TIGRAY LIVELIHOOD PAPERS No. 2
Participatory Rural Appraisal Report of Selected Villages in Tigray
Fredu Nega, Zaid Negash, Kidanemariam Gebregziabher, Abebe Ejigu, Mihret Berhanu, J. Nyssen, Bedru Babulo, J. Deckers and E. Tollens September 2006 VLIR – Mekelle University IUC Programme
About the authors Fredu Nega, Zaid Negash, Kidanemariam Gebregziabher, Abebe Ejigu, Mihret Berhanu and Bedru Babulo are at the Faculty of Business and Economics of Mekelle University, Ethiopia. Jan Nyssen has a Ph.D. in physical geography from K.U.Leuven, Belgium and is at K.U.Leuven, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, with standing place Mekelle University. Jozef Deckers has a Ph.D. in soil science from K.U.Leuven, Belgium. Eric Tollens has a Ph.D. in agricultural economics from Michigan State University, U.S.A. Both are professor at K.U.Leuven, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering. All are members of the Mekelle University IUC Programme, particularly of the Socio-Economic Project.
About the Mekelle University IUC Programme The Drylands of Tigray in Northern Ethiopia have been the scene of war and recurrent famine over the last decades. During the famous 1984/85 famine, the mass media alerted the world of the seriousness of the problem. Since the last 10 years Mekelle University trains students from all over Ethiopia to solve problems which typically occur in semi-arid areas. Starting with a Faculty of Dryland Agriculture, Mekelle University took on the challenge to work with the farmers of the Tigray hinterland for a better future. The idea was to conduct, in a participatory manner, practical field research aiming at solving farmer’s problems. The University has now 7 faculties, all aiming to work in this spirit. The Flemish Inter-University Council (VLIR, Belgium) has been supporting this laudable evolution through a number of research projects in the field of soil conservation and rehabilitation of dryland forest. Since 2003 VLIR has committed itself to a more comprehensive support to Mekelle University through its Institutional University Cooperation Programme (IUC). This is a long-term partnership with a 10-year perspective fostering scientific collaboration between Flemish universities and Mekelle University. The ultimate objective of this partnership is to contribute to sustainable livelihood in Tigray. This multidisciplinary project is demand-driven with a major focus on rural communities. It starts from indigenous knowledge and combines this with formal scientific knowledge systems.
Contact us Dr. Jan Nyssen, MU IUC Research Coordinator and Editor of the Tigray Livelihood Papers –
[email protected] Dr. Mulu Bayray, Ethiopian MU IUC Programme Coordinator and member of the Editorial Team –
[email protected] Prof. Jozef Deckers, Belgian MU IUC Programme Coordinator and member of the Editorial Team –
[email protected] Dr. Nurhussen Taha, MU IUC Programme Manager –
[email protected] Prof. Eric Tollens, Belgian Team Leader of the Socio-Economic Project of MU IUC
[email protected] Ato Fredu Nega, Ethiopian Team Leader of the Socio-Economic Project of MU IUC -
[email protected] Mekelle University IUC Programme POBox 231 Mekelle Ethiopia Tel. ++251 (0)34 441 09 71 Fax ++251 (0)34 441 09 69 Cover photo © Karel Kiekens
TIGRAY LIVELIHOOD PAPERS No. 2
Participatory Rural Appraisal Report of Selected Villages in Tigray
Fredu Nega, Zaid Negash, Kidanemariam Gebregziabher, Abebe Ejigu, Mihret Berhanu, J. Nyssen, Bedru Babulo, J.Deckers and E. Tollens September 2006 VLIR – Mekelle University IUC Programme
Tigray Livelihood Papers - Aims and scope The working papers are edited by the MU IUC programme to publish results of research carried out in the broader framework of the MU-IUC programme, within its spin-off research projects, or unpublished work from other VLIR projects at Mekelle University. The WP series seeks to promote rational study of the characterisation, monitoring, causes, effects and remediation of all phenomena affecting the livelihood of the people in Tigray and Northern Ethiopia. In a first phase, the WP will present mostly (but not exclusively) work carried out in the Geba catchment and concern the following subject matters: AQUATIC ECOLOGY FARM TECHNOLOGY SOCIO-ECONOMIC STUDIES HYDROGEOLOGY LAND DEGRADATION AND LAND MANAGEMENT CROP MANAGEMENT Papers integrating aspects from different disciplines, or concerning sustainable livelihood in general are strongly encouraged. Notes to contributors Submit three hard copies of the manuscript (including good quality copies of tables and illustrations) to the Editor. Language The official language of the working papers (WP) is English. Preparation of the text (a) The manuscript should be prepared on a word processor. (b) The abstract should consist of not more than 300 words. (c) The title page should include the name(s) of the author(s), their affiliations, fax and e-mail numbers. Unless otherwise indicated, the first author will be considered corresponding author. Keywords Authors should provide 4 to 6 keywords. References (a) References should be quoted in the text as name and year within brackets and listed at the end of the paper alphabetically. Quotations are as follows: "…as discussed by Collins (1998)", or "statement (Collins, 1998). Where reference is made to more than one work by the same author published in the same year, identify each citation in the text as follows: (Collins, 1998a), (Collins, 1998b). Publications with two authors are referred to as follows (Collins and Quine, 1999). Where three or more authors are listed in the reference list, please cite in the text as (Collins et al., 1998). Secondary referencing is
not allowed (such as: Collins, 1998, quoted by Jameson, 2001). (b) The reference list should be in alphabetical order. All references must be complete and accurate. Online citations should include date of access. References should be listed in the following style: Blaikie, P., 1985. The political economy of soil erosion in developing countries. London, New York, Longman, 186 p. Fiedler, H. J., Gebeyehu Belay, 1999. Forests and their importance for soil conservation in Ethiopia. Archiv für Naturschutz und Landschaftsforschung, 28: 161-175. Hurni, H., 1989. Late Quaternary of Simen and other mountains in Ethiopia. In: Mahaney, W., (ed.), Quaternary and environmental research on East African mountains. Balkema, Rotterdam, pp. 105-120. (c) Ethiopian names are presented as name and father’s name, in that order. The first name is the correct short form. Abbreviations with initials are not used. Long names are written fully (Gebremedhin and not G/medhin). A paper by Genet Gebremeskel, is quoted in the text as (Genet, 2004), and in the reference list as Genet Gebremeskel, 2004. Title of the paper… Tables Tables should be numbered according to their sequence in the text. Individual cells in a table are not bordered. Number of lines in a table shall be kept minimal, horizontal lines are preferred. Tables shall be prepared in a classic way (no fancy effects). Illustrations (a) All illustrations should be numbered consecutively and referred to in the text. (b) Drawings should be lettered throughout, the size of the lettering being appropriate to that of the drawings, but taking into account the possible need for reduction in size. The page format of the WP should be considered in designing the drawings. (c) Photographs must be of good quality. Submission of final document After approval of the editorial committee, the authors shall prepare as quickly as possible a lay out of the document according to instructions provided by the editor. Hard and soft copies of the final document shall be provided.
Table of Contents Page
Table of contents List of Tables List of Figures
i iii 1
INTRODUCTION 1. SHIGUALA VILLAGE 1.1 Village History and Community Mapping 1.2 Seasonal and Daily Calendar 1.3 Agriculture and Livestock 1.4 Social Services 1.5 Market, Credit and Cooperative 1.6 Village Institutions 1.7 Trend Line Analysis 1.8 Participatory Wealth Ranking 1.9 Problem Analysis and Community Action Plan
4 8 15 20 25 28 31 35 37
2. HIDMO VILLAGE 2.1 Village History and Community Mapping 2.2 Seasonal and Daily Calendar 2.3 Agriculture and Livestock 2.4 Social Services 2.5 Market, Credit and Cooperative 2.6 Village Institutions 2.7 Trend Line Analysis 2.8 Participatory Wealth Ranking 2.9 Problem Analysis and Community Action Plan
45 48 55 56 59 62 65 69 71
3. AWULO VILLAGE 3.1 Village History and Community Mapping 3.2 Seasonal and Daily Calendar
1
76 79
3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 3.9
Agriculture and Livestock Social Services Market, Credit and Cooperative Village Institutions Trend Line Analysis Participatory Wealth Ranking Problem Analysis and Community Action Plan
88 90 95 96 102 107 109
4. AGEWO VILLAGE 4.1 Village History and Community Mapping 4.2 Seasonal and Daily Calendar 4.3 Agriculture and Livestock 4.4 Social Services 4.5 Market, Credit and Cooperative 4.6 Village Institutions 4.7 Trend Line Analysis 4.8 Participatory Wealth Ranking 4.9 Problem Analysis and Community Action Plan
114 118 121 125 133 134 141 148 150
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
155 161
Reference, Glossary and Acronyms
2
List of Tables pages Table 1.1 Seasonal Calendar of Shiguala village – Men Group………………8 Table 1.2 Seasonal Calendar of Shiguala village – Women Group…………...9 Table 1.3 Labour requirements for mowing in Shiguala Village……………..10 Table 1.4 Daily Calendar of Shiguala Village – Men Group…………………13 Table 1.5 Daily Calendar of Shiguala Village– Women Group………………14 Table 1.6 Average Livestock Holding in Shiguala Village……………………19 Table 1.7 Wealth Ranking in Shiguala Village………………………………..36 Table 1.8 Problem Ranking in Shiguala Village………………………………41 Table 1.9 Community Action Plan for the top three problems in Shiguala……43 Table 2.1 Seasonal Calendar of Hidmo Village – Men group…………………48 Table 2.2 Seasonal Calendar of Hidmo Village – Women group……………..49 Table 2.3 Daily Calendar of Hidmo Village – Women group…………………54 Table 2.4 Infant Mortality at Hidmo Village…………………………………...58 Table 2.5 Problem Ranking in Hidmo Village…………………………………72 Table 2.6 Community Action Plan of Hidmo Village…………………………74 Table 3.1 Seasonal Calendar of Awulo Village – Men group…………………79 Table 3.2 Seasonal Calendar of Awulo Village – Women group………………80 Table 3.3 Daily Calendar of Awulo Village –Women group…………………..87 Table 3.4 Poverty Definition Criteria in Awulo village……………………….108 Table 3.5 Problem Ranking in Awulo Village…………………………………111 Table 3.6 Community Action Plan of Awulo Village………………………….112 Table 4.1 Seasonal Calendar of Agewo Village –Women Group……………..118 Table 4.2 Daily Calendar of Agewo Village – Women Group………………..120 Table 4.3 Characteristics of wealth group in Agewo village…………………..148 Table 4.4 Problem Ranking in Agewo Village………………………………...153 Table 4.5 Community Action Plan of Agewo Village…………………………154 List of Figures Figure 1. Map of Geba Catchment and Location of Study Sites……………..2 Figure 2. Village Map of Shiguala drawn by Men group…………………….6 Figure 3. Village Map of Shiguala drawn by Women group…………………7 Figure 4. Village Institutions – Shiguala Village…………………………….28 Figure 5 Village map of Hidmo Village drawn by women group…………..47 Figure 6 Village Map of Hidmo Village drawn by men group……………..47 Figure 7: Village Institutions – Hidmo Village………………………………63 Figure 8 Village Map of Awulo village drawn by Women group…………..78 Figure 9 Village Map of Awulo Village drawn by Men group……………..78 Figure 10 Village Institutions – Awulo Village………………………………97 Figure 11 Village Map of Agewo village drawn by women group………….117 Figure 12 Village Map of Agewo village drawn by Men group……………117 Figure 13 Village Institutions – Agewo Village……………………………..136
3
INTRODUCTION Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) is one of the participatory research techniques in the class of qualitative research. Robert Chambers (2004) describes PRA as “a growing family of approaches, methods, attitudes and behaviours to enable and empower people to share, analyze and enhance their knowledge of life and conditions, and to plan, act, monitor, evaluate and reflect". The PRA conducted by the socio economic project of Mekelle University – IUC program follows this definition and allowed rural communities to discuss about their activities, resources, problems and possible solutions. The appraisal was made from February to May 2004. The objectives of the PRA are: • to enable rural people to organize their knowledge, share experience among themselves and gather information on resources they have • to understand the rural environments and social as well as economic dynamism • to understand the trends in the rural socio economic conditions • to enable the community identify their problems, causes of these problems and possible solutions • to enable the community develop a community action plan to address their problems In order to limit the PRA to the objectives set and to have consistency in conducting the PRA in the different villages, a PRA manual was prepared by the socio economic team. In line with the manual, emphasis was accorded to the following topics: i)
ii)
iii)
iv)
v) vi)
Village History. The first day of the PRA discussion begins with history of the village which enabled participants to easily and comfortably tell about the history of their village. Agriculture and Livestock. Focus group discussions were made on agriculture and livestock rearing practices including the problems encountered and possible solutions. Social service. The provision of social services like education and health including the associated problems were also discussed in focus group discussions. Village institutions. Institutions, both from within the village and outside, as well as formal and informal with which the rural communities interact have been addressed. Trend lines. Trends in food availability, forest, population growth, wealth, rainfall and poverty are addressed in this section. Wealth ranking, problem analysis, and community action plan. Finally, the participants ranked the community on the basis of its wealth, discussed the major problems and formulated action plan.
1
Research Site and Team Organization. The PRA is conducted in four selected villages within the Geba catchement. The catchment covers an area of 5200 square kilometers around the river Geba in Tigray regional state in Northern Ethiopia. The catchment and the villages selected are shown in the map below.
Awulo
Fig 1. Map of Geba Catchment and location of the study sites The selection of the villages is made in such a way that the different livelihood systems of the catchment are represented. The variables taken into consideration in the selection process include distance from major market outlets, altitude and farming system. Accordingly four villages marked with dark balls in the map are selected. These are: a. Agewo. This is a Kushet (village) in Tabia Ruba Feleg in Atsbi Wonberta Woreda in Eastern zone of Tigray. It is a high land and borders with the Afar regional state. It is also relatively far from the Woreda market with poor road conditions connecting the village with the Woreda market. b. Awulo. This Kushet is found in Tabia Tsenkaniet in Hawzen Woreda in Easter zone of Tigray. It is near the Sinkata market which is on the main road from Mekelle to Adigrat. c. Shiguala. This Kushet is found in Tabia Arato in Enderta Woreda in Southern zone of Tigray. It is near the Mekelle (the capital of Tigray region) market, which is relatively a bigger market. It is also near to Quiha, the Woreda market and another small semi urban market – Aragure. d. Hidmo. This Kushet is part of Tabia Siye in Tanqua Abergele Woreda in Central Zone. It is a low land and is far from the Woreda market, Yechila.
2
Research Team The research is conducted by the socio economic research team in the IUC-MU program. Socio economic research project is one of the six research projects in the interuniversity cooperation between Mekelle University and VLIR. The task of the research team is divided in such a way that one member served as a team leader to coordinate the overall PRA task in each study site. Moreover, in each session of the PRA, one member served as facilitator and another as note taker. The team spent a full working week (5 – 7 days) in each study site. Besides the research team, Village PRA Committees (VPC) were also established in each of the four villages. In setting up the committee, maximum care is taken so as to include members from different sections of the community. Accordingly, the VPC consists of five members – a religious leader, women’s representative, two ordinary farmers and a representative of the local administration. The main task of the VPC was to explain to the community members the objective, schedule and importance of the PRA. They also encourage the participants to actively participate throughout the PRA. The research finding for each study site is compiled separately so as to understand the socio economic characteristics of each area.
3
1.
SHIGUALA VILLAGE
1.1
Village History and Community Mapping
a. Village History Shiguala is one of the four villages that constitute Tabia Arato in Enderta Woreda in the southern zone of Tigray. It consists of three ‘gotts’ (sub villages) viz. Adi Erar, Ma’edo and Mai Aini. The name Shiguala is associated with religion. The participants narrated that during the period of Emperor Susenios (1607 – 32), priests from Gonder migrated to Tigray carrying the ark of St. Mary. The ark was temporarily placed in a place called Gulo, located near Shiguala. The priests were looking for a permanent place for the ark and two villages compete for this. One is ‘Qui’en’ and the other is ‘Shiguala’. The villagers of Qui’en prepared all the necessary foodstuff to welcome the guests with their ark. The villagers of ‘Qui’en’ lobbied the priests to go to their village, for the women of the village have prepared food, in the local language ‘abqui’en’, after which the village is named as ‘Qui’en’. On the other hand, many girls from Shiguala gathered to lobby the priests to permanently place the ark in their village. The priests said a thousand girls (in the local language shieh gualat) came to take the ark, which they finally succeeded to win the hearts of the priests to place the ark in that village. Consequently the village is named as Shiguala (that is to mean a thousand girls). Since the ark has come from Gondar, the villagers sometimes call their village “Shiguala ni Gondar Guala”, that is, Shiguala the daughter of Gondar. Shiguala was previously known as Adi Arba’ete (the place of four), for there were four administrators in the area. Before Emperor Yikuno Amlak (1270-1285) came to power, he was in the area as a rebel. His soldiers saw a young lady who was studying the religious education under Aba Kifletsion in the church of Medhanialem (the savior of the world) and told to their chief about the young lady. Emperor Yikunoamlak finally married the young lady and gave birth to four sons. For this, the place was used to be called Adi Arba’ete. The villagers also believe that Shiguala is a village of religious intelligences where there were a number of educated religious teachers for a long period of time. During the period of Rasie Woldeslassie, there were many known religious teachers like Yeneta Meshesha Zetigray (from Tigray), Yeneta Meressa Zegondar (from Gondar), Yeneta Gebremedhin Zewajirat (from Wajirat) and Yeneta Animut. Many students from different parts of Tigray and Gondar used to come to the area to study religious education (nai keshi timhirti). Similarly during Emperor Menilik II (1889-1913) there were a number of notable religious teachers like Yeneta Adhanom, Mergeta Kiros, Haleka Wokele and Memhir Reda. A Priest named Woldesilassie constructed the first church during the period of Emperor Susenios. It was St. Mary’s church with 24 pillars. This building is now replaced by a new one and today there are three churches in the area.
4
The village has passed through many ups and downs and the major recognizable events are summarized below. The people of the village fought in Atsibi Wonberta in support of Dejach Abreha who promised to relieve them from a land use fee. Dejach Abreha won in the fighting; however, he did not keep his promise. He made every household to pay an amount of money equal to the number of cattle the household possesses. The people of Shiguala, like all other dwellers in other parts of Tigray who were supposed to pay the land use fee, were disappointed and in another fighting which Dejach Abreha made against Rasie Abate in Korem, the people of Shiguala like the other parts of Enderta denied him their support and he was defeated. Shiguala experienced many difficulties in different periods. In 1958/59 (1951 E.C.), locust destroyed all the crops in the field in the month of Tikimt (October) and the people were exposed to a severe shortage of food and many of them (not less than two-third of the population) migrated to Mekelle and Quiha in search of food. Another year of difficulty was in 1972/73 (1965 E.C.) where there was less harvest and an acute shortage of fodder due to shortage of rain. Although the farmers tried to migrate their cattle to the low lands of Afar in search of grass, it could not help them and many of their cattle died. The worst drought in the history of the village occurred in 1984/85 (1977 E.C.). Beginning 1982/83 (1975 E.C.) the amount of rainfall was low but in 1984/85, it almost did not rain in the area. There was nothing to eat. Almost all their cattle were dead. Many people (about 10% of village population) died of starvation and diseases that followed the famine. The remaining have left their home and migrated to Mekelle, Quiha, and other places and a large number of people (not less than 1000), many of them forcefully, have been taken into the new settlement areas prepared in the south western part of Ethiopia under the resettlement program of the Derg regime. Over the next two years (1985/86 and 1986/87) there was a good amount of rainfall in the area and a bumper harvest especially in 1986/87. Many of the villagers rehabilitated themselves in these two years of good harvest. Although there was drought in the next year (1987/88), the villagers were able to feed them selves thanks to the bumper harvest of the previous year. From 1994/95 to 1996/97, the people of Shiguala together with the people of the other villages in Tabia Arato have constructed the Arato dam and there was a big expectation that the dam would irrigate a large area of land. However, the result was largely disappointing because the reservoir could not hold enough water for irrigation apart from being used as a source of drinking water for their cattle. Besides the protracted civil war during the Derg Regime, the recent war which the villagers consider worth mentioning is the Ethio – Eritrian War. From 1997/98 to 1999/2000, many youngsters of the village fought in the Ethio Eritrian war and many have died defending their motherland heroically. The participation of the people in the expansion of education is also significant. In 1993/94 a primary school with limited number of classrooms was built and started
5
functioning. In 2003/04 the community contributed resources worth birr 380,000 for the expansion of the school and as a result seven additional classrooms and a library are under construction. b. Community Mapping In this section, both men and women are asked to draw map of their village separately. Figure 2:
Village Map of Shiguala village drawn by Men Group
6
Figure 3:
Village Map of Shiguala village drawn by Women Group
The village maps drawn by both groups are indicative of the major resources in the village. However, there are some differences in the emphasis of the men group and the women group. The women group have identified in their map the source of water, mainly because fetching water is the responsibility of women and the men group emphasized on grazing land and offices of the agricultural extension program.
7
1.2
Seasonal and Daily Calendar
a. Seasonal Calendar In this session, men and women groups have separately prepared their seasonal calendars that are summarized in the tables that follow. Table 1.1 Major Activities I. Agriculture • Plowing • Sowing • Weeding • Mowing • Harvesting • Collection of straw • Fencing
Seasonal Calendar of Shiguala village – Men Group Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. March April May June July August X -
II. Water and soil conservation III. Daily Labour IV. Petty trade X Food High Availability Medium Health
X X X -
X X X -
X X X -
X X
X -
X -
-
X -
X -
X -
X -
-
-
-
X
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X
X
-
-
Low High Medium Low
8
Table 1.2 Major Activities I. Agriculture • Hoeing • Preparing seed bed (Golgual) • Sowing • Weeding • Mowing • Composting manure • Preparing seeds for sowing II. Food for work III. Water and soil conservation V. Petty trade (marketing) Food High Availability Medium
Seasonal Calendar of Shiguala village – Women Group Sept. Oct.
Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb.
March
April
May June July
August
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
X -
X X
X
X -
X -
X -
-
-
X
X
X
-
X -
X -
X -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
X
X
-
-
-
-
X
X
X -
X -
X -
X -
-
-
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
Low Health
High Medium Low
The seasonal activities of the rural communities can be viewed broadely as farming activities and non-farm (off-farm) activities. i. Farming Activities The main activities related to agriculture in the area are plowing, preparing seeds, sowing (planting), weeding, mowing (cutting), threshing and collection of straw. Plowing Plowing in Shiguala is done two or three times. It begins in the month of February locally called ‘tsigie’. It is then tilled for the second time in March which is called ‘aimi’. In some cases, the land is tilled for the third time in May called ‘teslas’ before it is ready for planting. In these ploughing activities only men are involved. However, women also hoe their garden during the planting season to plant green leaf locally called ‘hamli’.
9
Sowing Once the beds are ready, farmers start to sow or plant their seeds. Although, sowing is mainly done in June, in the recent past there is a trend to push it to July because of the delay on the onset of rains. Both women and men are involved in this activity. Women play an important role in removing the debris from a ploughed field locally called ‘golgual’. Dead weeds and roots are removed by hand. Weeding Weeding in Shiguala, which is also true elsewhere in the region, is crop dependent. For cereals like barley and wheat, weeding locally called ‘gelfa’ is done in August. It usually requires 6 – 10 man days for 5 tsimad (or 1.25 hectares) of land. Teff on the other side requires more man days and is usually done in September. It is estimated that it requires 30 persons for a quarter of a hectare or 1 tsimad. Both men and women participate in weeding. Mowing (Cutting) Mowing is mainly done by men, but women are also involved in collecting the mowed plants together locally called ‘na’era’. The number of days required to cut crops grown on a field is different for teff and other crops. Teff requires more man days, more than 3 times, than other types of crops. The following table summarizes the number of man days required for cutting crops. Table 1.3 Type of crop Teff, Barley Black wheat Others
Labour requirements for mowing in Shiguala Village Plot of land in hectare 0.25 0.25 0.25 0.25
Man days 10 3 3 3
Month Tahsas (December) Hidar (November) Hidar (November) Tikimiti (October)
Threshing After cutting the crops, the next seasonal task is threshing, i.e., separating the seeds from the straw. For this purpose, both man labour and oxen are required. Threshing is usually done from October to December. The man days required for threshing differs according to the size of the crop to be threshed. But it is estimated that on average a household requires 16 man days for threshing. Moreover, 4 to 6 oxen are required at a time for threshing. This activity is purely men’s job. Transporting The next task after separating the seeds from the straw is to transport both the seeds and the straw from the harvesting area to the household’s residence. Since the farm lands are located away from the village, donkeys are used for transportation. This activity is done
10
in the same period as threshing. On average 8 days are required with an average of 2 persons and 2 donkeys per day. Transportation is also men’s job. Seed preparation. Selecting proper seeds for sowing through a traditional means is an activity fully left to women. For cereals like wheat, barley and teff, women separate the proper (healthy) seeds from the unwanted seeds. In the case of legumes such as chickpeas and vetch (Lathyrus), women sock the seeds in water before planting. ii. Off-farm Activities Besides farming, there are also different off-farm activities accomplished by the rural communities at different times of the year. Soil and water conservation Soil and water conservation, both for free (21 days every year) and for payment, i.e., food for work is done during the slack season – mainly in the months of January and February. Daily Labour Both men and women also engage in daily labour. But mainly the young men who do not have land (because land is not redistributed in the region) and households with land but do not have their own oxen usually lease out their land and migrate to the nearby towns like Mekelle, Quiha and Shiket in search of daily work. Even some household heads who cultivate their land also migrate to the nearby towns in search of work during the slack season, i.e., after collecting their harvest and before the next planting season. Petty trade Although limited in number, some households both men and women are also engaged in petty trade like retailing kerosene, salt and fire wood. The better-off households who possess pack animals, mainly camel and mule also transport salt bars from Reged in the Afar regional state and sale them in Mekelle. Food Availability and Health Condition Both the men and women’s group have also reflected the availability of food and the condition of health at the different months of the year by classifying as high, medium and low. Both have produced more or less similar results as shown at the bottom of the seasonal calendar tables of each group given above. According to both groups, the availability of food in the village is medium to high during October to mid of April, i.e., during the harvesting season and a few months following it. For the remaining months of the year, the availability of food is low. During the rainy season (June to August) and in the month of September until harvesting begins, there is a big deficit of food. In the
11
months of July and August, most of the villagers supplement their dish by eating the locally grown green leaf called Hamli. Women usually sow this in their garden. The health condition according to both groups shows less variability as compared to the availability of food. Except for the months where temperature becomes relatively high like May, June and September, where the general health condition becomes relatively poor, in the remaining months of the year the health condition is medium to high. There are no contagious diseases like malaria prevailing in the area. In the months of May, June and September, the commonest health problem is coughing.
12
b. Daily Calendar Table 1.4
Daily Calendar of Shiguala Village – Men Group
Daily Sept. Activities
Oct.
6:00am breakfast, coffee
Daily Activities
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
5:00-7:00am wake up and having breakfast, walk to the field 7:00 - 12:00 Mowing
6:00-8:00am breakfast and coffee, feeding cattle
11:00 – 12:30 Lunch in the field
12:00-1:00 pm lunch
12:30 5:00pm weeding
1:00 - 6:00 Mowing
12:00 – 3:00pm lunch and coffee, break 3:00-6:00 accomplishing personal matters
8:00 11:00am weeding
–
-
8:00 – 12:00 fencing, Soil and water conservation
Feb.
March
8:00am – 12:00 fencing, plowing, Soil and water conservation
3:00pm6:00pm accomplishing personal matters, preparing the plough
6:00 – 8:00 Dinner , and coffee 9:00 Sleeping time
13
April
May
June
July
August
4:00-6:00am, feeding the oxen, preparing the plough and breakfast 6:00 – 12:00am plowing and sowing
5:00-7:00 am wake up and breakfast, walk to field
12:00 –1:00pm Lunch and coffee
11:00-1:00pm back to home and have lunch and coffee 1:00- 6:00pm weeding
1:00 – 6:00pm plowing and sowing
7:00-11:00am Weeding
Daily Activities
Daily Activities
Table 1.5 Daily Calendar of Shiguala Village– Women Group Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. 5:00 – 8:00am House cleaning, water fetching and breakfast preparation
8:30am – 12:00 weeding
6:00 – 8:30am House cleaning, water fetching and breakfast
8:30am - 12:00 Mowing
12:00 – 1:00pm Lunch
1:00 - 6:00 weeding
6:30 – 10:00 Dinner preparation 10:00 Sleeping Time
1:00 - 6:00pm Mowing
8:30am – 12:00 sewing, spinning and lunch preparation
8:30am – 1:00pm soil and water conservation
8:30am – 1:00pm food for work
12:00 – 1:00 lunch and coffee
1:00 – 2:00 lunch and coffee
1:00 – lunch coffee
1:00 – 6:00 pm Other household activities like baking enjera every other day and social activities
2:00 – 6:00 pm Other household activities like baking enjera every other day, sewing, spinning and social activities
2:00 and
6:00 – 9:00 dinner preparation 9:00 sleeping time
March
April
May
June
July 5:00 – 9:00am House cleaning, water fetching, breakfast preparation, and seed preparation 9:00am – 12:00 preparing seed bed and sowing seeds in their gardens
12:00 – 1:00pm lunch and coffee 1:00 – 6:00pm seed selection, preparing garden for plantation, and other household activities
6:00 – 10:00 dinner preparation 10:00 sleeping time
14
August
9:00am – 12:00 weeding for some days of the month and household activities for the remaining days 12:00 – 1:00pm lunch 1:00 – 6:00pm weeding for some days of the month and household activities for the remaining days
The daily calendar of men shows that men are mainly engaged in agricultural field work and taking care of their animals. On the other hand, women are busy both in housework and field work.
