A grant agreement worth 4.4 million Euros was signed on Sunday to support the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) for a Trans-boundary South Sudan-Ethiopia conservation project of biodiversity in the Boma-Gambella landscape.
The executive secretary of the IGAD, Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu, and Head of the European Delegation to Djibouti, Ambassador Aidan O’Hara signed the agreement.
The Political and Public Diplomacy Plenipotentiary Minister, Melaku Bedada speaking for the Ambassador of Ethiopia to Djibouti, commending IGAD-EU for materializing the grant agreement; reiterated Ethiopia’s unrelenting commitment to further enhancing the collaborative conservation of biodiversity, landscape, and greenery.
Melaku said that this project will engender a remarkable impact on the biodiversity management and livelihoods of communities residing in Boma-Gambella areas.
He expressed the government’s readiness and full support for the implementation of this regional project.
In his opening remarks, Workneh praised a ‘long-standing friendship’ between IGAD and the European Union that had “grown from strength to strength.
“This project is the latest in a long line of partnerships and shared initiatives between IGAD and the EU to preserve all that is good in our region and also address the challenges that we face”, he added.
Ambassador O’Hara commended IGAD Secretariat for “the cross-border approach it is taking to tackling regional challenges”.
He also emphasized the need to involve local communities in the implementation of the program and wished every success to the implementing partner, ‘The Wildlife Conservation Society’.
According to information obtained from Ethiopian Embassy in Djibouti, IGAD will be in charge of the global coordination of this transboundary project while the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) will be the implementing partner.
The Boma-Gambella landscape consists of a mosaic of interacting ecosystems on either side of the South Sudan-Ethiopia border.
The landscape is globally renowned for its diverse wildlife populations and its rare and threatened species.