Agriculture

Ethiopia Targets 192,000 Hectares in Nationwide Avocado Expansion Drive

AI SUMMARY

Ethiopia's Ministry of Agriculture has launched a 15-year National Avocado Development Program to expand farmland to 192,000 hectares by 2040.

The Ministry of Agriculture launched a 15-year National Avocado Development Program to expand farmland from 104,000 hectares to 192,000 hectares by 2040.
The initiative is implemented across ten regional states under the leadership of Program Administrator Abdella Negash.
Active farmland reached 122,600 hectares in the 2025/2026 fiscal year, generating over 1.72 million metric tons in total output.
Industrial park supplies yielded over $6.5 million, while direct fresh fruit exports generated $2.4 million in foreign currency.
The program aims to raise farm productivity from 13.8 to 23.4 quintals per hectare and reduce post-harvest losses from 41% to 18%.
The initiative targets benefiting over 3 million smallholders and creating 299 small and medium enterprises.
Baseline research is nearing completion, with 216,000 seedlings planted across 79 clustered hectares and solar-powered irrigation pumps deployed.
Over 85% of the current fiscal year budget is directed toward building seedling nurseries and expanding drip irrigation systems.