The “Lalibela Agro Plantation Project” was established in February 2014 by a group of young people in Lalibela who want bring trees back to the mountains of their environment.
They got some initial support (regarding project management and finance) from European supporters of this idea, but the sustainable ongoing of tree planting and growing must be provided by the local community.
And since Lalibela is a “must” for every first time visitor of Ethiopia, it seemed a logical step to convince tourists (who come there to see the fabulous rock hewn churches and take home this unique memory) that they could also leave something behind and contribute to a better future of the local people by helping to plant a tree – either with their money, or even better with their hands.
More information about this project can be found at lalibela-trees.com.
Eroded slopes on the mountains around Lalibela
Until the thirties of the last century the slopes of the mountains around Lalibela were densely forested and fertile with surplus production of various grains. 85% of the land used to be covered by trees. Nowadays there are only remnants and patches of forests mainly around churches and inaccessible areas. After nationalization of the land people have been and still are cutting trees and selling woods for different purposes. Many farmers in the area cultivate sloped and hilly land, causing top soil to wash away during torrential rains. The genetic diversity of Lalibela domesticated plants and its unique natural flora is increasingly being eroded because of the long history of disruptive interventions by the community and weak local management in the face of an expanding population and the increasing needs of farming land. There is an extremely urgent need to break the vicious circle of land degradation, low agricultural production, food insecurity and poverty.
A small seedling, planted by a tourist, can grow into a pretty tree within less than 3 years