1.3
Agriculture and Livestock a. Agriculture
The average land holding in Shiguala is six tsimad (1.5 hectares) per family, out of which two tsimad is located in thick soil (more fertile) area, three tsimad in moderately fertile land (moderately thick soil) area, and the rest one tsimad in shallow soil area. The types of crops grown in Shiguala in descending order are: 1. Barley (Black barley and white barley) 2. Wheat (Black wheat and selected variety of wheat – white wheat) 3. Teff 4. Vetch, Chick peas, peas, and other similar crops Crops like maize and sorghum are not grown in the area. The average land use is such that about three tsimad is used for growing barley, two tsimad for wheat, and the rest one tsimad for teff and others. Following the downfall of the Imperial regime in 1974 and the change in land tenure policy, land in Shiguala was distributed in 1975 during the Derg period. Land was redistributed for the second time in 1977 which was more comprehensive than the first one. After the Derg government was removed from the region by the TPLF forces, land was redistributed in 1990. Community members believe that this land distribution was more justified because it was done on the basis of the lottery system. After the Derg government was ousted, many formerly resettled (to the south western parts of the country following the catastrophic famine of 1994/95) residents of the village returned in 1992, and were given unused or left over land. No fresh land distribution took place to accommodate the returnees; in fact the land these people hold is relatively small amounting to about three tsimad. It is estimated that there are about 1500 households who possess land and another 500 households entitled to possess but without land. Most of these landless are dependent on their families and they are engaged in petty trade or daily labour. Agriculture is mainly rain fed in the area with a limited practice of irrigation. There exists a small irrigable land in Shiguala near Virgin Mary’s Church which was going on over the last three years. It was started by one farmer, the late Abraha Halefom, and then
15
others followed. At present about 21 households make use of the irrigable land, some of them using water pumps. A micro dam named Arato (after which the whole ‘Tabia’ is named) is found in Shiguala. Because of excessive seepage the water holding capacity of the micro dam is very small. As a result it cannot support irrigation in the area, although about three farmlands are being irrigated from it. The contribution of the micro dam for irrigation is thus virtually non existent. The recent shift of focus of government policy towards family based food security packages, prompted the construction of small ponds, popularly known as ‘horeye’. As a result some 200 horeyes are prepared in Shiguala. All of the horeyes are made in 2003/04, and their benefit is yet to be seen. Out of the total number of horeyes made so far, some sixty are dressed with plastic sheets to avoid seepage. The standard size of the family pond is 12 meters by 12 meters, with the inner part 5 meters wide and 5 meters deep. At the beginning, horeyes were made collectively but for individual use and 25 persons from the community were assigned to make one horeye to one household and this was taking longer time. Twenty five persons were working for 15 days (i.e. 355 man days) to make one horeye. Today, however, individual families are given the responsibility to prepare their own horeyes and it is taking much less time. It became possible to complete one horeye in one month if the family members closely work on it. In fact, it also depends on the number of capable family members and their dedication to the cause. One participant, for instance, indicated that three members of his family completed their horeye within a month of hard work. Dressing the horeyes with plastic sheets was delayed at the beginning and as a result those which were completed before the rainy season but not dressed could not accumulate enough water. Thus, the benefits of the horeye is yet to be seen particularly after the current rains. High Yielding Varieties Since 2003/04, the villagers are using high yielding wheat variety called white wheat and they found it to be better than their own (i.e., locally available) varieties, although it requires proper weeding. Since then they are continuously using the selected wheat variety. This wheat variety has managed high approval rate. In fact its price at the beginning was very high (birr 225 for 75 kilograms), but when farmers start producing it, they sell it at much lesser price (birr 150 per quintal). Almost everybody in the village is making use of this improved variety. Use of Organic Fertilizer The use of organic manure (such as animal waste) is almost unknown in the village. There are a few farmers (not more than ten) who currently apply organic manure. As far as its importance goes, there is a belief that organic fertilizer is more useful than chemical fertilizer. For instance, the impact of organic fertilizer on soil lasts for more years while chemical fertilizer is only useful for one harvest. Organic manure can be found uselessly
16
dumped into garbage (or taken by flood) here and there in the village. It is only two to three years ago that using organic fertilizers began by one or two farmers; last year it went up to about five users, and currently it went up to about ten users. One can therefore see some improvement in use, but given the large number of households in the village and compared to other areas of the region, one can say that organic fertilizer is not applied in Shiguala. In earlier times, people used to have bigger plots of land and part of the land was left fallow, and even if one does not use fertilizers the land was more productive. However, due to population pressure the average land holding at present is very small and soil fertility has gone down. The use of fertilizer has thus become imperative. In spite of the greater benefit of organic manure in terms of cost and longer impact on the soil, people make extensive use of chemical fertilizer and almost none of organic ones. In addition to the fact that organic manure were not traditionally used in the village, another major reason why people prefer chemical fertilizer to organic fertilizer is the fact that the organic fertilizer requires more labour and animal power especially when the farm land is far from the residence and highly scattered, which is usually the case in the village. For instance, a farmland that could be covered with half a quintal of chemical fertilizer (which could be carried with a donkey) requires a load of fifty donkeys in the case of organic manure. In the meantime, one has to note that donkey is extensively used for transporting goods not only in the village but also in the entire Woreda. Marketable surplus Although production in the area is subsistence, farmers sale part of their output . Participants estimated that they sell one third of their produce for different purposes including meeting tax obligations, purchase industrial products such as oil, kerosene and clothing. A few items such as vegetables (carrot, potato, etc) and crops (fenugreek) are exclusively produced for the market but in small quantity. The major market for the village is the nearby town of Quiha. A standard unit of measurement is not in place while selling and buying their marketable crops. The local unit of measurement used for selling and buying is known as ‘shehane’. The buyers, mainly merchants, use a bigger size unit which is locally called ‘zegamba’ when they buy the products of the farmers. Although the farmers can take their own unit size, in most cases they have to use the buyer’s unit while selling their produce. If the farmers have to purchase the same products from the retailers, the retailers use small size units. Major Problems in Agriculture Participants agreed that the major problems in the village pertaining agriculture are the following: 1. Weeding: the village community does not undertake proper weeding practices. As a result of this agricultural produce will not be as much as it ought to be.
17
2. Lack of rainwater: rain starts late and stops early. If rain fails in the month of September (Meskerem), the entire crop production practice will be subject to utter jeopardy. Lack of rainwater has been the major limiting factor for agricultural production. 3. Rust (Himodia) and dew: Himodia is a kind of crop disease that renders the entire crop unable to bear fruit. Dew is associated with excessive cold weather during the night time which kills the entire crop that it will not be able to bear fruit. Problem number one is within the control of the community. The community has to engage in proper weeding practices to improve its harvest. Proper plowing practices and applying weed free seeds are also believed to minimize the germination of weed along with the main crop. Although many of the participants believe that the community can harvest rainwater through dams, ponds, and conservation practices, there is still a strong belief that rainwater belongs to God and it is beyond their control. Similarly, Himodia and dew are beyond the society’s control. Vegetables and Fruits Those with irrigable land mainly produce potato and tomato. Cabbage and onion are also produced. The majority of farmers also produce vegetables such as potatoes, lettuce, pumpkin, and spices in their backyards, for which women are responsible. Moreover, almost every family in Shiguala grows a type of fruit known locally as ‘kolkual bahri’ or ‘beles’ (meaning cactus). It is introduced to the village after the devastating famine of 1984/85. Cactus is found to be extremely useful for the village because: • It grows faster (it bears fruit within three years) • It is drought resistant • It does not require much labour • Its fruit is edible and marketable (on average a family earns Br. 100.00 from the sale of cactus fruit every summer) • Its leaf and stem is used as animal feed • Its stem is used as a fuel wood after drying b. Livestock In terms of priority of use, the livestock population of the village is summarized as under: 1. Cattle: While oxen are used for plowing and threshing, cows are used for milk for home use (selling milk is not an acceptable practice), butter (for home use and for sale), and for reproduction. 2. Pack animals (donkey, horse, mule, and camel): Donkey is used for transporting any kind of goods (Seed, output, plowing implements, water, marketable products, fuel wood, straw, goods purchased from the market, etc.) 18
and almost every household possesses a donkey. While horse is used for human transportation, mule and camel are mainly used for transporting salt bars from a place known as Arho (Afar region) and sell them in Mekelle or other places. 3. Sheep and Goats: These are largely used for sales and home consumption during holidays. 4. Poultry: Households keep poultry (chicken) for supplying meat and eggs. The sale of eggs and chicken is also used to cover miscellaneous expenses. However, poultry production is not carried out at a large scale by the community. It is just a sideline activity and it does not contribute significantly for household food and income. The average livestock holding per household in the village, as agreed by the participants, is summarized in the following table: Table 1.6
Average Livestock Holding in Shiguala Village
Livestock Cattle Pack animals (all taken together) Sheep and Goats Poultry (chicken)
Average holding 4 (a pair of oxen and two cows) 2 1 2
Animal Health Apart from the availability of a person trained from the community to provide animal washing services (using chemicals to deal with external parasites), there does not exist animal health service in the village. For health services beyond washing, they have to go to Quiha to deal with the animal health problem. In fact, animal health workers visit the village once in six months or once a year to provide vaccination services upon payment of 30 cents. The farmers believe that they are benefiting from the vaccination service. Sometimes, however, the farmers are told to go to Quiha to vaccinate their animals which they usually fail to do. However, the problem is more serious than that. Some of the animal diseases do not give time to go to other areas. The main animal diseases in the village are pancreas (‘tafia’), swellings, and severe stomachache. On average, about 100 livestock die every year because of animal diseases accompanied by lack of sufficient feed. Lack of animal health services in the village is considered as a serious problem by the community. Major Livestock related problems 1. Lack of animal feed: this is mainly because of the frequent drought encountered in the area and over grazing. 2. Lack of proper animal health care
19
3. Lack of proper follow up. The community is more interested in holding more livestock and less attention is given to their overall care and productivity. 4. Lack of improved species. As part of a solution, participants agreed to focus on quality in addition to quantity. Availability of a health service in their vicinity is also another solution. Using improved animal species and making use of them instead of depending on traditional varieties is also acknowledged as another area of focal solution.
1.4
Social Services
a. Education Formal education in Shiguala is at low level. There is one elementary school in the village established in 1976/77 in the form of wood-tent ‘das’ in a place different from its current location. It was then reestablished in its current location in 1991/92. From 1991/92 to 1999/2000 the school conducted classes up to grade four. But because of the fact that the number of students has shown significant reduction, and other associated reasons, it is down graded to conduct classes up to grade three. It was even about to be closed particularly in the year 2002/03 because the number of students went down from 85 to 21. In the current academic year, the number of students increased to 138. The school is located in a convenient place such that the longest distance a student travels to come to the school is between 20 to 30 minutes walk. In addition to the old class rooms (constructed in 1991/92) that are four in number (two rooms for grade one students and one each for grades two and three), which had serious deficiencies in the floor (the floor is made of mud), doors, and windows; eight new class rooms are being constructed currently. The construction of the new classes which started in the current academic year (2003/04) has been progressing well and it almost reached the point of completion. The newly constructed rooms are of good standard, however, teaching materials and equipment such as tables, chairs, sport equipment and other teaching materials are not fulfilled. Of the eight newly constructed rooms, one is to be used as a library and the other seven for class rooms. The total number of class rooms will thus be eleven. At present the total number of students (grades one to three) in Shiguala Elementary School is 138. The proportion of female students is above 50%. Classes are conducted in one shift only. It is quite evident that the number of students is very small compared to its capacity particularly when we consider the newly constructed classrooms. There used to have serious drop out problems in the past, but at present the dropout problem is minimized. The former director of the school failed to perform his duties properly and he did not make the necessary follow up. He lacked acceptance by the students and the community at large. However, the current director is running the school properly and
20
teachers make the necessary follow up if students miss classes. The director and the teachers persuade parents not to let their children drop out from school. After completing grade three, students of the Kushet go to a nearby village called Semha which is about one hour’s walk. The school at Semha conducts classes of up to grade eight. Students had complaints (including physical punishment) on the former school director and the teachers. The former director was replaced by a new one in 2003/04. The present director is so good that students are happy not only with him but also with the other teachers. No more complaints of physical punishment by teachers. Students say that their teachers take good care of them. Students feel that the capacity of their teachers is sufficient. The new school director as well as the teachers are well mannered, and they easily assimilated with the community. They attend religious mass and social gatherings, and conduct discussions with the community. They are closer to the community and the community is closer to them. This was not the case with the earlier director and teachers. The relationship was not one of cooperation but that of distance and enmity. The community did not construct and provide residence houses to the school teachers, however, the teachers live in a public place constructed for the purpose of extension service. “Why do you need to construct new class rooms while the number of students is very small?” This question was posed to participants and they said it is because of the following reasons: i. The attention given to education has increased recently. It is not thus peculiar to our village; other villages are also engaged in similar activities. It could thus be seen as part of the increased overall focus on education; ii. Beyond grade three, our children are required to go to nearby village of Semha or semi-urban village of Aragure. To minimize the difficulty faced by our children, we had to make more rooms so that they could proceed to higher levels within the village; iii. The participants confirmed that there will be an upsurge in the number of students because the community has pledged to send children to school once the additional class rooms are ready. Major Problems in the Process of Formal Education The participants identify the following as the main problems associated with formal education in ‘shiguala’: 1. The community has not fully appreciated the importance of formal education. There is lack of initiation to send children to school. There are many children in the village who should have been at school but are not going to school; 2. Female students are made to drop out from school for the sake of marriage;
21
3. There is a concern that they may not secure the required number of teachers particularly given the expansion that is currently underway. “What is expected of the community in light of the problems?” In reply to this question, participants agreed on the following points in order to deal with the problems stated above: a. We pledge to send our children to school. Our understanding of the importance and benefits of education is increasing, and we have to send our children to school and provide the necessary support and follow up; b. We should not interrupt our female children from school because of marriage. Education brings better results and ultimate satisfaction than early marriage. c. Pertaining the third problem, it is beyond our reach. Consequently, we expect the government to deal with the issue of sending adequate number of teachers to our school. Adult Education Participants estimated that about 30% of adult men in the village are literate, with basic writing and reading skills. However, only 5% of women adults are literate. Majority of the literate persons attained their skills from ‘religious education’, ‘literacy campaigns’, and others (some of them obtained their skills during their stay in resettlement sites following the 1984/85 famine). Participants indicated that literate persons: • can be better leaders • secure relatively better paid jobs • read and write letter for themselves and for others • are useful in that they help the community in preparing local rules and regulations • use their literacy skills to improve their personal lives • read important declarations to the community • assist the community keep records of contributions Asked if they are interested to take part in literacy education, they replied that people give priority to their daily activities (plowing, weeding, daily labour, conservation, etc) rather than going to attend literacy classes. Youngsters below the age of 25 do have the interest to attend such classes, but others are not interested because of the overwhelming need to win daily bread.
Non-formal Education Non-formal education is the means by which the majority of the society obtain the knowledge, skill, and experience required for life. The venues through which non-formal education are delivered in Shiguala include: 22
• parents and grand parents • skilled and capable individuals • the local radio • the church • trainings (e.g. how to make and use improved oven) • agricultural cadres and health agents The participants appreciated the role of non-formal education including the different skills and knowledge they earned in areas of: • Plowing • Milking cows • Delivery of cows and other animals • Respect for marriage and family • Water and soil conservation practices • Primary health care • Family planning • Use of organic manure (using organic manure was not practiced, it is being introduced recently) • Better agricultural practices The society has been learning and is interested to further learn and benefit from nonformal education. The community considers this PRA exercise as one type of non-formal education and they expressed their liking towards the PRA because of the mutual sharing of experience involved in it. The time preferred by the community for non-formal education would be during the slack season (like February) and during holidays (Saturdays and Sundays, or other nonworking days). b. Health The situation of health in the village is showing improvement through time. This is so because people are now becoming aware of the health conditions, medical facilities are improving, and different protective measures are taken. Only during some months of the year – mainly during the hot months of February, March, April, May and September – that there is a limited health problem like coughing. As part of the preventive measures, mothers vaccinate their children since birth up to nine months in the nearby health post. The same health post also provides treatment for the villagers when they are sick. If the sickness is serious, the patient is referred to Quiha and Mekelle Hospitals. In getting medical facilities, the main problems are that the health post only works during the daytime. No service is provided during the night. Moreover, if a patient is referred to Quiha or Mekelle hospitals, there is transportation problem. The patient has to go either on foot (if he/she is able), on a horse back or by a stretcher on the shoulder of others.
23
Maternal Health The maternal health condition has also shown improvement. Since pregnant women make check-ups starting from the fourth month of their pregnancy, the death incidences during pregnancy and delivery are reduced. At times of birth, a woman is first assisted by her families and neighbors. But if any problem occurs, a traditional but trained birth attendants will be called upon and assist her. In rare instances, miscarriage problems occur among pregnant women because of heavy workload and health problems. Infant mortality rate is also reduced. The villagers believe that from the approximately 30 children born every year, not more than two die either at the time of birth or few days after birth. The increased levels of health awareness and medical facilities have reduced the level of infant mortality. Moreover, mothers discuss among themselves about the general level of health of their children, the health problems their children face, the ways in which these diseases have been treated etc. This has enabled them to share ideas and take lessons from each other. All mothers feed their children breast milk up to three years, but supplementary food is given after six months. \ Birth Spacing To completely stop birth or to postpone birth, women in the village use contraceptive mechanisms. In so doing, husbands are consulted. The advise about family planning given in almost every three month has helped many of them to use contraceptive mechanisms. Water Use and Hygiene The major source of drinking water of the village is spring water available in the village. Although there is one hand pump, it does not supply sufficient water for the whole village. The spring water according to the villagers is good but the level of the water decreases during the dry season and so does the quality. The villagers are also aware of keeping their clothes and themselves clean. Moreover, they also instruct their children to keep themselves clean and wash their hands before eating food. Some households in the village have their private latrines but most people use open air toilet. Some of the latrines are built in a traditional way using local materials and others have used cement obtained from the household package program. Nutrition The staple food of the village is Enjera with ShiroWott (a kind of stew made from ground beans, peas and vetch) and sometimes vegetables and meat (mainly during holidays) are among their dish. The most liked type of food during non-fasting seasons is Doro Wott
24
(Chicken stew). In the daily dish of the people, besides enjera (pan cake made of teff), bread (himbasha) is also served. The villagers believed that during the earlier periods, the type of food provided for different age groups (mainly for children and adults) was different, but today because of reduction of yield, there is no difference among the type of food provided to children and adults. However, there is some difference in the feeding habit in different seasons of the year. During harvesting season, enjera, bread and kollo (roasted cereals) are among the daily dishes of the village and during the rainy season especially in the months of July and August, the amount of cereals (crop) available at home becomes less and the people mainly eat the locally grown green leaf called hamli.
1.5
Market, credit and cooperative
a. Market. There are four market places in which the villagers transact. These markets are • Mekelle (the main market) specially for cattle • Quiha for selling crops and purchasing commodities • Aragure- to buy crops, goats and sheep • Edaga Arbi (a market within the Kushet)-to buy crops, sheep, goat and other commodities Mekelle Mekelle market is the farthest but largest market for the villagers. Both women and men participate in this market. To go to Mekelle market, the villagers travel first on foot to Quiha and then take a bus to Mekelle. Women usually sell crops like barley, wheat, lentil, and other oilseeds and buy some manufactured consumable items. Men, on the other hand, sell live animals like ox, goat, donkey, camel, and mule. Sometimes, farmers buy selected seed, especially wheat, for planting because varieties of seeds are supplied to this market from different corners of the region. Quiha The second major market place that the villagers use is Quiha and marketing takes place twice a week on Thursday and Saturday. They sell crops like barley and wheat and fuel wood. They purchase coffee, clothes, red pepper, agricultural implements, and other consumer goods. Aragure The villagers use this market mainly to buy commodities either for self consumption or for resale in the Mekelle and Quiha markets. They mainly buy butter, eggs, chicken, sheep and goat for resale. They also purchase traditional clothes in this market.
25
Edaga Arbi This is a new market, which is organized within the village in the recent past. Transactions in this market are made in smaller quantities. In this market, goat, sheep, chicken, eggs, butter, coffee, sugar, onion, potato and other vegetables are transacted. The marketing day is Friday and the name Edaga Arbi means Friday Market. Problems related to marketing • Transportation Problem. Although there is a dirt track road connecting the village to Aragure and Quiha markets, the road condition is so bad that there are no buses or trucks that provide transportation service. To resolve the problem, the participants confirmed that the community can pledge money and labour service for the construction of the road. • Lack of standard measurement unit. There is no standard measurement unit in the market for cereals. The local unit used is ‘Shehane’. There are different sizes of the ‘Shehane’ used in the market. Merchants use bigger size ‘Shehane’ when they buy from farmers and smaller size ‘Shehanes’ when they sale to farmers. • Prices of commodities purchased by the villagers like coffee and sugar are getting higher and higher. a. Credit Credit market is not developed and widely practiced in Shiguala, as it is true for many parts of rural Tigray. The major source of credit for a long time has been the moneylenders. In the recent period, however, more and more people are having access to formal credit mainly from Dedebit Credit and Saving Institution (DECSI), a micro finance institution that operates in the region, and to some extent through the food security package program. DECSI provides loans on a group collateral basis. Farmers are expected to produce a letter of support from the local administration that certify their eligibility for a credit and form a group of six people (lately reduced to three) to get a loan. The group serves as collateral. If any member of the group fails to pay, the remaining group members are liable. Moreover, all members are expected to make regular repayment of the loan at the same time. No member can make a repayment individually. If any one is not making the repayment on a scheduled date, the remaining can not make their own payments even if they wanted. There is no sex discrimination for loans obtained from DECSI. Loans could be granted to both men and women. The participants confirmed that although loans could be granted up to a maximum of birr 5000 to an individual, no one has ever borrowed more than birr 3000. This is mainly because the higher the amount of loan, the higher the risk of repayment. Hence the group becomes risky and people do not want to form such a group.
26
Loans from DECSI are repayable within one year of disbursement. Recently, the repayment period is relaxed to two years. The participants explained two major problems associated with loans from DECSI. The first problem is related to lack of insurance. When the farmers lose most of their properties including their livestock and crops in the field due to a natural catastrophe like failure of rainfall, no special considerations are given. They argued that it is difficult for them to recover from the catastrophe and at the same time pay the loan. The second problem identified is related to the group lending. Group collateral creates inconveniencies among members in that it always bears the risk of paying the loan of someone else. The second formal source of credit is through the food security package program. Like the loans from DECSI, farmers are expected to get a letter of support from the local administration to be eligible to the loan from the food security package program. But unlike DECSI, loans are granted to individuals without the necessity of forming groups. The amount of loan from the food security package program ranges from birr 2500 to birr 6000 to an individual. The loan is supposed to be used for a specific purpose for which it is requested. After producing the letter of support from the local administration, the borrower is supposed to identify the purpose for which he/she is requesting the loan. Loans can be requested for the purchase of dairy cow, goat and sheep, poultry, fertilizer and seeds. The food security package loan is appreciated by the participants in that loans are given on individual basis. But at the same time, the participants expressed their concern and problems associated with the loan. The biggest concern shared by all is that loans are not disbursed on the basis of the repayment capacity of borrowers. Moreover, the fact that the loan is tied loan makes it difficult to use the money for purposes outside the original request.
b. Cooperatives Farmers’ cooperative is established at Tabia level. Accordingly there is one for Tabia Arato in which Shugaula is one of the villages that constitute the Tabia. Most households in Shiguala are members of the cooperative. They contributed birr 13 at the beginning and an additional birr 21 for its establishment. At the beginning, the cooperative started to supply commodities like sugar, coffee, plough, and others. Gradually, however, the amount of the commodities supplied has decreased and the selling prices have increased and sometimes the price in the cooperative’s shop is more than the selling price in the private shops for the same commodity. Members do not have any information about the status of the cooperative and they believe that it will not benefit them unless improvements are made in its management.
27
1.6
Village Institutions
Village institutions refer to both formal and informal institutions that play important roles in the livelihood of the farmers. The following diagram shows the inventory of institutions both within the village and outside. Institutions within the circle are those that exist within the village and those outside the circle are institutions found outside the village. Women’s association
REST, DECSI Food security
Agricultural Health agent off
FAO Parish council
Youth association
Tsebel
Administration
Farmers’ association
Fana Tiena
School committee Idir
Guard for forest Security committee Guards for grazing land
Woreda and Tabia Administration
Veterinary agent
Abo gereb
Veterinary doctor
Abo Mai
REST
Figure 4 Village Institutions – Shiguala Village Village Administration This is the administration at village level comprising six members. It has a chairperson, vice chairperson and secretary, and four members. The four members are responsible for different activities within the village. One is responsible for rural development, the second for security, the third for capacity building and the fourth for organizing the rural community (popularly know as propaganda). The village community elects all these members and there is no sex discrimination.
28
The village administration is mainly responsible for implementing policies of the government, mobilizing the community, and resolving community problems within its capacity and reports those that are not. Agricultural Agent (cadre) There are about 15 agricultural cadres in the village selected from the community members who are responsible for coordinating the village community for development programs. The cadres also provide technical assistance to the farmers regarding the use of fertilizer, selected seeds and agricultural implements. Security Committee The village security committee consists of three standing and five additional members elected by the community. The committee is responsible to maintain peace and security in the area. Abo Mai (chairperson for water use) Farmers who have access to irrigation have formed their own association and laid down rules and regulations about the use of water. A chairperson locally called Abo Mai is assigned to follow up the use of water. If any member violates the agreement, he/she will be fined. Regarding drinking water, the village community constituted a committee consisting of three female and two male members. A guard is also employed to protect the water point. Abo Gereb Shiguala is located near the Afar regional state. Conflict in the use of resources like grazing land and firewood among community members of the regions is a frequent phenomenon. To resolve disagreements among these members, a committee having representatives from both sides, locally known as Abo Gereb, is established. The main duty of the Abo Gereb is to maintain harmony between the two communities and resolve any disagreement before growing to a conflict. It reconciles both parties if conflict arises and depending up on the nature of the conflict it decides on compensations that either side has to make. School committee The school committee has seven members, four representing the community and three from the teachers. The committee is responsible to follow up education, set strategies and look for possible ways of expanding education in the village. It also encourages and advises parents to send their children to school.
29
Veterinary service Except one farmer from the community who is trained on how to wash animals using chemicals to deal with external parasites, there are no veterinary facilities in the area. Parish Council The parish council is established by the church and has six members (two from the community and four priests). Its responsibility is to get heritages protected and collect money from the community for the church administration and expansion. Idir Idir is a society for mutual aid and burial. It is an association set by the community members to help each other at times of difficulties mainly at times of death of a member of a family. Fana Tiena (Health Agent) Relatively literate members of the community are selected voluntarily as health agents. Most members are women and they provide delivery service, educate residents to attend vaccination and about HIV/AIDS, although the awareness and openness to discuss about HIV/AIDS is low. Associations There are three formal associations in Shiguala - farmers’ association, women’s association and youth association. The youth association has members in the age of 18 to 30 years. Women’s association consists of women between 18 to 65 years of age. Members make an annual contribution of birr 4.20. The farmers’ association has members aged 36 to 70 years and every member makes a contribution of birr 3 per year. All participants are members of one of the associations. Although these associations have members in the village, none of them is active and benefits its members. Only the women’s association has tried to make contacts with the regional women’s association and provide some training to its members. But this is still insignificant. The participants were finally asked to prioritize the institutions in accordance to their importance to the community. Accordingly, the following three are identified in descending order of importance: 1. Village administration 2. School committee 3. Agricultural agents External Institutions that participate in the development of the community include Woreda Agricultural Agent, Woreda health office, crime prevention, veterinary doctor,
30
FAO and DECSI. Representatives of these institutions visit the community and participate in different development endeavors of the village.
1.7
Trend Line Analysis
In this session both women and men participants were asked to show the trends of different variables in the village starting from the year that they are able to recall. a. Population
High
Midium
Low
Year 1959
1968
1978
1983-85
1992
2003
The population trend reported by participants was plotted on a plane geometry with year on the x-axis and rating on the vertical axis. They were asked to indicate the population trend of their village starting from the period as far back as they remember. They picked 1959 (1951 EC) as the earliest year. Accordingly, the population showed a continuous rise except in the years 1983 to 1985. During these years specially in 1984/85 there was a severe drought in Tigray which brought famine in many parts of the region including Shiguala. It claimed human and animal lives in Shiguala and forced the villagers to migrate in mass to the neighboring towns and other parts of the country.
31
b. Rainfall High
Medium
Low
1963
1970
1977
1984
1991
1998
2003
Year
The starting year identified for the trend in rainfall was 1963. According to the participants’ perception, this year's amount of rainfall was considered to be low. Then rainfall trend started to improve until the drought of 1984 occurred. Even after the drought year, the condition did not improve much, and the rainfall trend remained below average. c. Food Availability High
Medium
Low
1978
1981
1984
1987
32
1994
2001
Year
The food availability trend reported by participants generally shows deterioration, except for the years 1987 and 1993. The trend in food availability is consistent with the trends in rainfall and environmental degradation (forest coverage). d. Health High
Medium
Low
Year 1966 1972 1978 1984 1990 1996 2002 Since the 1960s, trends for the health situation of the community generally appeared to be improving or at least had an upward movement (again with the exception of the 1984/85 drought year). Participants affirmed that access to basic vaccination and clinical health services has improved. One participant said “we now have a health service located in our backyard, where we do not have a long distance and spend so much for transport and incur a human life during the long trip".
33
e. Livestock population High
Medium
Low
Year 1978
1984
1990
1996
2002
Despite the deterioration in the environment, the participants reported that the animal population (with the exception of the 1984/85 drought year) showed an increasing trend. Although the livestock holding of a household is not large, many households possess livestock and this makes the overall animal population to show an upward trend. f. Forests High
Medium
Low
1900
20
30
40
50
60
34
70
80
90
2000
2003
Year
The forest land generally, people reported declined persistently over the last century. The main reasons for the natural resource deterioration were the clearing of the forestland for agricultural purposes, drought and improper utilization of the resource under consideration. But starting the mid 1980’s after the conservation and afforestation programs, there is little improvement in the amount of forest but it is still low. g. Poverty High
Medium
Low Year 1970 1975 80 85 90 95 The trend in poverty generally appeared to be improving, with the exception of some drought years where people loose their crops and animal resources. This trend is inconsistent with the food availability and rainfall trends. In explaining this, the participants said that the Government intervention in providing credit, food aid in drought years and various development intervention programs are contributing to the reduction of poverty.
1.8
Participatory Wealth Ranking
This part of the discussion has an objective of categorizing the community based on their economic power. Participants were given explanations about how they make the ranking of the community as rich, medium and poor in terms of wealth. Each participant was given freedom to give his/her own vote by using his/her own judgment. It was assumed that 1500 house holds with land and 500 landless households are living in the village. These 2000 households were represented by 40 beads; each bead representing 50 households. The outcome of the ranking exercise is shown in the following table:
35
Table 1.7 Wealth Ranking in Shiguala Village Wealth Category Number of beads counted Poor 734 Medium 241 Rich 185 Total 1160
Percent 65 21 14 100
The proportion of poor, medium and rich in Shiguala village according to the participants is found out to be 65%, 21% and 14% respectively. The participants were asked how they define households in terms of their wealth as rich, medium and poor. Different people have come up with different criterion for classifying as rich, poor and medium. After a lengthy discussion, they have come up with the following criteria. Rich: a household is considered as rich if it possesses • A pair of oxen with land • two cows • one who is able to feed his family the whole year • 10 or more goats • two mules or donkeys • three camels As compared to other villages, the participants here include mule and camel in their criteria because, the area is near to the source of salt in the Afar region and the rich do transport salt bars from the Afar region to Mekelle market. Medium: a household is categorised as medium if it possesses the following: • an ox with land • able to feed his/her family for the whole winter and has seeds for planting • 5-6 goats • one donkey • a cow with calf Poor: finally a household is considered as poor if • it does not have ox • leases out his/her land because of lack of capacity to use it him/her self • a maximum of a cow with calf • chicken • a maximum of one donkey Although the above are set as criteria to classify a household into one of the wealth categories, a household’s possession may not exactly match to one of the criteria. Hence, classification is made on the basis of nearness of the possession of the household to one of the criteria. The wealth difference among the community members does have very little influence in the social interaction among the rich and the poor in the society. All the rich and the poor participate in any social activities like wedding, ‘tsebel’ (religious parties), ‘idir’ and funeral activities. Even in marriage, people are now dropping wealth as a criterion.
36
1.9
Problem Analysis and Community Action Plan
a. Problem Analysis The participants have identified a number of problems. Some of the major problems and their ranking is shown below. Shortage of rainfall The amount of rainfall in the area is not only deteriorating but also irregular. According to the participants the reason for the deterioration of rain in the area basically is due to deforestation. They believe that the area was covered by forest in the early periods. The big trees around the churches in the area are good indicators of this fact. However, the increased human activity in the area including farming and selling firewood and charcoal into Mekelle market has aggravated the rate of deforestation. Shortage of land and landlessness The increased size of the population in the area has reduced the average land holding. Land redistribution is made for the last time in 1990 and households formed after 1990 could not get land or if they get any, it is less than the average land holding in the village. Lack of initiatives to send children to school Although there exists an elementary school that runs classes up to grade three, the number of students registered is small. Families want their children to look after their cattle. Lack of health post There is no health post in the village that provides medical facility. The nearest health post is found in another village within the same Tabia which is one hour walk. However, this health post works only in the daytime. Hence, if a patient is to get treatment, especially at times of emergency, they are forced to walk for one hour to the nearest health post or for three or more hours to the nearest Quiha hospital for a better medical treatment. Transportation Problem Although there is a rural road that passes through the village, it is highly damaged and there is no transportation facility for both passengers and commodities. There are no regular buses or lorries passing by to the area. Shortage of grazing land The increased number of animal population together with the turning of plots of land into residential areas due to the increased size of population has resulted in shortage of
37
grazing land. Moreover, grazing is communal. However, during the harvesting season, the residue in the farm land is grazed by the animals of the owner for three days before it is open to others. Weeding In the area, weeding both at the time of preparation of seed bed and once the plants are grown is limited only to some crops like teff and chickpeas. This habit could not be expanded to other types of crops mainly due to lack of experience and shortage of time in the busy season. Lack of veterinary service There is no veterinary facility in the area. There is only one trained farmer for spraying chemicals against ticks. However, this is not sufficient. Sometimes, when specialists come to vaccinate animals, farmers are required to gather a minimum number of animals (at least 50 animals) in order to get the service. Deterioration in fertility of land Because of repeated farming, soil erosion and overgrazing, the fertility of land is deteriorating from time to time. Although some attempts are made to improve productivity of the land using chemical fertilizers, the coverage is very limited. Moreover, the use of manure (organic fertilizer) to improve fertility of the soil is limited. This is so mainly because the use of manure is not a common practice in the area and the residential houses are far from the farmlands. They commonly dump the animal waste near their houses. In the recent period (over the last two years) some farmers are transporting manure to their farmlands and others should follow this practice. Shortage of firewood The villagers use firewood for cooking and for other purposes. However, there is an acute shortage of firewood in the area. Most of the farmers use animal dung for cooking. Because of shortage of grazing land and animal fodder, the number of animals kept in each household is small. Accordingly, the animal dung they collect for cooking is insufficient. Problems associated with cooperatives There is a farmers’ cooperative formed at Tabia level; membership fee is required for new entrants. There was large expectation by members that the cooperative will open ample opportunities to its members by providing a number of services including selling manufactured products at reasonable price. However, none of the expectations were realized. The cooperative is malfunctioning due to lack of responsibility and accountability in its management. Members do not have any mechanism of knowing its operation.
38
Problems associated with Credit Dedebit Credit and Saving Institution (DECSI) provides credit to farmers. All farmers can have access to credit. However, problems related to loan disbursement and repayment are common. Loans are provided on group basis (i.e. group lending). If any member of the group defaults, the remaining members of the group must make the payment, for the group is considered as collateral. Moreover, if any member of the group fails to pay periodic payment on time, the others cannot pay and are exposed to penalty. Problems associated with household package programs Over the last two years, farmers also get loans from the household package program. Loans are provided on individual basis. Although the farmers are happy that loans are provided on individual basis, they complain that the loan under this program lacks flexibility. It is usually a tied loan. They cannot get a loan for activities other than the once listed under the program. Nor can they use the money borrowed for any other purpose other than what is requested for. Problem ranking After listing the problems, participants ranked them in order of their severity as summarized in the table below.
39
Table 1.8
Shortage of rainfall Weeding problem Shortage of grazing land Lack of veterinary center Problem of fertility of land Lack of health post in the village Shortage of firewood Lack of initiative to send children to school Credit Problems Problems associated with cooperatives House hold package
Problem Ranking in Shiguala Village
Shor tage of rainf all
Weeding problem
Shortage of grazing land
Lack of veterinar y center
Problem of fertility of land
Lack of health post in the village
Shortage of firewood
Lack of initiatives to send children to school
Credit Probl ems
Problem s associat ed with coopera tives
Hous e hold packa ge probl em
Shortag e of land and land less ness
Probl em of safe drinki ng water
Probl em of transp ortati on
Tot al
Rank
-
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
13
1ST
C
-
R
R
C
C
C
C
R
R
R
C
C
C
5
8th
C
C
-
R
R
C
R
C
R
R
R
C
C
C
6
7th
C
C
C
-
R
C
R
C
R
R
R
C
C
C
5
8th
C
R
C
C
-
C
R
C
R
R
R
C
C
C
5
8th
C
R
R
R
R
-
R
C
R
R
R
C
C
R/C
8
5th
C
R
C
C
C
C
-
C
R
R
R
C
C
C
4
11th
C
R
R
R
R
R
R
-
R
R
R
C
C
R/C
9
4th
C C
C C
C C
C C
C C
C C
C C
C C
R
C -
R R
C C
C C
C C
1 2
13th 12th
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
-
C
C
C
0
14th
41
problem Shortage of land and land less ness Problem of safe drinking water Problem of transportation
C
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
-
C
R
11
3rd
C
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
-
R
12
2nd
C
R
R
R
R
R/C
R
R/C
R
R
R
C
C
-
8
6th
R = Row C = Column
The problems ranked in the order of their severity are 1. Shortage of rainfall 2. Shortage of safe drinking water 3. Shortage of land and landlessness 4. Lack of initiative to send children to school 5. Lack of health post 6. Transportation problem 7. Shortage of grazing land 8. Weeding problem (8th ) 9. Lack of veterinary service (8th ) 10. Problem of fertility of land (8th ) 11. Shortage of firewood 12. Problems associated with cooperatives 13. Credit problems, and problems associated with household package program
42
b. Community Action Plan Taking the top three problems, the community’s action plan is provided as follows. Typeof Problem
Type of proble m Droug ht (Short age of rainfal l)
Shorta ge of land and land less ness
Table 1.9 Community Action Plan for the top three problems in Shiguala Who will do what Causes of the problem Solution to the problem Community
-
Deforestation Nearness to the Afar depression
-
-
-
Population pressure Land allotted for construction of Arato and Chichat dams
-
-
Pray Water harvesting through construction of Dams (both small and large), Garden Ponds Developing spring water A forestation
The society will offer free labour service for planting trees, soil and water conservation, construction of dams and ponds.
Increase productivity of - Increase fertility existing land by increasing the of land by fertility through manure, traditional conserving water and soil, manure. using irrigation and weeding - Allowing the plants properly. investors to make Increasing other non investment in the agricultural income generating area mainly stone
43
When Government
Others
Educate the people, technical assistance, provision of materials and machinery and organize the people.
Educate the society, and assist technica lly and materiall y.
-
Train the farmers Introduce modern farming system Technical assistance Encourage investors to invest in the area.
Soil and water conservation must be done every year, planting of trees in every rainy season and construction of ponds starting 2004/05 From 2004/05
Proble m of not sendin g childre n to school
-
-
Lack of awareness of the usefulness of education Give priority to cattle herding
-
activities such as petty trade, casual work. Maintaining the road to Mekelle so that they can sale the basalt rock they quarry used for construction Enforce parents to send their children to school Employ permanent and committed teachers for the school
crushing.
-
-
Send their children to school Build residential houses for teachers
-
-
-
44
Educate the community about the usefulness of education Material assistance for the construction of residential houses for teachers Fulfill materials required for the school including teachers
Starting 2004/05
2 HIDMO VILLAGE 2.1
Village History and Community Mapping a. Village History Summary of the history of Hidmo Year Important Historical Events 1357/58 The construction of St. Mary’s Monastery in the village and the establishment of the village. This was during the period of Emperor Seife Aried 1529 – 43 Ahmed Gragn (locally known as ‘gray nigus’) destroyed the monastery of St. Mary 1889 Combatants from Achna Watsa, one of the sub-villages (‘gotts’) of Hidmo, took part in the battle of Metemma 1913 Many combatants from the village participated in the battle of Gidara (near Adwa), a battle waged between Dejat Gereselassie and Rasie Seyoum. They fought along with the forces of the Rasie 1935 Many persons from the village fought against the invading Italian forces along with the forces of Dejat Libon. The war was concluded with the victory of the Italian forces. There were also many warriors from the village who participated in the battles of Alaje and Maichew in the same year. 1942 (Weyane Villagers gathered in river (‘gereb’) Embiwa, found in Uprising) the village, to protest against the oppressive government, and went to river (‘gereb’) Gakela, found in the same district, to join forces with others. Having joined forces with others, the warriors went to Alaje and fought against the forces of Emperor Haileselassie. The fighting ended in defeat of the warriors. 1943 Dejat Gebrihet (nick named ‘wedi hazo bayru’) invaded the village and snatched rifles and other items from the village community 1958 (Locust Because of the locust invasion many people starved, and invasion) some even migrated. Similar locust invasion was also experienced in 1960 1960 Hailstones (sleet) caused serious damage. Many people migrated in its aftermath. 1962/63-1966/67 Period of extended drought 1982/83-1984/85 Catastrophic drought and famine. Drought and famine accompanied by disease (cholera) brought about serious damage to the community. About 100 people, and 70% of the livestock population died as a result. Majority of people migrated mainly to the Sudan. 1989-1990 Elementary school and health center built in a nearby 45
rural town called Jijique. 1998-2000 1999/2000
2002/03
Eritrean invasion; many youngsters joined the Ethiopian defense forces to defend their country. Elementary school (named Filik) built in the village; Aqushela dam completed; the community made active involvement in both Health Post, Store, and Training Center constructed with contribution from the public.
Hidmo is one of the villages in Tabia Siye. It consists of three sub villages (Gotts) namely Zenteta, Achinawatsa and Hidmo. The name Hidmo is derived from the traditional houses built from stones, wood and mud. The amount of rainfall in the area is very low. To indicate this, the village is named Hidmo, which is to mean that it is like concreted roof which does not let in water. According to the villagers, the first settlers of Hidmo are Agews and the period of settlement in the area goes as far back as 1357/58 (1350 E.C.) when the first church (St. Marry Church) was constructed during the period of Emperor Seife Aried and Pope Lukas. In the 16th century, Ahmed Giragn destroyed the church which was reconstructed later on. Another important event that characterizes Tigray from the early period is the different wars waged at different times. The villagers in Hidmo took part in many of these wars. In 1889 some from the village fought at Metema against the invasion of Dervish from the Sudan which led to the death of Emperor Yohannes IV. In 1913 many people from the village participated in the battle of Gidera between Dejach G/Selassie and Rasie Seyoum supporting the Rasie. In 1935 many people from the village also took part in the battle of Work-amba between the Ethiopian heroes led by Dejach Beyene and Italian forces. Similarly, many people from the village fought in the battles of Amba Alaje and Maichew. The villagers took part in the Woyane appraising of 1943 (1935E.C.), a mass revolution of the farmers of Tigray against the regime of Emperor Haileslassie. The last incidence of war being the war between Eritria and Ethiopia in 1998 – 2000. The area is very much characterized by recurrent droughts. There was famine in 1958/59 (1951 E.C.) due to locust invasion which destroyed all crops in the field. After the invasion of locust, the area was hit by frequent drought – one from 1963/64 (1955 E.C.) to 1976/77 (1959 E.C.) and another from 1982/83 (1975 E.C.) to 1984/85 (1977 E.C.). The famine of 1984/85, however, was the hardest one. The famine together with the civil war forced many households to migrate to the Sudan. The community lost more than 70% of its cattle. In the years 1985/86 to 1987/88, there was relatively better and balanced rainfall and hence a better harvest. Moreover, in 1985/86 adult education program was started at Tabia level. In 1991/92 the villagers of Hidmo together with the other villages under the administration of the then Woreda Jichique built an elementary school and a health post
46
in the small town of Jichique. To do this, every household has contributed 15 birr each. In 1999/2000 a primary school was built in Hidmo by the villagers in collaboration with the government. Between 1995/96 and 1999/2000, a big dam named Akushela Dam was constructed by the village community and the Relief Society of Tigray. The dam, however, does not keep water for a longer time. In a few months after the rainy season, the water drains because of evaporation and seepage. b. Community Mapping Figure 5
Village map of Hidmo Village drawn by women group
Figure 6
Village Map of Hidmo Village drawn by men group
47
Both groups have identified the basic resources of the village. The women’s group concentrated on residence houses and roads that cross the village. The men’s group concentrated on the forest areas.
2.2
Seasonal and Daily Calendar
a. Seasonal calendar The following two tables show the seasonal calendar set by the men group and the women group. Table 2.1
Seasonal Calendar of Hidmo Village – Men group
Major Activities I. Agriculture • Plowing • Sowing • Weeding and hoeing • Mowing • Harvesting • Manure
Sept.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
Feb.
March
April
May
June
July
Aug.
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
X
X X -
X X -
X X X
X
-
X X -
X X -
X X -
-
-
-
-
X
-
-
-
II. Water and soil conservation III. Animal Husbandry IV. Daily Labour V. Petty trade
-
-
-
X
X
X
-
-
-
-
X
X
X
X
-
-
-
X
X X
X X
X X
-
-
-
Food Supply
X
X
X
X
High
Medium
Low Health High
Medium
Low
48
-
-
Table 2.2
Seasonal Calendar of Hidmo Village – Women group
Major Activities I. Agriculture • Ploughing • Sowing • Weeding • Mowing • Harvesting • Manure • Preparation of seed bed • Animal herding and bee keeping II. Water and soil conservation III. Incense collection IV. Daily Labour V. Petty trade Food High Availability Medium
Sept.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
Feb.
Mar ch
Apri l
May
Ju ne
Jul y
Aug ust
-
X -
X X -
X -
-
-
-
X X X -
X X X -
X X X
X X X X
X X X -
-
-
-
X
X
X
X
X
-
-
-
-
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
-
-
-
X
X
X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X
X
X
X
-
Low Health
High Medium Low
The seasonal activities in Hidmo are also similar to the activities in Shiguala and can thus be viewed in two broad categories – Farming activities and non-farm (Off-farm) activities. i. Farming Activities The main activities related to farming are plowing, sowing, preparing seedbed, weeding mowing and threshing. Plowing Plowing is done in the months of May, June and July. The major crop grown in the area is Sorghum. The plowing made in May is to prepare the land for sowing mainly Sorghum and sometimes Maize. Since Hidmo is a low land, the excessive heat in May limits farmers to work only in the morning. The second major crop grown is teff (black teff). Land to be used for teff is usually left fallow in the previous season. Since the average land holding in the area is relatively large, approximately eight tsimad (two hectares), most farmers leave some land fallow so as to be used to grow teff in the next season. In some cases fallow land is also used to grow Sorghum. Plowing made in June is to prepare the land for teff. Generally, if rain is 49
available, which is very scanty in the area, the land is very productive irrespective of whether it is fallowed or otherwise. In the village the general practice is tilling the land once (for fallowing or for preparation), and the second time for sowing. Apart from teff, the other crops (sorghum and maize) are sown in the month of June. June is the main plowing month. Although plowing is more or less men’s job, women are also active in preparing the seedbed, i.e., removing the debris from the ploughed fields. Weeding and Hoeing The two major cane crops – Sorghum and Maize, are hoed in July. While maize is hoed with a hoe, sorghum is hoed with oxen (which is a kind of semi plowing locally known as ‘gamsa’.) Hoeing is done when the maize appears above the ground, while gamsa is done when the sorghum is a little taller. Overall hoeing takes on average 15 man days. Weeding is another seasonal activity done mainly for teff. Weeding on teff starts towards the end of August and continues into September. Apart from teff, weeding of other crops is done in July and August. While weeding of teff takes on average 15 man-days, weeding of the other crops takes significantly lesser number of days. Weeding and hoeing are done both by men and women. Harvesting Harvesting begins with the cutting of the first crop in early October and ends in December. Teff is the first crop to be harvested in the area as the teff (black teff) grown is a short maturing crop. Participants agreed that most farmers do not start harvesting other types of crops before they harvest their teff. October is usually meant to harvest teff. Harvesting of Sorghum and Maize is usually done in the month of Novmber and early December. Once the dry grain of Sorghum and Maize is harvested, the standing cane in the field is cut and collected. ii. Non-farm Activities Soil and Water Conservation Soil and water conservation, both for free and for payment, is usually done during the slack season, i.e., from December to April. The free water and soil conservation work has to be conducted between mid Tahsas and mid Tiri (last week of December to last week of January) every year for twenty one days. However, it often never gets completed within the stipulated time. It usually extends to February. After the twenty one days free work, soil and water conservation activity on payment basis continues. Animal Husbandry (Rearing) Animal husbandry is another activity that is accorded greater importance in the village. If it rains in spring (March-April) (known locally as ‘Tsidia’ and in the literature as short rains) somewhere around the village, the community sends its goats to that place (which
50
could be even beyond the sub-district or Tabia) along with someone (or a group of people) who will stay there along with the goats. There is a large area in the nearby Amhara region used for grazing locally known as ‘bereha’ where cattle are sent between January and April every year. A group of people (about five or six) take the cattle of the village along with them to the area and stay there for two to three days. After two or three days another group replaces them, and so on. Petty Trade A few individuals in the village are engaged in petty trade. They purchase cattle from Belesa (in Amhara region) in the month of March and sell them in the market places around. Some of them do this job almost regularly. Some individuals are also engaged in the trading of goats mainly in the months of April, September and October. Some of them do it regularly and others intermittently. Daily Labour (‘Sheqli’) Some people are engaged in ‘sheqli’ from September to April. In earlier times people used to go to Humera (in western Tigray), to Jimma (western Ethiopia), and even to the Sudan for ‘sheqli’. With the onset of the Tekezze Hydro Power Project some two years ago, which is partly located within the village, many people from the village are working in the project. The Project has opened great opportunity for the people in the village both through direct employment and indirect benefits. Stone Quarrying Stone quarrying for house construction is mainly done in September particularly after completing weeding. They also collect hay (‘durka’) for their cattle in September. a. Daily Calendar Daily Calendar – Men group September Time 6:00 – 19:00
19:00 – 22:00
Activities People wake up at 6:00 am. After taking cattle (and other animals) to the field and taking breakfast, some people go for weeding and others go to cut grass for cattle. Those who go for weeding come back at 6:00 pm or even 7:00 pm in the evening. Those collecting animal grass return home at 12:00 PM for lunch and then proceed with the work. Back home, cattle and goats take their places, family dinner, chatting, listening to the radio, and sleeping
51
October Time 4:00 – 12:00
12:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 16:30 16:30 – 18:00 18:00 – 22:00
November Time 4:00 – 6:00 6:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 22:00
Activities People wake up at 4:00 am in the night for harvesting teff. Breakfast is served in the field. Harvesting continues till mid day. Lunch Harvesting continues Gathering what is harvested (‘mine’ar’) Back home, cattle and goats take their places, family dinner, chatting, listening to the radio, and sleeping
Activities People wake up at 4:00 in the night for cutting sorghum (and maize) cane. Harvesting sorghum and maize continues Lunch Harvesting of sorghum and maize continues Back home, cattle and goats take their places, family dinner, chatting, listening to the radio, and sleeping
December Time 4:00 4:00 – 18:00
Activities Waking up Threshing; carrying straw home (‘migunakh’); food and drinks are served in the threshing place 18:00 – 22:00 Back home, cattle and goats take their places, family dinner, chatting, listening to the radio, and sleeping Note that soil and water conservation is also undertaken in this month along with the other activities stated above. January/February Time 7:00 – 8:00 8:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 22:00 March/April Time 7:00 – 8:00 8:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 14:00
Activities Wakeup and breakfast Soil and water conservation (free service) Lunch, coffee Going to weeding (if any), miscellaneous activities, and rest Back home, family chat, family dinner, and sleeping
Activities Wakeup and breakfast Miscellaneous activities (fencing, maintenance), Soil and water conservation (such as small ponds) Lunch, coffee
52
14:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 22:00
Miscellaneous activities (fencing, maintenance), Soil and water conservation (such as small ponds) Back home, family chat, family dinner, and sleeping
May This month is very hot and people try to do some of the work in the night. Farmers wake up at about 4:00 am and prepare their farm implements (including sharpening plow), do some plowing in the morning, apply fertilizers to their farm land, and do other miscellaneous things. People in the village rarely work in the afternoons; whatever they do they often do it at home. In the evenings, farmers feed their cattle (dried sorghum or maize cane), take dinner, chat with family, and finally go to bed. June Time 4:00 – 7:00
7:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 22:00 July/August Time 4:00 – 7:00
7:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 22:00
Activities Farmers in the village wake up at 4:00 am in the night, feed their oxen with straw, prepare farm implements and get ready for plowing; and take breakfast and coffee Plowing and sowing Back home, family chat, family dinner, and sleeping
Activities Farmers in the village wake up at 4:00 am in the night, feed their oxen, prepare farm implements and get ready for hoeing and weeding; and take breakfast and coffee Hoeing and weeding Back home, family chat, family dinner, and sleeping
It has to be noted that these are the major activities. Otherwise, there are non-working days (religious holidays and weekends) where people are not engaged in plowing, harvesting, or digging. There are also some non-working days which appear once a year. During religious holidays and Sundays, people go to the church to attend mass. In the market days, people go to the market places.
53
Table 2.3 Dai Sept. ly Act iviti es
Dai ly Act iviti es
3:00am House cleaning, grinding, water fetching and breakfast 8:00 – 12:00am Other household activities
Daily Calendar of Hidmo Village – Women group Oct.
8:00 12:00am Mowing
12:00am 2:00pm Lunch and coffee 2:00pm 6:00pm House hold activities, Handicraft activities like pottery work, spinning and sewing. 6:00 – 8:00pm Dinner preparation 9:00pm Sleeping time
2:00 6:00pm Mowing
Nov. Dec.
Jan.
Feb. March April May
8:00am – 2:00pm Soil and water conservation (for free)
8:00am – 2:00pm Soil and water conservation (paid work)
2:00 – 4:00pm lunch and coffee
2:00 – 4:00 lunch and coffee
8:00– 12:00am Other household activities
June
July
8:00am – 2:00pm Household activities, preparing seed bed 2:00 – 4:00 pm lunch and coffee
8:00 – 12:00am preparing seed bed, weeding
4:00 6:00pm House hold activities, Handicraft activities like pottery work, spinning and sewing.
Note that there is a church service, which the people attend every Sunday and during some religious holidays like St. Michael’s day, St. Gabriel’s day, St. Mary’s day and the Savior of the World’s day. During these days except light household activities, many of the heavy daily activities like ploughing and grinding are not done. The two main time and energy consuming activities of women worth mentioning are fetching water and grinding grain. As the area is a low land, water is scanty. To fetch water, women need to get up early in the morning at 3:00 am and travel for two to three hours to fetch water.
54
12:00 – 2:00pm Lunch and coffee 2:00 – 6:00pm preparing seed bed, weeding
Aug ust
Although there is a flour mill in the village, most women in the village use the traditional way of grinding their cereals for their household consumption. Grinding is done by pressing the grain between two thick flat stone slabs. The lower grinding-stone is fixed and has a flour bin in front of it. To make flour, the woman must press and move the upper grindstone backwards and forwards regularly. This is a backbreaking job. The basic reasons why women still stick to the traditional grinding method, in spite of expansions of flour mills in the rural area and the existence of one in the village, are: first it costs money to use a flour mill which most women may not afford, second as the area is a low land, houses are highly scattered and there is a considerable distance between the flour mill and many of the houses, and finally many women may not be used to a flour mill. However, when they want to prepare in large quantities for ceremonies, most women use the flour mill.
2.3
Agriculture and Livestock a. Agriculture
The average land holding in the village is two hectares that is far greater than the region’s average land holding, which is between 0.5 and 1 hectare. Land distribution has been made for the last time in 1989 and an adjustment was made in 1995. All the households who were entitled to get land got one. However, households formed after 1995, which constitute not more than 5 percent of the village population, did not get land. Some attempts are being made to help the landless households. There exists some land controlled and rented out to farmers by the village administration. Some of these plots are being distributed to the landless households. Moreover, the wild incense plants are distributed to the landless households. And finally, a new residential area is identified near the hydroelectric project office and priority is given to the landless households. Agriculture, which is entirely rain fed, is the mainstay of the people. The main crops grown in the area are Sorghum, Maize, Teff and Sesame. The use of modern inputs like chemical fertilizers and improved seeds is almost non existent. Although there were attempts to use chemical fertilizers and selected seeds in the area, it could not be sustained and expanded because of drought (moisture stress), the expensiveness of the inputs and the inadaptability of the selected seeds to the nature of soil and weather conditions of the area. Manure on the other hand is widely used by all farmers who possess livestock. Outside rain fed agriculture, the use of irrigation to grow crops is non-existence in the area mainly because of lack of water. The Agushela dam, which has been constructed by the people and REST, could not contain water for a long time because of seepage and evaporation. There is, however, a new hope to harvest water through garden ponds. Last year, a limited number of farmers have dug their own ponds and those that are dressed with plastic sheets have contained water and some even have started to grow vegetables. This year a large number of farmers have dug their own pond (horeye).
55
Farmers sell nearly 10 percent of their agricultural produce. Teff is the major crop farmers sell because of the high demand and better price it commands. Since agriculture in the area depends on rainfall, the livelihood of the farmers is highly insecure because of the erratic nature of the rainfall. At times of shortage of rain, the villagers face an acute shortage of food. b. Livestock Besides farming, the area is suitable for cattle breeding and bee keeping. The main animals reared are cattle and goats. The average animal holding is 8 to 10 cattle and around 30 goats. The farmers subsidize their living by selling live animals and their products such as butter. The main problem in animal breeding is shortage of fodder. Animal disease, however, is significantly reduced because of the medical facilities given. However, there is always a problem of meeting minimum number of animals (like 50 donkeys) for a vaccine to be given. It has been pointed out that the animal fodder problem could be solved if they limit the number of animals they keep. Instead of quantity, the emphasis should be on quality (productivity) of the animals. Bee keeping is another important source of income of the villagers. Almost every household had a beehive but because of the drought of last year, most bees have migrated. The average yield of a beehive is 25 to 30 kilograms and each kilogram is sold for birr 12 to 15 if it is the first quality (white honey) and birr 8 to 10 if it is the yellow one.
2.4
Social Services a. Education
Formal education (schooling) in the area started in 1997 under the shade. After two years in 1999, five classrooms, two offices and one store were built. The construction of the classrooms is good by itself but a lot remains in equipping them. Currently, the elementary school at Hidmo has 225 students, of which 94 are female and the remaining 121 are male; and 6 teachers. It conducts classes up to grade four. After grade four, students go to the nearby small town of Jichique to pursue their studies up to grade 8. They travel for two or more hours to reach school. Families give priority to send boys to school than girls because of marriage and house workload. Moreover, absenteeism is high in the area because children have to look after the family’s cattle. The relationship of the teachers with both their students and the local community is highly interactive and cordial. Moreover, the capacity of the teachers in transferring knowledge is good. They exert maximum effort including during weekends for supplementary classes.
56
Literacy level in the area is better among men than women. It is estimated by participants that nearly one third of the men among the estimated 400 households in the village are able to read and write. The figure for women however is much less than this. The estimate by participants is that not more than one-sixth of the women in the village are able to read and write. The sources of adult literacy are education through campaign of literacy especially for adults from January to April (the slack season), children in the age of 7-10 are included in this program because a child is not allowed to register in the formal school after the age of 7, and religious teachings (locally known as ‘yekes timhirt’, or priest education). Besides the literacy campaign and the church, there are also other formal and informal ways of transferring knowledge. Although limited in coverage and practice, an educated member of a family teaches the remaining uneducated members. Adults also share knowledge among themselves on occasions like holidays. However, this is mainly among men than women. Women are usually busy with the housework. Moreover, formal institutions like the offices of Agriculture and Health provide training on animal breeding, growing vegetables, sanitation and nutrition. Lastly the participants appreciated the importance of getting training and suggested the following: • The training on health and agriculture schedules should be synchronized. • Practical education like irrigation is more recommended than theoretical one. • The formal education and training should be conducted during the slack season so as not to affect farming activities. • To make necessary adjustment, informing ahead & deciding the training time in consultation with the community is advisable. b. Health In the village, the common types of diseases among children are common cold (cough) and for women, headache and ‘Mekersa’ (cancer). The possible cause for Mekersa could be the hard rays of the sun. Lack of sufficient food makes them easily susceptible to different diseases. Nevertheless, the participants agreed that the health condition is improving through time because of an improvement in access to medical services and frequent follow up of physicians. Even though the area is malaria prone, for the last four years, they have been free from the disease due to frequent follow up from the health office. With regard to HIV/AIDS, the participants said that they have information about the pandemic. They learn about it in the clinic. But they do not know any person who died of HIV/AIDS in their village. Some however explained that they know one HIV patient who came to live with her family.
57
Prevention Measures As a measure of prevention, vaccination and check up services are given to pregnant women and children at the health post in Hidmo. Traditional Medication Village residents used to get traditional healing through the use of roots and leaves of plants for headache and other related diseases. But, today it is becoming less common to visit traditional healers. There are traditional midwives (two in number) who provide delivery services in the village. Although they are not given training, they have the necessary tool kit for delivery. They use one blade for one person and discard or engrave it after use. Medical Expenses The participants confirmed that although one can qualify for a free medication in government hospitals if he/she produces letter of support from the local administration, it is always difficult to succeed. Many prefer to pay for their medical expenses. They estimated that on average birr 500 to birr 600 is required to get medical services including necessary drugs at Abiy Adi hospital. Many of them go to the hospital on foot and it takes one full day, others go by public transport and they reach within three hours. The above stated amount of money is difficult to get for most farmers. They could, therefore, be forced to sale their livestock. Maternal Health Pregnant women get vaccination and check up services from visiting nurses. However, permanently assigned nurses are not available in the village and there are frequent delivery related problems. Delivery is mostly undertaken at home not in the health center or health post. They realize that vaccination and balance diet is important for pregnant women but they could not feed themselves with nutritious food due to resource constraints. In the last three years, they reported that two pregnant women died. One of them acquired medical treatment but it was not possible to save her. Miscarriage occurs among pregnant women in the village but they do not know its cause. It could be the workload they have. Infant Mortality According to participants, death rate among infants in the last six months looks like the following: Table 2.4 Infant Mortality at Hidmo Village Village No. of Birth No of death Zenteta 10 3 Achinawatsa 13 2 Hidmo 14 3
58
It is not common for women to talk about pregnancy with their husband and other family members. They discuss about pregnancy with their women friends and neighbors. However, husbands participate in childcare. The major source of health problem among children is related to the lack of safe drinking water. In Hidmo, they use the same water for drinking, for their animals and for washing clothes. The water is not safe. Many children suffer from water born diseases. Although women were given training on how to treat water, no one is using it. Sanitation The participants are aware of the importance of keeping themselves and their environment clean. They wash their clothes every month and they frequently change their clothes due to the hot whether. But the scarcity of water in the area is having its impact on sanitation. A few households prepared their own toilet but the majority of the residents use open air toilet. Nutrition ‘Injera’ is the staple food in the village. They eat ‘injera’ with ‘kiki’ (beans), milk, butter or sesame. They usually have two meals per day. Both parents and children eat together and there is no difference in the type of food served to parents and children. To feed themselves better, the participants believed that they have to grow vegetables in their garden, although growing vegetables is difficult due to lack of sufficient water. No special food is served to pregnant women. They usually eat porridge (‘ge’at’) after delivery. Mothers breast-feed their infants up to the fourth month; and supplementary food made of goat milk and soup of barley flour is given after four months. Number of Children The average fertility rate is 6 – 7 children per women. The desired number of children according to the participants is 5- 6 for the safety of the mother. Children are considered as assets for the household because they will be assigned various jobs even at their early age. Their assignments include goat herding, cattle keeping, ploughing and housework. 2.5
Market, Credit and Cooperatives
a. Market The major market places for residents of Hidmo are i. Abiy Adi (the main market), the market day is Saturday ii. Yechila, the market day is Saturday iii. Jichique, the market day is Thursday
59
Out of the three market, the nearest market is Jichique. It takes 6-7 hours on foot to reach Abiy Adi, 5 to 6 hours to reach Yechila and 1 ½ to 2 hours to reach Jichique. Any one who wants to do marketing at Yechila or Abiy Adi leaves the village on Friday, spends the next day in the market and returns home on the third day. But one can do marketing at Jichique and return home on the same day. For this, most women prefer to go to Jichique than to Abiy Adi or Yechila. The nature of marketing is slightly different at the three market places. The Jichique market is small and is used to buy and sale light items. Farmers sell chicken, egg and butter; and purchase kerosene, sesame and other products. The Yechila market is mainly used to buy various agricultural and animal products in order to sale them at Abyi Adi. The Abiy Adi market is the major market where the villagers supply cattle (cows, oxen, sheep, and goat), butter, honey, and cereals and in return buy red pepper, salt, clothes and other manufactured products. Impact of Tekezze Hydro Electric Project The participants were asked about the impact of the Tekezze Hydro Electric project in creating market in the area. The participants agreed that the project has not significantly influenced the expansion of market in the area so far, although its importance as a market for some items like egg, honey, and goats is increasing. Traders purchase goats from different areas and supply to the project. Retailing of some manufactured products and food staff is expanding in the area. However, the community’s participation in this regard is limited. Other retailers who came from Mekelle and other far off places are mainly working in this part. Although community members are given plots of land near the project, most have built small houses meant as retailing outlets and rented them to others. Some members of the community whose land is taken by the project are organizing themselves to supply stones and sand to the project. Other members also supply stones and clay in a group and individually to the project. Although limited, women are also participating in selling ’suwa’ (the local beer), bread and tea and other items. Marketing Problems Participants have identified the following major marketing problems and suggested ways of overcoming some of the problems. • The major marketing problem is transportation. There is no transportation on regular basis; they use lorries and camel to transport their commodities but it is very expensive; • Lack of standardize measurement unit. The traditional unit used in the market mainly for agricultural produce is known as Menelik (cup). Although a standard Menelik is two-third of a kilogram, retailers in the market modify the size of the Menelik and use larger size when they buy from the farmers and a smaller size when they sale to the farmers;
60
•
•
Due to the long distance to the market, they use donkeys to transport their items into and from the market. Some households who do not possess a donkey and those whose donkeys get tired on the way are forced to carry their items by themselves. At Abiy Adi, there are frequent theft and disturbances during the marketing day.
Solutions suggested by participants • • •
Road connecting the village to Abiy Adi need to be constructed and constant tariff for transportation should be set for passengers and commodities. Standardization of measurement units in the market. The government should improve the level of security at market places and robbers should be given appropriate punishment.
b. Credit According to the participants, although credit is limited, it has a long history and they take credit from different sources. The sources of credit include the rich community members (informal money lenders), Dedebit Credit and Saving Institution (DECSI) and household package program. The interest rate is 4% per month in the informal money market, 15% per year in DECSI and 9% per year for the household package program. Credit is also given in kind such as in cereals. If one borrows two cups of cereals, he/she will pay three cups. Today, informal moneylenders are almost non-existent because borrowers can borrow from DECSI and the household package program. Credit in kind is also diminishing significantly. Credit Delivery System Informal moneylenders lend money on individual basis and the borrower should bring one of his friends or relatives as collateral locally called ‘wahis’ and he or she will take the loan. The repayment date is not specified. The lender simply calculates the interest. The amount of loan usually does not exceed birr 1000.00. The household package program provides loans on individual basis and the loan is given to purchase cows for breeding and milk production, poultry, sheep and goat. The interest rate is 9% and is repayable in four years. Credit from DECSI is provided to groups of seven people now reduced to five on group collateral basis. They appreciate the credit they get from DECSI but they dislike the group collateral, because if any member of the group fails to pay, the remaining group members are liable.
61
c. Cooperatives A village cooperative was formed in 1999 at Tabia level with initial members of 600 farmers. The cooperative was supplying coffee, sugar and other commodities on its shop located in the Tabia. Among the commodities it was selling to its members, the participants remember that it once sold them a spoiled red pepper which has brought a health problem among many people in the Tabia. After it was discovered that the red pepper was not a healthy one, it was disposed and the cooperative incurred a loss. With the commencement of the Tekezze hydroelectric project, the cooperative was given the mandate to supply sand, stones and selected soil to the project and it was reported that it has made good earning out of it. It was first declared that the cooperatives will pay birr 150 each to its members out of the profit but later on only birr 40 is paid to each member. The participants underlined that they do not have any information about the operation of the cooperative, and hence do not know how much earning it has made. There is lack of transparency. Among the four villages assessed in the PRA, only the cooperative in this village is profitable and able to pay dividend to its members. Off-farm activities Besides farming, some of the villagers are involved in off-farm activities. These include daily labour in the hydroelectric project, some employed as guards in the project and petty trade. 2.6 Village Institutions Village institutions here refer to both formal and informal institutions found within and outside the village that have interactions with the living conditions of the rural community. The following diagram shows inventory of institutions. Those inside the circle are institutions found within the village and outside the circle are institutions found outside the village.
62
Health office
REST Food security
Agricultural office Administration Women’s association
Tsebel (association on religious base)
Perish council Youth’s association
BESO, TDA
Fana Tiena (health agent)
Farmer’s association
School committee
Idir Woreda Administration
Security Agricultural cadre Development agent Rural development
Farmer’s assistant (model farmer)
Veterinary doctor
Police Figure 7:
Village Institutions – Hidmo Village
Village Administration This refers to the administration at village level comprising six members. It has a chairperson, vice chairperson and secretary, and four members. The four members are responsible for different activities within the village. One is responsible for rural development, the second for security, the third for capacity building and the fourth for organizing the rural community (popularly called propaganda). The village community elects all these members and there is no sex discrimination. The village administration is mainly responsible for implementing policies of the government, mobilizing the community, and resolving community problems within its capacity and reports those that are not.
63
Security These are members of the community who are responsible for peace and stability in the village. When a dispute arises among the village dwellers, they are the ones who are responsible to resolve and reconcile. If it is beyond their capacity, they take the disputants and their case to the Woreda police. Development Agent Development agent mobilizes and coordinates the community to participate in developmental and infrastructural facilities important for the community. School committee The school committee is formed from both the public and the teachers. It has four members drawn from the public and three from the teachers. The committee makes the necessary follow up so that parents send their children to school and advises those that do not send their children. Moreover, it also makes the necessary follow up so as minimize drop outs due to parents pressure. Finally the committee is also responsible for expansion of education in the village. Parish Council Parish Council is established by the church and it consists of six members (two from the community and four priests). Its responsibility is to get heritages protected, raise funds for financing expenditures required at the church and for its expansion. Idir Idir is a society for mutual aid and burial. It is established by community members to help each other at times of difficulties mainly during the death of a member of a family. Members contribute both in cash and in kind to the deceased families. Moreover, if member of the idir community loses its asset by an accident such as loss of crop in the field by fire or the death of an animal, the idir community contributes and replaces the cost of the loss to the household. Fana Tiena (Health agents) Relatively literate members of the community are selected as health agents. Main members are women and they provide delivery service, educate residents to attend vaccination and teach the community about HIV/AIDS. Associations There are three formal associations in Hidmo - farmers’ association, women’s association and youth association. The youth association has members in the age of 18 to 30 years
64
and Women’s association consists of women between 18 to 65 years of age. Members of both association make an annual contribution of birr 4.20. The farmers’ association has members aged 36 to 70 years and every member makes annual contribution of birr 3. Although these associations have member in the village, none of them is active and benefits its members. Only the women’s association has tried to make contacts with the regional women’s association and provide some training to its members. But this is still insignificant. The participants were asked to prioritize the institutions in accordance with their importance. Accordingly, the following three are the most important arranged in descending order: 1. Associations (farmer’s, women’s and youth associations) 2. School committee 3. Administration External institutions like Woreda police, Woreda Office of Agriculture, Food Security Office, REST, BESO, Woreda Health Office, Veterinary Service, FAO, DECSI visit the village and participate in the community development programs.
2.7
Trend Line Analysis
In this session the participants were asked to show the trend of different variables in their village starting the period they are able to recall. a. Population High -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medium ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1959
1968
1978
1984/85 1988
1998 1999
2003
Year The population trend shows an upward movement except for 1984/85, where many people have died and many others migrated due to the severe drought which led to famine, and for 1999 where a malaria scourge killed many people.
65
b. Rainfall
High-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medium ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1958
1968
1978
1984/85
1988
1998 2003
Year The estimate of participants is that with the exception of few years, rainfall in the area is characterized as low. The lowest rainfall level where there was almost no rain is recorded in 1984/85, which has led to the severe drought and famine. c. Food Production (Crop)
High -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medium ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1959
1968
1978
1984/85
1988
1998
2003
Year Food production swings between low to high and mainly remaining below average. The lowest being recorded in the year 1984/85.
66
d. Health
High-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medium ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1974
1978
1988
1998
2003
Year The health level which remains generally below average is showing an upward movement in the recent past since 2000. This could be credited to the improvement in medical facilities as witnessed by participants in the health group discussion session. e. Livestock Population
High-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medium ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1968
1978
1984 1988
1998
2003
Years The livestock population in the area shows a rise after reaching all level low in 1984/85 due to drought.
67
f. Forest (tree) coverage High-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medium ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1958
1968
1978
1984 1988
1998
2003
Years Forest coverage in the area shows continues deterioration until 1984/85 and limited recovery after words but still remains low. g. Poverty Situation
High-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Medium ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Low ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1958
1968
1978
1984 1988
1998
2003
Years The level of poverty in the area is showing improvements through time except for the drought year of 1984/85. The trend in poverty is very much in congruence with livestock population trend than with food production trend. As a low land, livestock can have important role on the living condition of the village on top of recent development efforts by the government.
68
2.8
Participatory Wealth Ranking (PWR)
The total number of households in Hidmo village is estimated to be 400 distributed almost evenly in the three sub-villages (150 households in Achna Watsa, 150 households in Hidmo, and 100 households in Zenteta). For purposes of ranking, 40 beads were given to each participant, each bead representing 10 households. Participants were required to cast or distribute these beads into three places (‘poor’, ‘medium’, and ‘rich’) according to their individual perception of the wealth of the community. Casting was made individually. One participant puts the beads in the three circles prepared for this purpose and it is counted and the beads are removed from the circles. The next participant continues until all participants make their choice. After counting, the following result has been obtained: Wealth Category Poor Medium Rich Total
Number of beads Percent counted 414 41.4 348 34.8 238 23.8 1000 100
The proportion of poor, medium, and rich in Hidmo village is found out to be 41.4%, 34.8%, and 23.8% respectively. The next step in the PWR process was describing what is meant by poor, medium, or rich according to the participants own definition. Having seen the overall result and agreed on the overall average shown above, participants discussed on the attributes of each wealth category. Accordingly, one participant characterized the rich as having the following possessions: • 10 cattle • 50 goats • 2 donkeys, and • a house full of cereals Another participant gave a different characterization of the rich as possessing: • 70 cattle • 200 goats • 3 donkeys, and • 2 mules This characterization was soon rejected by the participants as exaggerated. A third participant presented a characterization of the rich in the village as possessing: • 30 cattle • 100 goats • 2 donkeys
69
• •
an amount of crop enough to feed the family for two years birr 2000.00 or above
After an additional discussion on the subject of defining wealth, yet another participant came up with a characterization of the rich as possessing: • 8 cattle • 50 goats • 2 donkeys; and • one who does not have to borrow for food (i.e., who does not depend on money lenders for food) Additional discussions were conducted on the subject in which all participants were involved. Following the discussion, participants reached an understanding of the attributes of a rich in the village as having the following property: • 8 or more cattle • 50 or more goats • 2 donkeys • a harvest level enough to feed a family for a year or more The characterization of middle-income households in the village followed the same pattern where different alternative attributes were forwarded and discussions were conducted on each and finally a consensus was reached. The following alternative descriptions of middle-income household were given: (i) (ii)
(iii)
one participant described middle income household as possessing a pair of oxen, and capable of producing food sufficient to feed its family for six months; a second participant described a middle income household as possessing four cattle, 15 goats, and capable of producing food enough for seven months from its own land; yet another participant came with a slightly different description in which a middle income household is one who possesses 5 cattle, 20 goats, and enough food for six months or more.
After a thorough discussion, an agreement was reached which describes middle income household as possessing: • 5 to 7 cattle (including a pair of oxen used for plowing) • 20 or more goats; • Crop output enough to feed the family for six or more month from its own harvest or able to buy by selling its assets at times of production failure. After similar discussions, a household is described as poor if it: • possesses 2 to 4 cattle (an ox and a cow included) or less; • cannot plow its land by itself without entering into a partnership with others; although some farmers use one ox with a donkey to plow the land;
70
• •
possesses 10 goats or less; dose not produce crop output enough to feed its family for more than a quarter of a year. Hence, when failure of harvest occurs, the family is not able to feed itself by selling assets. It becomes food dependent.
Observation: i. The whole discussion (as well as the agreements reached) have been realistic, but it seems to have gone a little bit on the conservative side. ii. In spite of their relatively better standing in terms of wealth (compared to other villages), their clothes are rugged, and stitched over and over (‘ligab’). The possible explanation could be the fact that they are far from towns and town influence seems to be lacking. The social status of the poor Although some participants indicated that the poor are equally accepted and respected by the community as the rich, the general understanding reached by the participants was that acceptance and respect is dependent on the extent of one’s wealth. (Kibrn tekebalnetn kem haftka eyu). Engagement is largely done within the same category of wealth. The rich conduct social and religious festivities (‘tsebel’) more frequently than the poor. Even at times of death, it is different. Funeral of the rich is more profound than that of the poor; many people attend the funeral and associated rituals. Particularly with engagement and marriage, it is clearly observable. The rich search for the rich; the middle income search for their counterparts; and the poor search their equals. In other social, religious, and political environment, it is generally better. In terms of sending children to school, the rich are not that much fond of sending their children to school. Because of their large possessions of cattle, goats, etc., they prefer their children to take care of their cattle rather than sending them to school. The poor and the middle income people are better in sending their children to school.
2.9
Problem Analysis and Community Action Plan (CAP)
a. Problem Analysis and Ranking The major problems identified by participants were: 1. Shortage of water (both drinking and rain water) 2. Lack of animal health services (particularly for cattle and donkey) 3. Shortage of animal feed 4. Long distance to market 5. Transportation problem 6. Thievery in urban centers such as Abiy Adi 7. Problems in measurement units while selling and buying 8. Problem of leadership of Cooperatives 9. Problems associated with disbursement and repayment of credit 10. Shortage of medicines (particularly for tuberculosis and malaria)
71
11. Forbidding children beyond ten years from admittance in school 12. Akushella dam is not holding water as much as the effort exerted on its construction The above problems were ranked by participants as indicated below. Table 2.5
Problem Ranking in Hidmo Village
Water Shorta ge
Animal Health
Feed Shortag e
Market Distanc e
Transport Problem
Unit of Meas .
Thiever y
Cooperativ e Leadership
Credit Problem
Medicine Shortage
Childre n over 10 years
Akushe la Dam
Tot
Ran k
Water shortage Animal Health Feed Shortage Market Distance Transport Prob. Unit of Meas.
***
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
11
1st
C
***
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
C
R
R
9
3rd
C
C
***
R
R
R
R
R
R
C
C
R
7
4th
C
C
C
***
C
R
R
R
R
C
C
R
5
7th
C
C
C
R
***
R
R
R
R
C
R
R
7
4th
C
C
C
C
C
*** C
C
C
C
C
C
0
Thievery
C C
C C
C C
C C
C C
R R
*** C
R ***
C C
C C
C C
R C
3 1
12t h 9th 11t h
C
C
C
C
C
R
R
R
***
C
R
C
4
8th
C
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
***
R
R
10
2nd
C
C
R
R
C
R
R
R
C
C
***
R
6
6th
C
C
C
C
C
R
C
R
R
C
C
***
3
9th
Coop. Leadershi p Credit Problem Medicine Shortage Children over 10 years Akushela Dam
C = column; R=row
In terms of their intensity, the major problems are ranked by the village community as shown below: Problem Shortage of water Shortage of Medicine Lack of Animal Health Service Lack of animal feed Transport problems Formal education denied to children beyond age 10 Distance of market places Credit related problems Akushela dam not being useful Thievery in towns Lack of proper leadership of the village cooperative society Lack of standard measurement units
72
Rank 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 4th 6th 7th 8th 9th 9th 11th 12th
b. Community Action Plan (CAP) After problem ranking was done and agreed by the community members, the next step in the PRA process was preparation of CAP for the most prior problems identified by the participants. Accordingly, the CAP prepared by participants is given below.
73
Table 2.6
Community Action Plan of Hidmo Village
S. No.
Problem
Causes of the problem
1
Shortage of Water
•
•
•
2
Lack of Medicine
Possible Solutions Conservation of forest resource
Who should do what Community Government NGOs and others • Conserve trees • Educate the • Educate the community community • Cooperate with the ‘Trees Chairperson’ • Follow up • Financial Support [‘abo gereb’] • Assign forest guards • Not to cut trees Preparation of bankers, • Supplying plastic • Implement food for and ponds; divert water sheets for ponds work for better use; making • Supplying cement • Professional Advice shades above ponds, etc. • Professional Advice and follow up
When
Cementing Aqushela micro dam so that it can hold water Lifting water from Tekeze River and make use of Lift irrigation
• Free Labour • Financial contribution
Professional support Financial and material support
Beginning 2004/05
• Professional • Professional support • Making canals support • Financial contribution • Financial and material support • Financial and • Lobbying Tekeze material support Hydropower Project to • Generator and extend assistance other materials support (from the Project)
Beginning 2004/05
Increasing supply medicine
Request the health post and relevant bodies to increase supply
Beginning 2004/05
Lack of rain water and its being erratic Lack of mountains (location being low land) Harvest any Lack of forest drop of water: cover • Water banker • Ponds (‘horeye’) • Water diversion • Prevent evaporation through shades
The health post does not get enough amount and type of medicine
of
74
• Professional support • Financial and material support
Supply medicine to the health post
• •
Medicine support
Beginning 2004/05
Beginning 2004/05
(particularly for Tuberculosis, and Malaria) 3
Lack of • Animal Health Services
•
4
Shortage of Animal feed
Unavailability of Animal Health Service in the vicinity of the village (the existing service given once a month is insufficient) Animal Health service is not provided if the number of animals is less that 50
Large number livestock
of
Conversion of grass land into farm land
Establishing Animal health center in the village
Preparing the area for animal health service
Design mechanism where service is given for individual animals
Professional support
Professional support
Medicine
Medicine
Medical materials
Medical materials
Beginning 2004/05
Provision of animal health service on individual basis Selecting trainees
Training selected community member on animal health Decrease number of livestock Depend on lesser number and better quality livestock
Provision of training Provision of training
Acknowledge the need to have smaller number and better quality livestock
Education on the need to focus on quality
Education on the need to focus on quality
Decrease possessions of livestock
Training on better use of livestock
Training on better use of livestock
75
Beginning 2004/05
3.
AWULO
3.1
Village History and Community Mapping
a. Village History Awulo is one of the four villages in Tabia Tsinkaneit of Hawzen Woreda. The village is found 8 kms to the west of Sinkata on the way to Hawzen. There were differences among participants as far as the origin of the name Awulo is concerned. One group of the participants said that the name Awulo is derived from the tigrigna word alibna that is to mean ‘we settled’. This group argued that the current dwellers of the village are descendants of two families called Hidru and Zikru. These families were moving from place to place with their animals in search of grass. They found what is called Awulo today as a convenient place with sufficient grazing land and grass for their animals and settled there. While sending their whereabouts, they said they have settled (in the local language alibna) in the present day Awulo. Hence the name Awulo is derived from the word alibna. However, another group argued that the name is derived from the nature of the grass that grows in the area. When the settlers observed that there was an increase in milk and milk products after their cattle feed the local grass, they said that the grass is “alegna” which means very convenient fodder to cattle and hence the name Awulo is derived from ‘alegna’. Others present it in a slightly different way but still agree that Awulo is derived from alegna. They indicated that a rich man called Ala Wera, who is a ‘Shehai’ descendant, gave the current name of the village. The man used to move from place to place with his cattle. He settles in an area where his selected ox locally called shidon (bull) lied on the ground. One of the areas were this bull lied was the current Awulo and the rich man settled there and he named it Awulo from the nature of the grass which was convenient (‘alegna’) to his cattle. The village has had its own judiciary system for a longer period of time in the past. The Balabats (local chiefs) used to give their verdict in a place called ‘konteftefe’. Since the court system was relatively developed in the area, the rules and regulations designed for the village used to serve for the whole Woreda of Kilite Belasa. In 1938 the villagers organized themselves and caught a locally operating rebel (shifta) in a place called Koricha. The rebel was brought to court and was sentenced to death. In 1925/26 (1918 E.C.), the first church in the area named Tabote-Haweria (church of the Apostles) was built. The village community also participated in different battles, among which the battle of Akhora (in 1913/14) between Rasie Sibhat and Dejazmach G/Silassie, the first Woyane (in 1943/44) and the battle of Chercher (in 1929/30) are mentioned. 1958/59 is considered to be ‘Zebene Anbeta’, i.e., the period of locust, for the area was hit by heavy locust. The locust invaded the area in October 1958 and ate every thing including ripen crops in the field. The villagers tried to protect it but it was beyond their 76
capacity. They got starved and many people migrated to Adigrat in search of food aid. However, the then zonal administrator – Balamberas Hailemariam – could not allow the people of the village to get food aid. The Tabia administrator, Kegnach Berhe, appealed to the regional administration at Mekelle and brought some food aid to the local community. The food distributed however was not known to the community and upon consuming it many people died due to abdominal problems associated with the food. The village experienced another period of severe drought in 1984/85, where there was almost no rain. The level of production was extremely low that the whole village community was exposed to famine. Many have been forcefully taken to the resettlement sites in the south western part of the country. A large number of people migrated to Eriteria where they were taken into a large camp and suffered from contagious diseases. Many people died in the camp. Moreover, some, mainly children, have died in the village because of starvation. People even could not attend funeral ceremonies because of the large number of death. There were cases where only two persons buried a dead body. This is very unusual. Again in 1987/88 another drought occurred. The amount of rainfall was extremely low. However, there were no deaths due to starvation, for food aid was distributed on time. The biggest challenge, however, was fodder for their cattle. The cattle of the village migrate to other parts of Tigray, mainly to Enderta in search of fodder and water. 1989/90 is also considered as a year of trouble due to lack of peace. After the Derge regime was ousted from Tigray by the TPLF forces, it was bombing the region by fighter jets. It was difficult for people to meet together in places like a market during the daytime. All markets were opened only during the night. This resulted in unrest and robbery in the market. 1992/93 marked the beginning of water conservation in the area. The local community in association with SAERT constructed the Dam of Tsinkaneit. At the beginning, the villagers were reluctant to use the water for irrigation, for they did not have the experience. Only very few households were willing to irrigate their land using the Dam water. But later on everybody was aware about the use of the dam and today the dam is serving for around 57 households. Moreover, the area is rich in underground water. But digging water well for irrigation was not known. A man, called Haleka Gebru who was in Eritria and had the exposure, dug his own water well and started to grow different vegetables. Taking the experience of Haleka Gebru, many people both individually and collectively have dug a number of water wells especially in the last two years. Today more than 85 water wells are dug in the village, some already put into use and others in the process. b. Community Mapping The following two pictures show the maps drawn by male and female participants:
77
Figure 8
Village Map of Awulo village drawn by Women group
Figure 9
Village Map of Awulo Village drawn by Men group
Both groups described the resource base of the village in their respective maps. The women’s group concentrated more on residence houses, dam, school and office of the
78
local administration. The men’s group on the other hand emphasized on farm land, both rain fed and irrigated, and grazing land.
3.2
Seasonal and Daily Calendar
a. Seasonal Calendar This section discusses the main activities of female and male farmers in the various seasons of the year and their daily involvement. Table 3.1
Seasonal Calendar of Awulo Village – Men group
Major Activities I. Agriculture • Plowing • Sowing • Weeding • Mowing (cutting) • Threshing • Collection of straw • Fencing
Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. March April May June July August X X X X -
II. Water and soil conservation III. Daily Labour X IV. Petty trade X Food High Availability Medium Health
X X -
X X -
X X X -
X X
X -
X -
X -
-
X -
X -
X -
-
-
X
X
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
X X
X X
X X
X X
X
X
X
X
X
-
-
Low High Medium Low
79
Table 3.2
Seasonal Calendar of Awulo Village – Women group
Major Activities I. Agriculture • Ploughing • Sowing • Weeding • Mowing • Harvesting • Manure • Preparation of seed bed • Animal herding and bee keeping II. Water and soil conservation III. Incense collection
Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. March April May June July August -
-
X -
X X -
X -
-
-
-
X X X -
X X X -
X X X
X X X X
X X X -
-
-
-
X
X
X
X
X
-
-
-
-
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
-
-
-
IV. Daily Labour V. Petty trade X Food High Availability Medium
X
X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X
X
X
X
-
Low Health
High Medium Low
The seasonal activities of the rural community can be viewed broadly as farming activities and non-farm (off-farm) activities. i. Farming Activities The main activities related to agriculture in the area are plowing, preparing seeds, sowing (planting), weeding, mowing (cutting), threshing and collection of straw. Plowing Hamle (July) Plowing of fallow land takes place in the month of July. In other areas of Tigray, plowing of fallow land takes place in the month of September, but in areas between Edagahamus (a town some 20 kilometers north of the village) and Negash (a town some 25 kilometers south of the village) this activity is done in the month of July. In Awulo, on average onefourth of a farmland is left fallow. The average land holding in the village is three tsimad (3/4th of a hectare) per household.
80
Nehase (August) The fallow land plowed in July is repeated once again in August so that it could be ready for sowing vetch, barley (‘sasea’) or chickpeas in the month of September. This process is known as ‘mieyam’. Meskerem (September) The fallow land plowed in July and repeated in August is plowed in September before it is sown. If the land that was left fallow in July is not to be sown with vetch in September, it will be repeated (plowed for the second time) and then plowed for the third time (known locally as ‘miskab’) in October. No plowing takes place in November. Tahsas (December) to Yekatit (February) No serious job of plowing takes place in these months except deracinating (rough plowing) the land that was sown at the onset of the last rainy season or in September (following fallow). Megabit (March) The entire holding (i.e., three tsimad) will be plowed in this month. Two tsimad out of the three will be plowed again so as to prepare it for sowing in the coming summer (this is locally known as ‘mlisilas’), while one tsimad is left fallow. Miazia (April) Sorghum, Millet and Teff are sown in the month of April. Note that sometimes these crops are sown in March. One out of the three tsimad is sown in April and the other one (the one that was left fallow the last crop season) will be kept for sowing crops like barley and wheat in the month of June or even July. No plowing generally takes place in May. Sowing In the month of April (or sometimes March) crops like sorghum, millet, and teff are planted. Sowing of barley and wheat takes place in the month of June while that of vetch, fast growing barley (sasea) and chickpeas takes place in September. Weeding Most of the weeding work (for crops like teff, sorghum, and millet) takes place in July, although it can start a little earlier if it rains early. Weeding of the crops sown in July (barley, wheat, peas, etc.) takes place in August while for crops sown in September (‘vetch’, chick peas, etc.), weeding takes place in the same month. Weeding of teff and millet, which requires intense weeding, is done in the month of July. On average, it takes eight man-days per tsimad. Weeding of barley and wheat, which is done in August, requires an average six man-days for one tsimad. In September, weeding of one tsimad requires three man-days.
