These articles are among the finalists of the African Forests Story Grant, an initiative of the UN-REDD Programme, the African Forest Forum (AFF) and the Global Landscapes Forum (GLF).
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Ethiopia Targets 30% Forest Cover After Massive Reforestation Drive
Ethiopia has restored more than 15 million hectares of degraded and deforested land through its nationwide environmental rehabilitation efforts, according to the Ethiopian Forestry Institute.
Aberu Tena, Executive Director for Green Legacy and Artificial Forest Development, told Ethio Negari that the country has planted more than 48 billion forest and agroforestry seedlings over the past seven years as part of the Green Legacy Initiative.
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Ethiopia’s Fight Against Deforestation, Rooted in Communities
When Werdaba Bekele lost her husband to a sudden illness in 2021, her life changed overnight. Left alone to raise four children, the 47-year-old mother from Bale, in Ethiopia’s Oromia Region, faced a daily struggle to put food on the table.
“With no other option, I went into the forest,” Werdaba recalls. She cut trees and carried the wood to nearby markets to survive. “It was the only way I knew to feed my children.”
That cycle ended when the REDD+ (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation), a UN-backed framework that incentivizes developing nations to conserve forests and manage them sustainably to combat climate change program arrived in her community.
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REDD+ Boosts Forest Restoration in Ethiopia
Ethiopia’s REDD+ Investment Programme (RIP) is recording significant progress in forest restoration, carbon emission reduction, and community livelihood improvement, according to officials overseeing the initiative at both regional and national levels.
Debela Tesfaye, Regional Coordinator of the Oromia REDD+ Investment Programme, told Ethio Negari that the program has achieved notable results in restoring degraded landscapes and conserving natural forests through Participatory Forest Management (PFM).