Today, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) launched its new Land Governance Activity that will strengthen policy, management, and administration to improve land tenure and rights for farmers and pastoralists in Ethiopia. USAID Mission Director Sean Jones, State Minister of Urban Development and Construction Tazer Gebre Egziabiher, and Tigistu Gebremeskel, Director of Land Administration and Use at the Ministry of Agriculture inaugurated the new project, which is part of a collaborative U.S.-Ethiopia partnership to strengthen land governance over the past 15 years.

USAID’s five-year $11 million activity will support the Government of Ethiopia and build on progress towards increasing land tenure security, which has greatly improved land use rights for pastoralists and farmers – especially those of women – resulting in greater farm productivity and increased incomes among families in rural areas. The USAID Land Governance Activity will also focus on policy and management efforts to address emerging land-related challenges, including rapid urbanization and degradation of soil and arable land.

“Improving planning, policy and land management is critical to helping Ethiopian farmers and families reap the fruits of their labor more fully, and have better opportunities for themselves and their children to fulfill the bright future they deserve,” said USAID Mission Director Sean Jones. 

The United States is the largest bilateral donor to Ethiopia and has invested approximately $4 billion in development and humanitarian assistance over the past five years to help people across the country lead healthier and more prosperous lives.