The State of Eritrea

Ministry of Agriculture Newsletter

A Monthly Newsletter Prepared by the Public Relations Division, Issue No 73, July 2024

Eritrea Marks World Day to Combat
Desertification and Drought
The commemorative ceremony witnessed presentation of local research papers on diverse
relevant topics, and panel discussion on the national context of the Theme of the Day
WorldDaytoCombat
Desertification and Drought isobserved globally on the 17thof June. This year, the Day wasinternationally observed in Bonn,
Germany, for the 30th time underthe theme, “United for Land: OurLegacy. Our Future”.
In Eritrea, the commemoration ofthe event, which was organized by
the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA),
took place on the 18th of June in
Asmara, National Confederationof Eritrean Workers’ Hall and wasattended by around one hundred
participants, including senior
MoA officials, representatives ofrelevant line ministries, regional
administrations,
nationalassociations, higher educational

Mr. Semere Amlesom

institutions, the United Nations
Development Program (UNDP)
office in Eritrea, FAO, stakeholders
fromseveraldevelopment
programs, agriculture experts
and farmers, among others.

1

Delivering a key note speech of theevent, representing the MoA, Mr.
Semere Amlesom, the Director
General of the Agricultural
Extension Department of theministry, stated that the annual
event calls for everyone toenhance participation in theendeavors being exerted towards
restoring degraded land andcombating desertification soas to leave safe land to next
generations. Pointing out that the
livelihood of more than 3.2 billion
people of the global population
is at stake due to desertification,
land degradation and drought,
he explained that the mostvulnerable people constituterural agrarian communities andsmall-scale farmers, and that thedire consequences thereof arepoverty, hunger, unemploymentand migration. Mr. Semere
further indicated that soil andwater conservation as well asafforestation programs are being
pursued as the cornerstoneof national strategic policies,and called for stepped-up andintegrated efforts on the partof pertinent bodies, including
members of the national defense
forces, local communities andexperts for a more impacting
outcome in this area.

as policy frameworks, has beenplaying an active role to solidify
its engagements to this effect.
She also reiterated the UNDP’s
readiness to enhance partnershipand support in the efforts Eritrea
is putting up towards ensuringlong-term resilience, as well as
environmental and social justice.
Moreover, five thematically
relevant research papers were
presented on the occasion,
preceded by a question-andanswer session.

Mr. Tekeste Weldegebriel

List of Research Papers Presentedin Connection with the Event- “UNCCD: Eritrea’s Commitments
and Experience in Combating
Desertification, Land Degradation
and Drought,” Presented byMr. Michael Berhane, from theAgricultural Extension Division(AED), MoA

Mr. Dawit Tesfai

Ms. Nashida Sattar

Speaking on the occasion
representing the UNDP officein Eritrea, Ms. Nashida Sattar,
the Officer in Charge of theoffice, said, “We are aware of
the considerable resources andstrong community participation
invested by Eritrea pursuingsoil and water conservation,
construction of water reservoirs,enhancement of agricultural
productivity, and sustainable landmanagement”. Ms. Nashida went
on indicating that the occasion
serves as an opportunity to
discuss and recognize Eritrea’s
human-led solutions that wereput in place to adapt its capacities
since independence, and that
the Government of Eritrea,
through its legislative as well

Mr. Michael Berhane

Mr. Zerai Sultan“Drought
Monitoring,ForecastingandImpactAssessment,” Presented by Mr.
Tekeste Weldegebriel, from theAgricultural Strategic Information
Systems Division (ASISD), MoA- “Regulating Salinization andLand Degradation,” Presentedby Mr. Dawit Tesfai, from theRegulatory Services Department(RSD), MoA

2Mr. Mussie Fekadu

- “Role of Agroforestry Systems
in Combating Desertification,
Land Degradation and Drought,”
Presented by Mr. Zerai Sultan,
from the National Agricultural
Research Institute (NARI), MoA- “The Date Palm and its Role in
Combating Desertification andClimate Change,” Presented byMr. Mussie Fekadu, from theNARI, MoA
On the other hand, a panel
discussion, moderated by Mr.
Amanuel Ghebrai, a Journalist
working for Dimtsi Hafash Radio
Program, was an integral andcrucial part of the event. The
panelists were Dr. Seife Berhe,a Geologist who conducted
a number of researches onenvironment; Dr. Weldeslassie
Okubazghi, from Hamelmalo

Agricultural College, and Mr.
Estifanos Beyin, Senior Forestry
and Biodiversity Conservation
Expert in the Ministry of Land,
Water and Environment.
Subsequently, the participantsof the event held extensive
discussion and exchanged viewson a number of important issues.
Finally, a number of comments
and recommendations wereforwarded, and deliberations
from the participants of theevent were as follows: The needfor emphasizing on policies
that encourage sustainable
land use rather than those thatare prohibitive; focusing on
the merits of adherence to the1994 - land proclamation thatencourages communal land
protection through higher senseof ownership; integrating action

3plans and information systemsof pertinent bodies; sharing
research results; reinforcingbackyard agroforestry activities
and traditional agroforestry
practices; integrating National
DatePalmDevelopment
Program with other nationalprograms; solidifying action planfor management of prosopis
trees (AKA: Temri Musa), as
well as enhancing monitoringand evaluation capacities along
the entire cycle of afforestation
programs, especially following theplantation of seedlings.
During the event, a flyer whichadressed national and international
challenges
andopportunities
with regards to Desertification
and Drought was distributed
to participants. Meanwhile, ashort video on Eritrea’s ongoingaccomplishments in soil and water

conservation, as well as constructionof water reservoirs, along with theSecretary General of the United
Nations, Mr. Antonio Gutteres’
official video message on the Day,
were displayed at the occasion.
Participants agreed that, the annual
commemoration of the World Day
to Combat Desertification andDrought is vital in promoting publicawareness on a number of related
issues.

Paper Presenters in Discussion

Panelists in Discussion
Editor-in-Chief: Ermias Solomon, Director of Public Relations Division
Email:- ersohab@gmail.com, Tel: 292-1- 182225/ +291-7143877
Assisstant Editor-in-Chief: Filmawit Measho; Information and Media Relations Unit HeadArticle Prepared by: Medhanie Tsegai
Photo Credit: Tomas Mehari, Aradom Bereket, Habteab Andemariam4