TITLE:
The Effect of Land Degradation on Farm Size Dynamics and Crop-Livestock Farming System in Ethiopia: A Review
AUTHORS:
Assemu Tesfa, Shigdaf Mekuriaw
KEYWORDS:
Crop-Livestock Farming System; Farmers; Farm Size Dynamics; Land Degradation
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Soil Science,
Vol.4 No.1,
January
16,
2014
ABSTRACT: Ethiopia is among the poorest countries in which
poverty, land and resource degradation appear to feed off each other. The irony
is that Ethiopia is a country with high biodiversity and distinctive ecosystems
and the natural resource base is critical to the economy and the livelihood of
a high percentage of the population. Being the owner of varying agro ecology,
the country’s agricultural production
system had practiced for decades with a maximum potential. However, because of
the presence of interrelated problems, the
productivity had not sustained as its potential. From the interrelated
problems, land degradation takes the first and challengeable problem in many
countries. Land degradation refers to a temporary or permanent decline in the
productive capacity of the land, or its potential for environmental management
as a result; the long-term biological and environmental potential of the land
has been compromised. Land degradation in the Ethiopian highlands (i.e. areas above 1500 m.a.s.l.) has been
a concern for many years and is a great threat for the future that requires
great effort and resources to ameliorate. It had adverse effect on lowering of
livestock production by shrinking grazing land, the fertile soil types were washed and the grazing land was dominantly covered by unpalatable pastures and
grasses which had low nutritive
value and fertility for crop-livestock production system. In other cases, degradation
induces farmers to convert land to lower-value uses; for instance, cropland converted to grazing land, or grazing
lands converted to shrubs or forests. Equitable and secure access to land is a
critical factor for the rural poor, especially livestock owners, who depend on
agriculture and animal-related activities for their livelihood. Having secure
access to land for agriculture and pastoral activities reduces their
vulnerability and enhances their opportunities to invest in land for
agriculture and livestock activities. Historical patterns of feudal ownership
of land followed by government ownership and despite policy change uncertain
status of land ownership. These land distribution and ownership patterns
coupled with continuous fragmentations and degradation disrupt the balance
between crop, livestock, and forest production. These things nowadays enforce
Ethiopian farmers to put more land into crop production than working on
livestock sector. Livelihoods are complex, dependent on animal and crop production
based on land and water resources, with emerging market opportunities. And from
year to year, the size of farms is
getting minimized because of land degradation and segmentations, and these make
a change in farm size dynamics and farming shift. Currently, there is a great
scenario towards the land policy pattern and agricultural production system, which is the backbone of the country’s economy.
Therefore, the aim of this paper is to review the effect of land degradation on
farm size dynamics and crop-livestock production since the impact of these
things is not well measured.