Arba Minch University (AMU) hosted a significant three-day event of staff introduction and RUNRES project phase II progress update on September 1st-3rd, 2025 to formally introduce its project team members to development partners from the Swiss Embassy and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC). Click here to see more photos.
The event was commenced with a welcome address from Teklu Wegayehu (PhD), Vice President for Research and Cooperation at AMU and Co-Principal Investigator for the RUNRES project. Dr. Teklu underscored AMU's pivotal role as a premier research institution and outlined the project's trajectory noting that Phase-I was successfully scaled up innovations like municipal waste composting and banana processing from pilot to commercial operations. “RUNRES is a science-based development initiative addressing critical challenges faced by rapidly urbanizing nations like ours, Dr. Teklu remarked. According to him, the Phase-II "will be expected to co-design, test, and scale-up further innovations that valorize waste and enhance food value chains to build robust circular economies."
Abayneh Feyso, the AMU-RUNRES Project Manager, provided the details of the project's context, celebrated Phase I achievements, addressed challenges, and outlined the scaling strategies and current status for Phase II in presentation. His presentation also sparked a fruitful discussion on past accomplishments, ongoing progress, and future collaborations essential for achieving long-term sustainability.
Dr. Selina Bezolla, Program Manager for SDC in Ethiopia, emphasized the critical link between robust health systems and sustainable agriculture expressing strong support for the collaborative model. Echoing this commitment, Ms. Vivien Osella, SDC Deputy Program Manager and an agronomist, stressed the need for decentralization and enhanced coordination between policy-makers, institutions and local practitioners to ensure the projects' long-term success and scalability.
To witness the project's tangible impact firsthand, the delegation team embarked on a series of field visits: the Municipal Organic Solid Waste Composting Site in Arba Minch, where skilled youth group converts urban waste into valuable organic fertilizer, the Anjonus Agro-Processing Enterprise, which, with the project support, now commercially produces banana flour and moringa powder and the Lante Kebele smallholder farms compost application to understand the benefits and challenges. A similar composting facility at Birbir town, Mirab Abaya woreda, was also observed about organic waste management strategies with local innovation teams and municipality management.
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Public and International Relations Executive
