10 September 2019 – After months of negotiation and support from INBAR regional staff and the Dutch-Sino East Africa Bamboo Development Programme,  Ethiopia’s National Bamboo Strategy and Action Plan has been developed by the Ethiopian Environment Forest and Climate Change Commission and approved by the the Ethiopian government. 

INBAR’s work in Ethiopia with the Dutch-Sino  East Africa Bamboo Development Programme encompasses a wide range of activities from capacity building to research and development. Developing a National Bamboo Strategy and Action Plan, approved and ratified by the Ethiopian government, is a key step towards supporting a self-sufficient and thriving bamboo industry.

Ethiopia has the largest area of bamboo forest of any country in Africa, but income and livelihoods generated from bamboo do not reflect this fact. The Ethiopian central government, with INBAR’s support, has set an ambitious target to become the leading high value bamboo producer and supplier in Africa by 2030.

Ethiopian bamboo

The Strategy and Action Plan outlines the resources, challenges and opportunities for the country to achieve this vision.

Drawing on a wide network of partners and resources, the government will facilitate:

• An increase in the national bamboo area coverage from the existing 1.4 million hectares to 1.6 million hectares.
• The sustainable management of 200, 000 hectares of existing bamboo resources.
• The creation and/or strengthening of direct income and complementary employment opportunities for about 500,000 green jobs with an annual income increase of 1%.
• The creation of 100,000 new jobs both in Small/Medium Enterprises and in large-scale industries.
• The production of 2 million m³ of bamboo panels and boards.
• The generation of 1-2 million tonnes of energy products from bamboo by-products.
• An increase in public awareness of bamboo resources and products; and
• An improvement in the capacity of the growers and processors involved in the entire value-chain.

These efforts aim to add higher value to the country’s bamboo production chain, restore degraded land, attract investment, increase exports, reduce imports, create decent jobs and enhance Ethiopia’s climate change adaptation and mitigation capabilities.

The Dutch-Sino Inter-Africa Bamboo Development Programme has supported the development of this strategy document through expert advice and communication, two stakeholder consultation workshops and a bamboo strategy validation workshop. Ashebir Wondimu, INBAR’s focal point in Ethiopia, was present at the validation ceremony and said that “this bamboo strategy and action plan will help Ethiopia to realise its wider growth and transformation indicators. I offer my thanks to INBAR’s Dutch-Sino East Africa Bamboo Development Programme with the support of the Dutch and Chinese Governments for their extensive support in stakeholder consultation workshops and in drafting bamboo strategy document.”

The Programme will continue to support the governments of Kenya and Uganda to develop robust National Plans to develop their bamboo industries, and to facilitate the implementation of  Ethiopia’s National Plan as execution begins.

To find out more about the Dutch-Sino East Africa Development Programme, click here.