The yield gap for maize across the Ethiopia has been estimated using crop model LINTUL5 embedded into the modeling framework SIMPLACE (Scientific Impact Assessment and Modelling Platform for Advanced Crop and Ecosystem Management. The yield gap of a crop grown in a certain location and cropping system is defined as the difference between the yield and biomass under optimum management and the average yield achieved by farmers. Yield under optimum management is labeled as potential yield (Yp) under irrigated conditions or water-limited potential yield (Yw) under rain-fed conditions.Yp is location specific because of the climate, and not dependent on soil properties assuming that the required water and nutrients are non-limiting and can be added through management. Thus, in areas without major soil constraints, Yp is the most relevant benchmark for irrigated systems. Whereas, for rain-fed crops, Yw, equivalent to water-limited potential yield, is the most relevant benchmark. Both Yp and Yw are calculated for optimum planting dates, planting density and region-specific crop variety which is critical in determining the feasible growth duration, particularly in tropical climatic conditions where two or even three crops are produced each year on the same field. Purpose: To increase food production, identifying the regions with untapped production capacity is of prime importance and can be achieved by quantitative and spatially explicit estimates of Yield gaps, thus considering the spatial variation in environment and the production system.

This dataset was first published on the institutional Repository "Zentrum für Entwicklungsforschung: ZEF Data Portal" with ID={c2bbd5ed-fd4c-4a3f-b0b1-113a5d4f3ddf}. The yield gaps plotted in the map were calculated as the average values of 7 years (the year 2004 -2010). The unit is Megagram per hectare (Mg ha-1) which is equivalent to tons ha-1. The climate data at the national scale was made available from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Goddard Institute of Space Studies(https://data.giss.nasa.gov/impacts/agmipcf/agmerra/), AgMERRA.The dataset is stored at 0.25°×0.25° horizontal resolution (~25km). Soil parameter values were extracted from the soil property maps of Africa at 1 km x 1 km resolution (http://www.isric.org/data/soil-property-maps-africa-1-km). Maize yields (Mg ha-1) and fertilizer application (Nitrogen and Phosphorus) rates over seven years (2004 - 2010) at administrative zone level have been collected from the Central Statistical Agency, Ethiopia.