Prospects of Transforming Subsistence Agriculture into Sustainable Livelihoods; A case-study of the Ribb sub-Catchment, Ethiopia.

Abstract: This study assesses the importance of agricultural transformation in achieving sustainable livelihood in rural Ethiopia. By focusing on the different agricultural transformation components, the study analyse different farming typologies at household level. Through the process of smallholder commercialization, households can transform into more desired farm typology which can assist them to achieve food security and reduce poverty. Based on households production objective, the result suggests that households in the study area belong to four major farm typology i.e., below-subsistence, subsistence, constant improving and commercial level farm typologies. By applying an ordered logit regression model, the variables having high significance level and determine households to transform from lower farm typology (below-subsistence level) to higher (commercial level) are topography, livestock holdings and irrigation. Farm land size, land fragmentation and non-farm income are also determining factors in smallholder agricultural transformation. In addition, the result show that weak institutions, poor access to markets and credit, inadequate infrastructure, poor soil fertility and land degradation have constrained households to transform to smallholder commercialization.