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In Ethiopia, large-scale agricultural investment (LAI) is promoted to foster adaptation to climate change among smallholder farmers by improving farming conditions and productivity. However, little has been known about this condition so far. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to study the implications of LAI for the capacity for climate change adaptation among smallholder farmers, based on a study conducted in Merti district in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia. An asset-based approach was used to measure the adaptive capacity of smallholders, via data collected from a household survey, undertaken among smallholder households who had, or had not, benefited, from LAI, and supported by key informant interviews and focus group discussions. Descriptive and inferential statistics and qualitative thematic analysis methods were used to analyze the data. The study found that the adaptive capacity of smallholder households was improved under the influence of LAI. LAI motivated and prompted farmers to use technologies that fostered climate change adaption, including the use of irrigation, improved crop varieties, chemical fertilizer, and engagement in alternative sources of income, which improved their food security status. But this technology and knowledge transfer mainly occurred through observation (learning by doing), not by capacity-building. However, both group of smallholders (within and without contact with the LAI) received similar benefits through government rural extension services. Therefore, the paper concludes that scaling up these technologies and alternative income sources could enhance the adaptive capacity of smallholders, but that LAIs should contribute actual technical and financial support as part of benefit-sharing or corporate responsibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study analyzed the patterns and drivers of LULC dynamics in relation to the expansion of large-scale irrigated agriculture in the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia from 1972 to 2016. Aerial photographs (1972), Landsat images (1980, 2000) and SPOT5 satellite images (2016) were analyzed using GIS tools to reveal LULC changes, and documentation, key informant interviews and focus group discussions were used to ascertain the biophysical and socioeconomic implications and drivers of these dynamics. The study revealed that cultivated and rural settlement land, and urban built-up areas had expanded at the expense of forestland, woodland, shrubland and grassland. While an increase in the production of cash crops had brought some benefits to smallholder farmers, such as access to irrigation and modern agricultural inputs and technologies, the unregulated conversion of natural vegetation to cultivated land resulted in a loss of biodiversity, deforestation, and reduction of pasture and firewood. We identified that significant LULC changes in the study area were caused by intersecting biophysical, economic, institutional, technological and demographic factors, which reinforced each other with varying magnitudes at different moments in time. These changes were underpinned by one key driver, that is, government agricultural policies that promoted investment in commercial agriculture for national and export markets. The study shows that understanding the complex interaction between the contributing factors and drivers of LULC change is crucial to inform decision-making and policies, in particular, by directing responses towards the underlying drivers of change rather than only the proximate causes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper explores factors influencing smallholder farmers' attitudes towards integrated soil fertility management (ISFM). ISFM is paramount to improve soil fertility for sustainable agricultural productivity, especially in contexts where smallholder agriculture is an important local livelihood and economic activity, as in many countries of the Global South. Alongside the development and availability of new technologies to enhance soil fertility, smallholder farmers' attitudes towards these innovations in specific contexts are key to determining the extent and outcomes of their uptake. A better understanding of these is thus essential to inform measures to increase ISFM practices among smallholder farmers. This study aimed to assess farmers' attitudes towards ISFM and the factors that determined them based on a case study of the Wanka watershed, northwestern Ethiopia, a major cereal-producing area. Using a mixed methods approach, data obtained from a household survey (146 respondents), focus group discussions, and key informant interviews were analyzed using descriptive statistics and a multiple regression model. The findings revealed that the attitudes of smallholder farmers towards ISFM in the study area were generally positive, as they considered ISFM compatible with agronomic principles and important to increase agricultural productivity sustainably. The extent of farmers' farming experience, the length of time of applying chemical fertilizer, the number of livestock, and the size of plots were found to be significant predictors of attitudes towards ISFM. The study concludes that considering these factors can better inform interventions