Master's Thesis from the year 2018 in the subject Engineering - Civil Engineering, grade: 3.6, Addis Ababa University (Center for Development Studies), course: Environment and Sustainable Development, language: English, abstract: Access to modern energy is a key element in rural development. This thesis identified the Impact of Small Scale Biogas Technology on Household Income and Health in Ada’a Woreda, Oromia Region, Ethiopia. 9 kebeles were purposively selected where there are high number of biogas users. The descriptive statistical significances and the association of the dummy and continuous variables with the dependent variable were tested using chi-square and t-test. Propensity score matching was used to assess the impact small scale biogas technology has on health and income of household. The study found out small scale biogas technology is favorable among users due to; subsidy form the government; relatively cheap comparing to other fuel sources; as it considers the health economic and environmental benefits; as it saves fuel; it being smokeless; its durability; the fact that it cooks quickly; as it effectively uses waste from farm and produces compost for farm use. The result from Propensity score matching indicated that small scale biogas technology has a significant and positive impact on health . So, the impact of small scale biogas technology has an average treatment effect of 8249.2, 5968.5, 9961.5, 8652.3 ETB per annum to household income using nearest neighbor, radius, kernel and stratification methods. The impact of small scale biogas technology on health, the study looked at three outcome variables; cost of the treatment for the victims in the households; the number of days spent for fuel collection per week and; total members of the household affected by indoor air pollution (IAP). The impact of biogas on cost of treatment has an average treatment effect of 320.2, 392.5, 339.2, and 332.8 ETB using nearest neighbor, radius, kernel and stratification methods respectively. The impact of biogas on number days spent for fuel collection has an average treatment effect of -1.5, -1.4, -1.3, and -1.3 days using nearest neighbor, radius, kernel and stratification methods respectively. Lastly the impact of using small scale biogas technology on total members of household that are affected by the illness -1.2, -1.2, -1.2, and -1.2, member using nearest neighbor, radius, kernel and stratification methods respectively. As the technology has a great potential in promoting sustainable and renewable energy, much effort should be done in promoting the technology, awareness raising to non-user household and peer education should be done.

The world,Äôs rural population surpasses the three billion people mainly located in Africa and Asia; roughly half the global population lives in the countryside. Access to modern fuels is a challenge for rural people compared to their urban counterparts, which can easily access infrastructures and commercial energy. In developing countries rural populations commonly depend on traditional biomass for cooking and heating. A key strategy in tackling the energy needs of those rural populations is to advance their energy ladder from the inefficient, traditional domestic burn of biomass, organic waste, and animal manure. Governments and non-governmental institutions have supported small biogas digesters in rural areas, mainly in Asia, South America, and Africa, over the last 50¬†years. This chapter reviews the literature to offer an overview of experimental and theoretical evidence regarding the characteristics of design, construction material, feedstock, and operation parameters that made anaerobic digestion in small digesters a valuable source. Small-scale rural biogas digesters can generate environmental, health, and social benefits to rural areas with a net positive impact on energy access. Remarkable improvement in living standards was achieved with small inputs of the methane, produced via anaerobic digestion; however, challenges associated with lack of technical skills, awareness, and education remain and obstruct biogas,Äô full potential in rural areas, mainly in developing countries.

Africa is poised on the edge of a potential takeoff to sustained economic growth. This takeoff can be abetted by a demographic dividend from the changes in population age structure. Declines in child mortality, followed by declines in fertility, produce a 'bulge' generation and a large number of working age people, giving a boost to the economy. In the short run lower fertility leads to lower youth dependency rates and greater female labor force participation outside the home. Smaller family sizes also mean more resources to invest in the health and education per child boosting worker productivity. In the long run increased life spans from health improvements mean that this large, high-earning cohort will also want to save for retirement, creating higher savings and investments, leading to further productivity gains. Two things are required for the demographic dividend to generate an African economic takeoff. The first is to speed up the fertility decline that is currently slow or stalled in many countries. The second is economic policies that take advantage of the opportunity offered by demography. While demographic change can produce more, and high quality, workers, this potential workforce needs to be productively employed if Africa is to reap the dividend. However, once underway, the relationship between demographic change and human development works in both directions, creating a virtuous cycle that can accelerate fertility decline, social development, and economic growth. Empirical evidence points to three key factors for speeding the fertility transition: child health, female education, and women's empowerment, particularly through access to family planning. Harnessing the dividend requires job creation for the large youth cohorts entering working age, and encouraging foreign investment until domestic savings and investment increase. The appropriate mix of policies in each country depends on their stage of the demographic transition.

Research Paper (undergraduate) from the year 2008 in the subject Business economics - Marketing, Corporate Communication, CRM, Market Research, Social Media, grade: B, Haramaya University (college of Agriculture), course: thesis part, language: English, abstract: The study was conducted in Mieso district of Oromia region, Ethiopia. The study was undertaken with the objective to characterize milk marketing system and to forward appropriate intervention in the area. The data was collected based on group discussion with key informants and then using pre-tested questionnaire administered to randomly selecting milk producer from randomly selected rural Kebeles. Two market places were selected purposively. The result indicates that all milk animals are indigenous cattle, camel and goats. There were generally two types of milk outlets identified in the district. These are traditional milk associations or groups and individual sellers. The traditional milk producer association group is locally called Faraqa Annanni. From a total of 94 households that sold milk during the study, only 22 (23 %) households were involved in the milk seller groups.

The increasing importance of biomass as a renewable energy source has lead to an acute need for reliable and detailed information on its assessment, consumption and supply. Responding to this need, and overcoming the lack of standardized measurement and accounting procedures, this handbook provides the reader with the skills to understand the biomass resource base, the tools to assess the resource, and explores the pros and cons of exploitation. Topics covered include assessment methods for woody and herbaceous biomass, biomass supply and consumption, remote sensing techniques as well as vital policy issues. International case studies, ranging from techniques for measuring tree volume to transporting biomass, help to illustrate step-by-step methods and are based on field work experience. Technical appendices offer a glossary of terms, energy units and other valuable resource data.

Specifically, the paper identifies and analyzes several direct drivers of deforestation and forest degradation in Ethiopia including: forest clearance for both subsistence and large-scale agriculture; illegal and unsustainable extraction of wood mainly for charcoal and firewood; overgrazing; and recurrent forest fires. It also reviews underlying drivers including: rapid population increase and the associated growing demand for land and energy; extensive legal and institutional gaps including lack of stable and equitable forest tenure; lack of stakeholder participation in forest management and benefit-sharing schemes; and weak law enforcement. These drivers and the dominant actors behind them – ranging from small-scale subsistence farmers to national and global investors – are discussed in the context of the political economy, including the policy and institutional framework of the country. The implications of the overall forest condition to the objectives and requirements of REDD+ are evaluated, and key issues that need to be addressed for efficient, effective and equitable implementation of REDD+ are discussed. These key issues include: reconciling the apparently contradictory policies and programs, particularly those that negatively affect the forestry sector; improving the forest tenure and governance system; augmenting economic return from forests to communities and individuals; creating more efficient and effective forest institutions at all levels; and enhancing sectoral and regional coordination among implementing agencies.