The links between policy, sustainable food security and well-being in Gelgele and Yetnora villages in Ethiopia

Abstract

This thesis is concerned with food insecurity issues in Ethiopia; where around 10 million people are currently considered to be food insecure. The African Union (AU) has clear food security policies in place which member states are now adopting and implementing. The assessment of food security policy formation in Ethiopia inspired by the African Union, its implementation processes and the effectiveness of the policies at a local level is the main interest of the thesis. The policy making process is analysed through three theoretical frameworks: discourse and narratives, politics and interests and actors and networks. A top-down approach has been used to analyse the policy implementation process. The effectiveness of the food security polices at the local level from the farmer’s perspective hasinvestigated through two case studies at the Village (Kebele) level. The African Union food security policy is being managed through the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) Agency and its Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) framework. The NEPAD agency and the CAADP framework have been created by few elite individuals through the AU. Ethiopia, as an AU member country has adopted these policies and is now implementing them at the ground level. The AU food security policy has been incorporated within the Ethiopian Government own policies to increase food productivity and food security in the country. The key policy is the Growth Transformation Plan. Initially set for 2010-2015, the policy was created by the politicians at the Federal level and has been implemented using a top-down approach through the administration system. The Ethiopian Research Organisations have very limited role in contributing to the policy making process; but play a great role in the implementation process delivering policy at the ground level through the agriculture extension system. The Ethiopian Government is now commercialising the agriculture sector and investing in agricultural inputs to drastically increase the food productivity of the small-scale farmers. The Government claims that this is to increase food security for the people at national level but also to increase food export, earn foreign exchange, grow economically and reach a middle-income country by 2025. The main finding of the thesis is that even though the food security policy formation and policy implementation process is very efficient until it reaches the people on the ground, the effectiveness of the policy from the farmer’s perspective is weak in delivering sustainable food security and increasing well-being. I have found that there is a huge gap between the policies in place and sustainable food security, human wellbeing and human development in Ethiopia from the study villages.