68 hectares of barren hillsides are being greened

Satisfied with three harvests per year

^{As of: 03/2026}

Due to its geographical and climatic exposure, Ethiopia is disproportionately affected by the consequences of climate change. Extreme weather events occur with corresponding frequency, particularly droughts and floods, some of which result in significant crop failures and losses in agriculture and livestock farming and repeatedly lead to poverty and food insecurity in rural areas that threaten livelihoods. Against this backdrop, Germany, together with other international partners, including the World Bank, supports the Rural Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP).

Project title

Rural Productive Safety Net Program (PSNP)

Commissioned by

Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ)

Country / Region

Ethiopia

Project partner

World Bank and other donors

Current situation

Despite strong economic growth of 7.3% p.a. recently, Ethiopia faces a variety of challenges: The poverty rate (the proportion of the population living on less than USD 3 per day) has risen again for the first time in several decades due to numerous armed conflicts and a severe economic crisis.

The UNHCR estimates the number of internally displaced persons at around 2.0 million (as of 25 October). In addition, there are currently an estimated 1.1 million refugees in the country, mainly from South Sudan, Sudan and Somalia.

Extreme weather events lead to prolonged periods of drought alternating with heavy rainfall, resulting in severe flooding and landslides. Around 50% of agricultural land is affected by degradation, leading to massive losses of fertile soil every year. This destroys crops and jeopardises the livelihoods of many farmers; water and fodder shortages threaten the camel, cow and sheep herds that are essential for feeding the population.

Father and son in the countryside with a water hose in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. — Negasi Tadesse, 55, and his 14-year-old son Shewit Nagasi report: This used to be barren land. It was only after measures were taken to conserve water and soil that we were able to start practising irrigated agriculture. This is my own land – but outside the rainy season, I had to work as a day labourer. Now we work on our own land all year round and enjoy three harvests – onions, maize and millet.

Project approach

The Programme for Social Protection and Rural Development (PSNP), which has been in existence since 2005 and is the largest of its kind in sub-Saharan Africa, secures the livelihoods of around 8 million poor and food-insecure people through social transfers granted in return for community service. The community service performed by the beneficiaries involves projects for rural and agricultural development and for environmental and resource protection, such as the maintenance and expansion of collectively used agricultural irrigation systems and large-scale projects for erosion control, retention, groundwater aquifer regeneration and reforestation.

In addition, a large proportion of the beneficiaries receive support (advice, training, start-up capital) to set up micro-enterprises, thereby creating long-term income prospects for poor households and enabling them to escape their dependence on social transfers.

One of the many PSNP projects started around seven years ago in Tigray: in a 68-hectare water catchment area, terraces, walls and ditches were and are being built on steep slopes to collect water during the rainy season and use it to feed groundwater and irrigate newly planted crops.

Women and men under a tree in the Tigray region of Ethiopia — Members of the PSNP cooperative gather to share their experiences. Beneficiaries receive 600 birr (just over 3 euros) per month for five days of work. During this time, they build the necessary walls and ditches or plant seedlings. At the start of the project, they received 30,000 birr, which they used to buy goats and sheep for fattening.

Results

Social transfers have secured the livelihoods of 8 million poor people threatened by hunger.
In the project area in Tigray: soil erosion has been halted on 86 hectares of land, which can now be used for agriculture.

The project contributes to the achievement of the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: