Fifty Billion Seedlings: Can Ethiopia Replant Its Ravaged Forests?
Ethiopia has planted more than 47 billion tree seedlings in seven years under its Green Legacy Initiative, and early figures point to rising forest cover, though experts say survival of the trees remains the key test.
Ethiopia has planted more than 47 billion tree seedlings over the last seven years in one of the world's largest environmental restoration campaigns, according to Yale Environment 360. The Green Legacy Initiative, launched in 2019, aims to reach 50 billion by 2030. Farmers, public servants, schools and religious organizations have taken part, and the government has handed out seedlings free of charge.
The effort responds to severe losses. Forests covered an estimated 35 to 40 percent of Ethiopia in the early 20th century but fell to less than 3 percent by 1989, and the highlands were losing about 1 billion metric tons of topsoil a year. Land degradation costs the country an estimated $4.3 billion annually. In 2024 the government created a special fund committing 0.5 to 1 percent of the federal budget, roughly $73 million to $145 million a year, to landscape restoration.
The government reports that national forest cover rose from 17.2 percent in 2019 to 23.6 percent in 2023, and that the annual deforestation rate dropped from more than 350 square miles to around 100 between 2013 and 2023. In August, according to government figures, 26.6 million people planted 800 million seedlings in one day. In Abijata-Shalla National Park, Kumera Wakjira of the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority said lake levels began to rise after replanting and terracing, and fish, cormorants and African darters returned.
On a hillside in the Gurage Zone, farmer Niku Argane has planted grass, fodder, fenugreek and fruit trees since 2019. His barley harvest rose from about 1,800 pounds per acre to roughly 3,200, and erosion has slowed. A 2026 study of more than 44,500 seedlings planted in southern Ethiopia in 2023 found about 80 percent had survived, with better rates for older seedlings, wet-season plantings and planters who had received training.
Researchers also point to limits. Restoration ecologist Emiru Birhane Hizikias said the program's scale has outpaced the systems needed to help seedlings survive, while ministry adviser Abreham Berta Aneseyee said government experts give farmers hands-on guidance. A 2022 study of 176 Asian projects found about half of planted trees did not last five years. Wageningen University researcher Aad Kessler said that even if only 30 percent survive, “it’s still huge.” Delayed rains and a changing climate add uncertainty, including for drought-tolerant species planted in the Afar and Somali regions.
Note: The headline suggests 50 billion seedlings as the achievement. The page says more than 47 billion have been planted so far, with 50 billion the target for 2030.
At a Glance
- More than 47 billion seedlings have been planted in Ethiopia since 2019, against a goal of 50 billion by 2030.
- The government reports national forest cover rose from 17.2 percent in 2019 to 23.6 percent in 2023.
- In August, 26.6 million people planted 800 million seedlings in one day, according to government figures.
- A 2026 study of more than 44,500 seedlings in southern Ethiopia found about 80 percent had survived.
- Ethiopia's 2024 restoration fund commits 0.5 to 1 percent of the federal budget, roughly $73 million to $145 million.
Sources
This brief was written by Brightside Report from the reporting linked above. Spot an error? Request a correction.