Agri service Ethiopia

A participatory assessment of soil erosion processes and effectiveness of the existing conservation measures was made in Gebere Shentif sub-catchment, located on the northwestern highlands of Ethiopia . The study also aimed at identifying alternative strategies and approaches for soil conservation that may suit farmers' interests and enable sustainable land use. Agro-ecosystem Analysis for Research and Development (AARD) approach was used, where the methodology applied for data collection involved a combined use of questionnaire survey, technical field survey and participatory rural appraisal (PRA) methods. Based on the assessment, the AARD workshop organised in the field came up with a number of key questions, guidelines and working hypotheses for development. The conclusions made from this study include soil erosion situation, farmers' perceptions of erosion processes, constraints of existing conservation measures and possible future strategies. The study has also provided an opportunity to test the potential of AARD as an approach for assessing soil erosion and planning of conservation measures in a participatory and holistic manner.