Ethiopia: Ireland Sharing Its Potato Expertise to Ethiopia
By Zerihun Getachew The hills of Chencha in southern Ethiopia, over 3,700m above sea level, are not a place where you might expect the Irish potato to be thriving underground. There are about 1,000,000 potato farmers in Ethiopia but historically. However, the seed that has been available to farmers is poor quality and therefore production is poor. Farming practices are traditional, which means harvests are far below what Irish potato farmers reap. There is also little focus on tackling diseases such as blight However, the Irish potato and Irish agricultural expertise are now being used to change all of this, through a highly innovative program. Ireland exports almost 90% of food produced and that is thanks to the massive modernization program led by the Irish Government. Ireland has one state body called Teagasc under the Department of Agriculture, which supports farmers with research, advisory services and training. Teagasc has acquired international renown for its in