designed to enhance farmers' choice of ISFM technologies for improved soil fertility management and sustainable crop production in the study area and other contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil organic carbon (SOC) and total nitrogen (TN) stock are key indicators of soil quality in tropical regions; however, their status is often degraded, especially due to massive deforestation in natural forest areas associated with extensive agricultural land use. The aim of this study was to investigate the dynamics of SOC and TN stock in different land-use systems in the Abobo woreda, Western Ethiopia. To analyze their status, 80 disturbed (composite) and 45 undisturbed soil samples were collected from the top 20 cm of soil in five major land-use types: natural forestlands, grasslands, recently developed commercial farmlands, old commercial farmlands, and small-scale cultivated lands. The results showed that SOC stock varied significantly across the different land-use types, with mean stock ranging from 32.23 Mg·ha−1 in recently developed commercial farmlands to 54.54 Mg·ha−1 in natural forestlands. The mean TN stock ranged from 2.54 Mg·ha−1 in recently developed commercial farmlands to 4.63 Mg·ha−1 in natural forestlands. With natural forestlands as a baseline and the duration ranging in age from 15 to 45 years since land-use conversion, the mean annual absolute rates of change in SOC and TN stock loss were 0.49, 1.49, 0.39, and 0.45 Mg·ha−1·yr−1 and 0.05, 0.14, 0.03, and 0.04 Mg·ha−1·yr−1 for grasslands, recently developed commercial farmlands, old commercial farmlands, and small-scale cultivated lands, respectively. The results of this study revealed that soil disturbance during forestland conversion to tillage enhanced the decomposition rate of organic matter in recently developed commercial farmlands. Nevertheless, after agricultural abandonment and vegetation restoration, the SOC and TN stock capacities were enriched in the old commercial farmlands. It is, therefore, important to effectively restore vegetation and implement sustainable land-use management practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Quantifying the recent LULC changes and associated impacts on pastoral and agro-pastoral livelihood systems is important since the effects of LULC changes on environmental resources and human livelihood are not fully understood in our study area. This paper analysed the trend of land use/land cover (LULC) dynamics and its implications on natural resources and human livelihood in the Middle Awash Valley, Central Ethiopian Rift Valley. For the purpose, Landsat imageries of thematic mapper (1987), enhanced thematic mapper (2002) and operational land imager and thermal infrared sensor (2016) were employed and analysed using Remote Sensing and Geographic Information System (GIS) software and techniques, and qualitative data analysis had been performed as well. The results showed that cultivated land expanded at a rate of 2.6% year−1, whereas forestland and grassland shrunk at a rate of 1.2% year−1 and 2.4% year−1, respectively. The invasive Prosopis juliflora has been expanded from 3.7% in 1987 to 37.9% in 2016 at a rate of 1.2% year−1. The introduction of both small- and large-scale commercial irrigation farming and the implementation of villagization programme focused on transforming pastoralists into sedentary lifestyles. Consequently, irrigation farming, launching of villagization, climate variability as in series of droughts, construction of water dam and the rapid expansion of Prosopis juliflora were the major drivers of LULC changes in the study area. Although we found some positive developments such as improvement on infrastructural and social services (e.g. school and domestic water supply), income diversification and ecological benefits from Prosopis juliflora (e.g. saline soil treatment, carbon sequestration and soil erosion control), there were a range of negative impacts resulting from LULC changes in the study area. LULC changes reduced quality of rangeland resources as the ecologically and economically valuable indigenous tree and grass varieties were significantly degraded. As a result, the traditional pastoral livelihood system has been much vulnerable with the LULC dynamism of the study area. Furthermore, the implementation of the villagization programme has brought socioeconomic impacts on the community and challenges on the ecology, e.g. changing productive rangeland to irrigation crop farms. Our research results, thus, suggest the urgent need for relevant policy interventions in support of the pastoral livelihoods and landscapes with the modification in the implementation of villagization as well as irrigation farming programmes and its better management and controlling Prosopis juliflora expansion in the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, sub–Saharan African countries including Ethiopia have largely targeted large-scale agricultural investment (LAI) on the grounds of economic growth, employment and income generation, but with little consideration of its potential impacts on local smallholder farmers. Using evidence from the Central Rift Valley of Ethiopia (CRVE), this study provides an in-depth analysis of the socioeconomic impacts of LAIs, particularly on the local smallholder farmers, based on data collected