ADDIS ABABA– Gullele Botanic Garden confirms that it is striving to be the hub of the nation’s native and endemic plant species and to provide eco-friendly tourism services for citizens.
According to Fekadu Assefa, Deputy Director of the establishment, the Garden has been striving to fully attain its four pillars, namely: conserving endangered species, conducting researches on natural resources and environmental conservation, rendering practical biosphere science education for educational institutions and delivering eco-tourism service.
“This Garden, under its primary aim, strives to combat deforestation, eradication of species, degradation of land and extinction of biodiversity” Yared Tareke, Landscape Horticulturist by profession, for his part said that the elevation difference (from 2400 to 2995) of the area where the Garden is situated makes it an idea Botanic garden well under way to be hub of native species View of Gullele Botanic Garden place to acclimatize all species native to different climate conditions.
“The elevation difference help to acclimatize different species from different weather conditions across the nation; and we adapt these species in the greenhouse to reintroduce them to their native habitat, if they are under threat of extinction.” So far, they have acclimatized over 30 species from identified 60 as endemic, endangered and economically beneficial, Yared noted. He added that they collect seeds, dry sample and species to well understand the local and scientific nomenclature, benefit and other background data.
The Garden, serving as a nucleus, is sharing its experience to the newly emerging botanic gardens such as Bahirdar, Mekele, Jimma, Shashemene, Wollega, and Dilla. The Garden’s Communication Head, Yared Getahun, said that the Garden is working to be the hub of species native to the nation by modeling itself around the Christian Bush Botany Garden of South Africa.
“We are striving to be the most inclusive botanic garden by sharing experiences from other countries botanic gardens, especially from Christian Bush Botany Garden.” For Yared, some 92 hectares of land has been given to Meles Foundation without open discussion and consensus, and the area was the most developed one with over 30 million birr allocated for its first phase development.
The area given, as to him, is costing them not only ownership but also their name. “People call our Garden by the foundation’s name; I would like to say that, the two institutions are not one and the same as they are two different institutions with different missions.
This is the Gullele Botany Garden.” The Communication head confirms that Gullele Botany Garden will be open for visitors in two weeks’ time. “Unless something unplanned happened, the Garden will be open to the city’s residents the coming 29 December in the presence of the city’s Deputy Mayor.”
The Ethiopian Herald, December 19/2018
BY DESALEGN AYNALEM
