Recognised globally for its continuing humanitarian disasters, the cycle of poverty in Ethiopia has become even more extreme in recent decades. As Ethiopia’s population has grown steadily, there is increased pressure to already degraded farm and forest land which is threatening to push Ethiopia into further crisis.

We have helped to establish four large community nurseries in the Southwest of the country along with a further twenty community nurseries centrally. These co-operative nurseries are enabling the distribution of approximately 260000 seedlings each rainy season. They provide a pivotal role in nurturing specially selected trees that will help to repair and nourish eroded soils and landscapes, creating lands ripe for sustainable farming for future generations.

In addition to tree planting, projects are consistently involved in training community members in Agroforestry, Nursery Management, Sustainable Farming and Land Use Practices. In Western Central Ethiopia, the innovative Coffee Farmers’ Co-operative Union set up a partnership with our grassroots project leaders. This partnership has led to over two hundred and fifty thousand community members being involved in the planting of trees.

The success of these projects led to a commitment from Ethiopian municipalities to address rising issues of poverty, which has in turn improved productivity in three more communities in Northern Ethiopia.