A photo story from Christian Lamontagne

1. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
A photo story from Christian Lamontagne

2. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
The Southern Region of
Ethiopia (SNNPR),
formerly called Sidamo,
is the one in most need
for trees in Ethiopia.
Canopy coverage is very
limited, and the hilly
setup of the area leads
to severe erosion and
land degradation.

3. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
In the surroundings of
Bokasso, almost 100%
of the farmers’ land is
planted with coffee.
Unfortunately, climate
change badly affects the
coffee production with
prolonged droughts and
heavy rains, especially
during the harvest
period, when cherries
are ripe and fall on the
floor.

4. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
The Bokasso coope-
rative produces one of
the best coffee in East
Africa. The premium
quality of the coffee
beans is world
recognized, but still
productivity is low. The
cooperative is already
engaged in sustainable
activities and willing to
improve the conditions of
coffee farming for their
members.

5. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
A majority of farmers
mainly rely upon coffee
production for their
subsistence. But limited
resources and low coffee
prices do not encourage
farmers to invest in their
coffee fields. Enhancing
the coffee production
resilience in yields and
quality constitute the
best strategy to support
economically the
populations.

6. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
The agroforestry
program launched in
2014 with Pur Projet
supports the coffee
farmers to plant trees in
and around their farms,
to create the best
conditions for coffee
farming. Native tree
species are thoughtfully
intercropped with
coffee, and/or on the
perimeter of the farms
along roads, rivers, etc.

7. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Restoring a more
diversified tree cover will
add important
ecosystemic services for
coffee: shade, soil
enrichment, reduced
erosion, enhanced
pollination, pest
control… This will
contribute to boost the
productivity and maintain
a high quality of coffee.

8. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
In addition to coffee
shade, selected tree
species are planted to
enrich soils (legumi-
nosis) and provide
timber and fruits. The
diversification of
revenues and improved
food sovereignty are
important benefits for
local communities.

9. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
« Existing trees have
been destroyed by this
generation, and climate
change is now affecting
our farms. I planted
trees such as Corsia,
Albizia and Mellizia to
restore good farming
conditions for coffee.
Besides, my plan is to
produce vegetables to
have sufficient food for
my familiy. I hope we will
inspire other farmers to
be strong.»
Dubale Didamo, coffee
farmer

10. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
“ The trees give shade
for coffee, they enrich
soils, they protect from
run off. They help us to
improve our production. I
hope this program will
benefit many farmers,
because if I have
enough food for my
family, it does not make
any sense if my village’s
community doesn’t have
even something to eat.”
Mamud Dawassa, coffee
farmer

11. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Farmers are strongly
mobilized as trees are
badly needed. They all
refer to climate change
and how it threatens the
sustainability of coffee
farming. The plantation
of trees will help them
both to adapt and
mitigate climate change.

12. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Coffee trees are growing
on sloping terrain, where
soil erosion, due to wind
and severe drought
episodes, threatens both
the quantity and quality
of coffee yields. Regular
landslides degrade
cultivation lands and
even destroy houses.
Trees will form an
erosion barrier and help
to fix the soils and
protect the coffee fields
and houses below.

13. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Pur Projet closely
supports the Bokasso
cooperative to improve
the farmers’ knowledge
on agroforestry systems,
planting techniques,
maintenance techniques
for timber or fruit trees.

14. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Seedlings are produced
in local tree nurseries.
They include timber
(cordia, podocarpus,
melizia, albizia) and fruit
trees (avocado, apple).

15. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
The local ecosystem is
relatively temperate, to
the edge of the desert.
At landscape level, its
preservation is vital as it
protects fertile lowlands
which benefit many
families, and a unique
biodiversity.

16. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Farmers expressed their
will to plant the first trees
on Hamoumou and Rako
Mountains, which are
sacred for them. Trees
are purely symbolic
there and the program
makes much sense for
local communities.

17. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Natural sites are of great
importance as there are
many sacred places with
trees. In this region,
justice remains largely
tribal. The tribal council
in charge of judging
contentious cases is
located in an antique
forest with gigantic
trunks.

18. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
“ Our fathers have
indigenous knowledge
and they are used to say
that coffee likes shade
and that trees have to be
planted inside the coffee
parcels. This
agroforestry project will
have positive impacts on
coffee production and
more largely on our
environment, especially
climate change.”
Kefala Ugamo, in charge
of Bokasso cooperative

19. S I D A M O ,
E T H I O P I A
Around 80,000 trees will
be planted in 2015,
benefiting 600 coffee
farmers and their
families. Agroforestry
benefits will last over the
long-term. It is a one-
time investment for
benefits over dozens or
hundreds of year.