through a household survey, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. For the purpose, descriptive and inferential statistics and qualitative thematic analysis were used to interpret the data. Our study found that the LAI has many positive socioeconomic benefits to the local communities, as measured by technological transfer, employment opportunity and local infrastructure development. However, those farmers who were able to access LAI had better positive socioeconomic benefits while those who could not access LAI (particularly the smallholder farmers) were disproportionately disadvantaged. Nonetheless, LAI motivated and prompted some farmers to use improved agricultural technologies, including irrigation, better crop varieties, chemical fertilizer and engagement in alternative sources of income such as shopkeeping, selling manufactured products and food and drinks to farm employees and casual employment opportunities within the LAI. This has resulted in improvement of the livelihood status of some farming households. Despite several positive impacts, some negative impacts, such as loss of farmlands, reduced numbers of livestock, increased price of farmland for renting, have disproportionately affected the livelihoods of local smallholder [End Page 59] households. In light of these findings, we conclude that scaling up of agricultural technologies and targeted support to smallholder farmers for alternative income sources (with technical and financial support) could improve their livelihoods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since the 1970s, the Government of Ethiopia has implemented villagization, whereby nomadic pastoralist groups are supported to develop (more) sedentary lifestyles and livelihoods. Villagization has been officially promoted to encourage diversification from livestock herding to agricultural cultivation, and to fulfil basic needs through infrastructure and services. From the late 2000s, villagization was reintroduced for arid and semi-arid regions as a strategy for adaptation to climate change, as part of the country's green growth agenda. The aim of this paper is to evaluate to what extent this phase of villagization has contributed to adaptation strategies among pastoral and agro-pastoral communities, based on an empirical analysis of four villagised sites in the Middle Awash Valley using qualitative data collected between 2014 and 2018. Perceptions and experiences of villagization varied across individuals, households, villages, and districts. While villagization has generally delivered infrastructure and services, and offered income diversification to those able to access irrigated agriculture, its implementation has been partial and uneven, and it has reproduced previous problems of resource scarcity while creating new risks and vulnerabilities. We argue that villagization may play a role in some aspects of adaptation, if programmes address the drivers of livelihood change, and embed equity and rights. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

PURPOSE: Famines and food shortages are one of the most common long time histories of Ethiopia. Hence, malnutrition has been persisted at alarming raters in the country. Moreover, it is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Afar National Regional State of Ethiopia. Specifically, in Amibara and Awash Fentale districts. The anthropometric data were presented on height, weight, MUAC, weight/height/Age and Body Mass Index (BMI) of under-five children. METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive survey was conducted from March 01, 2017 to June 15, 2018. The data was collected by using anthropometric measurement. A multi stage random sampling procedure was applied in order to recruit the required sample size. The data collections were conducted at two selected districts in Afar region by trained interviewers and health care providers. The data were analyzed by using SPSS Version 23. Bivariate analysis between dependent and independent variables was employed. Multivariate analysis was also done to control for possible confounding variable by selecting variable which show statistically significant association (P < 0.05). RESULTS: Out of 410 under five children's anthropometric finding, the majorities (62.7%) of those registered under five children were male and (33.3%) were female. The majority (46.8%) of under five children were less than or equal to 50 cm by their height. Most (54.1%) of under five children were less than or equal to 12.5 cm by their MUAC. It indicated that they were diagnosed with severe malnutrition based on anthropometric measurements. Meanwhile, majority (64%) of under five children were less than 60% their weight/age. Regression analysis result indicated that all of the variables were not significant predictors of BMI for under five children (P > 0.05). Based on ANOVA result, there was significant difference between sex and other predictors (P = 0.031). This finding implies that improvement in food aid and poverty alleviation programs are very important. Based on the finding, it is important to provide high quality and quantity of food. Moreover, less access to assets and health services commonly contributed for malnutrition. Highlighting under five children's malnutrition will help to develop and design future