ATA, partners to deliver Livestock and COVID-19 information to farmers

The Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA), in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), Ethio Telecom and Ethiopian Public Health Institute, has incorporated and deployed livestock advisory and COVID 19 health advisory contents on its 8028 Farmers Hotline. The new contents are currently available in five local languages (Amharic, Afan Oromo, Tigrigna, Wolaytigna and Sidamigna).
According to United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO, 2018), the livestock sector where about 1.3 billion people are dependent on for their livelihood contributes to 40 percent of Global agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Ethiopia’s livestock is one of the largest in Africa, contributing nearly 20 percent of the country’s GDP, and 15 percent of export earnings (FAO, 2019). The livestock sub-sector supports the livelihoods of about 80 percent of rural people in Ethiopia.
“Farmers across Ethiopia should have easy access to crucial and relevant information for them to make informed decisions regardless of their locations. Moreover, they should also have updates regarding the current pandemic that is challenging the world so that they can protect themselves, their families as well as their community. Hence, we have decided to team up with our partners to ensure delivery of important and up-to-date livestock and COVID-19 information to our smallholder farmers using 8028 farmers toll-free hotline services in a way they can easily access it.” ATA CEO Khalid Bomba said.