World Bank and Government of Norway to support climate-smart land management in Ethiopia
Agreements between the Government of Norway and the World Bank will provide financing for sustainable land management, climate-smart agriculture and forest protection in Ethiopia
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Ethiopia has signed landmark agreements with the Government of Norway and the World Bank to provide financing for sustainable land management, climate-smart agriculture and forest protection.
The east African country is vulnerable to land degradation, deforestation and food insecurity and is stepping up its efforts to promote sustainable rural development and build resilience.
US$50 million in grant funds from the Government of Norway will be avilable through a trust fund to co-finance the Sustainable Land Management Program (SLMP II) aimed at reducing land degradation and increasing land productivity of smallholder farmers.
Norway will also provide US$13 million through the World Bank’s BioCarbon Fund (BioCF) to support Ethiopia’s Climate Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) Facility and to promote climate-smart agriculture, forest protection and land rehabilitation at the landscape level.
The contribution complements funding of around US$5 million from the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID), and ongoing financing from the Forest Carbon Partnership Facility (FCPF).
Under SLMP II, the Ethiopian Government is building on the progress made during the programme’s first phase. Under SLMP I, which started in 2008, over 190,000 hectares of degraded communal and individual farmlands were rehabilitated and agricultural productivity has improved. SLMP II, with co-financing from Norway (US$50 million), will compliment these results.
The process of reducing deforestation and forest degradation will also be strengthened with support from the BioCarbon Fund. The programme will enable Ethiopia to fully finance its ongoing REDD+ process and to develop a REDD+ pilot programme at a Regional State level. It will also provide advisory services to the CRGE Facility, in particular to enhance access to climate finance for REDD+ and other land-based activities.
The BioCF’s new initiative provides an important boost to the activities of the CRGE Facility, which was established by the Government of Ethiopia to spearhead national efforts to reach carbon neutrality by 2025.
