Person:
Yirga, C.

Loading...
Profile Picture
Email Address
Birth Date
Research Projects
Organizational Units
Job Title
Last Name
Yirga
First Name
C.
Name
Yirga, C.

Search Results

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7
  • Wheat seed demand assessment assisted by genotyping in Ethiopia
    (Cambridge University Press, 2023) Habte, E.; Yirga, C.; Jaleta, M.; Tesfaye, K.; Bekele, A.; Erenstein, O.
    Publication
  • Erratum: Author Correction: Ethiopia's transforming wheat landscape: tracking variety use through DNA fingerprinting (Scientific reports (2020) 10 1 (18532))
    (Nature Publishing Group, 2023) Hodson, D.P.; Jaleta, M.; Tesfaye, K.; Yirga, C.; Beyene, H.; Kilian, A.; Carling, J.; Disasa, T.; Alemu, S.K.; Daba, T.; Misganaw, A.; Negisho, K.; Alemayehu, Y.; Badebo, A.; Abeyo Bekele Geleta; Erenstein, O.
    Publication
  • Ethiopia’s transforming wheat landscape: tracking variety use through DNA fingerprinting
    (Nature Publishing Group, 2020) Hodson, D.P.; Jaleta, M.; Tesfaye, K.; Yirga, C.; Beyene, H.; Kilian, A.; Carling, J.; Disasa, T.; Alemu, S.K.; Daba, T.; Alemayehu, Y.; Badebo, A.; Abeyo Bekele Geleta; Erenstein, O.
    Publication
  • Misidentification by farmers of the crop varieties they grow: lessons from DNA fingerprinting of wheat in Ethiopia
    (Public Library of Science, 2020) Jaleta, M.; Tesfaye, K.; Kilian, A.; Yirga, C.; Habte, E.; Beyene, H.; Abeyo Bekele Geleta; Badebo, A.; Erenstein, O.
    Publication
  • Smallholders’ coping mechanisms with wheat rust epidemics: lessons from Ethiopia
    (Public Library of Science, 2019) Jaleta, M.; Hodson, D.P.; Abeyo Bekele Geleta; Yirga, C.; Erenstein, O.
    Crops are variously susceptible to biotic stresses–something expected to increase under climate change. In the case of staple crops, this potentially undermines household and national food security. We examine recent wheat rust epidemics and smallholders’ coping mechanisms in Ethiopia as a case study. Wheat is a major food crop in Ethiopia widely grown by smallholders. In 2010/11 a yellow rust epidemic affected over one-third of the national wheat area. Two waves of nationally representative household level panel data collected for the preceding wheat season (2009/10) and three years after (2013/14) the occurrence of the epidemic allow us to analyze the different coping mechanisms farmers used in response. Apart from using fungicides as ex-post coping mechanism, increasing wheat area under yellow rust resistant varieties, increasing diversity of wheat varieties grown, or a combination of these strategies were the main ex-ante coping mechanisms farmers had taken in reducing the potential effects of rust re-occurrence. Large-scale dis-adoption of highly susceptible varieties and replacement with new, rust resistant varieties was observed subsequent to the 2010/11 epidemic. Multinomial logistic regression models were used to identify the key factors associated with smallholder ex-ante coping strategies. Household characteristics, level of specialization in wheat and access to improved wheat seed were the major factors that explained observed choices. There was 29–41% yield advantage in increasing wheat area to the new, resistant varieties even under normal seasons with minimum rust occurrence in the field. Continuous varietal development in responding to emerging new rust races and supporting the deployment of newly released resistant varieties could help smallholders in dealing with rust challenges and maintaining improved yields in the rustprone environments of Ethiopia. Given the global importance of both wheat and yellow rust and climate change dynamics study findings have relevance to other regions.
    Publication
  • Wheat varietal change and adoption of rust resistant wheat varieties in Ethiopia from 2009/10 to 2013/14
    (CIMMYT, 2018) Tolemariam, A.; Jaleta, M.; Hodson, D.P.; Alemayehu, Y.; Yirga, C.; Abeyo Bekele Geleta
    This study tracks wheat varietal adoption by farmers in Ethiopia from 2009/10 to 2013/14 and was based on two nearly identical national wheat variety adoption studies undertaken by EIAR and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) over a four-year period. A total of 2,096 households were surveyed in 2009/10 and 1,921 (all from the preceding survey) in 2013/14. Three potentially significant factors influenced Ethiopian wheat farmers during the four-year period between surveys. First, in 2010/11 one of the most devastating stripe (yellow) rust epidemics in recent times hit many of Ethiopia’s wheat growing regions. Second, on-going investments by national and international organizations helped to develop, promote, and popularize improved rust resistant wheat varieties. Third, a new stem rust race (race TKTTF) was detected in Ethiopia for the first time in 2012. Forty-two percent of the surveyed households were affected by the 2010/11 stripe rust epidemic, and 40% of the affected households discontinued using the old wheat varieties and replaced them with alternative