81
Cutting (Mowing) Meskerem (September) Cutting grass for animal feed and ripe crops starts in September. Cutting and collecting ripe teff, barley (locally called ‘kerka’eta’), and even wheat starts in September and continues till October. On average 5 and 3 man days for collecting grass and crops are required respectively in September. Tikimti (October) October is the main reaping time. Collecting ripe crops (teff, barley, sorghum, millet, wheat, etc.) takes place in October. The job requires eight man days. No major mowing is done in November. Tahsas (December) Chickpeas and vetch are collected in December and this requires 4 man days. Threshing Threshing is done in November and December, but mainly in November. Apart from these two months, threshing is also done in September and October largely by hand to cover temporary food shortfalls. Threshing of ‘vetch’ and chickpeas also takes place in January. In each of the two months (November and December), threshing on average requires four persons and six animals (oxen) working for two days. In January, two persons and four oxen can do the job in one day. Others Collecting straw requires ten man-days. This job is completed in the month of February because the straw can stay in the threshing field until it is transported to ones house. Applying organic manure is done towards the end of May and it requires four man days. Fencing, and removing grass and other weeds while plowing (locally called ‘golgual’) requires about two man days altogether. ii. Non Farm Activities Small Ponds (‘horeye’) About forty horeyes are already prepared in the village. Preparing one horeye requires some 25 to 30 persons working for 22 days (550 man days). One person would need nearly two years to prepare one pond. Observation: the assessment on the labour requirement to prepare a horeye seems highly exaggerated.
82
Soil and Water Conservation (Free labor) Beginning from 1992, the community works every year for twenty days on soil and water conservation in the month of December (which many times goes up to January) with out payment. Work norms are set for these activities and every able adult person (18 years or above) is required as a matter of necessity to contribute his/her share in accordance with the norm. Hand Dug Wells More than 85 hand-dug wells are made in the village. On average a hand dug well at Awulo is about four meters wide and 4 to 6 meters deep. Hand dug wells are usually made between February and June. Participants estimated that to prepare a hand dug well requires on average 15 persons working for 30 days. There exists a great deal of preference of the community for hand dug wells to ponds, because the wells take a smaller space than ponds and the water in wells is replenishable. Afforestation Afforestation activities like planting eucalyptus and cactus (‘beles’) are also done in the village. Small pits (an average of 20 pits per head) are prepared by the community members for the purpose of afforestation. Petty Trade The major marketing days for Awulo are Wednesday (marketing day of Hawzen, a Woreda town some three hours walk to the west, which serves as an administrative center for the Woreda to which Awulo belongs) and Saturday (marketing day of Freweini commonly called Sinkata a town less than an hour’s walk to the east). Sometimes people also go to Edagahamus, a town of two hours walk to the north or even to Adigrat, a zonal town over 30 kilometers to the north. There are still others who go as far as Mekelle (regional capital) and even beyond. In the past some people used to go as far as Asmara. The most important marketing place of the village is the nearby town of Freweini. Most of the petty trade related works are done during market days and non-working days. About 10% of the households in the village support their life with petty trade. Daily Labour About 30% of the village population is engaged in daily labour. More people are engaged in daily labour compared to petty trade. The most opportune time for daily labour is in Autumn (locally known as ‘qewii’) which extends from September to January. This is because the demand for daily labour gets higher during this time of the year. During big holidays (such as Ethiopian New Year) some people also go to towns (Freweini, Hawzen, Adigrat, and Mekelle) to temporarily work as slaughters.
83
Daily labour is also available in the village and nearby areas during harvesting, plowing, digging wells, and weeding. Thus, people work as daily labourers both within and outside the village. b. Daily Calendar Daily Calendar of Awulo Village - Men group September Time 4:00 – 6:00
6:00 – 7:00 7:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 13:30 13:30 – 18:00 18:00 – 20:00 20:00 – 21:00 21:00 – 22:00 October Time 3:00 – 9:00 9:00 – 10:30 4:30 – 18:00
18:00 – 20:00 20:00 – 21:00 21:00 – 22:00 November Time 5:00 – 9:00
9:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 19:00 19:00 – 21:00
Activities People wake up at about 4:00am in the night to sharpen their plow (visit the iron smith), and then come back home to feed their oxen. Breakfast Plowing, harvesting, and cutting grass as required Lunch, drinking coffee, and feeding oxen Plowing, harvesting, and cutting grass as required Feeding oxen and cows Dinner and chatting with family members Sleeping
Activities People wake up at 3:00am in the night for harvesting. Mowing is mainly during the night time and continues until 9:00 am Breakfast, and coffee Gathering harvested crops, hand threshing for immediate food consumption, and feeding animals. Food is served at the work places (farm lands) to save time. Back home, feed cattle Dinner and chatting with family members Sleeping
Activities People wake up at about 5:00 am in the morning to clean threshing field, gather oxen for threshing from oneself and from others (known locally as ‘lifinti’), and feed oxen. Breakfast and coffee is served at the threshing field. Threshing continues, lunch as well as local beer (‘sua’) is served in the field. Winnowing, separating the produce from straw, and gather what is available. If job not completed it continues into the night Back home, take half shower (particularly face and head), chatting with family, and dinner 84
21:00 – 23:00 Sleeping Note that threshing of teff takes place in the night. December Time 6:00 – 7:00 7:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 21:00 21:00 – 22:00 January Time 6:00 – 8:00 8:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 21:00 21:00 – 22:00 February Time 6:00 6:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 18:00 18:00 – 21:00 21:00 – 22:00 March - June Time 4:00 – 6:00 6:00 – 7:00 7:00 – 12:00 12:00 – 14:00 14:00 – 17:00 17:00 – 19:00 19:00 – 21:00
Activities People wake up at about 6:00am and take their breakfast and coffee. Threshing (if not yet complete), and soil and water conservation (free service) Lunch, and coffee Threshing (if not already done), straw collection Back home, family chat, and dinner Sleeping
Activities People wake up at about 6:00am and take their breakfast and coffee. Soil and water conservation (free service) Lunch, and coffee Transporting straw from threshing field to residence Back home, feeding cattle, family chat, and dinner Sleeping
Activities People wake up at about 6:00am and start digging before breakfast until the sun gets tough. Preparing small ponds (horeye), making hand dug wells, and breakfast is served at the work place Lunch, and coffee Ponds and hand dug wells Back home, family chat, and dinner Sleeping
Activities People wake up at about 4:00am, sharpen their plows, feed their oxen and prepare for plowing. Breakfast, coffee Plowing; applying organic manure; sowing Lunch, coffee Plowing; sowing Back home, feeding oxen Dinner, family chat 85
21:00 – 22:00 July/August Time 6:00 – 7:00 7:00 – 7:30 7:30 – 18:00 18:00 – 21:00 21:00 – 22:00
Sleeping Activities People wake up at about 6:00am, take animals out to the field Breakfast Weeding unless interrupted by rain. Food is served at the weeding site. Back home, family chat, and dinner Sleeping
It has to be noted that these are the major activities. Otherwise, there are non-working days (religious holidays and weekends) where people are not engaged in plowing, harvesting, or digging. In village Awulo the non-working days are weekends, Saint Michael’s day, Abune Aregawi’s day, Saint Mary’s day and ‘Ba’ele Egziabher’ (the memory of the birth and resurrection of Jesus Christ). There are also some non-working days which appear once a year. During religious holidays and Sundays people go to the church to attend the Mass.
86
Table 3.3
Daily Calendar of Awulo Village –Women group
Daily Sept. Activities
Daily Activities
3:00am House cleaning, grinding, water fetching and breakfast 8:00am – 12:00 Other household activities
Oct.
8:00am -12:00 Mowing
12:00 – 2:00pm Lunch and coffee 2:00 - 6:00 House hold activities, Handicraft activities like pottery work, spinning and sewing.
2:00pm - 6:00 Mowing
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
8:00am – 2:00pm Soil and water conservation (for free)
8:00am – 2:00pm Soil and water conservation (paid work)
2:00 – 4:00 lunch and coffee
1:00 – 3:00 lunch and coffee
Feb.
2:00 – 4:00pm lunch and coffee
4:00 - 6:00 House hold activities, Handicraft activities like pottery work, spinning and sewing.
6:00 – 8:00 Dinner preparation 9:00 Sleeping time
87
March
April
May
June
July
8:00am – 12:00 Other household activities
8:00am – 2:00pm Household activities, preparing seed bed 2:00 – 4:00 lunch and coffee
8:00am – 12:00 preparing seed bed, weeding 12:00 – 2:00pm Lunch and coffee 2:00 –6:00 preparing seed bed, weeding
August
3.3
Agriculture and Livestock
a. Agriculture Agriculture is the main stay of the people of Tsinkaneit. The average land holding is 3 tsimad (three fourth of a hectare). Land is distributed for the last time in 1991 (1983 E.C.) The minimum age for getting land was 15 years for women and 22 years for men. Every one present in the village at the time of land distribution got land. But families who returned after 1991 from Eritrea and other parts of Ethiopia and the newly formed households do not have land. The landless households constitute approximately 10% of the village population. Main Crops Grown The main crops grown in Awulo are Karka’eta (a mix of barley and wheat) which covers almost one-half of the total area cultivated, wheat, Teff and Sorghum. Besides rain fed agriculture, a number of farmers also use irrigation both from Dam Tsinkaneit and water wells. The people of Tabia Tsinkaneit and other neighboring Tabias constructed Dam Tsinkaneit in 1992/93. At the beginning there were resistances from the farmers to use the water for irrigation because none were having the experience before and there were rumors that the government could heavily charge the users of the water. Although the command area (irrigable land) of the dam belongs to Kushet Awulo, there are farmers from other Kushets who got land in the command area in an exchange to their land in their Kushets. Through time, however, the farmers came to understand the use of irrigation and at present many people are requesting to get land. However, the capacity of the dam is limited and only 57 households use it currently. The other means for irrigation is water wells. Although the village is rich in underground water, the use of this water for irrigation and other purposes was not known until 1999/2000 where a man called Haleka Gebru, who was in Eritrea, dug his own water well and started to irrigate his land. Following Haleka Gebru’s sprit, many people started to dig water wells both collectively and individually. Today there are more than 85 water wells some put into use and others ready for use. There are also water ponds constructed since 2002/03. Many of the ponds are constructed collectively but are owned privately. In the construction of ponds, the people first dig a hole three meters deep and if water comes out, the pond will be changed into water well and they dig it further. If no water is obtained up to three meter, it will be a pond. Water wells are much preferable to ponds, for the first one is replenishable and serves for the whole year. It also takes small space only sixteen square meters whereas a Horeye occupies 144 square meters of land. Use of Modern Inputs To increase agricultural productivity, the use of chemical fertilizers and selected seeds is imperative. In Awulo, the main selected seed used is wheat but maize is also used if there is belg rain (the short rains in the months of February to April). Selected wheat is used almost by all farmers because of its productivity and its suitability to the 88
environment. Although chemical fertilizer is in use in the area, its application is limited. Farmers prefer manure to chemical fertilizers because manure is less costly and can serve for more than one season. Participants agreed that the manure composted from the waste of different animals differs in fertility. The most fertile being the manure from the waste of sheep and goats followed by that of cattle. Manure from the waste of pack animals is third and finally comes ash. However, manure is not available in the required amount because of the less number of cattle population in the area. Moreover, pesticides are used to a limited extent as per the advice of Development Agents on selected crops like Teff and vegetables such as cabbage and onion. Use of Harvest Although production is basically meant for self consumption, farmers sale part of their produce to buy manufactured products. The participants agreed that most households in Awulo sale almost one third of their agricultural produce to the market in order to buy goods like coffee, clothes, pepper and salt, and to discharge their obligations like land use fee. The main cereals marketed are Teff and Sesame. The main market of the village is Senkata (which is only an hour walk) and the next one is Hawzen especially for Beans and Cattle Problems in Agriculture The problem in agriculture is the insufficiency of production due to shortage of water and land. Moreover, most farmers do not have any other additional income to subsist their living. They fully depend on the agricultural output. Whatever little output is produced, they will use part of it to exchange for other items in the market like oil, pepper, coffee and salt. Family garden Growing garden vegetables is an activity introduced recently after the construction of the dam. Some farmers (not less than 57) are using the dam water to irrigate their land and are growing different types of vegetables and maize. On the other hand, there are also a growing number of farmers producing different types of vegetables using water wells and ponds. The vegetables produced are mainly for the market. Only a small portion is used for self consumption. There is an encouraging trend that vegetables as marketable items are replacing cereals. Besides vegetables, some farmers attempt to grow fruit plants like Papaya, orange, avocado and lemon. However, this is not encouraging because the prevalence of frost in the area which also affects vegetables. Another serious problem growing up with the rise in production of the vegetables is marketing problem. Most farmers grow similar vegetable items and harvest in the same period. When all farmers supply their vegetables to the market, they face not only a sharp decline in price but also absence of a buyer even at the prevailing low price. They could not sale their products in far off markets like Mekelle, for each farmer’s product is too small to cover all the transportation and other related costs. Moreover, they could not be 89
certain to get a buyer once the vegetables are transported to Mekelle or other bigger markets. Thus in the absence of other options, farmers are compelled to sell their vegetables at an incredibly low price. This discourages growers of vegetables. b. Livestock The dominant livestock population in the area is sheep, cattle and donkeys. These are used for different purposes. Sheep are reared mainly for the market and for personal use during holidays. Sheep are highly preferred by the farmers because they need less fodder as compared to cattle and are easily marketable. Cattle are mainly considered as a sign of wealth besides their productive use and donkey is used for transportation. The average livestock holding as estimated by participants is: five sheep, one cow, one ox and one donkey. The main problem associated with livestock is lack of enough grazing land and fodder. Although the loss of cattle due to disease is minimized, for there is a medical facility, cattle loss due to drought is high.
3.4 Social Services a. Education There is an elementary school in a nearby village called Agona within the same Tabia (Tabia Tsenkaniet). The school is named ‘Kokhi Azan elementary school’ and runs classes up to grade six. The school has six class rooms and one library. An additional wooden tent room (‘das’) is also available and used as a classroom. There is a plan to upgrade the school into a comprehensive elementary school up to grade eight. But additional classrooms are yet to be constructed. It is expected that, by 2005/06 academic year, new classrooms will be ready for the school to conduct classes up to grade eight. The Tabia community shall avail construction stones as well as labour and the rest to be provided by the government. The location of the school however is not convenient because it is found at one edge of the Tabia. There are about 800 students in the school studying in two shifts. About two third of the students are male while the rest are female. The number of classrooms is not sufficient to accommodate all school age children in the Tabia. Many who should have been at school could not attend because of this constraint. Until 1998, registration was open for all, but since then it is getting more and more difficult to secure sits for the increasing number of children as a result a quota system is introduced to new entrants. The increase in demand for schooling is largely attributed to the rise in the community’s awareness about the importance of education. However the school cannot admit beyond the quota. The participants said “we had to spend all night long in a queue to get our children registered, and many children could not make it because of the quota.” Once admission to new entrants is over in a given year, one cannot bring the child unable to gain admittance for the next year because he/she will be over the age limit of the school, which is seven years and hence rejected. The problem is thus serious. The community is very much eager to send children to school, but the space constraint is limiting the number and as a result many children are failing to attend school.
90
It could be said that the majority of the community members have acknowledged the benefits of education. But problems still exist especially in sending female children to school. The fewer number of female students in the school is an evidence for this. Although many girls are admitted to school but the rate of dropouts is bigger for female students especially after reaching grades five and six mainly due to marriage. After completing their education at Kokhi Azan elementary school, students go either to May Seto (west of the village) or to Freweini (Senkata) to continue schooling. Both places are about an hour’s walk from the village. Of all the students who start in Kokhi Azan, about 80% get promoted to the next grades at May Seto or Senkata. But at grade ten, the majority of the students fail. Only about 20% of them get promoted to the next level. Many female students also fail during the grade eight general examination. As a result rumors have been circulating that because of the large number of students; the government is deliberately making many students to fail. This has resulted in disappointment on the part of the community. Even if they pass grade eight, they fail in grade ten creating an additional dissatisfaction on family. Every family wants to see its children complete education and secure jobs. However, this is not happening; either they fail before completing grade ten or even after completing grade ten, they could not secure jobs. There are eleven teachers in the school. Teachers reside in the vicinity of the school, some of them in houses constructed for teacher’s residence by the community and some others in rented houses. Teachers frequently request their students to make contributions in different forms so as to raise income for the improvement of the school. Although the objective is to improve the school and its services, the frequent request is pressurizing the students to engage in unethical activities. While addressing the issue of contribution at school, the participants said “Recently, they asked our children to contribute old plastic shoes (congo chama). As a result, there were some incidences of even stealing somebody else’s plastic shoes in a bead to fulfill their requirements.” The intention of improving the school through the proceeds of the sale of old shoe could be good, but it had its own negative impact as some children had to give their own or their parents’ shoes to keep their teachers’ words. Students consider their teachers as their helpers, and they have high regard to them. Out of the high respect for their teachers, students fetch water and contribute two pieces of dung cake every two weeks. This is not of course to forget that there are a few teachers who are not regarded as good teachers. Major Problems of Education 1. Students who fail grade eight examination are, as a matter of rule, supposed to continue classes on fee basis. This has created additional burden on the community, as they have to pay for their tuition fees besides their food and related expenses. 2. The quota system of the school, enforced due to space constraint, is a problem of serious concern because many children who should have been at school could not
91
get admission. Worse still is the age limit imposed on children required to join the school. The participants believe that there is nothing that the community can do with regard to the first problem, but having recognized the severity of the second problem, the society is mobilizing contributions to construct new classrooms. This is believed to minimize the problem stated in number two. Adult Literacy (Basic writing and reading skills) About two thirds of the adults in the village are believed to be able to write their names. One fourth of the adult population of the village is able to properly read and write, of which 30 percent are female. The basic writing and reading skills have been obtained through: • Church education. In earlier times church teachers (‘deftera’) had been giving basic skills of writing and reading under the name Felege Hiwot. • Formal education • Literacy education. Literacy education started during the Derg period and continued even at wider scale during the current government (locally know as ‘widib’). At present, however, attendance is not mandatory and only those interested are attending. After adult education became voluntary, most adults do not attend. They concentrate on other priority areas of winning their daily bread. Thus, literacy education is given mainly to children and their teachers are those from the village who either have interrupted classes or those who are unable to secure job after completing grade ten. b. Health The women group identified the following as the common type of diseases. -
Headache (Merzen)
-
Heart problem
-
Back pain (Himam Hike)
-
Stomach pain (gastritis)
The first three types of diseases are common among adult men and women, while the last one is common among children. The major cause for the diseases is lack of sufficient food and work overload, especially among women who have to do both the field work and the house work. The local communities know about HIV/AIDS because they learn about it from health agents and women’s association. Vaccination of children, check up for pregnant women and some minor medical services are provided in the nearby health post which is only half an hour walk from the village. Child vaccination and check up of pregnant women is made once a month. For major
92
health problems, they usually go to Senkata, the nearby town which is one hour journey on foot. To improve the health conditions, some selected women from the village are trained as health agents (fana tiena) to serve as midwifes and provide training. Participants confirmed that the habit of getting treatment in modern medical centers is improving through time. In earlier periods, people did not use modern medical treatment. This has been so partly because the availability of such a facility was poor and partly because people’s attitude towards modern medication was limited, instead people used to go to traditional healers. Today, however, people’s attitude towards modern medical treatment is changing slowly. Except the few who are given a letter of free medical service by the local administration so that they can be treated freely in government hospitals, all others pay themselves for medical treatment. Some do even pay as high as birr 500 for their medication. Following the gradual attitudinal changes of the society towards modern medication, the visits made to traditional healers has declined significantly. Some practices like circumcision of baby boys are still practiced by the local traditional healers. Maternal Health Over the last five years, the number of women who get check up and vaccination during pregnancy has been increasing. Some women see health personnel for a prenatal care starting from the third month of pregnancy. The habit of visiting medical personnel for a prenatal care was poor before but since the recent past, many pregnant women are practicing it. When a pregnant woman gives birth, first her neighbors and relatives assist her. If there are difficulties, however, a traditional birth attendant will be called upon to assist her. Still if the problem is beyond the capacity of the birth attendant, she will go to the health center. The incidence of death at the time of delivery has declined significantly over the last five years. Miscarriage is one of the problems among pregnant women. According to the rough estimate of the participants 1 out of 10 pregnant women (10%) face problem of miscarriage. Many women believe that the cause of this problem is because God has not permitted the new baby to join this world. However, a number of women have also said that the cause of the problem is due to lack of balance diet and heavy workload. Moreover, infant mortality is also high in the village. Water use and hygiene Drinking water is not a major problem in the village. The villagers use both hand dug wells and pipe water for drinking. Their cattle drink water in the dam and some times from the wells. The villagers wash their clothes and take bath during slack days, mainly weekends. They wash their casual clothes twice a month and take a bath mainly once a month. They also wash their hands before and after each meal. The haves usually use
93
detergents like soap for washing their clothes. Parents also teach (instruct) their children to keep themselves clean and to wash their hands before and after each meal. Food preservation in the area is done traditionally. For crops, because there is not much production these days, they use bags to preserve. For meat, they usually cut it into pieces and hang it until it gets dry. Since the area is a high land, food is not easily spoiled and there is no any incidence of sickness because of eating a spoiled food. Sanitation Although the local government has financed for the construction of 20 latrines in the village, ten of them are damaged and are out of use. Most people use the traditional open air toilet. Animals are usually kept in a separate place and their waste is used as dung (for fuel) and as manure. Nutrition The regular types of food in the village are Enjera, Shirro, Fokokta, Tihlo, meat and bread. The most preferable meal is meat, which is usually eaten by the rich. Most villagers eat twice a day. There is also a coffee ceremony almost in every house every day. Moreover, there is no difference among children and adults in their feeding habit. Depending on the availability of food, different food items are consumed in different seasons. During the harvesting season, Tihlo is common because barley is most available during this season. During summer, enjera is common and during the winter season, local green leaf called hamli is common. Traditionally women used to eat special food, like meat, butter, porridge and others during lactation period. However, these days because of poverty, women do not usually get these special food types. Mothers feed infants only breast milk for the first six months and an additional food is given after words. Birth Spacing According to the estimate of the participants, the average fertility rate of a woman in the village is seven, although most women do want to have five children. In the earlier periods, there was no any mechanism of either stopping or postponing childbirth. These days there are contraceptive mechanisms known to most women thanks to the advice given by the health agents. In using any modern contraception for birth spacing or stopping birth, women consult their husbands. However, some women admitted that some husbands do not permit their wives to use contraceptive and they do it secretly.
94
3.5
Market, Credit and Cooperative
a. Market The markets where the local communities transact are: • Senkata on Saturday • Hawzen on Wednesday • Enda Teka Tesfay on Thursday • Edaga Hamus and • Edaga Selus (Mayeseuto on Tuesday) People travel to the markets on foot and it takes around 3 to 3 ½ hours to reach Hawzen, 1½ hours to reach Enda Teka Tesfay, 3 ½ hours to reach Edaga Hamus, 1 hour to reach Senkata and ½ hour to reach Mayeseuto. The villagers supply different products to the different markets during the marketing days. For example, items like chicken, egg, sheep, cereal, vegetables, honey, and other home made products are usually supplied to the Senkata market; live animals and sometimes vegetables and cereals are supplied to Hawzen market, and Vegetables and cereals are supplied to the nearby market - Edaga Selus. The fact that the market days of the different market places are different gives an opportunity to the local community to use one of the markets in a convenient day. The major marketing problems identified by participants include lack of transportation, unfair price (lower prices for their outputs) and fluctuations in demand and price conditions in the market. b. Credit Although credit market in the area is not well developed, it is practiced in a number of ways. The sources of credit identified by participants include: Dedebit Credit and Saving Institution (DECSI) Women’s Association Cooperative Association Money lenders (rich persons) Family and friends Bureau of Agriculture However, the major suppliers of credit to the community are DECSI Bureau of Agriculture Cooperative Association Women’s Association Out of the major suppliers of credit, the most popular in the area, as is the case in other parts of Tigray, is Dedebit Credit and Saving Institution (DECSI). The participants have appreciated the support DECSI is providing in terms of making money available to the needy. However, they have also pointed out the problems associated with the credit 95
supplied by DECSI. The major problem being group lending. DECSI provides loans on a group basis in the sense that borrowers form a group of six; currently it is reduced to three, to apply for a loan. The group serves as collateral so that if any group member fails to pay, the remaining group members are liable. Moreover, in the periodic repayment of the loan, if one member of the group is not able to pay on time, the other members are not allowed to make their periodic payment. All of the members must make the payment simultaneously; otherwise no one will collect the payment from each individual separately. This exposes the whole members of the group to penalty simply because one member is unable to pay on time. Purpose of the loan Although people borrow money for different purposes, the participants agreed that most of the money borrowed by the local community is invested on the purchase of cattle, seeds, sheep and other necessary items for their consumption. As far as the usefulness of the loan is concerned, the participants witnessed that except loan management problems on part of the borrowers, it is important to undertake their daily business and supports their living. For some borrowers, the loan has already brought some changes in their life. c. Cooperative Cooperatives are formed at Tabia level. Accordingly there is a cooperative in Tabia Tsenkaniet which became functional in 1978. Farmers are supposed to pay birr 11 as a membership fee when they first join the cooperative. So far the cooperative has 200 members. The cooperative is established with the intention of supplying products demanded by the community like coffee, sugar, soap, fertilizer, petroleum and many others at reasonable price. However, the participants witnessed that the cooperative is not functioning well. Except distributing fertilizer, it is not supplying any other commodities. Even if other items are available, they are either inferior in quality or command a price higher than that of retailers. Although there could be many reasons for the malfunctioning of the cooperative, the participants stressed that managerial problems and lack of transparency are the notable ones. Besides, the cooperative also has shortage of financial capital.
3.6
Village Institutions
Development concerns people. If development concerns people, they should share the cost of development. To mobilize the resources that will be required for development activities, the role of institutions becomes very important. Traditionally, development theoreticians underlined the importance of factors such as technology, skilled manpower, capital and lately conducive national policy framework. All are important, but none is sufficient. The need to involve people in their affairs and the role of local institutions in this process is getting the proper understanding among academics and policy makers alike. Local institutions, provided that, the government is willing and able to create the enabling environment, can play a pivotal role in community's development. 96
To understand how institutions are working in the target area; what role (development, social, religious and political) they are playing; and how they interact with each other (to see if there is any cooperation among institutions), the PRA research team studied the village institution in Kushet Awulo. According to the participants, the type of institutions found in the Kushet include, local, external, governmental and non-governmental as shown below. Those inside the bigger circle are institutions found within the village and those outside the circle are institutions found outside the village but have interactions with the village. Woreda agriculture Police
Parish Council Kushet Administ ration
Tabia Administ ration
Agricultu ral Cadre/Pe asant Assistant
Health Fana/TBA
Social Court
School Committee
Service Cooperati ves
Edir Develop ment Agent
Security Committee
Irrigation service Promotion Committee
Peasant /Women/Youth Association
Veterinary Clinic
Woreda health REST/ DECSI
Figure 10
Village Institutions – Awulo Village
Kushet Administration Kushet Administration (KA) in Awulo started in 1979, when the Kushet had the status of Tabia(village). The administration system has been restructured in 1996 in which 97
Awulo’s status is reduced to a Kushet (sub village) level. Six members democratically elected by the community constitute the kushet administration. The election is free and the criteria to elect any one into the administration position are based on his/her individual capability and commitment to take responsibilities. The functions of KA include: • Settle any dispute among members of the community • Identify and prioritize socio-economic problems of the kushet and put in the annual plans • Coordinate and mobilize the people for soil and water conservation activities • Prorate the tax burden, collect and hand-over to the next higher government administration unit • Coordinate other socio-economic activities undertaken in the Kushet With regard to performance rate of the KA, it was commented that, the KA lacks the capacity to implement development programs and the members tend to implement assignments and orders given from above no matter how useful the orders might be to the community. Tabia Administration The Tabia administration in the area was established in 1975 and is run by six members chairperson, secretary, cashier, and three other members. Their main duty is to administer the four Kushets within the Tabia and represent it at Woreda level. Social Court Social Court was established in 1975. It is constituted by three principal and two alternate members. The main function of the alternate members is to replace any of the absentee principal members, so as to facilitate the decision making process. The main function of the social court is to give judiciary service. The Jury is open two days a week (during religious holidays). With regard to the efficiency and transparency of the justice system, participants commended the social court for its expedited service. Moreover, when PRA participants were asked as how the social court members were elected, all of them confirmed that all members were elected by the public on individual merit basis. Peasant, Women and Youth Association These associations were established in 1979 during the Derg regime. Membership is open. For the Youth Association any member of the community in the age range of 1830 years, for peasant association any farmer in the age bracket of 30 to 65 years, and for women’s association any female member of the community within the age bracket of 18 to 65 can be members. In all of the three associations, committees are formed so as to assume the leadership responsibilities. The membership fee is birr 4 for both Youth and Women Associations but birr 3 for Peasant Association.