policies and programs in Ethiopia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Drought is a serious issue which might be caused by climate change that could create famine and health problems. Drought reduces air quality, increases fungal infestation, reduces people hand washing, affects mental health, leads to malnutrition by decreasing agricultural production, and increases diseases transmitted by insects. This study aimed to determine and describe community health status through building drought resilience in Ethiopia. METHODS: This review was conducted based on the available peer-reviewed articles that were published from January 2004 to December 2018 Online databases from PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, EMBASE and Google Scholar were searched for studies related to the building drought and community health resilience at different regions of Ethiopia that were published in English language. The search was made by using "Emergency disaster", "prevention", "preparedness", "response", "recovery", "drought", "food insecurity", "coping strategies" and "drought health policy" as keywords. RESULTS: Most of the reviewed articles deal with the impact of climate change on the human health in relation to food security. The associated factors of the impact of drought on food security is basically due to lack of irrigation and farmland, the scarcity of water due to the direct effect of drought, flood, severe soil erosion, livestock dispossession, family size of the household and literacy of the households. Various coping strategies were employed by the households to alleviate the high and continued food insecurity problem such as reducing the number and amount of meal, scrounging cash and grain, searching for off-farm and non-farm jobs, getting food aid, vending of livestock, and partake in food for work programs. CONCLUSION: The findings explored components of the coping strategies to the building resilience create fruitful health conditions for the food insecure household. The effect of agricultural support services as reliance's on drought and community health situation was regarded as a positive outcome. Moreover, the means to get adequate food security strategies in all regions of Ethiopia should be designed. Furthermore, future researches are recommended for finding the best building strategies for each region of Ethiopia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Soil quality (SQ) dynamics assessment vis-à-vis land use/land cover (LULC) and elevation variations in Ethiopia is desirable as elevation impact on land use is highly pronounced. This study examined SQ indicators dynamics across LULC and elevation variations. For this, surface soil samples (0-20 cm) were collected from the recognized LULC categories of different elevations in Wanka watershed, northwestern Ethiopian highlands. Both disturbed and undisturbed soil samples that were taken from three adjacent LULC (natural forest, grazing and cultivated lands) and elevation (2238-2300, 2400-2600, and 2700-2800) classes analysed for the selected physicochemical SQ indicators. Two-way ANOVA, Tukey's multiple comparison test and SQ deterioration index were computed. The impact of LULC and elevation was found significant on key SQ indicators. In cultivated and grazing lands, soil organic matter (SOM) and soil nutrients like total nitrogen declined significantly (p < 0.01). Conversely, bulk density increased significantly (p < 0.01). The divalent basic cations (Ca2+ and Mg2+), cation exchange capacity and pH significantly (p < 0.01) decreased in upper elevation. Synergetic effect of LULC and elevation variations was found significant (p < 0.01) on SOM, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, water content at field capacity and soil particle distribution (silt and clay). Thus, elevation specific land management strategies that improve these SQ indicators need to be emphasized. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• We have developed a soil quality index to assess the interplay of soil quality. • Soil quality indicators in forestlands and human-managed ecosystems were compared. • Soil quality index is one of the most important indicators of soil health. • Soil quality provides a threshold to prevent ecosystems degradation. Soil quality degrades when natural forests are converted to human-managed ecosystems. Limited empirical evidence of such soil quality changes has been observed in tropical sub-humid ecosystems. This study aimed to analyze the impact of land use change on soil quality dynamics in a tropical sub-humid ecosystem in western Ethiopia. To analyze some impacts, 80 composite soil samples (0–20 cm depth) and 45 undisturbed soil samples (0–7 cm depth) were collected from different land use patterns, including natural forests, grasslands, recently developed commercial lands, old commercial farmlands, and smallholder cultivated farmlands. A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed to determine the effect of different land uses on soil quality indicators. The soil quality index (SQI) was used to evaluate the impact of land use on selected soil quality indicators, using the weighted additive SQI method derived from Principal Component Analysis (PCA). Our results showed that certain soil quality indicators, such as soil organic matter, total