consistent access to quality products. He also maintains demonstration fields and conducts training sessions, fostering the adoption of modern practices. “Seeing results convinces farmers of the power of change,” he explained.

During the 2024 second season, Asaba worked with 253 farmers, helping cultivate over 33 acres and providing planting and spraying services. “Every improved harvest is a win for us all,” he said.

For the full story: https://www.saa-safe.org/news/news.php?nt=2&vid=633&lng=usa

SAA – Ethiopia teamed up with FOLU – Ethiopia in a field visit to the Woltai-Missoma Farmers’ Production Cluster (FPC) in the Ilu Sambitu Kebele of the Bale Zone. On the trip were farmers and extension agents from SAA intervention kebeles in the Districts of Ana Sora and Negele Arsi, who were warmly welcomed at Ilu Sambitu by hundreds of FPC members and local officials.

The Woltai-Missoma FPC was initiated in 2015 by 33 farmers who invested USD2,770 capital to cultivate 20 hectares of land. Their consistency has seen them grow over the years and as of the end of 2024, they had become a licensed seed multiplier cooperative with USD463,819 capital and 252 members managing 485.5 hectares of land.

The FPC currently operates fully mechanized farming practices, owns a 1,000 MT warehouse, and utilizes equipment such as a mobile seed cleaner and moisture tester to enhance the quality of their produce. Its wheat seed production, for example, includes five varieties with harvests reaching as high as 7.5 MT/ha, allowing it to supply cooperative supplies unions with over 5,800 MT of seed every year.

During the visit, participants learned about the FPC’s robust institutional structure, which includes eight subcommittees that are responsible for management and enforcing adherence to the quality standards required by regulatory agencies. The visitors were impressed with the dedication of the FPC’s members and its leaders.

SAA’s Regenerative Agriculture Coordinator, Mr. Melese Liyhe, encouraged the visiting farmers to adopt the best practices demonstrated by the Woltai-Missoma FPC.

Meanwhile, even as farmers learned new agricultural lessons, several challenges were also reported. Mono-cropping, limited soil fertility and pest management practices, and an overuse of fertilizers were identified as areas that require improvement. To address these challenges, and fully capture the potential of the 83,344 hectares of arable land available in the district, diversification and sustainable practices were recommended.

SAA-Ethiopia and the Food and Land Use Coalition (FOLU)-Ethiopia conducted joint awareness workshops on avocado post-harvest loss assessment in the Wolaita Sodo and Jimma zones. The workshops were attended by regional officials, researchers, private sector representatives, and academics from Central Ethiopia, Oromia, Sidama, South Ethiopia, and Southwest Ethiopia. It sought to highlight the findings of a recent study and their implications for avocado production, transportation, marketing, and post-harvest losses.

In Wolaita, Mr. Admasu Awoke, the Head of the Bureau of Agriculture for the South Ethiopia Region, welcomed attendees and acknowledged SAA’s longstanding commitment to agricultural extension. Dr. Ermias Abate, the Deputy Country Director of SAA-Ethiopia, presented the workshop’s objectives.

In Jimma, Dr. Fentahun Mengistu, SAA-Ethiopia’s Country Director, outlined the organization’s contributions and the study’s significance. The event was further enriched by remarks from Mr. Kedir Nefo, the Team Leader at the Oromia Region’s President Office Center Delivery, and a keynote address by Prof. Yetnayet Bekele, the President of the Ethiopian Society of Post-Harvest Management (ESPHM).

A total of four presentations were delivered at both events by Dr. Abate and Getachew Minas, SAA’s Monitoring and Evaluation Coordinator. These presentations covered the study’s background, methodology, findings and recommendations on technology and management practices. Participant feedback was gathered to refine the study, with panelists from SAA and researchers addressing several questions.

The workshops concluded with closing remarks by Dr. Fentahun, who emphasized the importance of understanding avocado post-harvest losses.

To date, over 310 key actors have participated in seven similar awareness and capacity-building sessions, marking a significant step in tackling post-harvest losses in Ethiopia’s avocado value chain.

Four years ago, SAA-Ethiopia, with funding from the Nippon Foundation, established the Yemiserach Women Agro-processing Group in the Shino Funamura Kebele, of Angacha District, in Central Ethiopia. SAA later trained the founding members, comprising 25 rural women, in a program that covered business skills, record keeping, group dynamics, savings and credit, agro-processing techniques, and mill service management.

Afterwards, and with support from Angacha District and SAA, the group acquired land from the Shino Funamura City Administration, where they constructed a mill house in the city’s market center. The facility is equipped with two grinding mills – one for grain and the other for pepper/spice – both powered by 20 hp electric motors. The pepper mill, the first in the district, eliminates the need for residents to travel 21.5–26.5 km to Hossaena for similar services.

The total investment in the project, including resources from SAA, the district, and the city administration, has reached approximately USD72,500, and some of this went into such activities as securing a three-phase gride-electricity connection. But all these costs are worthwhile, because mill is improving livelihoods in the community, through jobs creation, and boosting the local economy, while empowering its members to expand the project further.

During a recent visit to the mill, Mr. Temesgen Asefa, the head of the Angacha District Agriculture Office thanked SAA for enhancing farmers’ knowledge and capabilities, sentiments that were echoed by Kembata Zone Deputy Administrator and Head of Agriculture, Mr. Teshome Heramo. Meanwhile Dr. Fentahun Mengistu, SAA Ethiopia’s Country Director, thanked local stakeholders for their cooperation and emphasized SAA’s focus on regenerative, nutrition-sensitive, and market-oriented agriculture.

Such initiatives show how collaboration among stakeholders can transform rural communities, empower women, and promote sustainable development.