Political Economy Analysis of the Ethiopian Food System Key Political Economy Factors and Promising Value Chains to Improve Food System Sustainability
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Paragraph AgrInvest-Food Systems Project Political economy analysis of the Ethiopian food system Key political economy factors and promising value chains to improve food system sustainability 1 AgrInvest-Food Systems Project Political economy analysis of the Ethiopian food system Key political economy factors and promising value chains to improve food system sustainability Authors: Sean Woolfrey, Paulina Bizzotto Molina and Martin Ronceray European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM) Contributors: Massimo Pera, Milica Petruljeskov, and Margherita Bavagnoli The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Rome, 2021 Required citation: Woolfrey, S., Bizzotto Molina, P. and Ronceray, M. 2021. AgrInvest-Food Systems Project – Political economy analysis of the Ethiopian food system. Key political economy factors and promising value chains to improve food system sustainability. Rome, FAO. https://doi.org/10.4060/cb3255en The designations employed and the presentation of material in this information product do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) concerning the legal or development status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. The mention of specific companies or products of manufacturers, whether or not these have been patented, does not imply that these have been endorsed or recommended by FAO in preference to others of a similar nature that are not mentioned. The views expressed in this information product are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of FAO. ISBN 978-92-5-133943-5 © FAO, 2021 Some rights reserved. 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The original [Language] edition shall be the authoritative edition.” Disputes arising under the licence that cannot be settled amicably will be resolved by mediation and arbitration as described in Article 8 of the licence except as otherwise provided herein. The applicable mediation rules will be the mediation rules of the World Intellectual Property Organization http://www.wipo. int/amc/en/mediation/rules and any arbitration will be conducted in accordance with the Arbitration Rules of the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). Third-party materials. Users wishing to reuse material from this work that is attributed to a third party, such as tables, figures or images, are responsible for determining whether permission is needed for that reuse and for obtaining permission from the copyright holder. The risk of claims resulting from infringement of any third-party-owned component in the work rests solely with the user. Sales, rights and licensing. FAO information products are available on the FAO website (www.fao.org/ publications) and can be purchased through [email protected]. Requests for commercial use should be submitted via: www.fao.org/contact-us/licence-request. Queries regarding rights and licensing should be submitted to: [email protected]. Cover photograph: ©FAO/Petterik Wiggers Abstract This study aims to inform the implementation in Ethiopia of the AgrInvest-Food Systems Project, a collaboration between the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM) to promote private investment in African food systems that contributes to sustainable development objectives. The study analyses the Ethiopian food system, identifying and explaining notable trends, important socio-economic, food security and nutrition and environmental outcomes generated by the food system, as well as the structural factors, institutions and actors that shape food system outcomes in Ethiopia. These outcomes reflect a number of sustainability challenges hampering the food system and its contribution to sustainable development in Ethiopia, including increasing land pressures, high levels of rural poverty, growing youth under-employment, gender inequality, persistent food insecurity and malnutrition, reduced biodiversity and the loss of ecosystem services, especially due to land degradation and deforestation, and weak resilience to climate change. Based on this analysis and on recent efforts to prioritise specific agri-food value chains in Ethiopia for focusing policy interventions and public and private investment, the study then identifies dairy, fruit and vegetable and pulses value chains as particularly promising ones on which to focus interventions to facilitate investment to achieve a sustainable impact. Digging deeper, the study concludes by analysing the commercial potential, relevance to sustainability objectives, political traction and potential pathways for impact from investment in these value chains, presenting this analysis as the basis for further engagement with Ethiopian stakeholders under the AgrInvest-Food Systems Project. iii Contents ABSTRACT ...............................................................................................................................................iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..........................................................................................................................vii ACRONYMS ............................................................................................................................................viii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ...........................................................................................................................ix 1. BACKGROUND, CONTEXT AND APPROACH .........................................................................................1 1.1 The AgrInvest-Food Systems Project ..........................................................................................1 1.2 This scoping study .......................................................................................................................1 2. MAPPING THE FOOD SYSTEM IN ETHIOPIA ......................................................................................2 2.1 A rapidly evolving food system ....................................................................................................2 2.2 Food system outcomes and sustainability challenges ...............................................................3 2.3 Food system drivers ....................................................................................................................8 3. PROMISING AGRI-FOOD VALUE CHAINS IN ETHIOPIA ...................................................................22 3.1 Prioritising specific value chains for sustainable impact .........................................................22 3.2 Dairy value chain .......................................................................................................................25 3.3 Fruit and vegetable value chains ...............................................................................................33 3.4 Pulses value chains ...................................................................................................................38 4. CONCLUSION ......................................................................................................................................42 ANNEX 1: Summary of findings in relation to promising agri-food value chains in Ethiopia ...........44 REFERENCES .........................................................................................................................................45 v Figures Figure 1: Greenhouse gas emissions from Ethiopia’s agriculture sector xx Figure 2: Ethiopia’s main development partners xx Figure 3. Agri-food value chains in Ethiopia with strong poverty, nutrition and growth impact 24 Tables Table 1: Ethiopia’s food security and nutrition outcomes in context 7 Table 2: Status of Integrated Agro-Industrial Parks and ACPZs as of October 2020 16 Table 3: Rankings of agri-food value chains in Ethiopia under different weighting schemes 25 Table 4: EIC and ATA value chain prioritisation 26 Boxes Box 1. Criteria and guiding questions for prioritising value chain entry points into food systems 4 vi Acknowledgements This scoping study was prepared by Paulina Bizzotto Molina, Martin Ronceray and Sean Woolfrey of the European Centre for Development Policy Management (ECDPM), with support from Ayalew Abebe Ferede, AgrInvest-Food Systems Project Consultant to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Ethiopia country office. The authors benefited from the insights of a number