Ethiopia reports planting more than 48 billion trees — NBC News
In Ethiopia, the government said that more than 48 billion trees have been planted as part of the national Green Legacy initiative launched by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in 2019. The campaign aims to plant 50 billion trees by 2030 and has involved tens of millions of people, NBC News reports.
According to the government, more than 800 million seedlings were planted in the country in a single day in August. During the rainy season, which lasts from June to September, Ethiopians are urged through radio, television and leaflets to plant trees. In the suburbs of the capital, Addis Ababa, nurseries sell more than 15 types of seedlings, including avocado, mango, olive and rosemary.
Land restoration
The program is intended to counter deforestation, soil erosion and the effects of climate warming. According to a 2020 study, forests once covered between 35% and 40% of Ethiopia's territory, but by the end of the 1980s this figure had fallen to less than 3% due to logging, overgrazing and the expansion of agricultural land.
Hawassa University economist Beyene Teklu estimated annual losses from soil degradation at about $4 billion. According to him, erosion in some areas can reduce crop yields by up to 30%, affecting the country's 12 million smallholder farmers.
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A 2023 government report on forest cover indicates that between 2013 and 2023, the annual rate of deforestation fell from 92,000 hectares to 27,703 hectares. Over the same period, forest cover, according to government calculations, increased from 15.5% to 23.6%.
Questions over seedling survival
Experts warn that the number of trees planted does not guarantee their survival. A 2023 study of reforestation projects in Asia led by the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology found that about half of the trees planted at 176 sites did not survive five years.
Wageningen University researcher Ad Kessler stressed the need to involve local communities and plant trees where they can be watered when necessary. Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture adviser Abraham Bertha Aneseye said that specialists teach farmers forestry, livestock management and land management.
At the same time, conflicts in the north of the country limit the program's opportunities, while extreme weather events increase risks. In July 2024, a landslide following heavy rains in the Gofa zone in southern Ethiopia killed 274 people and displaced hundreds of residents.
