ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia – August 13, 2015- The Government of Ethiopia (GoE) today launched climate resilience strategies for the agriculture, forestry, water, irrigation and energy sectors during a high-level event organized by the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MEF), the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) and the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Energy (MoWIE) in collaboration with Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI). The strategic plans are a part of the GoE’s strategic vision to build a Climate Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) in response to the challenges of climate change and environmental degradation and to leverage the opportunities of green growth while reaching middle-income status by 2025.

The Addis Ababa launch-event was attended by H.E. Ato. Belete Tafere, Minister of Environment and Forest, H.E. Ato. Wondimu Tekle, State Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy, H.E. Ato. Kebede Yimam, State Minister of Environment and Forest, H.E. Ato. Neway Gebreab, Chief Economic Advisor to the Prime Minister, and representatives from donors, development partners and senior executives from sector ministries of the GoE.

Opening the event, Mr. Robert Mukiza, GGGI’s Ethiopia program Country Representative, expressed GGGI’s pleasure in partnering with the GoE in the development of the climate resilience and green economy framework and sector guidance for the successful integration of CRGE into the second phase of Ethiopia’s Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II). Mr. Mukiza also highlighted the importance of sector specific climate resilient strategies and integration of CRGE into the GTP II and commended the swift implementation of CRGE through fast track investment.

Launching the strategies, Minister Belete Tafere emphasized that sustained rapid economic growth and structural transformation should go hand in hand and reiterated that the GoE is committed to achieving both growth and overall economic development, whilst also tackling climate change and driving down poverty to improve the livelihoods of everyone. Minister Belete also stressed the importance of CRGE implementation, which is designed to unlock economic growth and community development in a wide array of interlinked opportunities by directly and indirectly addressing the development needs of the community and the country at large while contributing to the global effort to curb global warming. He also expressed his appreciation to the Embassy of Norway, the United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, and the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Building and Nuclear Safety (BMUB) for providing support to the Climate Resilience strategy development process.

While presenting a summary of the strategies for the Agriculture and Forestry sectors, Minister Kebede Yimam highlighted that the strategies fall under Land Use, land use change and forestry, which also captures co-benefits like livelihoods, ecosystem services and food security. Minister Kebede expressed his hope that the strategies will help to identify how climate change impacts smallholder farmers and what action can be taken in the short term to ensure that their vulnerability is minimized.

Presenting the key points of the climate resilience strategies for water, irrigation and energy, Minister Wondimu Tekle noted the importance of these resources to economic growth and transformation and that these sectoral strategies are expected to identify key strategic priorities to ensure that the MoWIE continues to contribute to climate resilient green growth and transformation.

During the event, development partners and donors highlighted the importance of moving from strategies to actual implementation of strategies. During the interactions, Ato. Kare Chawicha, State Minister of Environment of Forest expressed his appreciations on the commendable achievements of CRGE implementation.

In his concluding remarks, His Excellency Ato. Neway Gebreab, suggested that linkages between a green economy and climate resilience is key for a holistic transformation of the Ethiopian economy, adding that both of these development paradigms – economic development and resilience – should go hand in hand to achieve an inclusive growth and help Ethiopia reach middle-income status by 2025.

Find the complete Agriculture and Forestry Climate Resilience Strategy here.

Find the complete Water and Energy Climate Resilience Strategy here.

Read more about GGGI’s work in Ethiopia here.

About GGGI
Based in Seoul, GGGI is an intergovernmental organization founded to support and promote green growth. The organization partners with countries to help them build economies that grow strongly, are more efficient and sustainable in the use of natural resources, less carbon intensive, and more resilient to climate change. GGGI works with countries around the world, building their capacity and working collaboratively on green growth policies that can impact the lives of millions.

To learn more, see https://gggi.org and visit us on Facebook and Twitter.