Upcoming Election, 2nd GERD Filling, Maintenance Of Peace, Security Decisive Steps Toward Better Tomorrow: NSC (April 24, 2021)

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The National Security Council of Ethiopia has today issued a statement on current circumstances in the country regarding national and regional security affairs.

The statement indicates that Ethiopia is going through several challenges due to some internal and external evil forces working to destabilize the nation.

Saying that the ongoing challenges are anticipated ones that every change faces, the statement underlined that all the bottlenecks can be overcome if the people stand in unison with the government for the better future.

The statement lists the upcoming election; second filling of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) and maintenance of national and regional peace and security are the decisive steps Ethiopia should take towards better tomorrow.

Council called up on the public to get registered for the election and have voter ID card and make their decision for their future destiny.

Second filling of the dam will be achieved despite the challenges the country is facing from inside and outside factors, the statement underscored.

The national Security Council urged all regional and national security forces to stand in unison and maintain peace and security, expressing conviction that the betterment of Ethiopia is attainable through sacrifices of its brave sons and daughters.

Ethiopia, World Bank Sign $907m Financing Agreement (April 23, 2021)

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Ethiopia and the World Bank Group have signed a total of $907 million financing agreement aimed at availing financing to SMEs, mitigating expansion of COVID-19, and increasing access to reliable electricity.

During the signing ceremony, Finance Minister Ahmed Shide said the World Bank Group remains a reliable partner of Ethiopia for several decades.

“Access to distributed electricity and lighting with $500 million loan financing aims to increase access to new and improved electricity services for households and small holder farmers etc. through on-grid, off-grid and mini-grid solutions by leveraging public and private delivery modalities,” he elaborated.

While the second project with $207 million is tailored to provide upfront financing for vaccine acquisition and deployment to enable affordable and equitable access and equitable deployment of COVID-19 vaccines, it was indicated.

Ahmed pointed out that the project will support the government’s efforts to deliver the vaccine besides strengthening the vaccination and regulatory system, according to ENA.

The Minister further stated that the third project with $200 million by providing credits to Small and Medium Enterprises (SME)s will expand access to financing and enable business continuity and jobs protection.

The World Bank remains indispensable partner in supporting Ethiopia’s development efforts, Ahmed said, and added “these projects we are signing are further testimonies of the bank’s commitment to continue supporting development endeavors in the country.”

World Bank Country Director for Ethiopia, Ousmane Dione said on his part that the project represents the World Bank’s continued support to Ethiopia’s national electrification program and is aligned with our commitment to support Ethiopia’s resilient recovery from COVID-19.

He appreciated the exemplary commitment of Ethiopia to support SMEs and excellent implementation record and impressive results achieved so far, and added “this why we are adding additional $200 million to this project.”

A Week in the Horn (April 23, 2021)

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For the latest updates from the Horn of Africa checkout MFA weekly online magazine A Week in the Horn 23.04.2021. Get the major news stories in the week about Ethiopia, Eritrea, Kenya, Djibouti, SouthSudan, Sudan, Somalia & AU. https://bit.ly/2Qr0vaD

Ethiopia, keen to host Second Russia-Africa Summit in Addis Ababa (April 23, 2021)

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H.E. Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Ethiopia had a discussion on Thursday (April 22) with H.E. Mr. Oleg Ozerov, Ambassador-at-Large, and Head of the Secretariat of Russia-Africa Partnership Forum held on 22 April 2021.

The two sides discussed preparations for the Second Russia-Africa Summit which will be held in 2022 in Africa.

The Secretariat gave briefings about the tasks and responsibilities of his office, the creation of Association of Economic Cooperation with the African States which will bring major Russian and African companies to work together.

As part of the preparation for the Summit, consultations will be held with AU and African countries this summer.

During the discussion, Mr. Demeke told the Secretariat Ethiopia’s commitment to strengthen the long-standing relations with Russia, appreciated the initiative of Russia to establishing the platform, and request to host the Second Russia-Africa Summit in Addis Ababa.

In addition, they exchanged ideas on cooperation in the areas of security, innovation/technology, agriculture, energy, nuclear medicine, geology exploration, etc.

The First Russia-Africa Summit was held in October 2019 in Sochi, Russia, in which Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed took part.

H.E. Mr. Oleg Ozerov also presented the invitation of Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to H.E. Mr. Demeke Mekonnen to visit Moscow.

US Embassy In Addis Ababa Organizes Workshop On Child Rights, Counter-Terrorism (April 23, 2021)

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The Embassy of the U.S. in Addis Ababa held a tailored capacity building workshop for 17 high-level practitioners-prosecutors, public defenders, judges, corrections officials and others to ensure justice for children in a counter-terrorism context.

The participants said they found the training comprehensive and made substantial progress in putting together recommendations to enhance current practices in Ethiopia.

Workshop focused on the roles of these practitioners when dealing with children in terrorism cases, including specific tools to protect the best interests of the child suspect from the time of arrest, according to U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa.

UN Security Council Reaffirms Strong Commitment To Sovereignty, Territorial Integrity And Unity Of Ethiopia (April 23, 2021)

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United Nations Security Council President Dinh Quy Dang issued a press statement concerning Ethiopia.

The statement says that the members of the Security Council acknowledged the efforts by the Government of Ethiopia to provide humanitarian assistance and to provide increased humanitarian access.

