A study case on coffee (Coffea arabica): Limu Coffe - IRD
A study case on coffee (Coffea arabica): Limu Coffe - IRD
A study case on coffee (Coffea arabica): Limu Coffe - IRD
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socialist government in military dictatorship hands lasted until 1991, and the URSS collapse.<br />
One of the first political measures was the proclamati<strong>on</strong> of the agrarian reform, <strong>on</strong> 4 th March<br />
1975. The whole rural lands became the Ethiopian people collective property. Land sale and<br />
renting became forbidden. Lands were divided between all peasants according to family size.<br />
In this way, farmers or peasants’ associati<strong>on</strong>s (kebele) were created in less than 800 hectares<br />
territories to oversee this land reform, villagisati<strong>on</strong> and social programmes (educati<strong>on</strong>,<br />
health). Farmers’ associati<strong>on</strong>s were in charge to distribute the land to farmers. All adult<br />
growers were allowed to ask plots. Each married peasant was given four fetchassa, and often<br />
supplementary lands (four to six fetchassa). According to farmers’ associati<strong>on</strong>s, landowners<br />
could keep important estates and former peasants their land (at most ten fetchassa). Plots<br />
given to farmers were not of <strong>on</strong>e block but scattered <strong>on</strong> different ecosystems as agro-forests<br />
and forests. Simultaneously villagisati<strong>on</strong> happened, farmers were employed to build roads,<br />
schools, shops, grinders and houses in the new villages. In 1983, they had to install in these<br />
villages and received half a fetchassa to build their house and for their garden. They kept their<br />
fields at their former place. This landscape organisati<strong>on</strong> still remains. Farmers’ associati<strong>on</strong>s<br />
then organized cooperatives in order to promote new skills (<strong>coffee</strong> pulperies implementati<strong>on</strong>)<br />
and crops, and to sell it to government at fixed prices. Fertilizers and selected seeds were<br />
bought to the ministry of agriculture then sold to farmers by these farmers’ associati<strong>on</strong>s. Some<br />
land and producti<strong>on</strong> means collectivisati<strong>on</strong> appeared, dividing harvests to the pro rata work<br />
of each peasant. All peasants had to pay an annual tax to government, depending <strong>on</strong> land size<br />
and fertility.<br />
Since the socialism government fall and further liberalisati<strong>on</strong>, land property rules<br />
roughly remained the same. Indeed socialism foundati<strong>on</strong>s didn’t collapse and let its prints to<br />
the current Ethiopian rural framework: land is still an Ethiopian collective property; land sale<br />
is forbidden; farmers’ associati<strong>on</strong>s are still the basic administrative unit in charge of peasants’<br />
issues. Changes are that land renting is now allowed; also labour force employment; that sale<br />
is dressed up as l<strong>on</strong>g time renting c<strong>on</strong>tracts (forty years); and that collectivisati<strong>on</strong> obviously<br />
disappeared letting behind service cooperatives which nowadays play an important role in<br />
<strong>coffee</strong> producti<strong>on</strong>.<br />
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