Conflict and Food Insecurity Report: Northern Ethiopia

Conflict and Food Insecurity Report: Northern Ethiopia  Highlights:  Since the start of the civil war in northern Ethiopia in November 2020, the conflict has impacted agricultural production and livelihoods in Tigray and neighbouring regions of Amhara and Afar (Figure 1). In affected regions, the majority of the population are farmers that rely on local agriculture for their food supply. Since the start of the conflict, fields have been abandoned, farmers have been prevented from ploughing or harvesting, seeds for planting have been stolen, farm equipment has been looted, and livestock has been killed. Crops that were able to be sown have often been pillaged and burned before they were able to be harvested. From September to the end of 2021, the number of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Tigray doubled to 4.2 million due to the ongoing conflict. By April 2022, the total number of IDPs decreased back to 2.1 million across Tigray, Amhara, and Afar, but the ability to carry out agricultural activities remains constrained among those left in rural area. Since the onset of conflict, cereal yields have been negatively affected in parts of the major producing Tigray and Amhara regions as well as in the minor producing Afar region for the 2020 Meher season, 2020 Belg season, 2021 Meher season, and 2022 Belg season with significant implications for food security in affected regions. Figure 1: Density of violent attacks in Ethiopia from November 1, 2020 to August 31, 2022. Number of events extrapolated from ACLED data warehouse using violent event types (battles, explosions/remote violence, and violence against civilians). Source: ACLEDAccess the full report here. Email: press@agricinafrica.com | Agriculture in Africa Media