Green Legacy: Over 6.3bln Tree Seedlings Readied for Planting, so far
ADDIS ABABA – The ministry of agriculture on Tuesday said it has made over 6.3 billion seedlings ready for the tree planting campaign in the upcoming main rainy season in Ethiopia.
Preparations are ongoing for the annual Green Legacy initiative’s tree-planting campaign, which, officials say, aims at curbing the effects of climate change and deforestation in Ethiopia..
More than 6.3 billion seedlings of various trees including fruits have so far been readied for planting, said Iyasu Elias (Prof), State Minister of Agriculture.
He said the preparation this year gives more focus on putting in place follow-up and nurturing mechanisms for planted trees, as well as creating an integrated forest-farm system.
The planting season will officially begin as of June 22, according to the ministry of agriculture.
GREEN LEGACY’S FINAL YEAR
Authorities see deforestation as serious challenge for the country whose forest coverage currently stands at just 4%.
In response, they launched the annual reforestation initiative under “Green Legacy” slogan in 2019, aiming to plant 20 billion trees over a course of four years.
The upcoming tree-planting campaign will be the initiative’s fourth and final.
The government sees the previous three three annual planting campaigns as a success saying the country managed to plant a combined total of 18 billion seedlings during the period.
“And this year, with the Green Legacy initiative in its final year, we will not only meet our national target, but plan to surpass the target by reaching 25 billion,” said Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed while addressing the African Union Summit last February.
