Deforestation, overgrazing, and unsustainable methods of cultivation are threatening agriculture and food security in the highlands of East Africa. In response, economists and other development professionals have turned their attention to combating the pr

Agricultural productivity in the highlands of Ethiopia is threatened by severe land degradation, resulting in significant reductions in agricultural GDP. In order to mitigate ongoing erosion and soil nutrient loss in the productive agricultural highlands of the country, the government of Ethiopia initiated a Sustainable Land Management Program (SLMP) targeting 209 woredas (districts) in six regions of the country. This study evaluates the impact of SLMP on the value of agricultural production in select woredas by using a panel survey from 2010 to 2014. Whereas previous studies have used cross-sectional data and short timeframe field trials to measure sustainable land management (SLM) effects on agricultural productivity, this analysis exploits data collected over four years to assess impact. The results of this analysis show that participation by farmers in SLMP, regardless of the number of years of participation in the program, is not associated with significant increases in value of production. This may be due to several reasons. First, similar to previous studies, it is possible that longer term maintenance is necessary in order to experience significant benefits. For example, Schmidt and Tadesse (2014) report that farmers must maintain SLM for a minimum of seven years to reap benefits in value of production. Second, this analysis finds that value of production, as well as SLM investments, increased significantly in both treatment and non-treatment areas over the study period. Previous research has found that non-treatment neighbors learn from nearby program areas, and adopt technologies similar to programmed areas, which would dilute the impact measurement of program effects (Bernard et al. 2007; Angelucci and DiMaro 2010). Finally, it is important to note that kebeles that were not selected in the SLMP, but are downstream relative to a targeted kebele may receive indirect benefits through reduced flooding, increased water tables, etc. Thus, the impact of the SLMP may be underestimated in this analysis if non-program kebeles are benefiting indirectly from the program.

Policymakers and technology development institutions have mostly focused on high-potential farming areas, which have better resource endowments and greater access to markets and infrastructure than less-favored areas. However, in developing nations more than one billion people live in less-favored areas, where, despite disadvantages, appropriate policies and programs can generate high returns and contribute significantly to poverty reduction. IFPRI and its partners' research in the highlands of Ethiopia shows how poverty and land degradation can be reduced in a less-favored area. Using a bioeconomic model to analyze the effects that land degradation, population growth, stagnant technology, market imperfections, and increased risk of drought have on household production, welfare, and food security, the report gauges how alternative policy choices affect poverty and land degradation. According to the study, land quality and household welfare are both in peril in the Ethiopian highlands.The population in the region could suffer devastating effects if proper policies are not put in place. The bioeconomic modeling approach used in this study can be usefully adapted and applied in many other settings and at larger spatial and socioeconomic scales.

An extensive review of literature on the determinants of adoption and impacts of land management technologies in the Ethiopian highlands was undertaken to guide policy makers and development agencies in crafting programs and policies that can better and more effectively address land degradation in Ethiopia. Several generalizations emerge from the review: 1) the profitability of land management technologies is a very important factor influencing technology adoption. In many cases it is a threshold consideration; 2) land tenure insecurity and limited transfer rights undermine land management investments; 3) the impacts of household endowments on technology adoption are mixed; and 4) the impacts of credit on input use are positive where input use is profitable and not too risky; in other cases credit is not a binding constraint, because farmers ration their use of credit to avoid risk. Further research on the adoption and impacts of land management practices is needed to build on this understanding of what works, and where. Based on this review, as well as the findings from two companion papers and stakeholder workshops, it appears that research in different biophysical and socioeconomic domains to assess the off-site as well as on-site costs and benefits of alternative land management approaches will be particularly useful in supporting efforts to scale up successful sustainable land management practices in Ethiopia.