Expanding political forests: On-farm tree planting and restoration governance in Yayo, Southwest Ethiopia

The Ethiopian government has made significant efforts to promote reforestation and landscape restoration for many years. However, rural communities have been reluctant to participate in these state-led initiatives. Instead, farmers prefer to plant trees on their own land, primarily using exotic species. This apparent paradox raises questions about the motivations and consequences of on-farm tree planting. Our study examines tree-planting practices in the area of the Yayo Biosphere Reserve in south-west Ethiopia, comparing state-led reforestation initiatives with farmer-driven activities. Building upon the concept of ‘political forests’, we introduce the complementary micro-perspective of ‘political trees’ to examine how farmers navigate governance structures, assert land claims, and secure livelihoods through tree planting. Our research shows that state-driven reforestation programmes, often presented as ecological restoration, serve broader political objectives, yet frequently overlook local requirements and land use practices. Meanwhile, unregulated on-farm tree planting, driven by economic incentives and land tenure insecurity can lead to unintended socio-ecological consequences, including land-use conflicts, biodiversity loss, and uneven distribution of benefits among different social groups. By highlighting the tensions between top-down reforestation policies and local land use strategies, this study emphasises the importance of governance frameworks that integrate local agency and ecological sustainability in tree planting initiatives.