Ethiopia's 7th Green Legacy tree planting program was concluded yesterday breaking the annual record so far. This initiative continues the country's strong commitment to fighting climate change, restoring ecosystems, and promoting sustainability.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed launched the Ethiopian Green Legacy Initiative, a major environmental campaign, in 2019. Its main goal is to reduce deforestation, restore degraded land, and address the negative effects of climate change across the country and beyond.
Indeed, the Green Legacy Initiative is not just about trees; it's about biodiversity, livelihoods, and climate resilience. Ethiopia is leading by example in Africa and beyond. In this 7th round, the country is targeting areas most affected by deforestation. The country also plans to mobilize millions of Ethiopians for collective action.
The initiative's goals include addressing climate change, boosting biodiversity, conserving soil and water, and encouraging regional and global environmental leadership. As a result, Ethiopia's 7th Round of the Green Legacy program is a call to action for all residents, including the diaspora and worldwide allies, to plant trees, protect the environment, and ensure a better tomorrow.
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Unlike the previous six rounds of the Green Legacy Initiative program, Ethiopia is launching a big tree planting effort this year, with the objective of planting 700 million saplings in a single day. The one-day event is part of the nation's Green Legacy Initiative, which seeks to plant 7.5 billion saplings during the rainy season.
However, the one-day challenge has exceeded its original plan to plant 700 million tree seedlings with a record 714.7 million seedlings. This success has propelled Ethiopia's Green Legacy Initiative to new heights, reinforcing the country's leadership in climate action and sustainable development. This result also inspires the country and sustains national commitment and public participation to reach an impressive 54 billion seedlings by next year.
As part of this far-reaching green development program, Ethiopians from all walks of life took part in a statewide tree planting campaign, scoring the record of over 714.7 million saplings planted in a single day.
Although Ethiopia has achieved numerous historical landmarks, including planting 600 million trees in one day through the Green Legacy Initiative Program, some people were curious how the country could plant 700 trees in one day this year. Another topic concerned how the Green Legacy Initiative Program became inclusive.
According to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, planting 700 million tree seedlings has demonstrated once again that Ethiopians can accomplish great things when they work together. The plan to plant 700 million trees in one day, under the slogan "Renewal Through Planting," has outperformed expectations.
For these accomplishments, leaders and employees, corporate and public institutions, embassies and international organizations, children, youth, adults, the elderly, men and women all gathered early in the morning for the Green Legacy Initiative, he added.
The Green Legacy Initiative is quickly becoming an Ethiopian tradition. It is transforming Ethiopia's face. Ethiopia's history is changing. It is transforming the planet. "We applaud everyone who is coordinating this effort, who has heeded our call and has gone out to plant. We are grateful to Ethiopians, Ethiopian-born individuals, and international people for their generous and complete engagement in the name of Ethiopia. "Planting is about giving our children shade!"
More importantly, the campaign encourages participation. Apart from Ethiopians, Nigeria's Vice President Kashim Shettima, and Heads of State and Government who were coming to Addis Ababa for the Second United Nations Food Systems Summit, have all participated in the 7th round of the Green Legacy Initiative.
Additionally, in support of Ethiopia's Green Legacy Initiative, the international community collaborated to plant 700 million tree seedlings. Participants included in this initiative were Sebastian Lukas, Liu Xuhun, General Manager of the Huajian Special Economic Zone, Claudio Pascualucci, Italian Trade Commissioner at the Italian Embassy in Ethiopia, and the Deputy Head of Mission of the Danish Embassy in Ethiopia.
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In general, the goal of planting 700 million seedlings in a single day is critical for focusing on environmental restoration and biodiversity preservation in degraded and negatively affected areas. The day continues to increase in terms of community participation, with 29.7 million people, 13,089 geolocated sites, and 294,100 ha of land, and so on.
It also promotes environmental culture and tree planting. Besides, to preserve local ecosystems and restore the natural landscape, volunteers, organizations, and local governments are collaborating to plant trees and build green spaces. Therefore, this ambitious Green Legacy Initiative exemplifies the country's ongoing dedication and commitment to sustainability, environmental stewardship, and equitable prosperity.