nitrogen, bulk density, porosity, cation exchange capacity, exchangeable calcium, and magnesium, were significantly degraded when compared to forest soils as a benchmark (at significance levels of P < 0.05, 0.01, and 0.001). Our study concluded that soil organic matter content, pH, field capacity, exchangeable calcium and potassium, available phosphorus, and bulk density could be used as key SQI assessment attributes in tropical sub-humid ecosystems and similar environments. Sustainable land management practices are crucial in enhancing soil quality indicators across different land use systems in tropical sub-humid ecosystems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sugarcane cultivation has been practiced over decades in a semi-arid area of the Ethiopian Rift Valley. This study evaluated the effect of sugarcane cultivation on soil C and N storages. We measured the differences in soil C and N along chronosequence fields. We estimated soil C and N losses associated with land conversion and the rate of changes over time. Results indicated that the soil C accumulation was lower under sugarcane field but slowly approached to never tilled (NT) condition. Land conversion resulted in soil C initial losses predicted to 37 Mg C ha −1 or 58%, which recovered with a net change of 0.35 Mg C ha −1 yr −1 or 0.29% yr −1 . Under the current management practices, the loss in soil C is projected to require a century to reach the sugarcane pre-establishment levels. Land conversion induced soil total nitrogen (TN) initial losses estimated to be 113 kg N ha −1 . However, the predicted net change in soil TN as a function of time appeared to be insignificant. Sugarcane as a direct replacement of native vegetation triggered losses in soil C levels. Yet, sugarcane cultivation as land use option established on marginal lands can have a great potential for soil carbon sequestration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To determine the prevalence, level of severity of potential drug-drug interactions (PDDIs) and the associated factors for PDDIs in hospitalized pediatric patients of Gondar University Hospital. Methods: A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted for a period of 3 months from March to May 2014 in pediatric wards of Gondar University Hospital. Systematic random sampling technique was used to select charts from all pediatric patients' charts with every 7th interval to get sample size of 384. Univariate and multivariate analysis were performed to compute crude odds ratio and adjusted odds ratio respectively. Statistical significance was set at P value < 0.05. Results: A total of 176 (45.8%) patients had at least one PDDI. A total of 393 PDDIs, which were comprised of 283 types of interacting combinations, were identified. Of the total of 393 PDDIs, most were of moderate severity [201 (51%)] followed by minor [152 (39%)] and major severity [40 (10%)]. The most common interacting pairs of major severity were gentamicin + furosemide (6), cotrimoxazole + methotrexate (4) and phenytoin + artemether (4). The occurrence of PDDIs was significantly associated with age and polypharmacy. Conclusions: The study showed that most of the interactions had moderate severity followed by minor severity. Age and polypharmacy were found to show statistically significant association with the occurrence of PDDIs. Due to sensitive nature of pediatrics population, close monitoring is recommended for the detection and management of PDDIs to prevent its negative consequences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Application of models to identify soil erosion processes, estimate sediment accumulations into lakes, technically design best management practices, and monitor and evaluate different management scenarios in the Ethiopian highlands has been growing. However, proper model implementation will require verification of the model against known output parameters. This study investigated the performance and applicability of one such model, Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT). Sequential Uncertainty Fitting-2 (SUFI-2), a SWAT-CUP2012 sub-module computer program, was applied to optimize the parameters of the SWAT using monthly observed sediment yield data at a monitoring site in Maybar experimental watershed, Ethiopia. Thirteen hydrological years were used for model calibration, validation and uncertainty analysis. Multi-objective function statistics: P-factor (23%, 12%), R-factor (0.63, 0.40), Nash–Sutcliffe efficiency, NSE (0.55, 0.53), root mean square error-observations standard deviation ratio (RSR) (0.67, 0.69), coefficient of determination, R 2 (0.55, 0.52), and percent bias, PBIAS (− 14.6%, 0.8%) for calibration and validation, respectively were obtained. The model evaluation statistics suggested that SWAT extremely under-predicted peak sediment loads in both calibration and validation periods. However, according to model evaluation guidelines and performance ratings, modeled sediment yield can be rated as satisfactory. Although the accuracy of modeling of soil erosion processes using SWAT is likely affected by spatial variation of watershed characteristics, and scale of management, among other factors, Maybar calibrated SWAT model do suggest a broad guide: prediction of sediment yield at ungauged watershed with SWAT could be possible under comparable topography, land use, soil, management and climate condition for the purpose of soil erosion assessment, scenario analysis, and recommendation of best management practices to support watershed management initiatives in the Ethiopian highlands. