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The socioeconomic and environmental implications of land grabbing in Sheka zone, southwestern regional state, Ethiopia

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  • Getaneh Haile Shoddo

    (Jigjiga University)

Abstract

This study examines the impact of large-scale investment in agriculture on forest ecology in the Sheka zone of southwestern Ethiopia. Using remote sensing and geographic information system techniques as well as ethnographic methodology, this study is aimed at (i) identifying and examining cases of “investment agriculture” in rural communities in Sheka zone and (ii) investigating the impacts of these activities on the traditional sacred forest (GUDO) and economic (KOBO) forest by using geospatial techniques. From 1985 to 2023, the study identified two distinct types of alteration (conversion and alteration) as well as four primary land-use categories: dense forest; open forest; agricultural land; and settlement. The study also detected a significant increase in the rate of land-use and land-cover change in Masha and Anderacha districts, Sheka Forest, and the southwestern regional state from the period 1985 to 2023. The study showed that the rapid growth of agriculture on forest land has had a huge effect on the change in forest cover. The rate of forest cover changes in the area has been steadily increasing in the last two decades. This study demonstrates how the accelerating trend of investment in agriculture is shaping ecological change in the region through an analysis of the political economy at the international and domestic levels.

Suggested Citation

  • Getaneh Haile Shoddo, 2024. "The socioeconomic and environmental implications of land grabbing in Sheka zone, southwestern regional state, Ethiopia," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 26(11), pages 29745-29774, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:endesu:v:26:y:2024:i:11:d:10.1007_s10668-023-03862-1
    DOI: 10.1007/s10668-023-03862-1
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Klaus Deininger & Derek Byerlee & Jonathan Lindsay & Andrew Norton & Harris Selod & Mercedes Stickler, 2011. "Rising Global Interest in Farmland : Can it Yield Sustainable and Equitable Benefits?," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 2263.
    2. Ward Anseeuw & Mathieu Boche & Thomas Breu & Markus Giger & Jann Lay & Peter Messerli & Kerstin Nolte, 2012. "Transnational land deals for agriculture in the global south," Post-Print hal-02875924, HAL.
    3. Bekele, Adugna Eneyew & Drabik, Dusan & Dries, Liesbeth & Heijman, Wim, 2022. "Resilience of Ethiopian Agropastoral Households in the Presence of Large-Scale Land Investments," Ecological Economics, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    4. Ward Anseeuw & Mathieu Boche & Thomas Breu & Markus Giger & Jann Lay & Peter Messerli & Kerstin Nolte, 2012. "Transnational land deals for agriculture in the global south," Post-Print hal-02875924, HAL.
    5. Woods, Kevin M., 2020. "Smaller-scale land grabs and accumulation from below: Violence, coercion and consent in spatially uneven agrarian change in Shan State, Myanmar," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 127(C).
    6. Ward Anseeuw & Mathieu Boche & Thomas Breu & Markus Giger & Jann Lay & Peter Messerli & Kerstin Nolte, 2012. "Transnational land deals for agriculture in the Global South," Post-Print hal-02875921, HAL.
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