In the 2010/11 budget year the Gambella regional state launched its villagization program. On the other hand the resource rich Gambella region attracted huge interests from domestic and foreign investors for agricultural investment.
These led some pundits to draw parallel between the two courses of events. They accuse the federal and regional governments of forceful eviction of locals from their farmland to make way for investors.
The federal government and the regional state however categorically dismiss any link between the villagization program and the agricultural investment activities underway in the region.
“There is no land given to investors dislocating a farmer from his or her farmland,” Koat Thiyang Gew, the director general of Gambella Investment Agency, said denying any correlation between the two. “Most of the investors engaged in agricultural investment received land three or four years ago, before the launching of the villagization program.”
With an estimated area of about 25,802 sq. kilometers, the sparsely populated region of Gambella has a population size of around 307,000 people, according to the 2007 population census. The pastoralist and semi-pastoralist society of Gambella live in scattered settlements along riversides.
According to the villagization action plan the program aims at avoiding vulnerability due to riverside settlements and provision of access to socio-economic infrastructures including schools, health posts, water schemes and roads for the society.
The regional state claims huge success in its villagization program which has a life span of three years targeting 45,000 people.
“For the first year alone we targeted 15,000 beneficiaries,” said regional vice president Goaner Yer Zuor. “But we surpassed our target by resettling 20,000 households to different weredas in the region”.
The vice president attributes the success to the ‘overwhelming’ willingness of the people to be included in the program.
Pibol Garkot, a mother of five, is one such example. She denies any forceful eviction. She has received four hectares of arable land and says she has greatly benefited from the villagization program.
“With the help of my community I am now cultivating the land given to me,” said Pibol, who lost her husband four years ago.
However critics say local communities are being forced to give way to domestic and foreign investors leasing large areas of land for agricultural production.
“People familiar with Gambella’s topography know very well where communities live and where lands are being leased to the investors,” said director general of the region’s investment agency. He argued that none of the lands given to investors were inhabited by communities.
Gambella, located some 770 km from the capital, is endowed with rich natural resources with Akobo, Baro, Alwero and Gilo rivers flowing through it. The fertile soil has made the region an ideal location for agricultural investments attracting big international companies.
Over the past three years six Indian, one Chinese and Saudi Arabian companies have leased a total of 225,012 hectares of land in Gambella from the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) with a combined registered capital of over 46.3 billion birr. These companies plan to produce oils seeds, rice, sugarcane, cotton, cereals, and tea.
Such acquisition of lands by foreign companies has ignited claims of ‘land grab’ in Gambella. The regional state however denies such claims.
“It is baseless,” argues Goaner. “Lands are given to investors on a lease basis in accordance with the country’s agricultural development policy.”
The country’s agricultural development policy prohibits the leasing of rural farm lands which are included for future urbanization, protected areas including national parks and forests, and mining and social practice sites. Conducting environmental impact assessment is also a mandatory.
According to a joint study conducted by the MoA and the Gambella regional state a total of 1.2 million hectares of agricultural land is identified for lease to potential investors.
The regional state, which has the mandate to administer plots of land below 5,000 hectares, has so far leased over 190,000 hectares for 296 domestic investors until issuance of investment license was temporarily suspended.
“We are working with the federal government to set a clear criterion and entertain investors who are capable of utilizing the land for agricultural productions,” Koat told WIC. “We are also conducting surveys to identify idle investors.”
According to the director general the agency has revoked the investment license of 29 idle domestic investors in Gok, Fugnido and Lare weredas.
The big international companies such as karaturi Agro Products Plc, Ruchi Agri Plc and Saudi Star Agricultural Development that leased 100,000, 25,000 and 10,000 hectares of land respectively, have already began operations.
Huge agricultural machineries, camp constructions and nursery plantations are witnessed on these farmlands which once were empty grasslands with trees seen scattered.
The regional administration is optimist that early signs in job creation for the locals, knowledge transfer and betterment of social services hold great promise for the country in general and the region in particular.
“Whether you see it in light of the agricultural development policy that aims to double the country’s agricultural productivity, the growth and transformation plan (GTP) or the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the activities so far are promising,” Koat noted.