The Main Culprit
The problem inflation is causing is not yet resolved, although since it was possible to put a finger on the main culprit, the probe could be on its last leg, however, inflation would linger much longer in the country. The drought that is being felt around the country would even make the whole shortage problem grave.
There was a source inside the country that indicated the cause of the inflation is all of what outside sources have said, but there were more twists to it. The high cost of fuel, as well as using grain for biofuel are among the main culprits. The new one that came from an inside source that is close to what the government is doing stated that the main culprit is cost of production that will take into consideration the high cost of fuel, as transportation is part of the cost of production. Other than that, the main cause of the rising price of food items was the cost of fertilizer. That raises eyebrows because it is the sole monopoly of the government and the signal sent was the government could be trying to profit from the farmers and the farmers have no choice other than passing the cost to the consumers. The final outcome will be, doing that will add up to the reasons why food items had been very expensive in the urban centers.
This will make the government look bad simply because everyone knows it had been in the fertilizing business in a big way that could go back to when the PM won a prize from Yara. The other interesting finding might be if it is true, there is no shortage of food items in the country. But since the farmers have to pass the cost they are incurring to the consumers, unless the price justifies their cost they cannot afford to sell their produce below the cost they incurred. It makes sense if it is true and now the limelight will rest on the government, which should not make profit-making its priority. Because what is expected from the government is to subsidize fertilizer and avail it to the farmers at a much cheaper price so that they will not charge exorbitant prices. It does not mean it will not be expensive, but that is what the business of government is, to assist key economic sectors, such as agriculture similar to what many countries are doing it that include the advanced regions that have all kinds of subsidies in place.
In light of that, at this particular point in time, the government could be hand-tied simply because the farmers had already incurred the high cost of the fertilizer and that might be the reason why it had to import some 150,000 tons of grain from outside. It makes sense on one hand and on the other, instead of buying the grain from outside why not buy it from the farmers and avail it at a cheaper price for the public. The other assumption is a nation such as the USA that is a close ally to the existing government might have promised to give the nation the mentioned tons of grain, but it does not want it to get a lot of publication, because it could be taking business from others that could have sold that grain to the Ethiopian government for a hard cold cash. The time the Americans used to dump grains in the ocean to stabilize grain price seemed to be behind them or it could still be practiced, and the source of the 150,000 ton grain could be that.
Whatever the arrangement is the concern now is availing what is needed in the country and especially for the next harvest season, there is no reason why the government cannot start to subsidize fertilizer and forego the profit it gets from the farmers. If it does that, there are sources such as World Bank, as well as IMF that could help it. What this means is the situation has not hit a brick wall where everyone has to throw the towel in, sit back, and watch the people go without what they need. The problem is within the reach of the government and all it needs to do is take a quick measure by making sure the fertilizer that reaches the farmers for the next harvest season will be subsidized. The biofuel case could get a solution soon because as of this writing there had been a meeting in Rome concerning food prices and the main talk was the grain that had been diverted to biofuel use and there might be some decision to avert the calamity it is going to cause if it starts sucking away the grain that is badly needed for food.
Another interesting source of energy that not many sources are talking about in Ethiopia is biogas that had been around for a long time. What it is according to a source is a by-product of farmyard waste-treatment that had proven to bring health, social, environmental, and financial benefits to third world countries. This technology is different because it is decentralized, could be used by individual households, and does not require much capital. Especially now when our farmers do not know what to do with their money if they are not already using biogas it is a ripe time for them to know the advantages this affordable and seemingly simple technology is offering. What is required to obtain energy from any biogas plant is what is available naturally such as firewood, agricultural wastes, and animal waste. It is also possible to include human waste and the end result is, it is not only echo friendly and does not do any harm to the health, but it does a lot of good to the pocket.
It is a known fact that many third world countries use dung for cooking, as well as for fertilizer. The difference that is attained by using biogas is it is possible to get fuel or light from the process, while at the same time the remaining sludge is a very good fertilizer. Therefore, it is like killing two birds with one stone where instead of using dung for fire only that will consume it, it is possible to get fire, as well as light while using the biogas technology and what remains is a high quality fertilizer. This is something to look at, as it could be new to Ethiopia, as the main talk spiral around availing electricity in the countryside and to do that what is mostly used is hydroelectric power.
Biogas had been in use in China as back as 1975 where there had been a slogan that says “biogas for every household”. The technology was not highly developed as it is now and the findings are, in the latest development there had been an introduction of a low-cost polyethylene tubular digesters that had become popular in countries such as India and many other Asian countries, where anyone who starts using the biogas system would be entitled to get an allowance from the central government. All that is required is as simple as collecting the animal dung and similar waste, mix it with water, leave it to ferment, and the machine will do the rest. The advantage families in third world countries who spend a long time gathering firewood had been tremendous wherever people started using biogas for cooking, as well as for light and heat. The added bonus is the sludge that could be used as a fertilizer and it might help the situation our nation is strapped with. It does not mean it will replace the use of the manmade fertilizers 100 percent that the nation had become heavily dependent on because leaving a land fallow for a year might be out of the question when there is a high number of mouths that need feeding. Nevertheless, it could avail some break where it might be possible to bring down the cost of the particular item that is blamed as the main cause of inflation that is not yet abating.
