Ethiopia

The Persian land reform, both in its successes and failures, has lessons for other developing countries, not least Ethiopia. There are many similarities between the two countries. But there are also differences. Both are monarchies, and in both the head of state plays a key role in the government of the country. The Ethiopians and the Persians are both an ancient and proud people. Ethiopia and Iran are both enormous countries with a low population density. Both are characterized by immense variety, climatically, physically, in the different peoples which inhabit the country, and in their social structure. Both have frontier provinces with a population the same on both sides of the border. In both control by the central government of the outlying areas is fairly recent. Their land tenure systems have some resemblances, but that of Ethiopia is much more complex. Farming in both until recent times was mainly subsistence farming. Both have, on the whole, a robust and hard-working peasantry. Both have a large semi-nomadic population as well as a settled population. In both the vast majority of the population derive their livelihood from the land. Both have problems of soil erosion. Drought is common to both. But Ethiopia is much more favourably situated than Iran in these two respects: it has a much higher rainfall over most of the country and, on the whole, better soil conditions. But here perhaps the similarities end

Agriculture · Agroforestry · Archaeology · Developing country · Development economics · Economic growth · Economics · Frontier · Geography · Government (linguistics) · Land reform · Land tenure · Livelihood · Population · Socioeconomics · Sociology · State (computer science) · Subsistence agriculture · African history and culture analysis · Agriculture, Land Use, Rural Development · Demography · Land Rights and Reforms

• Economic history of Ethiopia, 1800-1935

  Richard Pankhurst•Economic history of Ethiopia,…•1968

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• Land Tenure on the Eritrean Plateau

  Open Access•F Nadel, Stan Nadel et al.•Africa•1946

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