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aimed to determine the spatial variation of topsoil properties as influenced by slope aspects and vegetation types. Three vegetation types and two slope aspects were considered. Disturbed and undisturbed samples were taken from the top soils. A two-way analysis of variance was used to test significant mean differences (α = 0.05). Results showed that contents of bulk density, total porosity, organic matter and exchangeable magnesium were significantly different with changes in slope aspect ( P < 0.05). Textural classes, organic matter, available phosphorus, carbon-to-nitrogen ratio, cation-exchange capacity, per cent base saturation and exchangeable bases demonstrated significant variation among vegetation types ( P < 0.05). The south-facing aspect and the grass vegetation showed higher bulk density but lower organic matter and total porosity. As a remedy for the identified problems, there is a need to undertake plantation of indigenous trees. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The generation of scientific information for improved understating of the physical dynamics of a lake is fundamental for guiding lake stakeholders and managers at the local level to implement best management practices and help design effective management strategies and policies at higher levels. Multitemporal bathymetric information on lakes is very important in hydrology and sediment studies to more clearly indicate environmental changes and to understand the effects of land processes on the hydrology of lakes. Accordingly, the purpose of this study was to map bathymetric charts of Lake Hayq in Ethiopia and to derive morphometric parameters, including depth, volume, area, width and length, and to plot curves illustrating the relationships between these parameters. The bathymetric survey was carried out using a combination of a SonarLite Portable Echo Sounder and Global Positioning System ( GPS) to generate three-dimensional ( XYZ) hydrographic data. Surfer 8.01 and Arc GIS 9.3 software program were used for surface, gridding and morphometric analyses. Comparison of the results of this study with a previous study conducted in 1941 indicated the lake has experienced changes in depth and surface area. To reduce the negative impacts of human-induced activities on the ecohydrology of the lake, and to maintain its ecological integrity, appropriate and integrated lake management practices must be adopted. This will necessitate policy formulation, active lake basin stakeholder involvement and implementation of basin-wide lake management to ensure sustainable use of the lake and its basin resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Smallholder farmers have a deep understanding of their soil fertility status. • Socio-economic, institutional and agro-ecological factors influence land management. • Institutional support and policy should better incorporate these multiple factors. Small-scale agriculture is an important livelihood in sub-Saharan Africa. In the face of land degradation, identifying the constraints to smallholder farmers in improving soil quality is important to inform institutional interventions. While previous policies and studies have concentrated on structural land management practices, less attention has been paid to farmers' choice of land management strategies. This study examines the socio-economic, institutional, and agro-ecological factors that influence smallholder farmers' land management practices, based on a case study of the Wanka watershed in the northwestern highlands of Ethiopia. Household survey questionnaires, key informant interviews and focus group discussions were used to gather data, which were analysed using descriptive statistics and a multinomial logit model. The study revealed that socio-economic factors (number of livestock, household size, plot size, farming experience, off-farm income) had a significant impact on mixed cropping and crop rotation, and the use of chemical fertiliser. Institutional factors (access to credit and extension services) strongly influenced farmers' use of chemical/organic fertiliser and practice of mixed cropping, especially among younger farmers. Agro-ecological differences were also significant, the application of chemical fertiliser alone has decreased, but its practice in combination with crop rotation and drainage ditches increased, at lower elevations. The study concludes that the specific socio-economic circumstances of farmers, agro-ecological conditions of land, and institutional factors, need to be considered in the development of measures and policies that aim to encourage farmers to adopt additional land management practices to enhance sustainable agricultural production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate analysis at relevant time scales is important for water resources management, agricultural planning, flood risk assessment, ecological modeling and climate change adaptation. This study analyses spatiotemporal variability and trends in rainfall and temperature in Alwero