ANALYSIS OF VULNERABILITY AND DETERMINANTS OF ENSET PRODUCTION IN WOLAITA, SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA

Enset is endemic to Ethiopia and cultivated as important food crop in southern, southwestern and central parts of the country. About 13 million of Ethiopia’s population depend on it as staple and co-staple food crop. The area coverage of enset is estimated to be 167,900 ha, of which over 67% is in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR). In Wolaita, enset is mainly cultivated for food, fiber, medicine, source of animal feed and as income generating crop. It also serves as an indication of prestige and wealth. However, enset production has been decreasing alarmingly in terms of area coverage, production and number of clones grown over the last two decades. The concerns of this study are assessing the extent and trend of enset production and identifying factors influencing enset production in the area. Three-stage random sampling technique was employed to select a total of 185 farm households from the Wolaita zone. The information gathered from different sources were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Decrease in enset productivity area started even before the time of Wolaita Agricultural Development Unit (WADU) in 1970. Major factors that influenced enset production were drought, diseases, shift to other crops, small land holding, population pressure, high consumption rate, low soil fertility, poor management practices, mole rats and hunger. Many enset clones are particularly vulnerable, such as Chichia, Nekaka, Archia, Suitia, Mazia, Pelua, Goderia, Katane, Zinkia, Geftenwa, Siraria, Bullua, Tuzuma, Wanadia, Orgamma, Keberia and Banga which are the major ones. These clones are also preferred for amocho consumption especially in drought season, which again aggravate their vulnerability.