According to the statement, the members of the Security Council recognized, nevertheless, that humanitarian challenges remain.  They called for a scaled-up humanitarian response and unfettered humanitarian access to all people in need, including in the context of the food security situation.

Statement further indicates that members of the council welcomed the joint investigation by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission into alleged human rights violations and abuses.  The members of the Security Council also welcomed the engagement on this issue of the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights.

The members of the Security Council stressed the need for full compliance with international law.

The members of the Security Council reiterated their strong support to regional and subregional efforts and organizations, namely the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), and underscored the importance of their continued engagement.

The members of the Security Council reaffirmed their strong commitment to the sovereignty, political independence, territorial integrity and unity of Ethiopia.

Premier Reiterates Commitment To Holding Free, Fair Democratic Election (April 22, 2021)

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Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has expressed government’s commitment to holding a free, fair, democratic and peaceful election.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed convened Regional Presidents and National Election Board leadership this morning to follow up on the direction provided in the meeting of last week.

Following NEBE’s report that many polling stations were still pending, regions committed to ensuring requisite support to expedite the setting up of stations. Resultantly, both NEBE and regions confirmed today the progress made over the past week to set up polling stations and register voters.

The meeting also explored security preparedness among all regions in ensuring that the electoral process is peaceful and unhindered by agents of instability.

In this regard, the National Security Advisor, Gedu Andargachew presented the assessment made by the national electoral security committee, confirming that with the exception of a few hotspots, many polling stations throughout the country are ready to peacefully undertake elections.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed reiterated to Regional Presidents to scale up the momentum over the next week in enabling the full functionality of pending polling stations.

Citing that the upcoming elections are consequential in Ethiopia’s democratisation process, he urged all stakeholders to do their utmost in delivering on a successful and peaceful election.

Prime Minister Abiy also reflected on current security incidents, calling upon citizens to depart from emotion led actions and rather work together for stability and peace.

“Elections are a demonstration of building a democratic culture in which differences are addressed through the ballot and not by the bullet. Through the voting process, citizens exercise agency and actively participate in the building of a democratic process.” He said.

Prime Minister Abiy further underscored that the current elections are consequential in transitioning Ethiopia and hence collectively dispensing citizen duties is essential calling citizens to register to vote.

In this regard, he called upon youth to mobilise and strengthen the national security sector by enlisting for service and imparting their civic duties.

Ethiopian Official, US Ambassador Discuss Economic Cooperation (April 22, 2021)

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Ahmed Shide, Ethiopia’s Minister of Finance today received in his office the US Ambassador to Ethiopia, Geeta Pasi where they discussed the economic cooperation between Ethiopia and the United States.

The discussion focused on the multifaceted economic cooperation between the two countries, which has been very important in supporting economic growth in Ethiopia.

This is, in particular, is seen in the strong collaboration in areas such as resilience building in rural parts of the country, improving the quality of health and education sectors as well as building improved governance in Ethiopia.

Ahmed used the opportunity to brief the Ambassador about the current peace and security situation in Ethiopia and the Horn region. In their discussion regarding the GERD, the Ambassador elaborated about the US’s stand to see to disputes over the dam find an amicable solution.

Ahmed also reiterated that the Government of Ethiopia has given unimpeded access for humanitarian support in the Tigray region and explained about the rehabilitation and rebuilding measures in the region.

He expressed his appreciation to the US for being the largest humanitarian aid donor in Ethiopia and used the opportunity to underscore the need to further scale up economic cooperation.

The relations between the two countries date back as early as 1903, according to the Ministry of Finance.

Two Bottom Outlets of GERD Discharge Water Equal To Annual Flow of Abay Per Year: Minister (April 21, 2021)

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Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy, Dr. Seleshi Bekele said that both the recently completed bottom outlets of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) have gone operational with total capacity of discharging 1,860 cubic meters per second.

In an exclusive interview with EBC, the Minister said the process of the dam is now in state of reassuring safety, quality and functionality of ancillary structures.

The completion of the two bottom outlets ensures continuous water flows to the downstream countries and supports the overflow of the river, he noted.

Out of the two outlets, the right one opened last Wednesday while the other became fully functional last night, according to Dr. Seleshi.

“Each has a capacity of discharging 930 metric cube of water per second with total capacity of 1,860m3/s.  It means the two together actually come to discharge the entire flow of Abay River in a matter of a year.” the Minister elaborated.

“Our dam is designed in such a way that it doesn’t cause any type of harm to downstream countries.” he underlined.

The two bottom outlets have a capacity to complete the withdrawal of 50 billion cubic meters which is average annual flow of the Abay River.

Outflow of the water is not managed only through the two outlets, the Minister said, adding that when thirteen turbines start operation each enables inflow of 330 cubic meter of water per second allowing large amount of water to the downstream.

US Pledges Continued Support, Cooperation with Ethiopia (April 21, 2021)

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Minister of Peace, Muferihat Kamil, has met and discussed on current affairs with US Ambassador to Ethiopia, Geeta Pasi.

Minister Muferihat briefed the ambassador on steps being undertaken to address the humanitarian situation in the northern part of the country following the law enforcement process.

The Minister thanked the people and government of the United States for their significant contribution towards the delivery of humanitarian assistance.

Ambassador Pasi, for her part, said that she has been closely monitoring the changes in Ethiopia and has pledged continued support and cooperation, according to the Ministry of Peace.