Wildlife Strategy and Policy.

The Ethiopia Wildlife Strategy and Policy is a national sectoral strategy whose main objective is to create a conducive environment whereby the country's wildlife and their habitats are protected and developed in a sustainable manner, and to enable the sector to play an important role in the economic development of the country. To work towards sustainable development and to empower the country to realize the maximum benefits from the sector (in the form of tourism, live animals and products trade, sport hunting, and etc.) the policy has five major sections dealing with wildlife development and protection, utilization of wildlife resources, participation of the community and investors in the sector, conservation education and information network.
The section on Wildlife resources development and protection focuses on the administration of wildlife protected areas, conservation of endemic and threatened wildlife, establishment of conservation mechanisms to protect wildlife from disasters including the establishment of an early-warning system and a trust fund to protect from disasters, promotion of wildlife health services, controlling of traffic in wildlife and wildlife products and controlling of problem animals.
Wildlife resource utilization focuses on the proper utilization of wildlife resources for sustainable tourism, hunting, trade, ranching, and food. Actions taken in this regard include identifying the benefits of wildlife, promoting eco-tourism, promoting the market for wildlife and wildlife products by increasing demand in local and foreign markets, and utilization of revenue generated from wildlife resources to benefit local people, wildlife conservation endeavors, as well as for the overall growth of the national economy.
Regarding investors participation, efforts will be made to encourage and support private investors to engage in protected areas administration and management through leases and concessions, to offer the necessary assistance and information to investors to enable them to produce high quality wildlife products; and production of export-oriented wildlife products.
in the section on conducting wildlife research, education, and training, efforts here will focus on strengthening research on wildlife, developing and implementing widely indigenous conservation experiences and knowledge as well as adoption and proper utilization of appropriate wildlife conservation technologies. Further, education and training on the value of wildlife and wildlife management will be given to raise the awareness of local communities about wildlife conservation.
An information network on wildlife and protected areas will be created to establish cooperation with other national and international information networks.
Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development is the lead institution to put in place the necessary infrastructure to ensure implementation of this strategy.