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Transcript/ScriptETHIOPIA WHEAT PRODUCTION (TV)
HEADLINE: Ethiopia Wheat Production to Jump 70% as Ukraine Crisis Hinders Imports
TEASER: Although millions of people have been displaced by conflict and drought, the program may provide a glimmer of hope
PUBLISHED AT: 7/18/22, 4:19p
BYLINE: Henry Wilkins
DATELINE: SEMERA, ETHIOPIA
VIDEOGRAPHER: Henry Wilkins
VIDEO EDITOR:
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: DLJ, MAS
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA,
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X RADIO__
TRT: 3:03
VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath
TYPE: TVPKG
EDITOR NOTES:))
((INTRO)) Despite an ongoing civil war and a record drought, Ethiopia's wheat production is expected to jump 70% this year as it seeks to reduce reliance on food imports. While the boost in wheat provides a glimmer of hope, millions of displaced Ethiopians still need food aid, which has been disrupted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Henry Wilkins reports from Semera, Ethiopia.
((NARRATOR))
On the outskirts of Semera, tractors prepare the soil to plant wheat. Known for its desert landscapes and dry climate, in Semera’s Afar region, irrigated fields are a rare, but increasingly common sight.
The Ethiopian government’s drive to plant more wheat means production of the grain will increase from 1.42 million tons last year, to 2.4 million tons this year, according to government figures.
Geto Kasa is one of the workers on the project.
((Geto Kasa, Wheat Program Worker (in Afar, 17 secs)))
“The government aims for this program is to cover the demand from the market, reduce imports and provide job opportunities for the population.”
((NARRATOR))
Hilmarayan Abara, another worker, says the project has had a positive impact for him.
((Hilmaryam Abara, Wheat Program Worker (in Afar, 14 secs)))
“I used to work for one thousand nine hundred birr on another program, but now that this program has begun, I get three thousand from it.”
((NARRATOR))
The government’s goal is, by next year, to eliminate the need to import any wheat at all.
((Mohammed Noar Ali, Semera Official (in Amhairs, 32 secs)))
“During the past year, we were planning to plant wheat on eight thousand four hundred hectares of land. We succeeded in implementing this goal through the cooperation of joint efforts between the Ethiopian government and the people, and we also strive to increase our efforts and up production even further.”
((NARRATOR))
However, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says Ethiopia’s goal to eliminate the need for imports next year is “unrealistic.”
Ethiopia’s need for continued food aid is clear, says an official from a nonprofit in Semera.
((Valerie Browning, Afar Pastoralist Development Association (in English, 20 secs)))
“Afar region has never been in a worse situation. We’ve got a situation that’s doubled up between the effects of conflict and that of the drought, because the situation now is that the government says actually 95% of all Afar are food insecure.”
((NARRATOR))
The severe regional drought, and Ethiopia’s war between the central government and the Tigray region, have left an estimated 20.4 million people in Ethiopia in need of food aid, says the U.N.’s World Food Program (WFP). Additionally, warring parties have been accused of blocking food from reaching vulnerable populations, while the U.N. says a fuel embargo on Tigray is also making matters worse.
The wheat-growing program will not meet the country's needs, they say.
The Ukraine crisis has reduced wheat imports and driven up the price of food by 66%, according to the WFP.
At the same time, says the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization, Russia has imposed restrictions on fertilizer exports. That could make growing wheat more difficult and expensive.
((Chimimba David Phiri, FAO Subregional Coordinator for Eastern Africa (in English, 13 secs)))
“Countries like Ethiopia, obviously, that have been importing wheat and fertilizer get very badly affected.”
((NARRATOR))
For those most in need of food aid, any help, in the form of wheat or otherwise, cannot come soon enough.
((Henry Wilkins, for VOA News, Semera, Ethiopia))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)SEMERA, ETHIOPIA
Embargo DateJuly 18, 2022 17:22 EDT
Byline((Henry Wilkins, for VOA News, Semera, Ethiopia))
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
