| Abstract |
This report describes activities and outcomes of a unique and successful project funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA) of the U.S. Ethiopia mission to address Ethiopian farmers’ critical shortage of maize and wheat seed for sowing in 2016, after the country’s worst drought in 50 years. Coordinated and implemented by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in partnership with Ethiopia’s Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA), public and private seed producers, and regional and local entities, during 2016-17 the project sourced and delivered 3,439 tons of high quality seed that was sown on more than 100,300 hectares. With funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, ATA supported the transport of seed to drought-affected districts and jointly organized training and workshops. These efforts directly benefited the food security and livelihoods of more than 271,000 rural households and 1.6 million individuals in Ethiopia’s Amhara, Oromia, Tigray, and SNNP regions and strengthened seed systems to address future climate, disease, and pest crises. |
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