A high-level Ethiopian delegation led by Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has arrived in Cairo to attend the six joint ministerial commission meeting which is being held for the first time at the level of heads of state. more

Ethiopia today released 115 suspects who were detained at the federal level. Among the released suspects include Dr Merera Gudina and Dr Rufael Disasa. more

Ethiopia has earned more than 1.8 billion US dollars from tourism in the first half of this Ethiopian fiscal year, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MoCT). A total of 485,806 foreign tourists have visited the country during the past six months, said Hirut Woldemariam, Minister of Culture and Tourism, while presenting her ministry’s 6-month report to the House of People’s Representatives today. more

Ethiopians celebrate many of the religious holidays in a peculiar way. Among thos holidays celebrated in a unique way is Christmas or Gena. Unlike countries that follow Gregorian calendar Ethiopians celebrate Gena on 7 January. Though the way they celebrate may vary in the context of various cultural settings, Orthodox Christians in central and Eastern Europe and other parts of the world celebrate Christmas on January 7 like Ethiopians. Christmas is a day for feasting and enjoying the company of friends and family members. The celebration of Gena includes a mass at all churches after midnight. The celebration at the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela is unique. Christmas is celebrated in a very peculiar and attractive ways due to the birth date of King Lalibela, who constructed the historic and mesmerizing churches, being on similar day. more

Foreign Minister Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu held discussions with his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry about bilateral issues, including the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. At a joint press statement they gave today, Foreign Minister Dr. Workneh said the dam will not harm any country. “This dam has no single harm on Egyptians,” he reiterated. According to the minister, Ethiopia has been working in the spirit of accountability and transparency from the very beginning. more

Helen Hai, CEO of Made in Africa Initiative said Ethiopia could be a model in Africa in capturing jobs opportunities exported from abroad as a result of rising labour costs. According to Hai, what Ethiopia has been following is China’s model and she advised African governments to follow this development replica and aim to become a light manufacturing hub to undergo a fruitful economic transformation within the next 30 years. more

Ethiopia and African Development Bank (AfDB) have signed about 2.77 billion birr agreements which will be used for Addis Ababa Power Supply Improvement Project today. Of this, some 2.35 billion birr and about 415.66 million birr is in the form of loan and grant, respectively, and will be used to address existing constraints in electric infrastructure and meet the growing demand in the city and its surroundings. During the signing ceremony, Finance and Economic Cooperation State Minister, Dr. Admasu Nebebe said the project will help to create sufficient and reliable electric power transmission and distribution capacity. more

The government of Ethiopia and the World Bank today signed two financing agreements amounting to 470 million USD to improve quality of education, and productivity in livestock and fisheries. A grant amounting to 300 million USD to support the General Education Quality Improvement Project for Equity (GEQIP-E) is the first agreement that the two sides have signed. Finance and Economic Cooperation Minister, Dr. Abraham Tekeste said during the occasion that project aims to support government’s efforts towards improving access and quality education. more