The new Atlas of the Ethiopian Rural Economy bridges the gap between knowledge and effective policy formulation for rural development.

In the policymaking realm, information is power. Conversely, the lack of knowledge can seriously hinder the development of effective policies. One important impediment to improved policies and investments for poor and rural people in Africa has been a lack of easy access to data about actual conditions on the ground.

To address this knowledge gap, the Ethiopia Strategy Support Program, a collaborative undertaking of the Ethiopian Development Research Institute and the International Food Policy Research Institute, in close and active partnership with the Central Statistical Agency of Ethiopia, developed the first ever Atlas of the Ethiopian Rural Economy. All three institutions were involved in the conceptualization, creation and production of the atlas.

With 85% of the population in rural areas engaged in agriculture and related activities, it is essential to understand the many dimensions of Ethiopia's rural economy. Using an extensive set of maps, the atlas provides information about rural Ethiopians and their households, living conditions and local economies. Taken together, the maps provide the most profound understanding available of the ways in which agricultural production varies from place to place across the country.

The atlas combines information and analyses from the 2001-2002 survey of Ethiopian agriculture with other data on rural Ethiopia to provide students, educators, policymakers and interested individuals with a better and more up-to-date understanding of the characteristics and economic conditions of the people of rural Ethiopia. No comprehensive set of maps on Ethiopia's agricultural and rural economy has previously been produced for wide distribution.

Although a broad range of information is presented in the atlas, the overriding focus is on the development of effective policies to foster agricultural growth, reduce poverty and achieve sustainable rural development. Ultimately, the atlas will be an important guide for targeting programs and policies that seek to advance social and economic welfare in Ethiopia. The spatial patterns in the maps, for example, provide insights regarding key geographic factors to assist in developing and targeting programs to enhance the productivity and profitability of farmers and herders.

The atlas was launched in June 2006 in Addis Ababa at the conference "Bridging, balancing, and scaling up: Advancing the rural growth agenda in Ethiopia," organized by the Ethiopia Strategy Support Program, an Ethiopia-driven and Ethiopia-owned initiative. By bridging the gap between knowledge and policy on rural development issues, ESSP seeks to enhance policy dialogue among all stakeholders based on solid information and analysis. The ultimate goal is to help improve the lives of Ethiopians.

The atlas will certainly be instrumental in improving the understanding of the spatial dimensions of poverty, the opportunities for economic growth in rural Ethiopia, and the conditions under which Ethiopia's farmers and herders earn their livelihoods. All those working for sustainable development and poverty reduction in Ethiopia will undoubtedly find the atlas to be a key source of information to guide the choice, design and implementation of new strategies to bring about a brighter future for the country and, in particular, for the rural poor.