News: Gov't initiates procurement of fertilizers early for the second consecutive year

Addis Abeba – The government has announced that the procurement of 25 million quintals of soil fertilizers for the upcoming Belg and Meher harvesting seasons will commence in two weeks.

To facilitate the purchase of this total amount, which includes 13 million quintals of urea and 12 million quintals of DAP, the government has allocated $1.3 billion.

The Ethiopian Agricultural Business Corporation (EABC), the sole importer of fertilizers in Ethiopia, will conduct the purchase.

The Corporation has held this responsibility since its establishment in 2016.

During the previous harvesting seasons, the EABC procured 20 million quintals of soil fertilizers at a cost of $930 million.

Until mid-2023, the timely delivery of these essential agricultural inputs to small-scale farmers across the nation was hindered by significant disruptions.

This acute shortage of fertilizers led to widespread demonstrations throughout the country, with protest centers emerging in various regions, including Amhara and Oromia.

In addition to the scarcity, small-scale farmers faced challenges in affording the exorbitant prices of fertilizers, which reached a peak of 12,000 birr per quintal during that period.

The scarcity and distribution challenges were resolved following the government’s announcement in July 2023 of a new fertilizer procurement system.

During the announcement, Girma Amente (PhD), Minister of Agriculture, stated that the new system allows contracts with suppliers to be extended for up to three years, thereby reducing the procurement time for agricultural inputs by as much as four months.

As a result of implementing the new purchasing system and the ability to procure and transport fertilizer earlier, the government reported savings of 21 billion birr.

Despite the positive developments observed in the past fiscal year, the timely delivery of these essential fertilizers to small-scale farmers in conflict-prone regions such as Amhara has continued to face significant disruptions.

These challenges are partly attributed to the escalating conflict between the federal government and the non-state militia group, Fano.

Last year, the Amhara Agriculture Bureau reported that over 20,000 quintals of fertilizer were stolen during transit and from cooperative union warehouses amid the growing conflict. AS