Chinese Government provides ETB 240 million grant for Phase 3 of Vocational Education & Training Cooperation in Agriculture Project

According to the Government of Ethiopia’s Aid Management Platform, the Chinese Government and the Government of Ethiopia signed a grant agreement worth ETB 240,005,598 on December 15, 2020 for Phase 3 of the Vocational Education & Training Cooperation in Agriculture Project. The Chinese Government disbursed ETB 61,015,844 in support of this project on December 15, 2020.

The purpose of the project was to dispatch 9 agricultural experts from 9 different professional fields — namely, animal husbandry and veterinary medicine, aquaculture, cotton cultivation, fruit tree cultivation, vegetable cultivation, rice cultivation, wheat cultivation, agricultural machinery, and edible mushroom cultivation — to Ethiopia.

The project also involved the development of five mushroom project sites in the capital city of Addis Ababa and surrounding areas to produce next grade spawns: the Menagesha site (the privately owned Menagesha Farm), the Kashajes project site, the Holeta project site, the Yeka project site, and the Adama project site.

The project was implemented through a collaboration between the Technology Institute of the Addis Ababa University (AAiT), China Aid (CIDCA), and the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture.

Between November 8, 2018 and November 7, 2021, the Chinese Government dispatched 9 experts from 9 different professional fields — namely, animal husbandry and veterinary medicine, aquaculture, cotton cultivation, fruit tree cultivation, vegetable cultivation, rice cultivation, wheat cultivation, agricultural machinery, and edible mushroom cultivation — to the five project sites.

One of the Chinese agricultural experts who was dispatched to Ethiopia, Zheng Aibo, developed ‘Plan 1-5-50’ for promoting edible mushrooms in the country. 1-5-50 refer to the construction of one training center at Addis Ababa University to provide training on mushroom growing techniques, five mushroom growing sites in and around the capital city to provide mushroom seeds and services to nearby farmers, and 50 model households for technology demonstration (10 from each of the 5 growing sites).

According to Zheng Aibo, ‘[b]y providing demonstrations and training, the plan can help promote practical techniques on mushroom growing, especially on standardized production and supply of mushroom seeds, which are essential in promoting edible mushrooms’.

Also, according to Zheng Aibo, the training center is mainly for the production of seeds and technical research and development, and the five growing sites are for the production of secondary and tertiary seeds and technical training for farmers, with each having a different focus. Of the five sites, the Yeka project site provides technical training for agricultural officials.

The Menagesha site is part of the privately owned Menagesha Farm, so it is market-oriented and improving quality and efficiency is the focus.

The Kashajes site is affiliated to a charity organization, and mushrooms produced there are supplied to feed more than 500 children living with disabilities in five local schools.

The Adama site highlights research on new growing techniques, while the Holeta site focuses on training and demonstration.