Left to right: Ms. Ahunna Eziakonwa-Onochie, UNDP Resident Representative and H.E Mr. Admasu Nebebe, State Minister of Ministry of Finance and Economic Cooperation

The Government of Ethiopia and UNDP signed an agreement on a five-year project that will help enhance the implementation of the country’s strategy to build a climate resilient green economy (CRGE).

The USD 16,727,000 project has received USD 6,277,000 from the Global Environment Fund (GEF) and USD 200,000 from UNDP while the Government of Ethiopia has contributed USD 10 million in kind.

The intervention will be implemented across eight local districts of Amhara, Oromia, Southern Nations and Nationalities (SNNP) and Tigray regions.

Speaking at the signing Ceremony, His Excellency Mr. Admasu Nebebe, State Minister for Ministry of Finance and Economic Cooperation said, “The newly signed project will enhance resilience and support the implementation of Climate Resilient Green Economy Strategy of the country to contribute towards the international efforts to address global environmental challenges.”

Around 80 percent of Ethiopians currently live in the rural areas, and agriculture accounts for over 80 percent of the overall national employment figures. However, the country is vulnerable to climate change and faces widespread top soil erosion and land degradation particularly in the highland areas. Climate change has also led to increases in the average national temperatures, changes in the rainfall season and worsening of intensity and frequency of droughts and floods.

The new project seeks to build the capacities of local institutions to integrate climate risk into local development planning and budget allocations. In addition to building the capacities of local institutions, the new project’s focus will include strengthening the availability of timely climate risk information to enable early response by communities.

The vulnerabilities of local communities will also be addressed through the introduction of climate smart interventions in the area of agriculture, watershed management and restoration, as well as ensure climate smart land use. The project will also help communities to take opportunity of the use climate smart interventions to diversity the livelihoods of these vulnerable groups and identify further income generating prospects, particularly for youth and landless women.

The five-year project will be implemented by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MEFCC) at federal level and the corresponding offices in the four regions.

UNDP has been supporting the development and implementation of Ethiopia’s CRGE strategy through interventions that promote inclusive economic growth, social development and ensure environmental sustainability. Over the last five years, UNDP’s support has focused on building Ethiopia’s long-term resilience to climate shock interventions, investing in strengthening the country’s climate information system and scaling up mitigation efforts to counter the impact of current climate-induced disasters.