ABSTRACT
Ethiopia’s economy and the livelihoods of its population are highly dependent on agriculture. In spite of the long history of agricultural practice in the country, the sector is still in its traditional subsistence form while the country would have benefitted a lot in transforming the lives of many given the country’s endowment with immense natural resources. Vast and fertile lands, availability of water bodies and the varied agro-ecological suitability could have an impact in securing food at household and national levels. As compared to the earlier times, agricultural production and productivity have showed vast improvement. However, weak market linkages, environmental degradation, land tenure insecurity, increased cost of agricultural inputs, climate change, low level of awareness and other factors are still weakening the performance of the sector. Mechanized plant and animal production, agro- processing, manufacturing, mining, green energy and tourism can be mentioned as the prominent agricultural investment opportunities in the country. As a result of the present Government plan to attract investors, many foreign and local farms and processing industries are popping up in different corners of the country. This paper is, therefore, aimed at assessing the impacts of the current trend of investment on the land-use practices of the country. Literature, reports and observations were used for the compilation of the paper. The findings of the study showed that, many of the ecological and economically valued land resources are being degraded and polluted by the current trends of the investment ventures. The deleterious and negative ecological impacts of the current investment developments from floriculture, tannery and ash producing industries can be mentioned as an example where environmental impact, sustainable use of land resources and land capability issues have not been considered substantially. If not addressed, this may cause for the improper functioning of land resources and the ecosystem services. Therefore, for the actual realization of the intended investment related benefits; thorough review of existing policies and strategies, ensuring the efficient coordinated functioning of concerned institutions and the creation of a proper land-use planning and management instruments need to be considered if the land resources of the country have to be saved from the negative impacts of the current trends of investment.