98
The main reasons for establishing the above associations are • to form organization that will create unity and strength in the development of their locality • to solve some of their common problems • to serve as a bridge to receive development from above • to render community service for those in need of it (seniors, physically handicapped, and people suffering from serious illness) and • Political reason With regard to the Associations' contribution to the local development, the participants view was found to be mixed. The Women Association's activity, especially in the microfinance and other efforts to improve the life of its members was found to be encouraging. However, the Youth and Peasant Associations commented to be far below expectation. Participants commented that the associations are: • serving as instrument of the state machinery and controlling mechanism at the grass-root level. For instance, membership and payment of membership fees are used as a means to discriminate people in the social services rendered such as giving identification cards and some times in the inclusion or exclusion of people in the community's job opportunities. • more interested and sensitive to political agendas as opposed to developmental issues. • using the members' contribution to finance the salary of their staff at wereda and regional level. In summary, according to the participants the associations have never served the purpose for which they were established and brought no change in the life of their members. Security Committee The security committee's main function is to oversee the security problems and ensure peaceful living environment in their community. Eleven members, chaired by a Commander, constitute the committee. The security committee renders its services on voluntary basis. But, to be nominated and elected for the committee, the individual’s discipline and social acceptability is considered. Service Cooperatives The establishment of Service Cooperative goes back to 1978 and its objective is to supply consumer goods and agricultural inputs to members. Although all Participants agreed the need for the service cooperative, its service has deteriorated currently as compared to the past and members are completely frustrated. The poor performance of the service cooperative can be attributed to two main reasons 1) The cooperatives could not compete in the current free market economy (which does not give any preferential treatment to cooperatives, as opposed to the Derg era where top priority was given to cooperatives). As a result the price, which was supposed to be lower than the free market price, is found to be not much better than the private trader’s price and even worse sometimes. 99
2)
Lack of an established system to follow up the functioning of the cooperative. Consequently, the cooperative could not provide even modest service to its members.
Here two important observations can be stated. Firstly, members from the outset had no clear idea as to what type of service they are going to get by being a member. Thus, they had a 'false hope'- the government to give unreserved support (an attitude inherited from the Communist Derg), which is against the free market principle. Secondly, if properly managed, service cooperatives can function properly even in the context of the free market economy. Parish Council The parish council is established in 1990 to undertake various religious matters. It is constituted by 5 members out of which 3 of them are from the church and 2 from the community. Its main functions include: • construct and maintain churches • promote religious beliefs, ideas and values among the people • act as the highest administrative body of the church • administer the financial and physical property of the church and allocate the resources in consultation with community. The parish council refers to Kale-Awad (a written by-law which defines how things should go and be decided in the church affairs) in the day-to-day decision making processes. Agriculture Cadre (AC) Agricultural Cadre that operates under the technical guidance of Agricultural Office (via Development Agent) undertakes various activities at the grass root level. Among the list of activities, assessing the agricultural input need, compiling and forwarding it to the next higher level (Tabia) are the major ones. AC also mobilizes the community for various development activities. It is also mandated to provide technical assistance (fertilizer application, sowing techniques, pest surveillance and spray) related to agricultural and environmental conservation activities. Finally, it was also reported that trained farmers give village level veterinary service. They follow up the general health condition of the animals in the area and when animal disease occurs, they immediately report to the Tabia which in turn reports to the Woreda. When specialists are sent from the Woreda to the village, the trained farmers organize the community to vaccinate their animals. School Committee The objective of establishing school committee at each school is inline with the overall educational policy, which encourages parents and local communities to actively participate in the day-to-day activities of the school. And this in turn is believed to improve the efficiency of education system. Accordingly, a school committee was
100
established in Awulo in 2003 consisting of 6 members (5 from the community and 1 student representative). The school committee serves as a bridge in the school-community relationship and oversees the overall school affairs and provides solutions to problems encountered. In line with this, the school has experienced positive changes after the formation of the committee. Some of the benefits include: • Improvement in the teaching learning process. The discipline of teachers has been improved (reduced absenteeism and teachers arrogance in punishing students) and student attrition rate has fallen substantially. • Improvement in the financial position of the school. The introduction of various fund raising mechanisms, such as collecting and selling old plastic shoes, has improved the earning of the school. Idir Idir is a voluntary local organization organized to undertake different social activities to members: funeral, mourning and other self-help activities. For instance, people contribute birr 1 each to cover mourning expenses and 5 tins (7.5 Kg) of grain to help the deceased family members for the ritual function held on the fortieth day. At times of accidental property loss, idir members also contribute to share the cost of the accident. This is basically a type of social insurance, where the total risk factor is made to be evenly distributed among members and its impact on an individual is mitigated substantially. Fana Tiena (Health Agent) Fana-Tiena are primary health workers voluntarily serving the community at Kushet level. The main functions include: • family planning (birth spacing, the supply of different contraceptives) • sensitize the community to vaccinate infants/children and mothers. • provide pre and post natal service • educate environmental sanitation and personal hygiene. As witnessed by the participants, the introduction of Fana Tiena has brought changes in the general health condition of the community. For instance, reduced infant and maternal mortalities, improved knowledge about HIV/AIDS, modest improvement in the knowledge and practice of family planning and environmental sanitation were reported by the participants. But the traditional attitude towards having large family size still persists. Despite their low level of living standard, people want to have more children. Irrigation Promotion Service Cooperative Irrigation promotion service cooperative is a grass-root organization formed by the local community voluntarily, mainly to ensure proper utilization of water, timing in the water utilization, operating and maintenance of the micro-dam water resource. It also participates in the distribution of fertilizers, and various seeds. And to ensure its sustainability, the water committee collects maintenance fee from users. 101
External Institutions In addition to the local institutions mentioned above, the participants also stated the frequent visit of external institutions like Agricultural Office, Woreda Administration, Police, Health Office, Cooperatives and Educational Office. Non Governmental Organizations The Non-Government Organizations operating in the study area include Relief Society of Tigray (REST) and Dedebit credit and Saving Institutions (DECSI). DECSI gives credit to those target groups identified by the Tabia administration. Currently credit is dispersed based on individual credit worthiness, as opposed to the conventional group collateral approaches. Participants seem to be satisfied with the present system. Finally, participants were asked to rank institutions in accordance to their importance. As a result, the following are ranked in descending order - Irrigation Service Promotion Cooperative, Social Court, Health Office, Agricultural Office and Kushet Administration. As it can be observed from the ranking, participants give priorities to institutions which have economic and social significance.
3.7
Trend Lines Analysis
In this section, the trends of changes in the size of population, rainfall conditions, health, food availability, education and accumulation of wealth are discussed and the farmers are asked to begin from the year that they are able to recall. Accordingly, the year 1958/59 is taken as a starting year for all trend lines. a. Population
High
Medium
Low
Year 1958/59 63
68
73
78 102
83
88
93
98
2003
In 1958/59 the size of the population of Awulo was low. The trend in population growth shows a continuous rise until it declines in 1984/85 because of the catastrophic drought, which has killed and displaced many. After the 1984/85 drought, the size of the population started to increase until it declines in 1992 due to endemic smallpox. After the 1992, the increase in the size of the population is quite high because of the low death rate due to the expansion of medical facilities. b. Rainfall
High
Medium
Low
1958/59
63
68
73
78
83
88
93
98
2003 Year
The rainfall trend is not only high but also balanced in the earlier years up to 1973 and started to decline thereafter. The trend in rainfall in the recent period especially starting 1982 is low to medium with an inclination towards becoming low and highly erratic. It starts late and stops early.
103
d. Health
High
Medium
Low
1958/59 63
68
73
78
83
88
93
98
2003
The farmers remember the year 1958/59 as a bad year, for there was locust invasion which destroyed all crops in the field. Following the locust invasion, there was famine and an outbreak of cholera. For this, the health condition was very poor. The health condition after 1958/59 started to improve not because there were improvements in medical services but because of improvements in the availability of food. In 1971 the health condition again deteriorated because of the outbreak of cholera and then improved thereafter until it drops again in 1984/85 due to the severe drought prevailing in the region in general. The year 1992 is also another year in which the health condition dropped down due to an outbreak of “tektekta, Nifio and Bededo”. After the 1992 the health condition has improved because of improvements in medication except for the year 1999 where there was a problem of malaria.
104
Year
c. Food Availability
High
Medium
Low
1958/59
63
68
73
78
83
88
93
98
Year
2003
Due to the locust invasion, the availability of food in 1958/59 was very poor. After 1958/59, however, the harvest level was good until it declines slightly in 1970 due to hailstones (sleet). From 1970 to 1981 there was a good level of harvest because of a balanced and high level of rainfall. But after 1982 the irregularity of rainfall has made the level of output to fluctuate reaching its minimum in 1984/85 due to the severe drought recorded in the country at general. e. Education High
Medium
Low
Year 1968
73
78
83
88
105
93
98
2003
After showing an upward trend initially, the trend in education turned down after 1978 before it rises again after 1990. This is because the formal education, which started in 1979 at Tabia level, was functional up to 1983. Between 1983 and 1990, the school was closed because the Derg regime, after it was expelled from the area by TPLF forces, was bombing the area and other parts of Tigray. Hence running schools and other services was not possible. The school resumed service in 1990. f. Wealth High
Medium
Low
Year 1958/59
63
68
73
78
83
88
93
98
2003
According to participants, the number of cattle possessed defines wealth in the area. Accordingly, the animal population at Kushet level is higher today than in the 1950’s. This is mainly because many households who did not own any before are now having some. However, the participants believe that the maximum number of animals households keep has declined. In the earlier periods, few households were keeping large number of animals but today large number of households are keeping fewer animals. Hence the increasing number of the size of population each possessing some animals has made the animal population to increase. The number of households possessing animals started to increase after the 1976 land distribution made by the Derg regime. The land distribution enabled all households to have grazing land of their own and this encouraged many to possess animals. The years 1984/85 and 1987/88 are the two years in which the animal population has decreased due to the drought that prevailed in the area.
106
g. Forests High
Medium
Low
Year 1958/59
63
68
73
78
83
88
93
98
2003
According to the participants, the area was covered by forest before the 1950’s. After the 1950’s, however, the level of vegetation in the area decreased significantly. In 1980 afforestation program was launched in the area mainly by planting eucalyptus trees. Today every household is planting eucalyptus trees in its garden. This has contributed to the little improvements in forest coverage in the recent past although it remained low.
3.8
Participatory Wealth Ranking
To characterize the poverty profile of the Kushet and assess the participants' level of understanding about their own problem, participants were asked to define and rank poverty; explain copping mechanism of poor people and the social and political implications of poverty. Based on the ranking made, it was found that out of the total population 77% were poor, 15% medium and 8% rich. The criteria to define a household as poor, medium or rich are given in the table below.
107
Table 3.4
Poverty Definition Criteria in Awulo village
Wealth Category Rich
Description Owns ten or more sheep A pair of oxen Two cow A water well (produce vegetable for sale) Two donkeys One who can feed his/her family for the whole year
Medium
Owns one ox One cow Five sheep One who can feed himself for only six months. Does not even own a chicken Who can not cultivate his land Physically incapable
Poor
As can be seen from the above table, people define poverty or wealth based on ownership of livestock, type and amount of production and land size cultivated (both own and leased in). When asked to identify the source of poverty, the participants, similar to other sites, revealed that recurrent drought is singled out as the most important factor that drives people into poverty. Coping Strategies: the large majority of households in Kushet Awulo are engaged in farming, and agriculture is primarily rain fed. However, irrigation using water wells is expanding at an encouraging pace. Agricultural output is so low that most households do not feed themselves out of their own harvest. Participants agreed that most households resort to three basic strategies to fill the gap. Temporary Migration: adult members of a household migrate to the nearby towns to look for job mainly during slack season of the year. Income earned in this way is used to subsist the family. Although such temporary migration helps the families to fill deficiencies in consumption, it has its own trade off in agricultural productivity. Since adult members of the family are kept away from agriculture, some agricultural activities such as preparing the land including preparing manure and tilling the soil usually done in this period are not done. This reduces agricultural productivity. Food aid: Since 1990-2003 food aid in the form of free food hand out was a dominant source of food supply at times of food shortage. But recently the government has halted food aid distribution as a measure to discourage it because free food handout has created dependency syndrome and killed the traditional copping mechanism (sale labor, saving, migration etc). Finally, in times of critical famine the people resort to Kuuntee, the roots of a wild plant similar to a radish. 108
3.9
Problem Analysis and Community Action Plan
a. Problem Analysis and Ranking The major problems identified by the participants include: 1. Location of Woreda administration Village Awulo is under Woreda Hawzen (or Kilite Belessa) in its administrative hierarchy. The sit of the Woreda is in Hawzen town, which is nearly 3 to 4 hours journey on foot from the village. Geographically, however, the village is nearer to another Woreda called Sa’esiea Tsa’eda Emba whose sit is only an hour journey from the village. The long distance to Hawzen from Awulo incurs the community both financial and time cost for any administrative, justice and other services they get from the Woreda. Hence, starting the imperial period until the present regime, the village community has been requesting the inclusion of their village to the nearby Woreda – Sa’esiea Tsa’eda Emba. None of the attempts, however, were successful. 2. Shortage of land. The average land holding in the village is 0.75 hectares. However, there are many households (both newly married couples and returnees from other places) who do not possess land. 3. Lack of school and teachers. Although an elementary school is available in a nearby village within the same Tabia, the capacity of the school as compared to demand is very small. At times of registration, the villagers spend nights in a long queue every year to have their children registered. 4. Marketing problems The villagers sell their produces during the harvesting season where there is large supply and market prices are low. On the other hand, they buy during the planting season where there is relatively shortage of supply in the market and prices are high. Hence they sale at a low price and buy at a high price. Moreover, there are also measurement unit problems in the market. Agricultural products especially cereals are sold using a traditional measuring unit called “Menilik”. In the earlier periods, there were standard manufactured Meniliks where one and a half Menilik is equal to one kilogram. Today however, Meniliks are locally made and have different sizes. The retailers in the market buy cereals from the farmers using the larger size Menilik (which the farmers called it ‘Mehrey Mehretu’ ) and sale to farmers using the smaller size Meniliks. 5. Lack of employment opportunities. To subsist their living, the landless households and many households who have land need to work in the slack season. However, there are no employment opportunities created in 109
their localities. Before the Ethio-Eritrian conflict, many people from the area used to go to Asmara and work for some time during the slack season and earn income. This, however, is not possible now. 6. Frost and diseases on vegetables (michi) There is an increasing number of farmers who grow vegetables for the market. However, there is a problem of frost and a vegetable disease called Michi, which seriously harms the vegetables in the field. 7. Sedimentation and run off problem of the Dam. The dam is being filled with sediment through time which is reducing its water holding capacity. Moreover, the spillway of the dam is so low that too much water runs every year.
The participants were also asked to rank these problems in order of their size. This is shown below.
110
Table 3.5
Problem Ranking in Awulo Village
Distance of the Shortage Woreda of Administration farming land Distance of the R Woreda Administration Shortage of C farming land Lack of school C C and teachers Lack of health C C post Marketing C C problems Lack of job C C opportunities Frost and C C vegetable disease (Michi) Filtration and C C run off problem
Lack of school and teachers R
Lack of health post R
Marketing Lack of job Frost and problems opportunities vegetable disease (Michi) R R R
Filtration Total and run off problem R 7
1ST
R
R
R
R
R
R
6
2ND
-
C
C
R
R
R
3
4TH
R
-
R
R
R
R
5
3RD
R
C
-
C
R
R
3
4TH
C
C
R
-
R
R
3
4TH
C
C
C
C
-
R
1
7TH
C
C
C
C
C
-
0
8TH
111
Rank
For the fist three problems the community’s action plan looks as follows. b. Community Action Plan Table 3.6
Community Action Plan of Awulo Village Source of Problem
Problem
Solution for the problem
Distance to Woreda Administra tion
The Woreda administration from Emperor Haileslassie’s regime up to now is in Kiltebelesa. Hawzen, which is the sit of the woreda, is far from the Kushet
To be under Sahsih Tsa’eda Emba (Senkata)
Shortage of Farm Land
Population increase
• Increase productivity * of existing land through additional efforts like digging ponds, water wells etc • To accept the resettlement program of the government, • Increase non-farm employment opportunities
Who will do what
When Others
Community
Government
The community has already appealed to the Woreda, zone and regional administration and it will continue to do so
To take the appeal of the community into account and looking at the problems, to change the Woreda administration of the village to Sahsih Tsa’eda Emba
As soon as possible
Technical support and advice Preparing the ground for investors who create employment opportunities Support in the areas of marketing
Starting from this season
• • •
•
Commitment to work hard Readiness to move to the new settlement area Send children to school
112
•
•
Type of Probl em
Source of Problem
Lack of Health Post
Health post is not available in Tabia Tsenkaneit
Marketi ng Proble m
•
•
• •
Sell at lower price during the harvest season and buy at a higher price starting from February Concentration of payments such as land use fee and repayment of loans from DECSI during the harvesting season which force farmers to sale their produce at a low price Non standard measures used in marketing Lack of marketing information and demand
Solution for the problem
Build a health post in the village
Who will do what Community
Government
Involve in the construction of the health post by supplying Stones for construction and labour.
Supply health professionals, medicine and medical equipment, iron sheet and cement for the construction of the rooms
• •
•
• •
Distribute the payments to be made through out the year instead of making it simultaneously during the harvest season Strengthening cooperatives so that they buy during the harvest season from the farmers. To have standard measurement units Build processing plant for garden vegetables mainly Tomato
113
Whe n
•
To show its readiness and commitment to support cooperatives by selling to and buying from the cooperative sale by a standard measurement unit like a kilogram instead of using the traditional measure of Menelik
•
•
Standardize the measurement unit used in the market and have a regular follow up Defer payments of land use fee from the harvesting season to some other months of the year
others In 2005/ 06
•
•
Loan repayment shall be disbursed through out the year rather than concentratin g in the harvesting season Give loans during August and September
In 2005/ 06
4.
AGEWO VILLAGE
4.1
Village History and Community Mapping
a. Village History. Agewo is one of the four Kushets that constitute Tabia Ruba Feleg in Atsibi Wonberta Woreda. The village comprises of two ‘gotts’ (sub villages) called Agewo and Samra. The whole village is named by the former gott. According to the villagers, the history of the two gotts is as follows. Agewo The name ‘Agewo’ is associated with the bible name “Lot”. The participants believe that God sent Lot to ‘Reged’, now in the Afar region, to teach the people. However, the people did not accept his religious taught. He prayed to his God and God promised to destroy the area for the sin of the people. God ordered Lot to withdraw his family from the area and warned him that if any member of the family turns back to the area, he/she will die. Lot and his family left Reged and God destroyed it. Lot and his family reached Mai Ji’ae and his wife turned her face to her homeland, she died immediately and was turned into “Ashe’ale salt stele”. Lot continued to live in Mai Ji’ae with his two daughters. While he was living with them, one day they made him drunk and slept with him. The two of his daughters got pregnant and gave birth. Lot and his family went to “Agew” (which is in the Amhara Regional State) and started to live there. Lot’s family learnt the local language called “Agewgna”. When Lot got old, he told his two daughters to leave the Agew area after his death and ordered one of them to go to Ambera and the other to Dera. The one who came to Dera (which is now Atsibi Dera) started to leave in the present day Kushet ‘Agewo’. She was speaking Agewugna which was new for the local people and asked her about the language. She told them that it is ‘agewugna’ and the place is named Agewo after the name of the language Agewugna. Another group of the participants, however, put the naming of the village in a slightly different way. Like the first group, this group also agrees that the name of the Kushet is associated with the Bible name Lot. All the story of Lot told by the first group is also shared by the second group except the final argument that Lot and his family finally moved from Mai Ji’ae to Agew. The second group argues that Lot did not go to Agew. Rather he came to the present day Agewo area. He observed that the agewo area is a highland with too many mountains in the local language too many ‘gebos’. Hence, the name agewo is derived from the tigrigna word gebo.
114
Samra The name Samra is derived out from the Tigrigna word “semirulna” which means ‘we succeed’. After the birth of Christ, in 376 A.C. many people from Enderta (Sebe’ Enderta), Agame (Sebe’ Agame), Senafe (Sebe’ Senafe) and Dera (sebe’ Dera) were baptized in the “kalay choma” by Abune Selama and Abune Kesateberhan during King Ezana. Since they have succeeded baptizing too many people, they said “Semirulna” in the local language which means ‘we succeed’. Hence the place is called Samra. Others, however, said that the authorities in the today’s Samra used to call public meetings repeatedly in which no one was showing up in the meeting. After repeated trial, one day they succeeded to have many people in a meeting. To tell the success, they said semirulna and hence the village is named as Samra. Major Events. Arfied G/Meskel built the first monastry named Cherkos Debre Tsehay in 376 A.C. and was renovated later by Emperor G/Meskel in 550 A.C. The Monastry however, was destroyed by Yodit Gudit in 840 A.C. who came to destroy the Axumite kingdom. She also killed 330 monks in the monastery. The participants believe that Dera is also said to be Mohanned Gragn Zitetseneselu (literally a place where the conception of Mohammed Gragn took place) of Mohammed Gragn. In Emba Dera (mountain Dera), Moslems and Christians were living together in a small town. One Deacon loved a Moslem lady. One day he slept with her. When he went to the church early in the morning, he picked up the lady’s “veil” believing that he has picked up his own metemtemia (a white piece of cloth which priests in the Ethiopian Orthodox church wear on their heads). When the priests in the church saw him in a different cloth, they hammered him to death by their prayer stick finial locally called mekomia. The Moslem lady was pregnant and since the priests were threatening her, she migrated to Moquadisho and gave birth to Mohammed Gragn there. In 1873, during Emperor Yohanness IV, the people lost their cattle because of continues drought which led to famine. There was drought for seven consecutive years as a result of which, the village faced acute shortage of food and fodder. People cooked and ate animal skins. The dwellers of the village have also marked some heroism during different times. During the Italian invasion, Hanta Kahsay Woldu killed 10 Italians. He was arrested and imprisoned in Emba Alagea. However, he escaped from prison and returned home. During the British time, when Dejach Zegeye was governor of the Nine Deras, people from Enderta came to Afar to invade cattle and Dejach Zegeye fought the invaders and defeated them. In 1909 during the period of Arena, Dejach Abreha levied a tax on the people of Agewo at the rate of one birr per large animal possessed locally known as chira kefti. The people,
115
however, opposed because it was too much for them to pay. Dejach Abreha sent his army and fought with the people of Agewo in a place called Haiki Meshal. The modern and organized army of Dejach Abreha defeated and took control of the village of Agewo. The organizers of the local movement were put in jail. One of the organizers, Belata Reda, lost one of his legs and another Belata Hambeda lost one arm and one leg. The period is called Zebene Arena (a period of agreement), because all the dwellers of the village agreed to revolt against the order passed by Dejach Abreha. In 1958 another tragic event occurred in Agewo and other parts of Tigray. In September 1958, locust invaded the area. The locust ate everything in the field in 10 days and the community was exposed to famine. Although the people tried to protect the locust through traditional means, it was beyond their capacity. Dejach Zegeye reported the problem to the central government and food aid was distributed. The famine was followed by disease and many people died. The period is known as ‘Zebene Anbeta’, which means the period of locust. In 1967/68, again a problem of shortage of food occurred due to a crop disease locally called “lemtsi”. The seeds sown grew but did not ripe. To survive the problem, people used different coping mechanisms. Those who had cattle sold their cattle to buy food and others who did not have cattle migrated to other parts of Tigray such as Enderta and to Eritrea. 1970/71 is considered as ‘zebene lequa’ (a period of maize) because in this year there was shortage of food due to the break out of another crop disease. During this period, the harvest of lequa (maize) in other parts of Tigray, mainly in Tembien, Worie and Adwa was good and the people of Kushet Agewo were able to buy lequa (maize) from these areas in an exchange for salt. In 1984/85, the village (including many other parts of Tigray) was hit by the hardest drought which led to famine. It did not rain the whole year. All the seeds sown could not even germinate. Too many people died due to lack of food (around 500 people are believed to have died during this year). Almost all the cattle of the village were dead. Almost all the people in the area migrated. It was believed that around 400 households were living in the Kushet out of which not more than 12 or 13 households stayed in the village. The others migrated – some to the resettlement program which the Derg government was running in the south western part of Ethiopia and others migrated to the Sudan with the help of TPLF. The households who migrated to the Sudan returned to their homeland in 1986 and with the help of TPLF (which gave them 75 birr per household) they were able to rehabilitate. In 1988/89, a number of youngsters of the village joined TPLF to fight the Derg regime and many have paid their life for the victory of the 1990/91 (the downfall of the Derg regime). Again in 1998/99 a number of people from the villagers joined the Ethiopian Army and Militia to fight Sha’ebia (the Eriterian invader).
116
b. Community Mapping In this session, the men and women group were asked to draw map of their village separately. Figure 11
Village Map of Agewo village drawn by women group
Figure 12
Village Map of Agewo village drawn by Men group
Both groups have identified the resources of the village in their respective maps. The women’s group concentrated more on residence areas and roads, whereas, the men’s group emphasized on farmlands, grazing land and forest areas. 117
4.2
Seasonal and Daily Calendar
Table 4.1
Seasonal Calendar of Agewo Village –Women Group
Major Activities I. Agriculture • Ploughing • Sawing • Weeding • Mowing • Threshing II. Food for work III. water and soil conservation IV. Labour V. Petty trade Food High Availability Medium
Sept.
Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. March April May June July Augus
X -
X -
X X -
X X
X X -
X -
X -
X X -
X X X -
X X X X
X X X X -
X X X -
-
-
-
X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X X
X X
-
-
Low Health
High Medium Low
The seasonal activities in Agewo area can be broadly categorized as farming and nonfarming (off farm) activities. i. Farming Activities Plowing: As the area is a semiarid in which a long dry period is followed by intensive rainfall, it requires a substantial input of motive power in a short period of time even to produce a single crop. The soil hardened and dried during the non rainy season, must be tilled in a short period of time after the short rain (Belg rain) if it rains or the onset of monsoon showers which are required to render the soil tillable and the optimal sowing date. As a result plowing is usually done between April and August and is intense in June and July which are the optimal sowing months. Sowing. The months of June and July are the optimal sowing months in Agewo. Weeding. Weeding is done once the crops are grown in the months of July and August. Harvesting: Harvesting begins with the cutting of the first crop usually in October. Cutting of crops goes up to November. Once the crops are cut, threshing continues. It is done along cutting and goes up to December.
118
ii. Non-farm Activities Soil and Water Conservation: As a matter of rule, all able household members (18 years and above) are supposed to participate in soil and water conservation for 21 days every year for free during the slack season. It is usually done in December and sometimes goes up to January. Food for work: The food for work program is for those who are identified as poor and are eligible for help. An eligible person works for 4 days in a month but is paid one month salary in kind. However, there are also people who work in model sites for 11 or 12 days a month and are paid one-month salary. This opportunity is given on the basis of a quota. Daily Labour: A number of people, mainly male members of a household, also work daily labour work during the slack seasons usually from January to May. Petty trade: Although limited in number, some people are engaged in petty trade mainly during the slack season.
119
Table 4.2 Daily Activities
Daily Activities
Daily Calendar of Agewo Village – Women Group
Sept.
Oct.
6:00am House cleaning, water fetching and breakfast
8:00am Cattle herding and fire wood collection
8:00am 12:00am Mowing
12:00 – 2:00pm Lunch and coffee
2:00 - 6:00pm Cattle herding and fire wood collection
8:00 12:00 Mowing
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
Feb.
5:00am House cleaning, water fetching and breakfast
6:00am House cleaning, water fetching and breakfast
March
8:00am – 2:00pm Soil and water conservation
8:00am Cattle herding and fire wood collection
8:00am – 2:00pm food for work
2:00 – 4:00pm lunch and coffee
1:00 – 3:00pm lunch and coffee
82:00 – 4:00pm lunch and coffee
3:00 – 6:00pm preparing animal fodder such as chopping beles (cactus plant)
5:00 – 6:00pm preparing animal fodder such as chopping beles (cactus plant)
6:00 – 8:00pm Dinner preparation 9:00pm Sleeping time
120
April
May
June
July
August
8:00am – 2:00pm community development work for one week 8:00 – 12:00am cattle herding and fire wood collection for 3 weeks 2:00 – 4:00pm lunch for one week, 12:00 – 2:00pm lunch and coffee 5:00 – 6:00pm preparing animal fodder such as chopping beles (cactus plant)
8:00am – 2:00pm community development work for one week, 8:00 – 12:00am weeding and collection of local lettuce from the field for 3 weeks
8:00 – weeding
12:00am
12:00 – 2:00pm Lunch and coffee
2:00 – weeding
6:00pm
In this daily calendar, there is a church service, which the people attend every Sunday from 3:00 – 9:00am. Moreover, water fetching which is mainly done every day by women in Agewo gott is not a major issue in Samra, for water is available in the nearby area and they can fetch at any time.
