Ethiopia wants to double its agricultural production. The Netherlands support the Ethiopian government. The current focus is on the integrated development of a new horticultural and floricultural area north of Hawassa. In the meantime, the Dutch embassy is having a critical dialogue with Ethiopia and helping the Ethiopian government to start a conversation with its discontented population.

The activities near Hawassa, about 275 km south of Addis Abeba, might receive support this time round. Niek Bosmans, Counsellor for Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality at the Dutch embassy in Ethiopia, explains that it concerns a 1,500-ha area. “It’s situated 1,600 m above sea level, not far from Lake Hawassa. There used to be a state company here, so the land is owned and used by the government. The large plot is divided by a ridge, so it’s actually split up into two parts, one of 1,000 ha and the other one of 500 ha.”