watershed, western Ethiopia. Our analysis is focused on describing spatial and temporal variability of rainfall in the study area including detection of trends, with no attempt at providing meteorological explanations to any of the patterns or trends. The study is based on gridded monthly rainfall and maximum and minimum temperature data series at a resolution of 4 × 4 km which were obtained from the National Meteorological Agency of Ethiopia for the period 1983–2016. The study area is represented by 558 points (each point representing 4 × 4 km area). Mean annual rainfall of the watershed is > 1600 mm. Annual, June–September (Kiremt), March–May (Belg) rainfall totals exhibit low inter-annual variability. Annual and October-February (Bega) rainfalls show statistically significant increasing trends at p = 0.01 level. May and November rainfall show statistically significant increasing trends at p = 0.01 level. March shows statistically significant decreasing trend at p = 0.1 level. The mean annual temperature of the watershed is 25 °C with standard deviation of 0.31 °C and coefficient of variation of 0.01 °C. Mean annual minimum and maximum temperatures show statistically non-significant decreasing trends. Bega season experienced statistically significant deceasing trend in the maximum temperature at p = 0.01 level. The year-to-year variability in the mean annual minimum and maximum temperatures showed that the 2000s is cooler than the preceding decades. Unlike our expectations, annual and seasonal rainfall totals showed increasing trends while maximum and minimum temperatures showed decreasing trends. Our results suggest that local level investigations such as this one are important in developing context-specific climate change adaptation and agricultural planning, instead of coarse-scale national level analysis guiding local level decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Assessment of soil loss rates is crucial to sustainably enhance the benefits of land resources and diminish the adverse impacts of land degradation thereby areas requiring immediate soil erosion management practices can be identified. The study aimed to examine the impacts of land cover dynamics on the spatiotemporal patterns of erosion hotspots. RUSLE factors were produced using GIS and remote sensing techniques.Results: The RUSLE model adapted to Ethiopian conditions was run for 2004 and 2014 where input data layers were overlaid. The results of the model showed clear patterns of changes characterized by gradual shifting of one erosion soil loss severity class into next higher class. There was a net increase in the total soil loss largely under the very high, low and very low soil loss severity classes by 8%, 21% and 9% despite a decline in other severity classes, respectively. It also revealed that more than two-third of the catchment has experienced soil losses rates higher than the tolerable value reported for Ethiopia over which agriculturists should be concerned.Conclusions: Therefore, the observed soil loss rate and sediment yield in the study catchment would lead to further ecological deterioration unless site-specific participatory watershed management practices are employed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Land degradation often results in poor soil quality in many parts of Ethiopia, including the study area. To address this issue and promote sustainable land management practices, various land use and management methods (LUMMs) have been implemented. However, little information is available regarding how these management practices influence overall soil quality dynamics of the study area. This study aimed at evaluating soil quality dynamics in the Urago micro-watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia, under major LUMMs: barren land (BL), grassland (GL), established farm boundary (EFB), restored degraded land (RDL), and stone-supported soil bund (SSB). Forty-five disturbed and fifteen undisturbed soil samples were collected from the ploughed soil layer (0-20 cm) of each LUMM and analysed for selected physicochemical properties to be used as indicators of soil quality. Principal component analysis and multiple correlation were used to select the minimum data set (MDS) to evaluate the overall soil quality index (SQI). The MDS included SOC, clay content, exchangeable Mg 2+ , and available P, which could replace other indicators for assessing the overall soil quality dynamics of the study watershed. The result showed notable variations in particle-size fractions, soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (TN), available P (av. P), and exchangeable Na + , K + , and Mg 2+ levels among the LUMMs. RDL had higher sand and silt contents than SSB, whereas SSB had higher clay content compared to RDL, GL, and BL. GL, RDL, and EFB showed significantly higher levels of SOC, TN, and av. P, respectively, compared to other LUMMs. The obtained SQI showed that GL had the highest score (0.847), followed by SSB (0.703), RDL (0.701), EFB (0.644), and BL (0.628). This underscores the significance of stone-supported soil bund and restored degraded land as an efficient management method to enhance soil quality and agro-ecosystem through conserving soil and encouraging sustainable farming practices., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.)