In some areas of Ethiopia access to oxen is considered to be a more important production resource than land. The reasons for oxen's strong position there are related to the predominance of cereal cultivation, dry climate and heavy soils. In parts of Ethiopia there are more oxen than cows. Households with a pair of oxen are in general the richest households and those without oxen have to pay up to 50% of the harvest to have their land ploughed. Alternatives to ox ploughing, such as cow traction, hoe tillage or zero tillage, may develop in the future.
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