varieties in the next production season. Survey results showed a substantial shift in varietal use over the four-year period. Previously dominant cultivars 'Kubsa' and 'Galema' became highly susceptible to stripe rust in 2010/11 and declined in area share. These two varieties alone accounted for 29.5% of the total wheat area surveyed in 2009/10. By 2013/14, they only accounted for 18% of the total wheat area surveyed (with 'Galema' accounting for only 1.4%). Varieties considered rust resistant (namely; 'Digalu', 'Kakaba', 'Danda’a', 'ET-13', 'Pavon-76' and 'Mada Walabu') occupied 47% of the total wheat area surveyed in 2013/14. The biggest area increases were recorded for the new rust resistant varieties 'Digalu', 'Kakaba', and 'Danda’a'. Most notable was the increase in the area planted to ‘Digalu’, which alone covered 27.1% of the wheat area surveyed in 2013/14 (vs. only 2.1% in 2009/10). The shift to growing ‘Digalu’ was most pronounced in the central and southern regions of Oromia and the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples’ Region (SNNPR), but increased cultivation was also recorded in the northern regions of Amhara and Tigray. The main reason for expanding cultivation of ‘Digalu’ was its resistance to stripe rust. Most of the overall change in varieties’ area coverage was observed in hot to warm sub-humid lowland (SH1) agro-ecologies, followed by tepid to cool humid mid-highland (H2) agro-ecologies; both are conducive environments for rust development and occurrence. Reported total average wheat yields showed a modest and non-significant increase of 3% in 2013/14 (1.75 t/ha) compared to 2009/10 (1.70 t/ha). However, despite rising input costs over the four-year period, wheat production significantly increased the average net income of the surveyed farmers: 5,339 Birr/ha in 2013/14, compared with 4,320 birr/ha in 2009/10. The current comparative study illustrates the widespread and rapid turnover of wheat varieties within the four-year period. A major stripe rust epidemic in 2010/11 was undoubtedly a key driver of change, but effective promotion and widespread availability of seed of alternative rust resistant varieties were also important. Recent investments to support varietal development and the promotion of rust resistant varieties undoubtedly played a role in making rapid varietal change possible. Wheat farmers in Ethiopia benefited from the varietal changes with productivity gains and increasing incomes. However, the risk of over-relying on a mega variety protected by single major gene resistance --‘Digalu’ in this instance-- in the rust prone Ethiopian farming system was clearly revealed. While maintaining good resistance against the prevailing stripe rust and Ug99 stem rust races, ‘Digalu’ is now highly susceptible to TKTTF, the latest stem rust race to be detected in Ethiopia. As a result, replacement of ‘Digalu’ is a high priority. Rust epidemics are a driving force for the replacement of susceptible varieties. The current study shows that rapid varietal replacement is possible in Ethiopia; however, it must be done in a concerted, coordinated, and strategic manner. Emphasis should be placed on ensuring that a genetically diverse range of varieties is popularized and put in the hands of farmers. As much as possible, a range of durable, race-nonspecific rust resistant varieties should continue to be developed and deployed, while avoiding single major gene-based resistance. These rust resistant varieties should be targeted to the highest rust prone agro-ecologies. Continuous monitoring of the rust populations in Ethiopia and the surrounding region is essential to ensure that new disease threats are detected as soon as possible and important races are used for screening by breeding programs to enable testing and development of new, improved, resistant varieties.
    Publication
  • Land ownership and technology adoption revisited: improved maize varieties in Ethiopia
    (Elsevier, 2018) Zeng, D.; Alwang, J.; Norton, G.; Jaleta, M.; Shiferaw, B.; Yirga, C.
    The lack of land ownership can discourage agricultural technology adoption, yet there is scarce evidence of the impact of land rental contracts on the adoption of improved crop varieties in developing countries. The current study investigates such impact using a nationally representative survey of Ethiopian maize farmers. In contrast to many previous studies, we show in a simple model that cash-renters are as likely to adopt improved maize varieties as owner-operators, while sharecroppers are more likely to adopt given that such varieties are profitable. Empirical analysis reveals a significant impact of sharecropping on improved maize variety adoption, and no significant impact from cash-rental, lending support to the above hypotheses. These results imply that improvements in land rental markets can potentially enhance household welfare through crop variety adoption in agrarian economies where land sales markets are incomplete or missing.
    Publication