TPLF persists with land sales; ignores donor pleas to slow down

JIMMA, ETHIOPIA, Dec 19 (BERNAMA-National News Agency of Indonesia)

Ethiopia’s Agriculture Investment and Land Administration Agency says 3.6 million hectares of arable land is being provided for investors engaged in the agriculture sector.Speaking at a training session for investors engaged in coffee plantations in Oromia and South Ethiopia Peoples’ States on Tuesday, agency representative Asres Argaw said 470,000 hectares land had so far been allocated for investors to develop for agriculture.

He said Ethiopian nationals and foreign investors were cultivating cotton, palm trees and sugar cane on the stated land.

The government was striving to increase participation of the private sector in the agriculture sector with coffee planting among the priority targets.

Asres said the conducive investment policies and strategies as well as incentives were attracting more investors to engage in coffee plantations.

He stressed that without exerting maximum efforts and utilisation of modern technologies, the country could not achieve its goal of improving coffee production and productivity.

The newly established agency, which comes under the Ministry of Agriculture, is striving to provide integrated support for investors in a bid to improve their land utilisation and production.

The agency is also providing training to investors engaged in coffee planting on technologies that improve production and coffee quality.

— BERNAMA-NNN-ENA