Agricultural Research
Agriculture one of the world’s poorest and least developed countries, Somalia has few resources. Moreover, much of the economy has been devastated by the civil war. Agriculture in Somalia is its most important economic sector. It constitutes for 40% of its GDP and 65% of its export earnings. Only 1.6% of Somalia’s total land area is cultivated, and 69% is permanent pasture. The Somalis have traditionally engaged in rain-fed, dry-land farming or in dry-land farming complemented by irrigation from either the waters of the Shebelle and Juba rivers or collected rainwater. Corn, sorghum, beans, rice, vegetables, cotton and sesame are grown by both methods.
Somali and Italian farmers operating the banana farms practice the more modern Page 6 of 7 European-style techniques, as do some of the newly created Somali cooperatives.
A system of state administered farms grew rapidly in the early 1970s. Bananas constitute the nation’s major commercial crop, yet Somalia is the world’s leading producer in frankincense.