The Ethiopian government is set to plant an additional 9 billion tree seedlings by 2027, ahead of the 32nd session of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP32).
In a statement issued on Monday, the Ethiopian Prime Minister Office said that the country has planted roughly 56 billion seedlings over the past eight years and plans to plant additional 9 billion trees by 2027, with a target of planting 65 billion tree seedlings in nine years.
According to the office, Ethiopia’s forest coverage had grown from 17.2 percent to over 23.6 percent during the first five years of its flagship reforestation program, dubbed the Green Legacy Initiative (GLI) that was launched eight years ago.
The office said the large-scale tree-planting movement has also significantly reduced the previously high soil degradation and erosion rate, as the annual sedimentation rate dropped from 1.9 billion tons to 208 million tones.
The office said the national reforestation initiative is currently on track to achieve its target of planting about 8 billion seedlings during the ongoing planting season, with more than 6.5 billion seedlings planted so far this year.
As part of this year’s nationwide campaign, millions of Ethiopians planted a record-breaking 805.3 million tree seedlings across the country in a single day last week. Held under the theme “Let Us Plant Hope,” some 26.2 million Ethiopians participated in the one-day campaign on August 3, reflecting the country’s vision of transforming environmental restoration into a shared national responsibility.
The office said that the initiative has contributed more than 1.2 million green job opportunities, primarily benefiting women and youth across the country.
The GLI has become a flagship national environmental protection program aimed at restoring degraded landscapes, expanding the country’s diminished forest cover, strengthening climate resilience by combating deforestation, conserving biodiversity, and fostering sustainable development through mass ecosystem restoration.
MG/as/APA