Participants at the LIVES stand at the African Post-harvest and Agro-processing Extension Conference and Exhibition at Haile Resorts, Southern Ethiopia (photo Credit :ILRI/ Birhanu Biazin).
The Livestock and Irrigation Value Chains for Ethiopian Smallholders (LIVES) team recently participated in a conference on innovations in post-harvest handling and agro-processing in Africa.
The African post-harvest and agro-processing extension conference and exhibition took place in Hawassa, southern Ethiopia on 24-26, June 2015. Jointly organized by the Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA), the Sasakawa Fund for Extension Education (SAFE) and the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), the conference discussed ways of sustaining post-harvest and agro-processing practices to drive agricultural transformation. It was officially opened by Wondirad Mandefro, State Minister, MoA.
At the conference, LIVES displayed and circulated working papers, production manuals and other publications. New technologies that have been introduced to Ethiopian smallholders through LIVES were also on display including an improved feed chopper, a small-scale portable milking machine, an improved fruit harvesting tool and a small-scale incubator. In addition, LIVES interventions to address post-harvest losses along the value chain were presented for discussion among participants.
At the exhibition, smallholder farmers and post-harvest technology manufacturers showcased a range of technologies, while multinationals such as as Bajaj Process Pack Ltd, Shayashone PLC and VESTERGAARD Ltd, displayed storage, post-harvest and processing technologies. More than 120 policymakers, experts, researchers, agro-processors and other stakeholders from different countries in Africa attended the event.
