Stebek, Elias N. (2012) The investment promotion and environment protection balance in Ethiopia's floriculture : the legal regime and global value chain. PhD thesis, University of Warwick.

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Abstract

The thesis examines the balance in the objectives of investment promotion in Ethiopia, i.e. the
enhancement of development and well-being in the context of environmental sustainability. The flower
sector is used for the purpose of thematic focus due to the tension that exists between the benefits in the
enhancement of cut flower exports and the corresponding challenges in labour conditions, environmental
compliance standards and in the sustainability of the economic benefits. In spite of the Ethiopian legal
framework on sustainable development, many economic actors tend to pursue its weaker interpretation
which is further debilitated by gaps in the institutional framework. There is thus the need for caveat
against delinking investment promotion towards economic development from social wellbeing and
environemntal sustainability which in the flower sector requires environmental mainstreaming (EM) and
sustainability impact assessment (SIA) so that illusive economic benefits would not lead to irreversible
environmental harm. It is argued that the contribution of investment promotion pursuits in Ethiopia’s
flower sector towards sustainable development and rising standards of living depends upon the extent to
which the sector moves towards sustainable floriculture which is drastically different from flower export
boom that arises from unprotected soil and water resources.
Three contradictions permeate the challenges toward sustainable floriculture in Ethiopia. The
ownership profile and the marketing niche of flower farms under distress show that domestic-owned
farms are the ones that are most severely hit by these challenges. The first contradiction arises from the
tension among the three (economic, social and environmental) pillars of sustainable development and the
institutional gaps despite laws that protect the environment. The second contradiction relates to the
tension between the positive role of technoscience in sectors such as floriculture vis-à-vis its hegemonic
features and the potential harm if it is improperly applied in developing countries. The third tension is
attributable to the buyer-driven global value chain which requires social and environmental compliance
standards in flower growing and meanwhile pushes down the profit margin of flower growers in
developing countries like Ethiopia. This not only puts pressure on working conditions and the
environment but also renders the economic benefits illusory and unsustainable.
The research is based on sociological and legal inquiries, and also includes case study which involves
in-depth interviews and on-site observations. The study, inter alia, recommends that hydroponics,
integrated pest management and multimodal water sources ought to be encouraged in all new flower
farms and future expansion projects. In the absence of such thresholds accompanied by enhanced
competitiveness and effective institutional capabilities of regulation and governance, the flower export
boom which results from unprotected soil and water resources is economically unsustainable and does not
bring about social wellbeing and environmental sustainability.

Item Type:	Thesis or Dissertation (PhD)
Subjects:	H Social Sciences > HC Economic History and Conditions K Law [LC] > K Law (General)
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Floriculture -- Ethiopia, Investments, Foreign -- Ethopia, Sustainable development -- Ethiopia, Sustainable development -- Law and legislation -- Ethiopia
Official Date:	June 2012
Dates:	Date Event June 2012 Submitted
Institution:	University of Warwick
Theses Department:	School of Law
Thesis Type:	PhD
Publication Status:	Unpublished
Supervisor(s)/Advisor:	Paliwala, Abul; Adelman, Sammy
Sponsors:	YaʼItyop̣yā yagebrenā meremer ʼinestiteyut [Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research] (EIAR)
Extent:	xii, 295 leaves.
Language:	eng

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