Young Entrepreneurs in Honey and Silk project

Dr Ballo Shifa

Dr Shifa Ballo joined icipe since 1995 as a researcher, project manager and Acting Head of icipe Ethiopia Office. He holds an MSc degree in agricultural management (1991) and a PhD (1994) in agricultural economics from Hungary.

Between 1995 and 1997 he was a team leader for the European Union funded tsetse/trypanosomiasis control project in Wolayita Sodo and Ghibe Valley. From 1998 to 2002 he was coordinating the ADC supported integrated program called BioVillage Initiative implemented in Southern Regional State (Gurage Zone). Between 2003 and 2007 he coordinated the Swiss Development Cooperation (SDC) and Biovision Foundation supported community based tsetse/trypanosomiasis rollback initiative, integrated income generating programs (beekeeping) in Gurage Zone (Luke), Jimma Zone (Tolay) and in Asossa of Benshangul Gumuz Region.

Between 2008 and 2010, Dr Shifa was the manager for the icipe/agri-service collaborative EU/TROCIR/CAFOD funded community based adaptive tsetse/trypanosomiasis control project implemented in Gelana Valley of Guji Zone of Oromia Region and Amaro and Burji special Woredas of the Southern Region.

Since 2012 he has been coordinating the Biovision, IFAD and EU supported beekeeping projects implementing in Tolay, Tigray and Southwestern Ethiopia. He has also been involved in the testing and dissemination of the Biovision, DFID and EU funded Push- Pull Technology in Ethiopia to control maize and sorghum Stemborer and Striga weed.

Mr Belayhun Lulseged

Mr Belayhun joined icipe Ethiopia Office in 1997, and he has since worked on various projects being implemented by the Centre in Gurage Zone, Assosa, Keto, Shewa Robit, and more recently in Tolay, focusing on: the control of tse tse flies and trypanosomiasis; malaria; maize stem borers and striga.

Since 2011, he has been managing the icipe community beekeeping project in Tolay, whose major activities are: introducing improved beekeeping technologies; control of bee diseases and pests and testing of bee pollination services. currently he is working in three projects YESH, MoYESH and Biovision beekeeping program manager.

Previously, Mr Belayhun worked for the Tana Beles Development Project as a field officer.

He holds an MSc (2013) in Rural Development from St Mary University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and a BSc (2000) in Agriculture and Rural Development from Alpha University.

He has written scientific publications and co-authored four scientific papers, one working book and five training manuals written in local Ethiopian languages.

Mr Taye Bedaso

Mr Taye is the Impact Assessment and Monitoring and Evaluation Specialist for the Youth Entrepreneurship in Silk and Honey project (YESH) project. The focus of his job will be on developing and implementing M&E frameworks, conduct baseline as well as monitoring surveys, and organize evaluation and impact assessment studies. He reports to YESH project coordinator administratively and to socio-economics and impact assessment head technically.

Bedaso has accumulated about nine years of experience in teaching, research and M&E assignments. His areas of interest are M&E, impact assessment, agricultural value chain development, adaptation to climate change and gender mainstreaming. Previously he had served as lecturer in Mada Walabu University, Oromia Region, Ethiopia, where he not only taught courses but also served as head of the Economics Department. He was also engaged in the University’s research and community support initiatives.

In 2011 he joined the Sasakawa Global 2000 initiative in Ethiopia as Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning and Sharing Program officer during which he managed to institutionalize a results based M&E system. He conducted evaluation studies on strengthening agricultural extension delivery, women empowerment and Purchase for Progress (P4P) projects. In 2014 Bedaso joined the Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) as Monitoring, Learning and Evaluation advisor to Ministry of Agriculture (MoA). In his engagements with the ATA and MoA he developed and implemented a roadmap to establish results based M&E framework in the Ministry. He also led the design and finalization of agricultural sector Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II, 2015-2020).

Bedaso’s research works include Extent and Determinants of Urban poverty: Anthropometric Analysis, Household Vulnerability to Climate Change and Adaptation Options, Impact of Irrigation on Poverty at Household Level, Commercialization of Ethiopian Agriculture: factors and challenges, Analysis of factors affecting the success of model farmers in Ethiopia and Factors that dictate farmers to sell their outputs too early: implication for seasonal price fluctuation.

Bedaso Taye received his first degree in Economics from ArbaMinch University in 2007 and his MSc degree in Resource and Environmental Economics from Addis Ababa University in 2010. Moreover, he attended several high level trainings in M&E and impact assessment; Participatory Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation-M4I at Wageningen University Center for Development Innovation in 2014, Technical Approaches to Impact Evaluation from 3ie and World Bank in 2013, and Result Based Monitoring and Evaluation at the Uganda Management Institute and Danida Fellowship Center in 2015.

Mr Morka Esayas Mulatu

Mr Esayas Mulatu Morka is the Business Development Manager for the Young Entrepreneurs in Honey and Silk (YESH) project. Previously, he was the Agribusiness Development Officer at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT- Ethiopia). The main responsibilities of the position included: facilitating the commercialisation of two wheeled tractors through the private sector; developing business models for smallholder farmers to access the technology; assessing demand for hiring the services; evaluating financial viability of the technology, and developing partnership and collaboration between the value chain actors. Previously, Mr Morka worked for the Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency as Senior Technical Expert for Output Marketing. Prior to this, he held positions as Livelihood Advisor and Small & Medium Enterprise Development Officer at GIZ, and as Value Chain & Financial Services Officer at Mercy Corps.

Mr Morka holds an MBA from Sikkim Manipal University, India; a Postgraduate Diploma in Rural Development from Weitz Centre for Sustainable Development, Israel, and a BSc degree in Industrial Engineering from Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia. His expertise includes agribusiness development, value chain analysis, business model development, enterprise development and facilitation of private sector engagement in agribusiness.

Dr Ayalew Workneh

Dr Ayalew is the Programme Coordinator of the MOre Young Entrepreneurs in Honey and Silk (MOYESH) Programme, and leads a few other projects.

He joined icipe after having served the Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA) on secondment from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) as Director of the Livestock Value Chains. Major responsibilities of the position were: overall direction of the livestock value chains interventions; identification and prioritisation of livestock development interventions; developing and promoting coherent stakeholder participation; facilitation of resource mobilisation, assessing of major capacity gaps and monitoring of performance on interventions.

Prior to this, Dr Ayalew worked for eight years in Papua New Guinea, as the Deputy Director General (Research) of the country's National Agricultural Research Institute, and as Livestock Research and Development Coordinator and Principal Livestock Scientist. Previously, he held positions in the ILRI–Ethiopia office, FARM-Africa and Alemaya University, Ethiopia.

He holds a PhD in animal production and breeding from the Georg-August University of Goettingen in Germany (2000), MSc in animal breeding from Alemaya University in Ethiopia (1992) and BSc (Honours) in animal sciences from Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia (1984).