Addis ababa: The Ministry of Agriculture has highlighted remarkable progress in Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative (GLI) as a pivotal effort toward soil conservation and environmental restoration.
According to Ethiopian News Agency, Girma Amente, the Minister of Agriculture, spoke at the launch of this year’s GLI, underscoring the initiative’s transformative impact on the environment. Under the theme ‘Renewal through Planting,’ Ethiopia has set an ambitious target to plant 7.5 billion seedlings across the nation this year.
The Minister emphasized that scientific methods have been employed in the GLI’s implementation, resulting in observable improvements in agricultural productivity, especially in coffee yields. He noted that the initiative is instrumental in sustainably managing Ethiopia’s soil and water resources, leveraging the country’s favorable climate and soil conditions.
Acknowledging persistent environmental challenges and a history of insufficient natural resource management, the minister pointed out that nearly half of Ethiopia’s land has suffered degradation, with about seven million hectares impacted by soil acidity. In response, the government is enhancing efforts through integrated watershed development programs and community-driven GLI activities, which have already started to reverse land degradation in several regions.
The program is active in 12 major watersheds, with a particular focus on the Nile River Basin. Of the 40 billion tree seedlings planted over the past six years, 11 billion have been planted within this critical basin. Minister Girma highlighted that alongside the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), the Green Footprint Program is aiding in prolonging the dam’s lifespan by increasing vegetation cover in the basin, which has risen from 19 percent to 25 percent.
He also disclosed that soil erosion has been substantially curtailed, with soil loss per hectare of agricultural land decreasing from 130 tons to 54 tons since the program began six years ago. The Minister reiterated that the promising results in rehabilitated areas underscore the program’s success and reaffirmed the government’s dedication to bolstering sustainable soil and water conservation initiatives.