4.3
Agriculture and Livestock
a. Agriculture Land Holding Land in the village is divided into three types on the basis its fertility: - Fertile - Medium - Less fertile The land holding depends on the type of fertility of the land. The average land holding is 1½ ‘tsimad’, i.e., 3/8 of a hectare for fertile land, 2 ‘tsimad’, i.e., 0.5 hectares for medium and 3 ‘tsimad’, i.e., 0.75 hectares for the less fertile type of land. In general the average land holding is considered to be 2 tsimads (i.e., 0.5 hectares). Land redistribution has been made for the last time in 1991 (1983 E.C). Households who settled after 1991 did not get land. This constitutes the newly married couples (i.e., married after 1991), returnees from resettlement program forcefully taken during the Derg regime, returnees from Eritria after the Ethio – Eritrian war and returnees from neighboring countries mainly from Soudi Arabia. The landless households constitute nearly 50% of the population. Moreover, there were problems associated with land distribution. Some households whose origin is in the village but are not residents of the village have got land at the time of land distribution. These households are permanent residents in other parts of Ethiopia mainly in the urban areas. Crops Grown The main crops grown in Agewo include Barley, Wheat, Demhay, Bean, and Lentil. In terms of coverage of the cropland, 75% is covered by barley and the remaining 25% by the others. Because of the prevalence of frost in the area, barley is the most preferable crop, for it rips before frost begins. Irrigation Irrigation has been practiced long time ago in the sub village Agewo until 1930. Today, however, because of shortage of water, there is no irrigation in the sub village. In Samra, irrigation was being practiced long time ago and still the same traditional irrigation is practiced. The water for irrigation comes from the River Chomea and from the nearby dam through seepage. Dam Ruba Felg, which is constructed first by World Vision manually without machinery was reconstructed in 1990 by the then SAERT (Sustainable
121
Agricultural and Environmental Rehabilitation of Tigray) using modern machinery. Although the Dam lies in Kushet Hineito, it is the people of Samra who use the water for irrigation. The dam has been without use since it is reconstructed. The people of Samra have repeatedly asked the Woreda Administration as well as the Zonal Agricultural Office to use the water for irrigation, but none of them replied to the request of the village. The reason given was the fact that the dam does have technical problems and it cannot be used for irrigation. By the time this PRA was conducted, it seemed that an agreement was reached to use the water for irrigation until the concerned body makes a final decision. Ponds Participants estimated that there are around 50 privately owned ponds dug through food for work program in 2003/04, some of which are dressed with plastic sheets. Out of these 50 ponds, around 7 ponds have contained water and the owners started to grow vegetables. However, there is a problem of rodents that destroy vegetables. Every body in the village understands the use of ponds. In such an area where there is an acute shortage of water, harvesting rainwater through ponds is the only way out. It is for this reason that many households are digging their own ponds by them selves. Over 100 ponds are being dug in the village in the current year. Agricultural inputs The farmers in the village use both chemical fertilizers and improved seeds. More than 50% of the farmers are using improved seeds. These days, however, there is less and less usage of improved seeds for various reasons. Some of the reasons are: - Lack of capacity. The improved seeds are expensive and the farmers lack the capacity to acquire them. - The government is also encouraging to use local seeds. - The improved seed is susceptible to birds and mice. Birds were not common in the area. But after the introduction of the improved seeds, birds have now become common and they selectively attack the improved seeds. Moreover, mice have also become common and they too attack mainly the improved seeds. Some farmers started to use chemical fertilizers during the Derg regime in 1973. But their number was limited. It is after the SASAKAWA global program that many farmers started to use chemical fertilizers. Today participants estimated that around 10% of the farmers use chemical fertilizers. The people understand the use of chemical fertilizers. They believe that at least it helps to get better yield and better straw for their animals. However, there are problems associated with the use of fertilizers: - Chemical fertilizers are expensive and many farmers could not afford - The chemical fertilizers distributed are not soil specific. No body gives orientation to the farmers as to what type of fertilizer is suitable to which type of soil. The farmers from experience understood that the black type (Dup)
122
fertilizer is suitable to their soil but the white one (Urea) is not suitable. But they are asked to use both types of fertilizers. In the village of Agewo, there is a well advanced tradition of using manure since long time. All the animal waste is collected together and decomposed which will finally be used as a fertilizer in the farms. Every farmer gives a larger value to manures but because of the less number of animals that people posses, the amount of manure collected is less. The better off families can collect animal waste which could be enough for only one tsimad (a quarter of a hectare). The farmers prefer manure to chemical fertilizers for the reason that chemical fertilizer serves only for one season but manure serves for many years. Some participants said that if the fertility of the soil is improved through manure, it could serve for seven seasons. Rodents In the village, the main enemies of their crops in the field are birds, mice, porcupine and squirrel. The pests found in the soil are not common in the village because the farmers till the land repeatedly and they alternate crops grown in the field. Although the farmers are able to get chemical against mice, they usually get it late after the mice have put enough damage to their crops. Use of agricultural production Out of the total agricultural products harvested, around 50% is sold to fulfill other needs such as cloths, land use fee and other social activities. The remaining 50% will be used to feed the family and some part of it will be retained for seed to be planted in the next planting season. Most farmers feed themselves for 3 to 4 months out of their harvest. For the remaining months of the year, they subsist their living through food aid and food for work program and other non-farm activities. The type of agricultural products which are basically sold in the market include wheat, butter, honey, sheep and goats. The main market for the village is Atsibi which is 2 hours on foot (i.e., 10 kms), the other is Dera which is 1 hour on foot (i.e., 5 kms) and the third one is in Afar Region named Kuneva which is 3 hours on foot (i.e., 15 kms). Family Garden In Gott Samra, because of the availability of water, farmers grow vegetables like lettuce, onion and tomato through irrigation. However, because of the cold temperature, mainly frost, it is not possible to grow fruits. There were some trials to grow some type of fruits like papaya which were not successful. Growing vegetables using pond water is almost none existence except very few farmers who started to grow some vegetables. Problems in Agriculture The main problems encountered in agriculture in descending order are: - shortage of rainfall
123
- frost - rodents like birds, mice and porcupine. Among the problems, the farmers believe that the first two – shortage of rainfall and frost – are outside the control of man. These problems can only be minimized by the will of God. But the third problem can be minimized by the effort of man and for this reason; they usually discuss the problem with the Development Agents and the Woreda Administration. However, to control rodents, farmers usually do not get anti-rodents except for mice. The participants also agreed that they did not take time to come together to discuss about the solution of the above problems. b. Livestock; The livestock population in the village is constituted mainly by cattle (cow, ox), sheep and bees. The farmers use ox basically for farming, cow for breeding and selling the milk and milk products, sheep for the market, chicken mainly for the market but for self consumption also during holidays, and donkey for transportation. The average livestock holding in the village is one ox, one cow, five sheep and one donkey. In the earlier days, when animal diseases broke out, the farmers used to heal their cattle through a traditional means. But over the last three years, they are able to get modern medical treatment (veterinary service) in the veterinary center opened in their village. Moreover, animal vaccination service is also provided in the center. But in order to vaccine an animal, one has to form a group of 100 cattle which otherwise is not possible to get vaccination. Although death of animals because of disease is minimized after the opening of the veterinary center, there are some diseases that are not easily treatable. Many animals die after eating plastics, papers and the like. Problems in animal breeding The main problem in animal breeding is shortage of water and fodder because of drought. At times of the dry season, the farmers lose many of their animals. To minimize the loss of cattle, the farmers usually migrate their animals to the Afar Region in search of water and pasture. However, many animals die at the time of migration. The solution suggested by the villagers for the shortage of water during the dry season is to construct large dams that could retain the run off water and use it for the dry season as a drinking water for cattle and for irrigation. They have got a good lesson from the nearby village called Ekunet. The villagers of Ekunet did not have drinking water for their cattle some years back. They used to bring their cattle to village Agewo in search of water. The village administration organized the people and are able to construct one big dam which now serves as a source of drinking water for the animals of Ekunet as well as Agewo. The villagers of Agewo believe that the same thing can be done in their village. If the administration of the village organizes the people and if some technical support is obtained from the government, a large dam can be constructed by the people themselves.
124
Moreover, they believe that they need guidance and orientation in their cattle management. They said that the villagers so far concentrate on the size (quantity of the cattle) rather than on quality. Instead of unnecessarily keeping many cattle at home and thereby face shortage of water and fodder, it is better to concentrate on few high yielding animals.
4.4
Social Services
a. Education Elementary Education There exists an Elementary School (Agewo Elementary School) in the village. Since the settlement in the area is highly dispersed, some students walk for one hour while others walk only 10 minutes to reach school. The school is poorly equipped. Some windows are with out glass. As the area is a highland, open windows (void of glasses) makes it difficult for students amidst the chilling weather. The doors also need maintenance. There is shortage of chairs and teaching aids. The school does not have a library and there is shortage of classrooms. The school has just four classrooms while the number of students is large. In total about 455 students are studying in the school (grade 1, 250 students; grade 2, 70 students; grade 3, 65 students; and grade 4, 70 students). The school is owned and run by the local community. In its meeting held recently, the community has pledged to help in order to construct more classrooms if the harvest happens to be good. They also expect some help from BESO project. Students attend classes in two shifts: morning and afternoon shifts. The overall malefemale ratio in the school is one to one. The number of female students in grade one is bigger than that of male students, but the overall ratio stands at one to one because in the higher grades, there are more male students than female students. The community is happy of the educational service. The participants said “we regret the fact that we could not have such an educational service in the past as the benefits would clearly be bigger”. On the other hand, the fact that those who attended school are not getting jobs is creating a kind of disappointment. Students make good follow up both at school and at home. However, whenever parents face problems of herding, they force their children to withdraw. Female Students Although there are improvements in the effort to send girls to school, there still exists widespread desire and preference to push girls for marriage instead of education especially after a certain level. It is an expression of the long-standing interest of parents
125
to have their female children married as early as possible. This is of course exacerbated by the fact that even after completing grade 10 or grade 12, students could not secure jobs. There was some rumor circulating last year that even after completion of their studies, rural students will still remain in the rural land. This has created a great deal of confusion. Post Grade Four Education After completing grade four in the village school, children largely go to a nearby school found in a semi urban village called ‘Edaga Dera’ found north of Agewo, which extends up to grade eight. Some of the students go to a school found in a village named ‘Kuret’ located south of Agewo, which extends up to grade seven. On average it takes about two hours on foot to the school at Edaga Dera and about one hour to the school at Kuret. After completing their studies at Edaga Dera and Kuret, students proceed to the school at Atsbi (the Woreda capital). On average it takes 2½ hours to go to Atsbi on foot from Agewo village. Rate of Promotion Students who fail to get promoted to the next grade because of academic and nonacademic reasons have to repeat the existing level. The rate of promotion in the village school is summarized below: Grade
Total number students
One Two Three Four
250 70 65 70
of No of students promoted to the next level 200 60 55 50
Number of failed (repeating) students 50 10 10 20
Out of the total repeaters (or failures) about 65 of them are female and the rest (35) are male students. The reason why many female students fail is because of greater pressure at home. Out of those promoted to the next grade (grade five) and going to other schools (Edaga Dera or Kuret), it is estimated that half of them complete grade eight (i.e. primary level two). Dropouts As far as drop out is concerned, the participants said, “When we face difficulties in life, our children drop out of school and go for daily labour or other income generating activities in other areas. When we could not afford to provide educational materials, or pay for registration fees (especially at higher levels), we let our children drop out.” For
126
example at Atsbi (the Woreda town where students go for studies above grade 8), the registration fee is birr 30.00 and the parents cannot afford to pay and as a result many students drop out. Another reason for drop out is when the students could not pass, either they have to abandon classes or they are expected to pay for their education. Hence, if they fail, they cannot afford to pay for their education and they are forced to discontinue their studies. On a comparative basis, the drop out rate in Atsbi Wonberta Woreda (where Agewo Kushet is found) is the highest in Tigray. In the village, students are provided with porridge in order to minimize drop outs and it has been very helpful. The main reason why many students interrupted their studies was because a contagious disease broke out in the area and many students missed classes for more than 12 days and were forced to drop out. Drop out of students above grade four (4) is mainly due to distance to school and family problems. Expectation after completion of studies The participants said “When we let our children to attend classes, we expect them to get jobs after completion and help their parents. We realize that everywhere there exists a preference for educated persons than illiterates. An educated person is better demanded than otherwise. An educated person can also be a good farmer.” The participants added “When some job opportunities that require certain level of literacy are available, the literate qualify for the job and the others envy the literates and start cursing their parents for not letting them study during their childhood. And since we do not want to be cursed by our children, we want to send our children to school.” To emphasis the importance of education, the participants said “an illiterate person carries a letter with an order to kill him/her, but a literate person can save himself.” School Teachers There are nine teachers in the school. They live within the school compound in houses built for them by the community. According to the participants, the schoolteachers are doing very good job as witnessed by their children. The director is also very good, and makes proper follow up on the teachers. They found the director to be very strong in properly implementing the plan and making the necessary follow up. No working days are unnecessarily wasted, and the community feels that its village school is better than other schools. Last year, there was one teacher who was beating children. One day he hit a student who was seriously hurt. According to the rules, he was fined birr 1050.00 and later transferred to another school in another village. The school director was very helpful in the process.
127
School teachers vis-à-vis students Students consider their teachers as their helpers. Last year, students were complaining of corporal punishments but this year it is fine. Teachers even go to individual students house to encourage them to continue classes if they observe that they are not attending classes. This is so because the teachers are relatively well trained and capable. But the new ones who are assigned as co-teachers (supporting teachers) have capacity limitations. They are well disciplined but they lack the technical capabilities. Hence, the co-teachers need to be given some training. The community has good regard for teachers. Whenever there are traditional ceremonies (wedding, ‘tsebel’, ‘tezkar’, etc.) they are always invited. The society is very generous and eager to help the teachers. The community understands the benefits of education. It has provided five hectares of land for the school compound. It has made significant contributions (labour, sand, building stones) when teachers’ residence was constructed. In fact this does not mean that there are no problems. Some individuals do insult teachers, some of them send their cattle and sheep herds to the school compound, and some cut the school grass during nighttime. Major Problems of formal education 1. The school compound is devoid of trees. In other schools (like the one at Edaga Dera) you see many trees in the school compound, but there is none in the compound of the school at Agewo. 2. There is shortage of classrooms. The existing classrooms also need maintenance but this could not be done because of lack of finance. 3. The hole in the latrine is wide and the participants expressed their fear that children may drown 4. There is serious shortage of teaching materials. 5. The budget allocated is very small. The budget allocated is not comparable with the demand of the school. Although the school tries to fill some of its requirements through raising its own income, for example birr 400 was earned through the sale of vegetables grown in the school garden mainly due to the effort of the director; its biggest deficiency still is financial capacity. 6. The penalty on intruders is some times harsh. 7. A student who misses class for 12 consecutive days is not allowed to continue regardless of his/her reason of absence. A practical case was raised of a student who failed to attend class for 15 days because of illness and was dismissed from school. 8. Over aged children (i.e., children above 7 years of age) are not allowed to get admission as new entrants by the new educational regulations of the region. Because of this about 150 or more children are denied admission in the village. This is particularly serious because those who, for one reason or another, fail to get registered at the ‘right age’ will be bound to remain illiterate.
128
The participants finally identified what is expected of them to solve some of the problems. They agreed that the community has to contribute to minimize the material and financial problems of the school. Moreover, animals should not be left free to enter into the school compound. Every household has to make proper follow up of its animals. Adult Education Participants estimated that about 10% of the adults in Agewo village are able to read and write. However, the proportion of women who can read and write is insignificant. These basic skills of reading and writing are obtained through traditional religious education, literacy programs particularly the adult literacy program that was operational during the Derg regime and individual efforts especially in relation to the service that individuals render such as local administration. Those who are able to read and write use their skills in writing or reading application, keeping records mainly during traditional ceremonies such as wedding and other similar activities. Moreover, the literate also command the respect of the community. To ask ‘what difference does it make to be literate and illiterate?’ is like asking ‘is it better to have an eye or to be without it?’ When the participants were asked if they want to learn, they confirmed that they have the interest but because of the economic problems they are confronted with, they prefer to send their children to school than themselves studying. The number of people (grown up adults) interested to learn is very small. People want to send their children to school and use their time to do those activities which were supposed to be done by their children. The participants said, “Because most of our children are attending school, we do the job that used to be done by the children like herding. So, our time is already wasted but we want to make sure that our children have a better fate as far as education goes.” Informal Education Education can also be given through informal means and the mechanisms through which it is delivered include meetings, inheritance from fathers and forefathers, neighbors and friends, and religious and social gatherings like ‘tsebel’, funerals, mass, and ‘mahber’. Informal education can be used for good or bad ends. If you stay with bad persons you learn something bad, if you stay with good persons you learn good things. The participants further confirmed that they have been using informal education through out their lives. Most of whatever they have (administration know how, treatment, security, etc.), they got them by informal means. For instance, there were only two stonemasons in the whole Agewo village; now, thanks to informal education, there are many. They have got the ability to make small garden ponds through informal education. Hence, informal education, the participants agreed, has been very helpful and will continue to be so for the future. They added that the PRA exercise that they are doing is indeed another example of informal education. There are some organizations that help promote their know how through informal education including agricultural development workers, health workers, forest protection agents, women’s association, Irish Aid, World Vision and others. In whatever form 129
informal education is conducted, the participants prefer for a kind of informal learning supported by demonstrations and practical knowledge. They would like to have informal education at a time conducive for them. The most suitable time is during ‘hagai’ (spring) and in holidays. It will not be conducive during summer ‘kiremti’, and autumn ‘qeui’ because the intensity of work increases in those seasons. b. Health The women group identified headache, cancer (Mekersa), tuberculosis and heart problem as the most common illnesses among adults and stomach pain (gastric) among children. The participants believe that the main cause for the diseases is shortage of balance diet. Moreover, lack of safe drinking water is also a cause mainly for the children’s health problem. The villagers are also aware of HIV/AIDS. The local health agents (Fana Tiena) teach them about what HIV/AIDS means, its symptoms and the ways in which it transmits. However, they do not know any one in the village either caught or died because of this disease. Modern medication Vaccination of children and mothers is being practiced in the village. Almost every child gets vaccinated starting from the first month of birth. For minor health problems, the community gets treatment in the Tabia health post. But for severe diseases, they go first to the Woreda Health Center, then to Wukro Hospital and finally to Mekelle Hospital. For treatments in the Woreda Health Center, it could cost 50 to 60 birr. But for patients who are referred to Mekelle Hospital, the cost could reach as high as 700 or 800 birr. This is unaffordable to the poor. Only very few individuals can afford. Although in principle the poor have the right to be treated for free in government hospitals if they hold letter of free medical service issued by the local administration, they are not equally treated with those who pay themselves for their treatment. The discrimination in the hospitals forces many to borrow in order to pay for their medical expenses than to ask for a free medical service. The local means of transportation for patients to go to the health center is either on a horse back if the patient is able to support himself/herself to sit on the back of the horse or on a stretcher carried on the shoulder of others. Although not common, some patients die on the way to the health center. Such incidence is high among pregnant women. Traditional healers There are traditional healers that circumcise boy babies. Girls, however, are not circumcised. Although the villagers know that the instruments used by the traditional healers are not safe, they still continue to use them, for there are no other options. For other diseases like severe head ach and stomach problems, they go to other traditional
130
healers outside the village of Agewo. There are also three to four traditional birth attendants in the village that help pregnant women at times of delivery. Maternal Health Over the last five years, there is a modest increment in the number of women who make check up and get vaccinated during pregnancy. Some women see health persons for a prenatal care starting the third month of their pregnancy. The women participants, however, agreed that most pregnant women want to see health persons for check up in order to be relived from the free labour service on soil and water conservation, which any member of the community has to provide for 20 days. Pregnant women carrying a six or more months baby are exempted from the work. But they have to produce the evidence from the health post. To get the evidence most pregnant women make the check up. When a pregnant woman gives birth, first her neighbors and relatives assist her. If there are difficulties, however, a traditional birth attendant will be called on to assist her. Still if the problem is beyond the capacity of the birth attendant, she will go to the health center. The incidence of death at the time of delivery has declined significantly over the last five years. Three women are reported dead over the last three years because of problems related to delivery. However, problems like bleeding are seen in some women. Miscarriage is one of the severe problems among pregnant women. It is estimated by participants that 10% of pregnant women face problem of miscarriage. The causes of this problem are numerous but the main ones in order of their contribution are: - Heavy work load especially during the soil and water conservation activities - Unwanted pregnancy - Lack of balance diet. Moreover, infant mortality is also high in the village. Water use and hygiene The availability of drinking water for both Gotts – Agewo and Samra – is different. The villagers of Gott Samra used to get drinking water from a nearby natural spring and now from pipe water. These villagers do not have problems of drinking water both in terms of availability and safety. In Kushet Agewo, however, there is an acute shortage of drinking water. They use spring water for drinking that serves for animals too. During the dry season, the water level goes down in both quantity and quality. Since there is no any other alternative, the villagers use the water without making any improvements in its quality. For this, many people mainly children are affected by water born diseases. The villagers wash their clothes and take bath during slack days, mainly weekends. They wash their casual clothes once in a week and take a bath mainly once in a month. They also wash their hands before and after meal. Parents also teach (instruct) their children to wash their hands before and after meal.
131
Food is preserved in a traditional way. For cereals, because there is not much harvest these days, they use bags to preserve. For meat, they usually cut it into pieces and hang it until it gets dry. Since the area is a high land, food is not easily spoiled and there is no any incidence of sickness because of eating a spoiled food. Sanitation Although there are around 10 latrines dug in the village with financial assistance from the regional government, most people use the traditional open-air toilet. Animals are usually kept in a separate place and their waste is used as dung (for fuel) and as manure. Nutrition The regular types of food in the village are enjera, tihlo, porridge, and bread. Tihlo is the local food liked most by the villagers. Most villagers eat twice a day. There is also a coffee ceremony almost in every house every day. Moreover, there is no difference among children and adults in their feeding habit. Depending on the availability of the food, some food items are common in some seasons and others in other seasons. During the harvesting season, tihlo is common because barley is available during this season. During summer, enjera is common and during the winter season, local green leaf called hamli is common. Traditionally women used to eat special type of food, like meat, butter, porridge and others during lactation period. Because of poverty, however, these days no special type of food is prepared for pregnant and breastfeeding women. Women feed infants breast milk alone only for the first four months and starting the fourth month infants begin to take additional food mainly ‘Tihni”(i.e., powder of sorghum) with sugar. Birth Spacing Women in the village give birth on average to 5 children. In the earlier periods, there was no any mechanism of either stopping or postponing childbirth. These days, however, there are contraceptive mechanisms known to most women thanks to the advice given by the health agents. In using any modern contraception for birth spacing or stopping birth, women consult their husbands. Unless the husband agrees, the woman cannot use any of the contraception.
132
4.5
Market, Credit and Non-farm Activities
a. Market Residents at Agewo have three market areas accessible: • Dera – is the nearby semi-urban market. The marketing day is on Tuesday and takes on average one hour on foot to reach the market. • Atsbie- is the woreda town. The marketing day is on Saturday and takes on average two hours on foot. • Kuneba- is a market in the Afar Regional State. It is open on Monday and takes three hours on foot. Among these three market places, Atsbie is the main market the community in Agewo uses for buying and selling of various commodities. Types of Products Marketed Residents at Agewo purchase crops mainly barley; coffee, salt, red pepper, cloth, bread, tea, suwa (local beer), mais (local drink made of honey), selected seed and fertilizer at Dera and Atsbie markets. When they are arranged in their order of rank, crop (barley) comes first, coffee and red pepper second and selected seed and fertilizer take the third place. They supply products like sheep, butter and salt bars. Marketing problems: o In Dera, there are no policemen to keep security. As a result, theft and violence is common during the marketing day. o Problem of demand and supply. Farmers supply their products mainly during the harvesting season where supply is large in the market and prices are low. Sometimes, they could not get a buyer at the prevailing price. On the other hand, they buy cereals mainly barley during kiremt (summer) where there exists shortage and prices are high. o Lack of transportation. Although a dirt road that connects Atsibi to Dera passes through the village, there is no regular transportation service. b. Credit DECSI and Women’s Association are the two important sources of credit in Agewo area. Almost all the residents of Agewo are taking loans from DECSI and a considerable number of women are also taking loans from Women’s Association. Borrowings from Women’s Association are tagged to the purchase of certain animals. When a woman wants to take a loan from the association, the borrower first chooses the type of animal; sheep or cow or ox that she wants to buy and communicates to the association. Members of the association purchase the animal for the borrower. Borrowing is made mainly to purchase sheep, cow, ox, selected seeds; for petty trade, to build water wells and harvest vegetables so as to subsist household food requirement.
133
DECSI provides loans using group collateral basis. However, the participants agreed that group collateral carries the risk of paying someone else’s debt. If a member of a group fails to pay the loan, the remaining members are held responsible and are not allowed to pay their own loans unless they also cover that of the defaulter. The participants confirmed that although the availability of a loan has started to bring changes in the life of some of the borrowers’, a few are worse off due to the death of the animal purchased through the borrowed money. c. Cooperative In the study area, a cooperative was established in 1982 by the people of Agewo and other villages in Tabia Ruba Feleg. Each household has contributed a membership fee of birr 12. The contribution was made through indirect way. People were made to pay the money when they want to take an identification card from the Kebele Office, or when they go to the office for other purpose like to get marriage certificate or apply for food for work. The cooperative has its own shop and was supplying commodities like, salt, sugar, teff, sorghum, wheat, coffee, match, pen, paper, exercise book and pencil to the residents. The shop once distributed spoiled cereal which had brought health problems on many. Since then the shop was closed and the people lack confidence. The participants explained that such a shop was never seen in history. Moreover, prices in the cooperative shop were high due to transportation costs, loading and unloading costs, allowances for workers, etc. and people prefer private shops in Atsbi and Dera to purchase commodities. Off-farm activities In addition to farming and animal breeding, a few of the households in the village are involved in bee-keeping, selling fire wood and petty trade (mainly salt). It is also estimated by participants that nearly one half (50%) of the young lead their life through daily labor since they do not have land. There are five craftsmen who mainly make plough, sickle and knives; one woman is selling local beer or ‘Suwa’ and there is no weaver at all in the area.
4.6 Village Institutions Traditionally, development theoreticians underlined the importance of factors such as technology, skilled manpower, capital and lately conducive national policy framework. All are important, but none is sufficient. The need to involve people in their affairs and the role of local institutions in this process is getting the proper understanding among academics and policy makers alike. If a government creates an enabling environment, provides the necessary technical support and coordination, local institutions can play a pivotal role in the following areas.
134
Resource use efficiency: with the active participation of local institutions, local resources can be better mobilized and directed to satisfy the most important needs flexibly. This contributes towards sustainability of programs. Strengthening of civil society (local institutions) gives citizens more capability to act on own behalf and deal effectively with state and other private sector institutions. To identify the type of institutions operating in the Kushet and see if the institutions are really contributing to the development process in the area, the PRA research team asked the participants to identify both local and external institutions. The institutions required to be listed includes both government and non-governmental; local as well as external institutions. Accordingly, the inventory of institutions identified by the PRA participants is indicated in the diagram below. The institutions inside the bigger circle are those found within the village and those outside the bigger circle are institutions that operate outside the village.
135
TDA – BESO
Health Office
World Vision
Woreda Office
Kushet Administ ration
Tabia Administ ration
Develop ment Agent
Water Develo pment office
Father of Water
Social Court Education Committee
Peasant Associati on
Women's Associati on Agricultu ral Cadre
Kushet Perish Council
Health Post/Fa na Tiena Service Cooperati ves
Elementa ry School
Police/Just ice Office
Union of Cross Agricultu re Office
Women’s Association Figure 13
Village Institutions – Agewo Village
With regard to the specific tasks, as how they come into being, and the historical evolution of each institution, the participants mentioned the following.
136
Kushet Administration The establishment of Kushet Administration (KA) goes as far back as Emperor Hailesellassie (1930 – 1974) and was known as Chicka Shum; individual administrator (with the function of administration and tax collection). The Chicka Shum was replaced by a nominally elected body of committee with defined organizational structures, duties and responsibilities in 1976. The current Kushet Administration (KA), which comprises six members, was established in 1988. The members are democratically elected by the community and the criterion for election is based on merit and individual commitment to take responsibilities. The function of KA includes: • • • • •
Settle any dispute among members of the community Identify and prioritize socio-economic problems of the area and put in the annual plans of the Kushet Coordinate and mobilize the people for soil and water conservation activity Prorate the tax burden, collect and hand-over to the next higher government administration unit Coordinate other socio-economic activities of the Kushet
With regard to performance rate of the KA, it was commented that, KA lacks the capacity to implement development programs and it tends to give priorities to assignments and instructions forwarded from above no matter how useful or not that would be to the community. Social Court The Social Court, whose main function is judiciary service to the community, has passed through so many phases like the KA. During the Emperor’s era, the grass-root (Kushet) judiciary service was rendered by government appointed individuals known as Miselene, which was replaced by an elected body called Shengo during the Derg regime. The current social court was established in 1984. It conducts its activities at least two times a week (by scheduling appointments during religious holidays and Sundays). Participants appreciated both the efficiency (un-prolonged decision making process) and fairness of the decision passed by the social court. Women's Association Women's Association was established for the first time in 1974; later on reorganized in 1990. The association was intended to benefit and improve the living conditions of women by actively participating in the election process and thereby advancing the interest of its members; mobilize its members in the development and give some basic social services (medical service and training programs) free of charges. However, as the association’s overall intervention and focus remained far from the members' expectation, the people's attitude was found to be negative.
137
Parish Council Parish Council at the Kushet level was established in 1993 to undertake various religious matters. It is constituted by five members, three of which are from the church and the remaining two from the community. The main functions of the parish council include: • construct and maintain churches • promote religious beliefs, ideas and values among the people • act as the highest administrative body of the church • administer the financial and physical property of the church and allocates the resources in consultation with the community. The Parish Council refers to Kale-Awad (a written by-law which defines how things should go and be decided in church affairs) in the day-to-day decision making processes. School Committee The objective of establishing school committee at each school is inline with the overall educational policy, which encourages parents and local communities to actively participate in the day-to-day activities of the school, which in turn is believed to improve the efficiency of education. Accordingly, a school committee was established in Awulo in 2003 consisting of 7 members (4 from the community and the remaining being staff member of the school). The school committee serves as a bridge in the school-community relationship and oversees the overall school affairs and provides solutions to problems encountered. In line with this, the school has experienced positive changes after the formation of the committee. Some of the benefits include: • Improvement in the teaching learning process. The discipline of teachers has been improved (reduced absenteeism and teachers arrogance in punishing students) and student attrition rate has fallen substantially. • Improvement in the financial position of the school. The introduction of various income generating mechanisms, such as selling grass grown in the school garden and renting the arable land within the school compound, has improved the earning of the school. Fana Tiena (Health Agent) Fana-Tiena are primary health workers voluntarily serving the community at Kushet level. The main functions include: • family planning (birth spacing, the supply of different contraceptives • sensitize the community to vaccinate infants/children and mothers. • provide pre and post natal service • educate environmental sanitation and personal hygiene. As witnessed by the participants, the introduction of Fana Tiena has brought changes in the general health condition of the community. For instance, reduced infant and maternal 138
mortalities, improved knowledge about HIV-AIDS, modest improvement in the knowledge and practice of family planning and environmental sanitation were reported by the participants. But the traditional attitude towards having large family size still persists. Despite their low level of living standard, people want to have more children. Peasant and Youth Associations Both of the associations were established in 1978, during the Derg regime and each association elects from members to form a committee so as to assume the leadership responsibilities. Membership is open. For the Youth Association, male residents in the age range of 18-30 years can be members and in the Peasant Association, all men residents of the village who are willing to join can be members. The membership fee is birr four for youth and birr three for the Peasant Association. With regard to the Associations' contribution to the local development, it was found to be very disappointing. People commented that the associations are: •
serving as instrument of the state machinery and controlling mechanism at the grass-root level. For instance, membership and payment of membership fees are used as a means to discriminate people in the social services rendered such as giving identification cards and some times in the inclusion or exclusion of people in the community's job opportunities.
•
more interested and sensitive to political agendas as opposed to developmental issues.
•
using the members' contribution to finance the salary of their staff at Wereda and regional level.
