ABSTRACT
In many parts of the Ethiopian Highlands, land degradation owing to soil erosion has become a serious problem. For more than a decade the government of Ethiopia has undertaken a massive programme of soil and water conservation works, particularly the construction of terraces. However, in most highland parts of Ethiopia, particularly in northern Shewa, it has been observed that some of these terraces have been destroyed by the local farmers, while certain indigenous soil and water conservation methods such as stone terraces, cut-off drains, etc, continue to be used. Among these indigenous soil and water conservation techniques, traditional ditches have been used widely by farmers for different purposes in many parts of the highlands (see photo 24). Traditional ditches are constructed every cropping season and run diagonally over the cultivated land. They are made by pressing a maresha plough deep into the ground and can be differentiated easily from the normal plough furrows.
