ETHIOPIA – The Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) has revealed in its latest report that the irrigated wheat harvest for the current fiscal year has reached an impressive 58.5 million quintals (5.85 million tonnes).
According to the report, as of now, wheat crop seeds have been sown across 2,978,122 hectares of land, with 1,499,966 hectares already harvested using traditional and combined harvesters.
The ministry emphasized that the national target was set at 120 million quintals (12 Million tonnes) through the cultivation of 3 million hectares of irrigated wheat.
Kebede Lakew, MoA Public Relations and Communication Executive explained that the the said harvest originates from this Bega season irrigation works, adding that harvesting is still underway.
He emphasized the role of Bega wheat irrigation in boosting production, productivity, and food system improvement, noting that Ethiopia has created an enabling environment to cover its wheat demand.
“Bega wheat irrigation has been playing a significant role in boosting production and productivity and helping to improve the food system. At present, the nation has created an enabling environment to cover the necessary wheat demand by itself,” he noted.
Kebede further expressed confidence that the country is on track to produce adequate wheat for both export and domestic consumption, highlighting Bega wheat irrigation as a crucial activity for ensuring food security.
The announcement comes after Recently, Ethiopia’s Oromia region announced that it is expecting to harvest over 105 million quintals (10.5M tonnes) of wheat from its summer irrigated land.
Mustafa Hussein, Crop Development Director at the Oromia Agriculture Bureau stated that the 2.6 million hectares initially planned to be cultivated during the summer season has been surpassed by over 1 million hectares across the region’s 21 zones.
The director expressed optimism about the development, stating that “the progress in all zones is encouraging, and we anticipate exceptional results.”
He confidently predicted that this year’s irrigated wheat production in the region would exceed 105 million quintals.
Mustafa noted that, currently, farmers are actively harvesting the crop with the aid of modern agricultural equipment and the average yield per hectare stands at 45 quintals (4.5 tonnes) with some high-yielding areas achieving over 60 quintals (6 tonnes) per hectare.
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