Nonfarm sector development in ruralEthiopia is central to generating employment and income andthereby reducing poverty. The improved investment climatecould facilitate investments in farm and nonfarm sectors bycontributing directly and indirectly to the generation ofadditional employment for women and men. Ethiopia IndustrialDevelopment Strategy 2003 involved efforts to create anenabling environment for the private sector to be a drivingforce for economic development. The sectoral focus of thestrategy is on the development of agro-based industries andon strengthening nonfarm sector. The sustainable supportsystem for rural women entrepreneurs is based on five maincomponents: (i) women's economic empowerment, (ii)market development, (iii) access to markets, (iv) businessmanagement support services, and (v) access to credit.Necessary conditions to support nonfarm economic activities,such as physical market development, feeder roads, andtransport, will also benefit agriculture and create avirtuous circle of increasing farm and nonfarm income. Womenare more likely to be involved in and benefit from nonfarmenterprise activities. Although the system proposed could betargeted at men and women, women could be the mainbeneficiaries of the support system. This sustainable systemis new and innovative in directly supporting the rural poorand women by building the capacity of entrepreneurs andsupporting institutions linked to the existing projects.This system may derive maximum synergy effects byintegrating with the Agricultural Growth Project (AGP) andthe Household Assets Building Program (HABP) of theProductive Safety Nets Project (PSNP) in a complementary relationship.
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