There was a source inside the country that indicated the cause of the inflation is all of what outside sources have said, but there were more twists to it. The high cost of fuel, as well as using grain for biofuel are among the main culprits. The new one that came from an inside source that is close to what the government is doing stated that the main culprit is cost of production that will take into consideration the high cost of fuel, as transportation is part of the cost of production. Other than that, the main cause of the rising price of food items was the cost of fertilizer. That raises eyebrows because it is the sole monopoly of the government and the signal sent was the government could be trying to profit from the farmers and the farmers have no choice other than passing the cost to the consumers. The final outcome will be, doing that will add up to the reasons why food items had been very expensive in the urban centers.
This will make the government look bad simply because everyone knows it had been in the fertilizing business in a big way that could go back to when the PM won a prize from Yara. The other interesting finding might be if it is true, there is no shortage of food items in the country. But since the farmers have to pass the cost they are incurring to the consumers, unless the price justifies their cost they cannot afford to sell their produce below the cost they incurred. It makes sense if it is true and now the limelight will rest on the government, which should not make profit-making its priority. Because what is expected from the government is to subsidize fertilizer and avail it to the farmers at a much cheaper price so that they will not charge exorbitant prices. It does not mean it will not be expensive, but that is what the business of government is, to assist key economic sectors, such as agriculture similar to what many countries are doing it that include the advanced regions that have all kinds of subsidies in place.
In light of that, at this particular point in time, the government could be hand-tied simply because the farmers had already incurred the high cost of the fertilizer and that might be the reason why it had to import some 150,000 tons of grain from outside. It makes sense on one hand and on the other, instead of buying the grain from outside why not buy it from the farmers and avail it at a cheaper price for the public. The other assumption is a nation such as the USA that is a close ally to the existing government might have promised to give the nation the mentioned tons of grain, but it does not want it to get a lot of publication, because it could be taking business from others that could have sold that grain to the Ethiopian government for a hard cold cash. The time the Americans used to dump grains in the ocean to stabilize grain price seemed to be behind them or it could still be practiced, and the source of the 150,000 ton grain could be that.
Whatever the arrangement is the concern now is availing what is needed in the country and especially for the next harvest season, there is no reason why the government cannot start to subsidize fertilizer and forego the profit it gets from the farmers. If it does that, there are sources such as World Bank, as well as IMF that could help it. What this means is the situation has not hit a brick wall where everyone has to throw the towel in, sit back, and watch the people go without what they need. The problem is within the reach of the government and all it needs to do is take a quick measure by making sure the fertilizer that reaches the farmers for the next harvest season will be subsidized. The biofuel case could get a solution soon because as of this writing there had been a meeting in Rome concerning food prices and the main talk was the grain that had been diverted to biofuel use and there might be some decision to avert the calamity it is going to cause if it starts sucking away the grain that is badly needed for food.
Another interesting source of energy that not many sources are talking about in Ethiopia is biogas that had been around for a long time. What it is according to a source is a by-product of farmyard waste-treatment that had proven to bring health, social, environmental, and financial benefits to third world countries. This technology is different because it is decentralized, could be used by individual households, and does not require much capital. Especially now when our farmers do not know what to do with their money if they are not already using biogas it is a ripe time for them to know the advantages this affordable and seemingly simple technology is offering. What is required to obtain energy from any biogas plant is what is available naturally such as firewood, agricultural wastes, and animal waste. It is also possible to include human waste and the end result is, it is not only echo friendly and does not do any harm to the health, but it does a lot of good to the pocket.
It is a known fact that many third world countries use dung for cooking, as well as for fertilizer. The difference that is attained by using biogas is it is possible to get fuel or light from the process, while at the same time the remaining sludge is a very good fertilizer. Therefore, it is like killing two birds with one stone where instead of using dung for fire only that will consume it, it is possible to get fire, as well as light while using the biogas technology and what remains is a high quality fertilizer. This is something to look at, as it could be new to Ethiopia, as the main talk spiral around availing electricity in the countryside and to do that what is mostly used is hydroelectric power.
Biogas had been in use in China as back as 1975 where there had been a slogan that says “biogas for every household”. The technology was not highly developed as it is now and the findings are, in the latest development there had been an introduction of a low-cost polyethylene tubular digesters that had become popular in countries such as India and many other Asian countries, where anyone who starts using the biogas system would be entitled to get an allowance from the central government. All that is required is as simple as collecting the animal dung and similar waste, mix it with water, leave it to ferment, and the machine will do the rest. The advantage families in third world countries who spend a long time gathering firewood had been tremendous wherever people started using biogas for cooking, as well as for light and heat. The added bonus is the sludge that could be used as a fertilizer and it might help the situation our nation is strapped with. It does not mean it will replace the use of the manmade fertilizers 100 percent that the nation had become heavily dependent on because leaving a land fallow for a year might be out of the question when there is a high number of mouths that need feeding. Nevertheless, it could avail some break where it might be possible to bring down the cost of the particular item that is blamed as the main cause of inflation that is not yet abating.
posted by Ethio-Probe @ 7:11 AM
0 comments
