This document summarizes the experience of establishing a web portal on Ethiopian agriculture through the Ministry of Agriculture and IPMS. It discusses how the portal aims to improve access to information, bridge knowledge gaps, and create an online repository of agricultural knowledge in Ethiopia. Key steps included developing infrastructure, building capacity, designing the Ethiopian Agriculture Portal (EAP) website, and promoting its use. The EAP provides Ethiopia-specific agricultural information, includes local language content, and targets researchers, extension workers, and farmers through knowledge centers. Challenges addressed maintaining up-to-date content and ensuring sustainability through internet access, human resources, and incentives for contributors.

1. A WEB Portal on Ethiopian Agriculture:
Experience of IPMS and MoA
Fanos Mekonnen
Presented at the 19th Ethiopian Society of
Animal production Annual Conference
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 15-17 December 2011

2. Improve access to information on value
chain development

3. Bridging the Gap
‘it’s about time that we, those of us
involved in the agricultural
sector, manage the in-house
knowledge we have on Ethiopian
agriculture’

4. Knowledge management
‘creating an environment which encourages
Knowledge to be:
created, shared , learnt, enhanced,
organized and utilized in and outside of an
organization.’

5. through producing
...a comprehensive, accurate, reliable and
one stop source of information about
Ethiopian agriculture

6. How?
Use ICT as a means for availing information
on agriculture development and develop a
web portal
Set up ‘knowledge centers’ that facilitate
access of the web portal and other digital
information sources

7. Result: KM framework developed
National Agricultural Information
Resource Centre (NAIRC)
1. Infrastructure
2. Capacity development
3. Design and develop the Ethiopian
Agriculture portal
4. Promote the web portal for
increased usability

8. Infrastructure

9. Capacity Development
Capacity building of MoA human resource
• Abroad- MSc level
• On the job training on server
management, networking and
software

10. EAP was developed and deployed
With a web interface of: simple, easy to
use & maintain, attractive, ability to scale
up & sustain
And also with complex and dynamic
database

11. www.eap.gov.et

12. EAP is unique because…
• Focus Mainly on Ethiopia-specific
agricultural information
• Information sources in local languages are
available
• Information in fewer circulation are
scanned

13. Researchers
EAP targets large audience

14. Use Knowledge centers to avail the
EAP in districts, zones and regions
Dial Up, Broadband,
CDMA / EVDO
Offline Versions
of EAP

15. Promotion- through
posters, flyers, seminars
, workshops….

16. Documentation

17. Documentation cont.

18. Lessons and challenges
Technology catches up on you and
leaves you behind, so don’t worry if
you're e too early!
Smooth partnership and collaboration
from the START is very crucial

19. Lessons and challenges cont ...
Proper incentives for contributors and
content managers is crucial for
sustainable contribution
An agricultural web portal requires a
team of content managers for up-to-
date and dynamic information and
knowledge sharing

20. Major factors for Sustainability of EAP
Internet
Content
human resource with
the required capacity

21. www.eap.gov.et
eagriportal@gmail.com