A new pilot program has been launched in Addis Ababa, aiming to replicate the success of a previous 2SCALE partnership (concluded in 2017) that helped a vegetable farmers’ cooperative introduce high-quality branded products for urban markets. The pilot, led by the Berhane Bemercato consumer cooperative union, runs from April to November 2018.
The pilot fits well with the Ethiopian government’s strategy (based partly on the 2SCALE partnership with Meki Batu), which is to improve food accessibility for low-income urban households by linking farmer cooperatives with consumer associations.
2SCALE
helped link the Birhan Bemercato consumers cooperative union to three farmer
unions – Timret for green vegetables, Liben and Robe Berga for potatoes (the
potato unions already work with 2SCALE). Project support will help Birhan Bemercato
upgrade their retail outlets in Addis, and develop supply contracts with the
other three unions. Other partners include the Federal Cooperative Agency, Addis Ababa Cooperative Agency, Worabe University and Melkassa Agricultural Research Center.
A design workshop (April, in Alemgena town) brought together representatives from the Birhan Bemercato and Timret unions, several producer and consumer cooperatives, and government cooperative agencies. Workplans and budgets have been agreed. Training programs on vegetable production have begun with the Timret union.
Our goals: by November, four retail outlets refurbished and branded; 200 tons of green vegetables and potatoes, supplied by 600 farmers, sold to 6,000 BoP customers in Addis.