In summary, according to the participants the associations have never served the purpose for which they were established and brought no change in the life of their members. Abo Mai Abo Mai is a group of two individuals elected by the community to administer the use of water from the dam. Accordingly, their main function includes: • prepare water distribution schedule and notify members so as to use the water accordingly • oversees the distribution and utilization of water, and punishes individuals who found to be violating the schedule (e.g., excess and wasteful utilization, to use water outside the scheduled turn, etc.,). The Abo Mai undertakes its water distribution and administration task based on the bylaw set by the Woreda office of agriculture and adopted by the community. As the Abo Mai members serve the community without any payment, the community in return relieves them from some public obligations such as soil and water conservation. The participants were asked about the efficiency and performance of the Abo Mai and their
139
response was totally positive. This shows that communities can handle and administer their own affairs provided a conducive atmosphere is created. Agricultural Cadre Agricultural cadres are peasants elected by the community to give community services in the area of agriculture and environmental conservation. Individuals are elected based on their educational background, and personal merit (commitment and agricultural skills). Accordingly, four agricultural cadres and four surveyors are elected by the community and are working in the Kushet since 1981. Their duties include the following: lead the technical aspect of the on-going agricultural activities including soil and water conservation in the Kushet. participate in the planning processes of the soil and water conservation and give technical support during the implementation process Development Cadre In addition to the male agricultural cadres, the Kushet does also have six female development cadres. Their main function is to educate rural women on: how to feed their children, how to construct shelves from local materials and cooking stoves, and how to keep personal and residence sanitations. They educate the community during holidays and when ever there is a meeting in the Kushet. To check and assess the effect of the training, the development cadres round on the 12th of every month to each target group houses. Development Agent Development agent is a permanent government employee assigned to the area with prime responsibility of assisting the agricultural and environmental development. Farmers Assistant Farmers assistant are volunteer farmers like agricultural cadres and surveyors and their main responsibilities include: • give technical guidance to farmers during the different agricultural activities • distribute chemical fertilizers to farmers based on their request • mobilize the community to construct moisture harvesting structures during June to October. In summary, the local institutions contribution and importance towards the local development was found to be mixed. For instance, while school Committee, Social Courts and the various health institutions were perceived by the local community as development promoters, Women, Youth, and Peasant Associations had marginal contribution and to some extent, there were some participants who put the role of these institutions as government instrument with no practical contribution to development.
140
External Institutions External institutions working in the Kushet include both government as well as non governmental organizations. Government agencies regularly working in the community include: • Agricultural Office • Justice Office (Police ) • Health Office • Woreda Administration and • Water Development Office In addition to the government offices, other non-governmental organizations also visit to undertake various activities. These include: • World Vision • TDA-BESO • Tigray Women's Association These different institutions depending on the matter or business they want to undertake, they make contacts with the different local institutions. For instance, police from the Woreda makes its first contact with Woreda administrators and then depending on the point of visit, meetings will be arranged with the respective parties. If need arises, a general meeting with the community will be held to discuss on economic, political and social affairs. When participants were asked to list the institutions working in their area in accordance to their level of importance, Kushet administration was ranked first followed by Social Court, Development Agent, Fana Tiena and School committee respectively.
4.7
Trend Line Analysis
In this session both women and men participants were asked to show the trends of different variables in the village starting from the year that they are able to recall. 1959 is chosen by participants as the starting year to show the trends in rainfall, health, population, education, livestock, food supply, forest and poverty.
141
a. Population High
Medium
Low
Year 1959
1968
1977
1986
1995
2003
The population level has shown a continues increase except for the year 1984/85 where many have died and others migrated as far as the Sudan due to the drought. b. Rainfall
High
Medium
Low
Year 1959
1968
77
86
95
2003
The trend in rainfall generally shows a decline. Participants confirmed that the amount of rainfall in 1959 was high and declined continuously thereafter. The
142
year 1959 however was a difficult year in the area because locust destroyed all their crops and grass in the field. For about a decade (1959-1971), although the amount of rainfall was declining, it remained medium to high and there was relatively good level of harvest. In 1972 the rainfall declined to low and thereafter showed a continuous variation year after year. The lowest rainfall is observed in1984/85 where there was a sever drought in the region in general and in the area in particular which led to famine. c. Food Production High
Medium
Low
Year 1959
68
77
86
95
2003
The availability of food in the starting year, 1959, was low in spite of a high level of rainfall. This is so because locust destroyed crops in the field. After 1959, however, there was a steady rise in the availability of food for about a decade due to the good level of rain. After 1970, the availability of food more or less showed a decline with some upward movements in some years. The food level was the lowest in 1984/85 due to the hardest drought ever hit the area. After the drought year, food availability showed slight improvements but generally remained low.
143
d. Health
High
Medium
Low
Year 1959
1968
1977
1986
1995
2003
Although the health condition has shown improvements from 1959 to 1983, it remained below the mid point between low to medium. It, however, dropped sharply in 1984/85 due to lack of food following the drought and an outbreak of cholera. After 1984/85, it showed a steady increase partly due to a relative improvement in food availability and an increasing awareness and medical facilities such as the opening of a health post in the Tabia. e. Education /Literacy/
High
Medium
Low
1959
1968
1977
144
1986
1995
2003
Year
The level of education in the area has started to rise in the recent years after remaining low for a long period. The literacy campaign program, which was popular during the Derg regime from 1976 to 1983, contributed for a rise in literacy level during that period. The literacy level declined after 1983 until it rises again starting 1992 due to the opening of an elementary school in the near by semi urban area called Dera. f. Livestock
High
Medium
Low
Year 1959
1968
1977
1986
1995
2003
Livestock population in the area remained above medium for more than a decade from 1959 to 1971 until it sharply drops in 1972 due to an outbreak of animal disease, which killed many animals in the Kushet. After 1972, it showed improvements but still remaining between low to medium inclining towards the former. The 1984/85 drought in the region at large and the area in particular has reduced the animal population close to zero. After the drought year, livestock population improved significantly stationing at the borderline between low to medium in the recent past. The participants agree that the recent improvement in livestock population is partly accounted for improvements in veterinary services.
145
g. Forest
High
Medium
Low
Year 1959
1968
72
1977
1986
1995
2003
The forest level in the area generally shows deterioration. The decline in forest coverage in the area, participants believe, is contributed by many factors. Some of the factors include a reduction in the level of rainfall (prevalence of drought), increasing human pressure that demands more land to be cleared for both farming and residential areas and an increasing dependency of the community on the sale of forest products such as fire wood and charcoal. Over the last two decades, participants confirmed that there is a slight improvement in coverage due to the introduction of afforestation program that led to the planting of trees every year and exclosures.
146
h. Poverty
High
Medium
Low
Year 1959
1968
1977
1986
1995
2003
The participants agreed that poverty in the area is defined in relation to the availability of rainfall, which affects harvest level, fodder to animals and access to resources. The poverty level was high in 1959 because many households did not have enough to eat after locust destroyed their crops in the field. In the following years until 1969, poverty level declined because of a rise in harvest and animal population due to a high level of rainfall. However, participants confirmed that the decline in poverty does not match with the increase in harvest level recorded. The harvest level is much higher than the corresponding decline in poverty. This is because land was privately owned and it was in the hands of few landlords who appropriated most of the rise in output. After 1971 the level of rainfall was not so good that the poverty level started to rise up. The poverty level was recorded high in 1984/85 where people in the area lost everything they have due to the severe drought that hit the region at large. After the drought year, poverty level remained high except some signs of a short decline in some years. The participants believe that the Ethio-Eriterian war which broke out in 1991 has exacerbated the level of poverty in the area by increasing the number of returnees who do not have land and blocking temporary seasonal jobs for people in the village who used to work in Asmara during slack season.
147
4.8
Participatory Wealth Ranking
Poverty is a complex and multi-dimensional phenomenon. In order to intervene successfully in the cycle of poverty in which the majority of the population around the world are trapped, sensible policies must be based on an understanding of its nature and determinants. Traditionally, developments economists have used "poverty lines" derived from household consumption and expenditure surveys to measure poverty. While providing a useful yardstick, poverty lines also involve a number of assumptions and simplifications that may obscure the true nature of the problems. Rural society is highly differentiated. An apparent simple agrarian economy or society is in fact, a complex structure of rich farmers, poor farmers, female heads of households, and landless people. Poverty strikes unevenly among these groups. Hence, any development intervention without prior knowledge as to "who are the poor" and the context of poverty, may accentuate the poverty situation, instead of improving the living condition of the people. It is against this rational, development theorist as well as the academias have resorted to an approach, which is less formal, open-ended inquiry and participatory called Participatory Rural Appraisal. And this technique proved to reveal many insights and generated findings not captured by traditional household surveys. Poverty Characteristics and wealth ranking: Once trust was established between the study team and the village group, the participants were asked to group their Kushet household into three-wealth groups: poor, medium and rich. Accordingly, bead-ranking method was used (30 beads were provided, one bead representing almost 33 households, as the total number of households were estimated to be 1000) to categorize into the three groups. Accordingly, the average (for both female and male voters) percentage of the three groups was indicated to be 60% poor, 25% medium and 15% rich. To minimize the bias in the process of ranking, people were made to do the exercise privately, one person at a time, and not allowed to communicate among those who rank and those waiting to rank. In defining the cause of poverty, consistent with the economic definition of the poverty line, asset ownership mainly land and oxen were nearly always the leading indicators mentioned in defining the categories of wealth. The participants confirmed that the landless and those who lease out their land are the ones found at the bottom of the wealth ranking. The Summary of the PRA results is presented as follows. Table 4.3
Characteristics of wealth group in Agewo village
Wealth Category Rich
Description owns a pair of oxen; more than twenty sheep; a donkey; Cultivates more than 4 Tsimads (own and rented
148
Medium
Poor
land). owns one ox; five to ten sheep; one donkey; cultivates his land by himself. does not even own a chicken; who does not own land. Even if he/she owns one, he/she can not cultivate it by himself/herself who depends on government food aid for survival
When the participants were asked to identify the cause of poverty, they revealed that recurrent drought and low job opportunities are the first two important factors that drive people into poverty. Coping Strategies: the large majority of households in Kushet Agowo are engaged in farming and almost all agriculture is primarily rain fed (except the recent attempt of using small pond supported irrigation activities). Drought is a serious problem affecting the livelihood of the community. Accordingly, poor people resort to three basic strategies to survive. Selling labor: men migrate to the nearby towns to look for jobs. Searching for such jobs results in short-term migration out of the village. Spending time away from home to earn income (where there are no other family member to overtake the responsibility) reduces the ability of the poor to develop their own farms, resulting in poor harvest and thereby perpetuating the poverty situation. Migration: Similar to the above situation, poor households migrate outside their region to Afar to trade and sell their labor. Government Food aid: food aid both in the form of free handout and food for work program is another coping mechanism. Social-political participation of the poor Inconsistent to the general expectation that the poor are alienated from social and political participation, poverty in the area is not associated with social alienation, and participation in the political and leadership roles in the Kushet. It was reported that the poor alike the rich are equally respected, they could win any election provided that they qualify for the post they are competing, equally participate in all social, and religious ceremonies. However, despite the good participation and respect in the social and political sphere, participants revealed that, the pro-poor socio-political environment that had existed during the liberation movement and persisted until1992, has now been changed in favor of the rich. Since then, it was reported that, the poor proved to have a
149
weak bargaining position, and now wealth has started to be associated with respect. This shows the beginning of social stratification based on wealth.
4.9
Problem Analysis, and Community Action Plan
a. Problem Analysis and Ranking The participants identified a number of problems that the village community is facing. Since the problems were many, it was difficult to analyze. The participants further analyzed the problems and reduced them into seventeen as presented below. 1. Frost The participants believed that because of their sins, God is punishing them through the frost that destroys their crops. They further agreed that the frost level is becoming worse through time. As a result, they are forced to limit the type of crops they grow into few which ripe within a relatively short period, like barley, before frost prevails. 2.
Drought (shortage of rainfall)
The amount of rainfall in the area is not only deteriorating but is also erratic. It starts late and stops early. The number of days it rains is becoming less and less. 3. Shortage and lack of fertility of agricultural land The average land holding in the area, which is estimated at 0.5 hectares by participants, is very small. The land holding is such that every household has its land around its residence. Because of the small land holding, fallowing is not practiced in the area. Moreover, continues human activities in the land and the exposure of land to wind and water erosion has reduced the fertility of the land significantly. Although some farmers have tried to increase the fertility of the land through chemical fertilizer, many could not afford, for it is expensive. There is a well-developed culture of using animal manure as a fertilizer in the area. However it is not sufficient because of the less per capita cattle holding. 4. Landlessness There is a considerable size of landless households who either are returnees (from Eritrea after the conflict, neighboring countries like Saudi Arabia and from the rehabilitation program forcefully taken during the Derg regime in the 1984/85 catastrophic drought) or newly formed households after land was redistributed for the last time in 1991. 5. Shortage of grazing land Another problem cited by the participants is shortage of grazing land. Because of the population pressure, more and more land was being turned into cultivation and residence
150
area. This together with the increased size of animal population (although the average animal holding of households has come down, the over all animal population is increasing because of the rise in households who possess animals) has put a severe problem of grazing land. 6. Deforestation The increased human pressure in the area, which demanded trees to be cut for both farming land and firewood, has resulted in deforestation. The participants confirmed that the area was covered by forest in the earlier periods and this is proved by the remaining big trees in some areas especially in the compound of churches. 7. Shortage of safe drinking water Shortage of drinking water is a critical problem in gott Agewo but not in gott Samra. The villagers said that the current source of water is not sufficient. During the dry season, both people and animals use from the same source and the water level decreases in both quality and quantity. 8. Miscarriage Because of heavy workload that women face, lack of balance diet and unwanted pregnancy, miscarriage is repeatedly seen among pregnant women. 9. Shortage of food Due to the deterioration of the fertility of land and shortage of rainfall, many farmers do not produce enough food to feed their families year after year. 10. Shortage of health centers and problem of laboratories Although there is a health post at Tabia level, it is not sufficient. Moreover, the health post does not undertake diagnosis, for it does not have its own laboratory. This forces them to go to health centers and hospitals in other areas like Atsibi. 11. Shortage of schools after grade four The elementary school in the area teaches only up to grade four. After completing grade four, students have to go to either Atsibi, or Edaga Dera. 12. Shortage of qualified teachers The school is not only devoid of only classrooms but also qualified teachers. Some of the teachers, especially the assistance teachers, lack the necessary qualification.
151
13. Problems of educational policy The educational policy is very strict. It lacks flexibility. If a child crosses the age of seven before joining a school, he/she is not allowed to register. Moreover, if a student is absent for more than 12 consecutive days for any reason, he/she is not allowed to continue. 14. Security problems in Dera market There is a security problem in Dera market. Since there are no police forces to keep law and order in the town, violence is common during the marketing day. 15. Problem of transportation and roads The road condition in the area is so poor that there are no transportation facilities for both people and commodities. Transportation of commodities is made using donkeys. 16. Problem of repayment of loans The fact that loans from DECSI are given on group basis and if any member of the group defaults to pay, the other members are liable to pay has made repayment of loans difficult. Although the participants have appreciated the importance of getting a loan from institutions like DECSI, but paying someone else’s debt under the group collateral system is not justifiable. 17. Forced collectivization The participants confirmed that collectivization is important, but it should not be made forcefully. In the cooperatives set at Tabia level in the area, farmers are directly and indirectly forced to join. They are made to pay the membership fee when they want to get an identification card or other services from the Tabia administration.
152
Table 4.4
C
Problem Ranking in Agewo Village Fros t
Dro ught
Shortag e and lack of fertility of land
Lan dless ness
Shortage of greasing land
De for est ati on
Shortag e of safe drinkin g water
Shor tage of food
Shortag e of medica l facilitie s
Miscarr iage (aborti on)
Long distanc e to school
Shortag e of qualifie d teacher s
Problem of education al directives
Lack of security in Dera Market
Problem of transport ation
Problems associated with loan repayment
Forced collecti vizatio n
Tot al
Ran k
R R R
C R C
C R R
C R C
C R R
C R R
C R C
C R C
C R C
C R E
R R R
R R R
R R R
R R C
R R R
C R R
R R R
7
10TH
17
1ST
10
7TH
C R R R
C C C C
R C C R
R C C R
R R C R
R R R R
C C C R
R C C C
C C C R
E C C R
R R C R
R R C R
R C C R
C C C R
R C R R
R C C R
R R R R
11
6TH
6
12TH
4
14TH
15
2ND
R R R C C C
C C C C C C
R R E C C C
R R E C C C
R R R C C R
R R R R R R
C C C C C C
R C C C C C
R R C C C C
R R R C C C
R R R R C R
R R R R R R
R R R C C R
R R C C C C
R R R C C R
R R R C C C
R R R R R R
15
2ND
14
4TH
10
7TH
4
14TH
3
16TH
7
10TH
C
C
R
R
R
R
C
C
C
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
R
12
5TH
C R
C C
C C
C C
R R
C R
C C
C C
C C
C C
R R
R R
C R
C C
R R
C R
R R
5
13TH
9
9TH
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
C
R
1
17TH
R Frost Drought Shortage and lack of fertility of land Landlessness Shortage of greasing land Deforestation Shortage of safe drinking water Shortage of food Shortage of medical facilities Miscarriage (abortion) Long distance to school Shortage of qualified teachers Problem of educational directives Lack of security in Dera Market Problem of transportation Problems associated with loan repayment Forced collectivization
153
The first five problems ranked from one to five are: 1. Drought (Shortage of rainfall) – 1st 2. Shortage of food – 2nd 3. Shortage of safe drinking water – 2nd 4. Shortage of medical facilities – 4th 5. Lack of security in Dera market – 5th a. Community Action Plan The participants prepared an action plan for the first two problems as presented below. Table 4.5 Community Action Plan of Agewo Village Type of problem Drought (Shortage of rainfall)
Shortage of food
Causes of the Solution to the problem problem • Pray • Deforestation • Water harvesting • Nearness to the Afar through depression construction of Dams (both small • God’s will and large), Garden Ponds • Developing spring water • Afforestation • • • •
•
•
Pray Growing vegetables Reducing shortage of water Educating women in preparation of variety of food Shifting expenditures from drinks (suwa and me’ss) to food staffs Changing feeding habit
154
What the society can do The society will organize itself and participate in all the activities required for solving water problem. At least they will offer their labor service.
Help required from outside For the construction of dams, ponds and spring water, technical assistance and equipment are required from either the government or any nongovernmental organization. Construction of roads and improving the existing road conditions to facilitate transactions in the market. Increasing the number of chickens distributed by bureau of agriculture through loans up to 50 or 100
Summary and Conclusion The PRA shows the socio economic conditions in the four villages studied. The livelihood system in the four villages is dependent on agriculture and the environment. The rising population together with the reduction in productivity is creating a growing pressure on land. Since land is distributed in 1983 for the last time, a growing proportion of the young generation is landless. The efforts made to increase productivity using improved seeds and chemical fertilizer is impaired by the high cost of inputs. Besides agriculture, the rural communities in all four villages sustain their life through animal husbandry. However, livestock disease and inadequacy of veterinary services are the major problems. The social services like education and health have shown improvements in all four villages. Infant mortality has comedown and maternal health has improved. The social and economic change is occurring in the rural areas, but at quite a leisurely pace. The following are issues that are common to all villages and some that are specific to some villages. •
The major seasonal activities in the four studied villages are farming and nonfarm activities. The farming activities include ploughing, hoeing, preparing seedbed, sowing, weeding, mowing and preparing seeds for sowing. Both men and women do most of these activities. Women in all the four villages are equally active in the fieldwork besides their responsibility in the house.
•
Ploughing is mainly done from April to August. Unlike in the highland villages of Agewo, Awulo and Shiguala, where ploughing is done three times or more, ploughing in Hidmo is usually done twice – one for preparing the seedbed and another time for sowing. This may be due to lack of time and oxen power to plough all the land several times as the average land holding in Hidmo is relatively large, at least four times as that of Agewo.
•
In the day-t-day activities, the number of hours people spend at work differ from season to season. During the busy seasons of the year, i.e., during the planting months – June to August and harvesting months – October to December, both men and women wake up at around 4:00 a.m. and sometimes at 3:00 a.m. to engage in their daily activities. Women in some of the villages like Hidmo wake up at 3:00 a.m. everyday in order to fetch water, which takes two to three hours on foot. Moreover, because of the additional responsibility women have in the house, they usually go to bed late as compared to men.
•
Agriculture is the main stay of the people in all four villages. Traditional agriculture, which is mainly rain fed, is dominant. However, irrigation is largely practiced in Awulo using both reservoir and underground water, and to a limited extent in Agewo and Shiguala villages. Hidmo village does not use irrigation mainly because of water scarcity.
155
•
The average land holding ranges from 0.5 hectares in Agewo to 2 hectares in Hidmo. Although shortage of land and landlessness is a problem in all villages, it is severe in Agewo where an estimated 50% of the households do not possess land.
•
The type of crops grown in the highland villages of Shiguala, Agewo and Awulo are mainly cereals such as barley, wheat and teff etc. whereas in the lowland village of Hidmo, crops like maize and sorghum are dominant.
•
The use of chemical fertilizers and improved seeds mainly wheat differs from village to village. Both are widely used in Shiguala, and to some extent in Agewo and Awulo and least used in Hidmo. The wider use of modern inputs in Shiguala may be due to the proximity of the village to the largest market in the region – Mekelle.
•
The major reason that deters a wider use of modern inputs in the villages is the high cost of the inputs especially as compared to the capacity of the farmers.
•
Organic manure is widely used in all villages except in Shiguala. As compared to the three other villages, organic manure is almost not applied in Shiguala. It is uselessly dumped as garbage. Over the last two years, however, few farmers not more than five have started to use organic manure.
•
Farmers in all villages sell part of their agricultural produce in order to buy industrial products and discharge their responsibilities. It is estimated that the lesser the income of a household from other sources than farming, the larger the percentage of agricultural produce sold in the market. Among the four villages, the villagers in Agewo sell a larger proportion of their output (estimated at 50% by the PRA participants). In Hidmo, participants estimated that only 10% of the crops production is sold. The high proportion of agricultural output sold in Agewo could be due to the narrow opportunities to generate other income than agriculture and the relatively smaller size of land holding which results in less harvest. Hence, to discharge the same obligation, a farmer may need to sale more.
•
In Hidmo, off farm activities at the Tekezze Hydroelectric project and income from animals and animal products and beehives can cover the required obligation.
•
In Shiguala and Awulo villages, nearly 30% of the farm produce is sold. Shiguala village is located near Mekelle and boarders the Afar regional state. Many households are engaged in non-farm activities such as stone quarrying, sale of firewood and charcoal and some farmers transport salt bars from Afar to Mekelle. In Awulo village on the other hand, there is a relatively well-expanded irrigation system in the recent past. Many farmers grow high value crops through irrigation from the reservoir and underground water. This is replacing the traditional marketable crops as a means to cover their expenses.
156
•
Besides farming, livestock also play an important role in the livelihood system of all villages both as source of income and input in farming. Livestock is particularly important source of income in Hidmo village. This is evidenced by the large average livestock holding which is 8 to 10 cattle and around 30 goats. The fact that Hidmo is in the lowland with relatively large grazing land makes it convenient for animal breeding.
•
The major problem associated with livestock in all villages is shortage of grazing land and fodder. Although farmers in all villages believe that keeping less but productive animals is the solution, almost no one is practicing it.
•
Although livestock plays an important role in sustaining the living condition of the poor, the attention given to animal health seems inadequate. Farmers complain the problem associated with the large herd they are supposed to gather in order to get animal vaccination service.
•
Formal education is expanding in all villages. There is at least a school in each village that runs classes up to grade four. After grade four, students are supposed to travel long distance to pursue their studies. While there is an acute shortage of getting a place for new entrants in Awulo village, there are less students and relatively an ample space in Shiguala followed by Hidmo.
•
The drop out rate is higher among female students than male students especially after grade four. This is due to the need to work at home, marriage and the long distance to reach school after grade four.
•
The strict rule of attendance, i.e., dismissing a student who is absent for 12 consecutive days regardless of the reason, and the overage rule, i.e., not admitting a new student above the age of seven, are considered as a problem in villages Agewo and Awulo but not in Shiguala and Hidmo villages.
•
Although the health condition differs from village to village and season to season, generally speaking, the health level is showing improvements in all villages due to increasing awareness about health care taught by health agents and improvement in medical services.
•
Because of improvement in maternal health conditions due to an increasing awareness among women to make checkups during pregnancy, the incidence of death during pregnancy and delivery is reduced in all villages. At time of delivery, neighbors and families first assist the future mother. If there is problem of delivery, a traditional birth attendant will be called to assist her. If the problem persists, she will be taken to a nearby health post.
•
Miscarriage, however, is a major problem especially in Awulo and Agewo villages. The major reasons mentioned for miscarriage are workload, unwanted pregnancy and lack of balance diet.
157
•
Although women in all villages are aware of contraceptive mechanisms to postpone or completely stop birth, the fertility rate per woman is still high in all villages. This may be partly explained by the decline in infant mortality rate and the strong say that husbands have in the use of contraceptive mechanisms.
•
Marketing is an important component in the rural economy. Farmers sell cereals, vegetables, animals and animal products and buy industrial and agricultural products. The major markets in each of the four villages are the woreda markets. In some of the villages like Shiguala and Awulo, there are a number of alternative markets at relatively short distance. Whereas, in Hidmo, it requires at least two days in order to do marketing in the major markets.
•
In marketing, almost all villages face problems such as transportation and decline in selling price. However, the major common problem identified in all villages is the measurement unit used in buying and selling cereals called menelik. A standard menelik is three-fourth of a kilogram. However, retailers in the market use larger size menelik in buying cereals from farmers and a smaller size menelik when selling.
•
Cooperatives are established at Tabia level with the objective of supplying industrial products and agricultural inputs to members at reasonable price and if needed buying cereals from farmers at reasonable price when the selling prices of farmers drop sharply. However, none of the cooperatives in the four villages coped up with the expectation. Lack of accountability and responsibility is the major reason for the failure of the cooperatives. Only the cooperative at Hidmo has distributed dividend to its members. The relatively better performance of the cooperative at Hidmo is due to the many opportunities created following the opening of the Tekezze Hydroelectric project. The cooperative was given the mandate to supply stones, clay and selected soil for construction and it made profit out of it.
•
A number of institutions both local (i.e., found within the village) and external (i.e., found outside the village) which play important role in the livelihood system are identified in each village. People are not happy with the performance of some formal institutions like Women’s association, Youth association and Farmer’s association. Participants in all villages confirmed that these associations have become a mechanism of controlling the public by the government rather than playing a role in the development process.
•
However, there are some formal and informal institutions like health agent, social court, school committee, Abo gereb etc. that play their role in the livelihood system.
•
The population trend in the four villages shows a steady rise except for some years mainly 1984/85. The severe drought that hit the country in general and
158
Tigray in particular in 1984/85 was the cause for the death of many and migration of thousands of people from the four villages. •
The perceived trend in rainfall level in all the villages is not only showing an overall decline but is also highly erratic. Until the early 70’s, the level of rainfall was medium to high and relatively stable. After the mid 70’s, however, the rainfall level showed a declining trend, reaching an all time low in 1984/85, and highly variable.
•
The trend in food availability follows the same trend as the availability of rainfall. Until the early 70’s, food availability was medium to high, whereas, after the mid 70’s, it is more of medium to low and highly variable
•
The health level generally speaking shows improvements. It was low to medium in the 60’s and 70’s. This is so mainly because of lack of health facilities and an outbreak of diseases like cholera, malaria etc. It has reached a low level in 1984/85 because of famine and an outbreak of cholera following the famine. In the recent past, however, thanks to expansion of health posts and awareness created through teachings by health agents, the health condition is showing improvements in all villages.
•
The livestock population at village level shows increment especially in the recent past. Although the number of livestock herd kept by a household has declined, there are an increasing number of households who possess animals. This has raised the overall livestock population at village level.
•
The forest cover in all four villages showed a continuous decline for a long time in the past. However, in the recent past, after the beginning of a forestation program, the forest coverage shows slight improvement but remains low.
•
Poverty remains high in the four villages. Recently, however, according to participants’ perception, poverty is decreasing.
•
Wealth in all four villages is defined by the amount of crop produced, the number of animals (especially oxen) possessed, the land holding and land cultivated. However, there are some differences in the criteria to define wealth category from village to village. While camel and mule are included in the list in Shiguala, water wells in Awulo.
•
Since shiguala is near the source of salt in Afar region, the richer inhabitants of the village transport salt bars from Afar to Mekellle using camel and mule.
•
In Awulo, on the other hand, growing high value crops for market through irrigation mainly using water wells is an expanding and rewarding activity. Hence, possession of water well is included in the list of criteria to define wealth categories.
159
•
As an agrarian economy, the most pressing problems in the four villages are related to drought (shortage of rain) and land. However, in Awulo village, an administrative problem is ranked first. Awulo, in its administrative hierarchy, belongs to woreda Kilte Belsa, whose capital is Hawzen which is far from the village (about three to four hours walk). Since a long time, there have been frequent requests by the community to include their village to woreda Sa’esie Tsa’eda Emba whose capital Freweini (also known as Sinkata) is only an hour walk from the village. This has, however, not been solved.
•
As Hidmo is in the lowlands with a relatively large density of livestock and prone to some diseases like malaria, problems related to shortage of medicine and veterinary services are the second and third most pressing problems next to shortage of water.
160
________________________________________________________________________ REFERENCE Chambers Robert (2004), Notes for Participants in PRA/PLA Familiarization Workshop in 2004, at www.ids.ac.uk/ids/paricip/research/pra/pranotes04.pdf
GLOSSARY OF LOCAL TERMS Baito: Elected council Belg: A short rainy season usually occurring from February to April Dejazmach (Dejach): Commander or general of the Gate Derg: The name of the military regime that ruled Ethiopia from the revolution until 1991 Equb: A rotating savings and Credit association Gott: Sub village Gulgual: The removal of debris from a ploughed field Idir: A society for mutual aid and burial Injera: Fermented Ethiopian flat bread. (Fermented Ethiopian pane cake) Kollo: roasted cereal Kushet: Village Menelik: A measurement unit used in buying and selling cereals. One Menelik approximately equals three-fourth of a kilogram. Rasie: One of the most powerful non-imperial ranks in Ethiopia Tabia: The smallest unit of local government in rural communities in present day Tigray Tella (Suwa): Home-made beer. Tsebel A religious society which meets monthly on a Saint’s day. Each member takes a turn to host the group, providing food and drink. Tsimad: A plot of land that can be ploughed by a pair of oxen in a day. One tsimad equals a quarter of a hectare. Woreda: the second administrative unit above the tabia
ACRONYMS REST: DECSI: FAO: TDA: BESO:
Relief Society of Tigray Dedebit Credit and Saving Institute Food and Agricultural Organization Tigray Development Association Basic Education
161
