COP 32

Launched in 2019 by Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed, the Green Legacy Initiative (GLI) is an ambitious national tree-planting and environmental restoration campaign designed to combat severe deforestation, land degradation, and the impacts of climate change in Ethiopia.

The overarching goal of the multi-phase program is to plant a cumulative total of 65 billion seedlings nationwide. The current 2026 campaign targets the planting of 8 billion seedlings during the rainy season, keeping the country on track toward its long-term national sustainability benchmarks.

Ethiopia’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC 3.0) for 2025–2035 establishes a comprehensive roadmap for climate-resilient growth, aligning near-term actions with a net-zero emissions vision for 2050. The strategy is deeply integrated with the country’s Ten-Year Development Plan and emphasizes a transition toward a green economy driven by the Green Legacy Initiative, renewable energy expansion, and a pioneering shift toward electric mobility. By clearly disaggregating unconditional domestic commitments from conditional targets that require international partnership, Ethiopia aims to enhance transparency and attract the necessary climate finance to protect its agriculture, energy, and urban sectors from escalating climate shocks. A revitalized governance framework, led by the Ministry of Planning and Development, ensures that these climate objectives are harmonized with national development priorities and supported by robust monitoring and reporting systems.

• 70.3%: The committed reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2035 relative to the business-as-usual (BAU) pathway.
• 40.7%: The portion of emissions reduction to be achieved through unconditional domestic resources.
• US$106.35 billion: Total estimated investment required for NDC 3.0 implementation, including US$66.35 billion for mitigation and US$40 billion for adaptation.
• 22.5%: The minimum share of total financing Ethiopia pledges to mobilize from its own domestic budget.
• 77.1%: The share of the total mitigation effort expected from the Land Use, Land-Use Change, and Forestry (LUCF) sector by 2035.
• 23.6%: National forest cover achieved by 2023 following extensive reforestation efforts.
• 100,000: Number of electric vehicles operating in Ethiopia as of 2024.
• 237.6 MtCO₂e: Projected annual greenhouse gas emissions by 2035 under the business-as-usual (BAU) scenario.
• 35%: Target reduction in climate-sensitive diseases, including malaria and cholera, by 2035.
• 0.5%–1.0%: Mandatory domestic financial contribution toward the Green Legacy and Degraded Landscapes Restoration Special Fund.

A REDD+ strategy is a national or sub-national framework developed by countries under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation while promoting sustainable forest management, forest conservation, and the enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

REDD+ stands for "Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation in Developing Countries." The plus (+) represents additional activities such as forest conservation, sustainable forest management, and increasing forest carbon stocks.

Ethiopia’s National REDD+ Strategy (2018–2030) provides a comprehensive framework to help the country achieve its target of net zero emissions by 2030 through intensive forest resource and land management. The strategy identifies the forest sector as a primary pillar of the national green economy, responsible for half of all planned emission reductions by addressing direct drivers of forest loss such as agricultural expansion, unsustainable fuelwood extraction, and forest fires. By integrating efforts across the forestry, energy, and agricultural sectors, the strategy aims to restore millions of hectares of degraded landscapes, scale up Participatory Forest Management (PFM), and promote energy-efficient technologies to enhance both ecosystem resilience and rural livelihoods.

Key Strategic Numbers

• 50%: Share of Ethiopia’s total national emission reduction target expected to be achieved through the forest sector.
• 150 million tonnes CO₂e: Ethiopia’s national emissions target level for 2030, aiming to maintain emissions at approximately the 2010 level.
• 15 million hectares: Additional degraded land pledged for rehabilitation under the Bonn Challenge.
• 10 million hectares: Target area for land closure to rehabilitate degraded pastureland, farmland, and highlands by 2030.
• 4 million hectares: Target area to be brought under or expanded through Participatory Forest Management (PFM).
• 3 million hectares: Target for additional afforestation and reforestation on public lands by 2030.
• 3 million households: Goal for distributing energy-efficient cookstoves to reduce rural dependence on fuelwood.
• 1.5 million hectares: Target for establishing private and community tree plantations for sustainable timber production.
• 17.9 MtCO₂/year: Estimated annual greenhouse gas emissions resulting from deforestation in Ethiopia.
• 4.8 MtCO₂/year: Annual carbon removals achieved through existing afforestation efforts.
• 100 MW: Targeted capacity for micro- and mini-hydropower development under the energy sector interventions.
• 4,373,333 hectares: Target for creating new agricultural land through irrigation and yield-improving techniques to reduce pressure for forest conversion.