Forest and forestry in Gondar (Ethiopia) from 1938 to 1991: utilization, opportunities, and constraints

Abstract Recent studies on human interaction with the natural environment are striving to show the long-term environmental changes and the challenges faced by people in these areas. One of the major issues in the course of the eco- environmental theme of Ethiopia in the sub-region of Amhara, Gondar, is the study of forest and forestry. Although there is limited study of different government policies and gradual historical variation of forest and its management in Gondar, from the Italian occupation to the fall of the socialist government in Ethiopia in 1991, the forest passed several ups and downs, just like human political history. Reforestation and deforestation were the interchangeable fates of forests in Gondar. The objectives of this paper are to review the forest and forestry from a historical perspective from 1938 to the 1990s, to compare and contrast different government decrees on the forest, and to examine the socio-economic and environmental opportunities and constraints faced by the people in the study area. This study adopts a qualitative approach to data collection. Both primary and secondary data sources were used. It tried to unearth the neglected course of the city’s environmental history. Therefore, it is believed that the study adds knowledge and understanding about forests and forestry in Gondar and can be a source for future researchers on the topic under study. The findings show that forest and forestry in Gondar passed through three government policies: the Fascist Italian, the Imperial rule, and the Derg. In all these periods, although the number of forests gradually decreased, it played a dominant role for the people of the area.