Opportunities and Constraints of Promoting Coffee Plantation in Southern Tigray, Ethiopia

Abrhaley Shelema *

Department of Horticulture, Tigray Agricultural Research Institute, Alamata Agricultural Research Center, P.O.Box56 Alamata, Ethiopia.

Hagos Kidane

Tigray Agricultural Research Institute, Mekelle, Ethiopia.

Yibrah Gebremedhin

Netherlands Development Organization (SNV), Mekelle, Ethiopia.

Harnet Abraha

National Agricultural Research Council, Adis Ababa, Ethiopia.

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.


Abstract

In Ethiopia, coffee is a significant crop, but in the Tigray region, particularly southern Tigray, it receives less emphasis despite its national importance. This study investigates the status of coffee production in southern Tigray, Ethiopia, using a multistage sampling technique to gather data from 113 respondents during 2015. The goal is to identify opportunities and constraints in coffee production in the region. Data were collected using individual interviews and Focus Group Discussions, and analyzed using SPSS software and a ranking index. The study found that favorable agro ecology, fertile soils, accessibility to water, and existence of tolerant coffee varieties are the opportunities in southern Tigray, Ethiopia. However, constraints include irrigation competition, lack of training, limited input use, and shifting to khat (Catha edulis) cultivation. Additionally, most farmers do not practice pruning and rejuvenation due to lack of technical knowledge. This result in the coffee plants stand; more erect, less branched and unmanageably tall which rendering difficult to harvest berries. Hence, the study suggested that an integrated coffee production intervention is important to boost coffee production and local policy instrument is prerequisite that restrict the shifting of coffee to khat production in the study districts.

Keywords: Coffee, focus group discussions, ranking index, coffee plantation, coffee production


How to Cite

Shelema, Abrhaley, Hagos Kidane, Yibrah Gebremedhin, and Harnet Abraha. 2024. “Opportunities and Constraints of Promoting Coffee Plantation in Southern Tigray, Ethiopia”. Asian Journal of Agricultural and Horticultural Research 11 (4):27-36. https://doi.org/10.9734/ajahr/2024/v11i4337.