The focus of of the 2nd phase is on quality improvements during the harvest phase, including transport, packaging and ginning, taking sustainability aspects into account.
With the first phase that took place from June to September, all pre-harvest stations were accompanied, starting from sowing cotton, including sustainable methods of irrigation management and pest control. With the harvest season, accompanying trainings started on sustainable and quality-improving harvesting technology, including transport issues. Corresponding stations are the cotton areas Arbaminch, Afar, Gambella and Amhara/Gonder. As in the first phase, mixed formats of seminar events and field excursions are implemented.
With more expertise in modern and sustainable harvesting methods, farmers are to be prepared for later certifications. At the same time, the trainings serve to achieve higher yields and produce better qualities. Training manager Mesele Mekuria, Head of Cotton at the state-run Ethiopian Textile Industry Development Institute (ETIDI), is satisfied with the results achieved so far:
“With training measures, we can achieve a lot even with relatively little use of funds. Better, more sustainably produced cotton qualities are essential for the Ethiopian textile industry to be internationally competitive.”
Picture: Sustainable Cotton Training in Gonder (Amhara region, on the Ethiopian-Sudanese border) at the end of October 2021 under the direction of ETIDI Cotton Director Mesele Mekuria (on the left).