POULTRY

Poultry Production by Agulae Women’s Group

One of IPADA’s projects in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia is located in Agulae Town, Tsira Wonberta Woreda (District), Eastern Zone. IPADA works with a group of 72 female-headed, low-income households (comprising a total of 360 family members) who are striving to re-engage in poultry production and establish an orchard with fruit trees, fodder plants, and other crops.

BACKGROUND

Prior to 2020, the 72 women had formed a cooperative known as Selam Derho Misray Hibret Sira Mahber (Selam Poultry Farm Cooperative) with external support and succeeded in significantly improving their livelihoods. However, during the devastating war in the Tigray Region from 2020 to 2022, they lost everything. Eritrean soldiers reportedly looted and destroyed the poultry farm. Although the women later attempted to reorganize and resume poultry production on a small scale, disease outbreaks caused the loss of their chickens. Nevertheless, the group remained united, committed to one another, and determined to rebuild when the opportunity arose.

EXISTING INITIATIVE

The Chairman of the IPADA Board brought the concerns of the Agulae women’s group to the attention of IPADA, which led to a field visit to Agulae. During discussions with the group’s leaders, IPADA was requested to support the women in re-engaging in poultry production and developing orchards on their premises, which cover approximately 2,400 square meters of land.

The existence of this initiative, the demonstrated commitment of the women, the seriousness of the challenges they had faced, and the availability of potential partners for collaboration encouraged the IPADA delegation to approve the request and support the group.

COLLABORATION

The Agulae Women’s Group project was implemented through a collaborative partnership involving IPADA (Ethiopia), the Allegro Foundation (Spain), Hambre Cero (Spain), and the Tsira Wonberta Woreda Administration, along with two of its sector offices in Ethiopia. Prior to the commencement of project activities, a formal project agreement was signed among the local partners.

Responsibilities were shared among the partners according to their respective capacities. IPADA and the Allegro Foundation secured the project’s financial resources (€4,797), with part of the funding provided by Hambre Cero. The Tsira Wonberta Woreda Administration provided technical and logistical support, while the women’s group actively participated in the procurement of materials and the mobilization of labor required for project implementation.

ACTIVITIES AND RESULTS

The activities undertaken through this collaboration included the maintenance of the chicken house, storage facilities, electrical lines, and water lines; procurement of materials for the poultry farm and watershed management activities; construction of a water tank and installation of water pipes and fittings; fencing of the cooperative’s premises using barbed wire and thorny seedlings; and biological soil and water conservation activities, including the production of fruit trees, fodder crops, and vegetables. In addition, there was a plan to purchase chickens and poultry feed. To date, all planned activities have been successfully completed.

SUSTAINABILITY

Following the launch of the program by IPADA and its partners, another NGO, Tiwaf (Bihabar Mis Africa), provided €10,480 for the purchase of chickens and poultry feed. Furthermore, the Tsira Wonberta Woreda Administration provided financial support for the construction of a modern chicken house.

In addition to the demonstrated competence and commitment of the women’s group, the additional support secured from these two sources will contribute significantly to the sustainability of the project. The diversification of income-generating activities through poultry production, the planned dairy farming, and orchard development is also expected to enhance long-term sustainability.

FUTURE PLAN

The women’s group now seeks support to acquire dairy cows, strengthen their fencing, obtain vehicles for transporting goods, install a solar-powered or generator-driven water pumping system to draw water from the river, and expand the orchard.

IPADA is actively seeking potential donors to support these initiatives and further strengthen the livelihoods of the Agulae women’s group.