Many nations of the world have signed the 2014 New York Climate Summit goal worldwide by 2030. As it is essential to evaluate progress performances after agreements, the reporter decided to provide the readers Internationale and national status of the convention.
The immediate goal was to bring 150 million hectares of deforested and degraded land into restoration by 2020 and 350 million hectares by 2030. Up to November 2018, fifty-six governments and private organizations have pledged more than 168 hectares to the Challenge, according to Landscape Organization.
Among the other commitments: The Challenge bills itself as a direct contributor to the Convention on Biological Diversity Target 15, which states that 15 percent of degraded ecosystems will be restored by 2020, with their resilience and biodiversity aiding climate stocks; UN Convention to Combat Desertification goal to achieve Land Degradation Neutrality; and the goal of the UN Environment’s on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries program to combat deforestation and degradation.
Regional commitments, namely 100 million hectares in Africa under restoration by 2030 and Initiative 20 million hectares in Latin America and the Caribbean, under restoration by 2020, directly reference the Bonn Challenge as a broader commitment into which they feed.
The Bonn Challenge Barometer is currently in a beta-phase, with six countries piloting its use to track their restoration progress as well as discuss the implementation process with one another. It is expected to be officially launched by 2020.
Separately, in August 2018, India was the first country to release an official report on its progress toward meeting its commitments to the challenge (13 million hectares under restoration by 2020 and 21 million by 2030): 9.8 million hectares of land have come under restoration since 2011.
As well, International Union for Conservation of Nature estimates that the Challenge’s 2020 target would result in USD 84 billion per year in income and benefits for rural communities. The 2030 target could bring 170 billion in net benefits and reduce annual carbon dioxide emissions by up to 1.7 giga tons.
And Ethiopia is one of those signing countries. Ethiopia agreed to restore 22 million hectares of deforested landscapes in the country by 2030 in the 2014 New York Climate Summit’s goal of restoring 350 million hectares worldwide by 2030.
In addition to increasing forest coverage and restoring degraded lands, the country aims to enhance the forestry sector’s contribution to agricultural production systems, water and energy, to improve food and nutritional security, and to create more opportunities for employment and household income.
Ethiopian government has proclaimed numerous proclamations and also has signed several environmental protection conventions. It has also formulated an environment protection policy, strategy and program to promote and implement carbon neutral and climate resilient development and economic growth.
Ethiopia’s forest coverage has decreased over the past years and the country has suffered from the negative impact of climate change especially in relation to droughts in some parts of the country.
And reports indicated that in 2017, millions of animals died in Ethiopia due to drought because of the scarcity of rainfall though encouraging progress has been made towards increasing the forest coverage currently.
In this year, Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed launched National Green Development Action Program which aims at planting 4.7 billion trees, 40 seedlings per person, during the rainy season.
The premier has also recently informed the parliament that a record of 200 million tree seedlings planting in a day will be made in the country on July 29, 2019.
As many have agreed that Ethiopia’s effort on environmental protection has countless value for not only the country but also for neighboring countries.
Coordinator of National REDD+ Secretariat, Dr. Yitebtu Moges, told to The Ethiopian Herald that soil erosion and degradation are major causes for low productivity and vulnerability of smallholders.
He said that economic growth without forest development is impossible to imagine, because all our activities – agriculture, industry, electricity, urban development, and tourism –are related to forest development.
Planting of trees has many environmental benefits: balancing climate change, saving water by reducing evaporation, preventing water pollution, being food source and habitat for wildlife, reducing soil erosion and increasing fertility, according to him.
He further says: “If this year’s motivation on planting trees continues for the next ten consecutive years, we lay a great base for the development of our country and we have the chance to develop.” protecting the environment, especially through planting trees enables the nation to ensure food security.
Activities on environmental protection such as planting trees should not be just one time’s campaign, he argues mentioning, “studies indicate that about two third of Ethiopia’s rainfall comes from the forests in Western Africa.
Director General of Eastern Nile Technical Regional Office (ENTRO), Fek-Ahmed Negash, to his part, also told The Ethiopian Herald that Ethiopia’s environmental protection works have great value for Ethiopia and its neighboring countries, especially for lower Nile basin countries.
He reiterated that less environmental protection works harm Ethiopia more.And also in Ethiopia there is high level of soil degradation that reduces productivity and it leads us to poverty, he said, adding that we have to give high attention for planting trees to tackle poverty.
For him, currently Ethiopia is working on environmental protection well. “Ethiopia is well-known for its highest water resource among Nile basin countries as it contributes nearly 86 percent of water to the Nile River. So, Ethiopia’s effort on planting trees has great value to take care of the water.”
Planting seedlings has social and economic benefits in the form of flood controlling, reduction of sedimentation, regulation of water flow, uplifted energy, navigation and fisheries, according to him.
Therefore, if the current tree planting move started with 4.7 billion trees planting plan is repeated for several years, Ethiopia may achieve the 2030 forest coverage commitment before the schedule, the stakeholders believed mentioning that the performance after the convention is not yet measured internationally.
The Ethiopian Herald July 26/2019
BY ABDUREZAK MOHAMMED
