The Ethiopian government has placed high emphasis on the environment. That is why it has formulated relevant environmental policy, laws, and regulations, standards as well as strategies that can help improve the country’s environmental conditions.
The Constitution of the FDRE is a prime legal document with provisions which have a direct policy, legal and institutional relevance for the appropriate implementation of environmental protection and rehabilitation action plans to avoid environmental maltreatment through enacting environmental policy.
The policy emphasizes on conservation of natural and human-managed ecosystems geared towards the national, social and economic development. It is based on the principle of sustainability and it is helpful to improve and enhance the health and quality of life of all Ethiopians through promoting sustainable social and economic development.
Ababe Tolcha, Senior Environmental Impact Operation Audit expert with Environment,
Forest and Climate Change Commission said that once Ethiopia has had huge natural resources with forest covering approximately 40 percent of its land cover.
However, with multiple factors such as an increase in demand for additional agriculture land and construction inputs such as wood, as well as investment and other livelihood activities have significantly degraded the country’s natural resources.
That is why the government has been taking several measures including re-enforcing the forestry sector to play its role through adopting a reforestation strategy.
Ababe noted that as reforestation has huge potential in addressing deforestation and degradation, it has been awhile since the country launched a national reforestation campaign in different parts of the country.
To reduce pollution, the country drafted environmental auditing policy which is set to pave the way to assess environmental impacts and make informed decisions.
He said as
a management tool, environmental auditing can be used in different ways to suit
different company attitudes and levels of
environmental attainment.
As to him, the policy is helpful to ensure legislative compliance, reduce environmental impacts, waste, water and energy costs and improve relations with stakeholders. It also provides the foundation for an environmental management system.
Getu Dame, Natural Resource Management expert with the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resource on his part said the impacts of climate change have posed a continuous challenge on Ethiopia’s smallholder farmers.
The situation has forced farmers to make constant effort to adapt to the unpredictable climate. In addition, the ability of communities to endure changes has been constrained by lack of infrastructure as well as inadequate institutional and financial capacity.
Currently, the ministry has selected seven woredas and fourteen vulnerable kebeles based on their vulnerability to climate hazard to a program that improves the quality of the environment. The program’s measures include awareness creation on ownership of adaptation planning at the local level and climate-resilient livelihood diversification.
Climate change has adversely affected the lives of these residents through increasing school drop-out rates, animal and crop disease, crop failure, livestock loss, malnutrition, human disease, loss of biodiversity, and increased over-exploitation of natural resources such as forest, woodlands, wetlands, and pasture. Some 65,360 residents located in the woredas will be benefited from the measures in the program, as to Getu.
Adama and Aleltu in Oromia, Tenta in Amhara, Raya Azebo in Tigray, Abaya in SNNPE, Wahil Cluster in Dire Dawa and Sofi in Harar are among the woredas included in the program.
Samson Emiru, Adaptation expert with the ministry said the government has paid special attention to environmental conservation noting that previously a team of experts under the ministry dealt with such issues. But now a directorate has been established to follow such matters.
The number of organizations and institutions that works to mitigate the impacts of climate change has been increasing from time to time and the government has also been providing different supports to these organizations.
The Ethiopian Herald August 21, 2019
BY TAMERU REGASA
