Oxfam study says coffee under threat from beetle

By Binyam Tamene

Ethiopia's major foreign currency generator, coffee is under threat due to climate change induced diseases, a new study has revealed.
Coffee alone generated around half a billion dollars last year in Ethiopia, but the study said it is under threat due to a pest called Coffee Berry Borer (Hypothenemus hampei). The study conducted in Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's Regional State (SNNPRS) said high temperature in coffee growing areas has aggravated the disease by creating a conducive environment for the pest to grow quickly.

As a result, the production of coffee growers in the area of the study has decreased through time, said the study carried out by Oxfam International.

Called: "The Rain Doesn't Come on Time Anymore: Poverty, Vulnerability, and Climate Variability in Ethiopia", the study was launched at a special Earth Day celebration organised by the Climate Change Forum-Ethiopia in collaboration with other environmental organisations last Thursday.

Farmers in the study area reported that yields of coffee and other crops had fallen in the last four years and attributed this to a loss of soil fertility, drought and unusually high rainfall at the wrong time.

Also, a slight increase in annual maximum and minimum temperatures was recorded in recent years at Yergalem, a metrological station near Weonsh Woreda in the state.

"High temperatures aggravate the problem of coffee berry disease during a long dry season," the study noted.

According to the coffee farmers, a longer dry season in 1988, 1993, 1998, 2003 and 2004 reduced coffee production.

The study also said: "About one third of the surveyed households experienced financial loss as a result of these long dry seasons, ranging from 500-3000 birr."

The study added the threat is not isolated to SNNPR. It said the analysis of 32 years of climate data from Jimma, a city in Oromia Regional State, found that before 1984, temperatures were too low for the beetle to regenerate once per year. But after the temperature began to rise, the insect began to regenerate twice per year.

"So, if the temperature rises substantially, it's possible that the berry borer will destroy more coffee plants," the study said.
The study, however, has given a high regard for coping mechanisms currently practiced in the area.

"The traditional way of growing coffee in the shade under trees is a good coping mechanism, since the trees can buffer plants from micro climatic variability and extremes."

The study urges the need to build on what farmers and pastoralists are already doing to adapt to climate variability.
"Investigate these practices further for their sustainability and impact on poverty and inequality, and potential for replication or enhancement," it said. Otherwise, poor farmers will get even poorer, said Oxfam.

"People who are already poor and marginalised are struggling to cope with the added burden of climate change," commented Abera Tola, Oxfam's Horn of Africa Regional Director.

"It is getting harder and harder for families and communities to bounce back from ever-changing, inconsistent weather affecting their livelihoods, and many have been forced to sell livestock or remove children from school - coping mechanisms that only increase the cycle of vulnerability."

Ethiopia is one of the poorest countries in the world and 85 percent of the population depends on agriculture for their livelihood. The agricultural sector is especially vulnerable to adverse weather and climate since it is rain-fed, conducted using relatively basic technologies, and carried out on tiny plots of land.

Source: CapitalEthiopia