African commitments for agricultural development goals and milestones for Ethiopia

Book excerpt: The study developed a results framework to analyze Ethiopia’s progress towards selected CAADP/Malabo, SDGs and Agenda 2063 goals. A Computable General Equilibrium model linked to an income distribution Micro-Simulation model were used to identify priority investment areas for accelerated agricultural growth, poverty and inequality reduction. Simulation results indicate that the current investment trend and composition would leave Ethiopia off-track to meet these objectives. The analysis of alternative agricultural investment scenarios shows that the public sector has still a great role to play in promoting agricultural growth in Ethiopia. Past expenditure levels have been high, though not sufficient, and would need to increase substantially with an emphasis on the quality of public agricultural spending. Productivity remains one of the major challenges but also one of the most effective solutions for accelerated agricultural growth in Ethiopia. Agricultural investments should be designed considering the agricultural value-chain. While social protection programs are important for the poor, rural non-agricultural development could provide a more sustainable source of income.