Ethiopia flower, horticulture exports miss target

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) -- Ethiopia earned $138 million from its fast-growing flower and horticulture products in the 11 months to May, some 40 percent below its target, an official said on Wednesday.

Haileselassie Tekie, director general of the state-owned Ethiopian Horticulture Development Agency (EHDA), told Reuters in an interview that it had fallen short of the goal due to lower demand and prices on world markets.

"Ethiopia's export target was to generate $233 million from flower and other horticultural products such as vegetables, fruits and herbs during the 11 month July-May," he said.

"We were able to earn $138 million, which is less by 40 percent than the intended target," he said.

Ethiopia, which is one of the fastest growing African economies, earned $113 million from flowers and other horticulture product exports last year.

Growth in Ethiopia, the second most populous country in Africa, is expected to slow to 10 percent in the current fiscal year from 11.6 percent a year earlier as exports are hit by slowing demand in key markets.

Of the income generated during the 11 months in 2008/09, $118 million was from export of 1.2 billion flower stems and $20 million from sales of 43,000 tonnes of horticulture products, Haileselassie said.

Africa's biggest coffee producer, Ethiopia is also the world's fourth largest exporter of sesame seeds.

The country earned $336 million from the sale of 261,216 tonnes of oil seeds in the 11 months to May. It earned $321 million from 114,442 tonnes coffee in the same period.