The development plan of the Federal
Government of Ethiopia emphasized low-cost energy supply as
a prerequisite to the enhancement of industrial and economic
development for the period 1984-1993. Current power planning
studies have estimated Ethiopia's hydropower potential
at 30,000 MW, which greatly exceeds foreseeable domestic
demands. Presently, only 1 percent of the potential is
utilized. The government has therefore initiated the

There are more than 60 million
smallholder farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Declining
soil fertility is a fundamental impediment to agricultural
growth and a major reason for slow growth in food production
in SSA. In Africa, as a result of soil degradation,
irrigated lands may be, on average, 7 percent below their
potential productivity, rain-fed crop lands 14 percent below
their potential and rangelands 45 percent below potential.

This social assessment (SA) is part of
the Sanliurfa and Harran On-farm Development Project in
Turkey, and aims at identifying an appropriate mix of
project inputs to reduce poverty. The objectives of the SA
are to understand the impact of rapid agricultural
modernization on various social groups, according to
ownership criteria, and gender issues, and, to learn how
those benefiting from irrigation, assess the quality of

The Government of Ghana's program
to develop a gender strategy has been supported by the World
Bank. This article is based on a Bank-assisted sector study,
Ghana: gender analysis and policymaking for development. The
Bank team worked closely with Ghanaian Ministries of
Agriculture, Micro-finance, Education, and Health to
identify gender issues and study feasible recommendations.
Along with the government, a broad range of stakeholders

Accounting for around a third of the
1996 Goss Domestic Product (GDP) of US$ 9 billion (second
only to oil), and almost three-fourths of all employment,
agriculture is a dominant sector of the Cameroonian economy.
Also, as in most African countries, poverty in Cameroon is
concentrated in rural areas, with more than 80 percent
(approximately 5.5 million) of all poor people living in
such areas. The Government of Cameroon's objectives

Since 1991, radical changes have taken
place in the policy and institutional environment governing
the agriculture sector in Zambia. Policies of liberalization
and privatization have entailed the replacement of
previously state-supplied agricultural services (notably
credit, inputs supply and agricultural marketing) by private
sector provision. The Agricultural Sector Investment Program
(ASIP), assisted by the World Bank, provides the context for

The livestock sector in Mali accounts
for 43 percent of cattle exports in the Sahel sub-region.
However, while the sub-sector accounted for 28.6 percent of
agriculture's contribution to Gross Domestic Product
(GDP), investment in it amounted to only 10.7 percent of the
total budget allocation to rural development. The African
Financial Community (CFA) devaluation in January 1994
increased the competitiveness of red meat from Sahelian

? This article outlines the role that
the World Bank will play in supporting a modified rural
development strategy for the Sub-Saharan Africa region: The
Bank will be more selective in targeting countries for
assistance in rural development programs, focusing on those
that demonstrate commitment to appropriate agricultural
policy and investment. It will expand its information,
education and communication initiatives to help governments

Located in the heart of Mali, the Office
du Niger (ON) is one of the oldest and largest irrigation
schemes in Sub-Saharan Africa. The French, who began the
scheme in 1932, planned on developing about 1,000,000
hectares over a period of 50 years. The original objectives
were to: 1) supply the French textile industry with a large
share of its needs in cotton; and 2) significantly
contribute to food security for the whole Sahelian region of

Over the past thirty years, most of
Sub-Saharan Africa has seen rapid population growth, poor
agricultural performance, and increasing environmental
degradation. Why do these problems seem so intractable? Are
they connected? Do they reinforce each other? If so, what
are the critical links? This book tests the hypothesis that
these phenomena are strongly interrelated. The finding -
that this nexus is very much at work in Sub-Saharan Africa -

T&V has a high payoff. A new
approach to petroleum exploration. More books for schools,
by A. Buchan, C. Denning, T. Read, D. Lacase, and S. Diop.
Better transport, by Phillip Moeller and S. Carapetis et al.
A new deal for mining. Public examinations: problem or
solution, by Kelleghan and Greaney. Nexus update. A
comprehensive approach to land management, by Walter J.
Lusigi and Bengt A. Nekby. Agriculture research to be revitalized.

This study researched Indigenous
Knowledge Systems (IKS) in agriculture in Zimbabwe's
rural areas, focusing on crop farming in the Tonga of Binga
District in Matebeleland's North Province, and
livestock in the Kalanga tribe of the Plumtree District in
Matebeleland's South Province. The study aimed to
uncover some of the knowledge that indigenous people used to
survive under the harsh climatic and physical conditions of