Success of Chickpea Production in North Gondar Zone of Ethiopia

1. Feb2016
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Success of Chickpea Production
in North Gondar Zone of Ethiopia
Introduction
■■ Amhara Regional State accounts for 60%, 54% and 55% of Ethiopian
chickpea producers, production and area, respectively
■■ Of this, North Gondar Zone accounts for 23%, 31% and 36% of
producers, area and production, respectively.
■■ However, the zone has had limited access to good quality seed of
improved varieties
■■ Most farmers in this region, therefore grow local landraces
constrained by a/biotic among other stresses
■■ Chickpea production in this area is limited by sporadic incidences of
Ascochyta blight (AB) and Fusarium wilt
■■ Reproductive stage drought also limits pod set and overall yields.
Methods
■■ Efficient seed systems were put in place to ensure sustainable
availability and accessibility of high quality seed of improved varieties
at affordable prices.
■■ Farmers’ seed grower groups were established to make seed
available in the farmers’ vicinity in order to ensure sustainable
expansion of improved chickpea technologies.
■■ The capacities of farmers to produce and market the seed was
enhanced through trainings and farmer field schools.
■■ Chickpea seed producers and cooperatives were linked to Amhara
Seed Enterprise for profitable sales.
Results
■■ In earlier interventions with the TL II project, improved chickpea
varieties namely; Arerti, Habru and Natoli were widely adopted in
Gonder Zuria and Dembia districts.
Getachew Tilahun1
, Million Eshete2
, Mekasha Chichaymelu2
*, Sherif Aliy2
, Tesfaye Geleta2
, Lijalem Korbu2
, Ridwan Mohammed2
, Nigusie Girma2
,
Dagnachew Bekele2
, Asnake Fikre3
, Ganga Rao NVPR4
, Chris O Ojiewo5
, Emmanuel Monyo4
, Moses Siambi4
, Pooran M Gaur6
and Rajeev K Varshney6
and Zewdie Bishaw7
1
Gondar Agricultural Research Center, ARARI, Gondar, Ethiopia; 2
DebreZeit Agric. Research Center, EIAR, Debre Zeit, Ethiopia; 3
Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research, EIAR, Addis
Ababa, Ethiopia; 4
Grain Legumes, ICRISAT, Kenya; 5
Grain Legumes, ICRISAT, Ethiopia; 6
ICRISAT, India; 7
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA),
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Contact:
Email: chichemekasha@gmail.com
■■ In recent interventions in West Belessa and East Belessa districts variety Habru
was widely accepted by the farmers.
■■ The complete failure of the landrace varieties in 2014 due to AB resulted in
higher adoption of AB-resistant Habru.
■■ Only in the second year of the intervention over 1200 farmers managed to grow
this variety.
■■ Chickpea productivity here is now estimated at 2.03 t/ha up from 1.4 t/ha in
1999 and greater than the national average of 1.9 t/ha.
Formal sector
Semi-formal
Informal
sector
Breeder seed
(NARS)
CerƟfied
seed
Grain legume producers
Pre-basic
Basic Seed (PuSE)
SPG
Seed sector
Seed producƟon
PuSE
PvSC
QDS
CerƟfied
seed
Pre-basic
Basic Seed (NARS + SPG)
Export market, Agro-industry
Efficient seed production schemes and partnerships.
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
0
1
2
3
4
2000 2001 2004 2005 2006 2008 2009 2011 2012 2015
ProducƟvity (t/ha) Area ('0000ha)
ProducƟon Year
ChickpeaProducƟvity
Areaunderchickpea
Trends in area and productivity of chickpea in North Gondar.
■■ 15 of the top 25 chickpea producing districts in Ethiopia are located in Amhara
Regional State.
■■ 5 of these are in North Gondar Zone.
■■ 16 out of its 22 districts produce chickpea.
Conclusions
■■ The production and supply of early generation seed should be enhanced to
increase timely access.
■■ Partnership and linkage between Amhara Seed Enterprises and seed producer
groups will enhance supply of high quality commercial class seed of improved
varieties.
■■ Enhanced market linkages for grain producers in this zone will ensure that their
produce is sold and their interest in the crop is sustained.
Land area in hectares under chickpea
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