Ethiopia has favorable agro-climatic conditions for the cultivation of oil seeds. Despite this potential, both oil seed production and the edible oil processing industry remain to a large extent underdeveloped.
In 2010, a MDG-f joint program was launched to help improve the oil seeds processing efficiency and access to markets of relevant stakeholders. UNIDO is the lead agency implementing the programme, and is working together with FAO, ILO and a series of national counterparts which include the Ministry of Industry as the lead governmental institution, the Ministry of Agriculture as well as the Ministry of Labour & Social Affairs. More than 80 small scale edible oil processors across the country have already benefitted from the project. It has also strengthened numerous public and private institutions and improved the livelihoods of thousands of farmers and their families.