Ethiopia’s efforts to build a green and climate-resilient economy are emerging as a model for other African countries, according to the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).
AGRA Country Director for Ethiopia Yihenew Zewdie said the country’s green development initiatives, including tree planting, renewable energy and climate-smart agriculture, were helping conserve natural resources, restore degraded landscapes and strengthen resilience to climate change.
Speaking exclusively to the Ethiopian News Agency on Monday, Yihenew stated that climate-related threats were becoming increasingly widespread across Africa, making efforts to strengthen agricultural resilience increasingly important.
“As climate-related challenges, including droughts, floods and pest outbreaks, become increasingly widespread across Africa, building a climate-resilient agricultural economy is no longer an option but a necessity,” he said.
Yihenew stressed the need for systems that allow farmers to receive timely information about climate-related risks and take measures to protect their crops and livelihoods.
He said Ethiopia’s agricultural extension system was playing an important role by providing farmers with early information on climate-related hazards that could affect agricultural production.
The AGRA official also highlighted Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Initiative (GLI), launched in 2019 under the leadership of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, as a key component of the country’s climate resilience and green economy efforts.
On August 3, Ethiopia planted 805.3 million tree seedlings during the current rainy season, exceeding the daily target of 800 million seedlings set under the campaign.
Over the past seven years, the country has planted more than 48 billion seedlings nationwide, marking a major milestone in its environmental restoration efforts.
The Green Legacy Initiative focuses on restoring degraded landscapes, expanding forest coverage and strengthening Ethiopia’s response to climate change.
Yihenew said the initiative had also helped conserve natural resources, reduce soil erosion, restore degraded environments and support improvements in agricultural production and productivity.
“The initiative has also contributed to natural resource conservation, reduced soil erosion, restored degraded environments and supported improvements in agricultural production and productivity,” he said.
Beyond tree planting and agriculture, Ethiopia is also seeking to expand its renewable energy capacity as part of its wider green development strategy.
Yihenew pointed to the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) as a major renewable energy project that has strengthened Ethiopia’s position in clean energy development and attracted international attention.
He said the country was also pursuing wind, geothermal and solar energy alongside hydropower development.
The expansion of renewable energy, he said, forms part of Ethiopia’s broader efforts to create a green and climate-resilient economy capable of responding to growing environmental and agricultural pressures.
As African countries increasingly face the effects of climate change, Ethiopia’s combination of environmental restoration, climate information for farmers and renewable energy development is being presented as an approach that could offer lessons for the wider continent.