Little attention is given to insect pollinator diversity and their role for ecosystem service and food security by policy makers, farmers and wider public at large in Ethiopia. This has led to a knowledge gap in the relation between insect pollinator diversity and food security, in addition to limited local knowledge on identification, collection and data management and dissemination of information among experts, farmers and the wider public. The Insect Pollinator Diversity under Different Land Uses in and around Kafa Biosphere Reserve and Bale Mountains National Park project is aimed at generating information on insect pollinator diversity, sharing biodiversity data openly and creating awareness of food security and ecosystem health values of insect pollinators under different land uses in and around Kafa Biosphere Reserve and Bale Mountains National Park, two critical ecosystems in Ethiopia. The main goals of the project are enhanced expertise on insect pollinators’ diversity to inform conservation in Ethiopia; project impacts will be measured through the number of training events, the number of insect pollinators species identified and specimens collected; the number of pollinated plants identified and the type, quality and quantity of insect pollinator diversity data uploaded to international and local data bases.

[landscape photos/Erik Hathaway / Bale Mountains National Park website]

The project’s direct (immediate) objectives include:

1. Assess, map and document the diversity of insect pollinators and pollinated plant species under four different management regions in and around Bale Mountains National Park and Kafa Biosphere Reserve.
2. Estimate the economic contribution of insect pollinators in crop yield and quality for selected crop in Bale Mountains National Park and Kafa Biosphere Reserve and their surroundings.
3. Train experts, researchers, museum curators and farmers on insect pollinator diversity identification, collection and management, data base management and role of insect pollinators for food security and ecosystem health through short term trainings and long-term trainings for two experts from the stakeholders at M.Sc. level in insect pollinator diversity and conservation.
4. Create awareness through organizing platforms and campaign about the role of insect pollinators and their conservation for food security and ecosystem functioning.
5. Disseminate and institutionalize project outputs through engaging different stakeholders from planning to finalization of the project.
6. Share project data openly via locally and internationally available databases.

Zerihun Girma obtained his Ph.D. degree in Tropical Forest Ecology (Wildlife Ecology and Habitat Management) in 2016. He is currently Associate Professor of Wildlife Ecology and Management at Hawassa University. In his experience at Hawassa University for nearly one and half decades, he has been actively involved in teaching, research, community outreach, university management and professional consultancies. Some of his research projects, only those he was lead investigator, are: resource use conflict management, integration of protected areas with surrounding environment, assessment of wildlife species, natural habitat monitoring and eco-tourism development and biodiversity conservation and human livelihoods.