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Ethiopian women and girls see remarkable results in ending child marriage

Child marriage is a global phenomenon that leaves girls vulnerable to abuse and health problems, including potentially deadly pregnancy complications. In 2014, Ethiopia committed to ending child marriage by 2025.

But some districts of the country are on track to meet this goal even earlier.

In Kolla Tembein District, an outreach program reached some 1,200 unmarried girls through school programmes like the girls’ clubs. Community outreach efforts engaged another 1,200 girls who were already married. Thanks to such efforts, there have not been any cases of child marriage reported in those localities in the past last three years, and the dropout rate among female students has fallen to almost zero.

The programme now is set to expand to the rest of the district.

The community’s women and girls are mobilizing to change things – and they are seeing enormous success.

Women take action

The programme works with women’s volunteer networks called Women’s Development Groups. The volunteers received information about the consequences of child marriage, as well as related issues such as gender equality, the importance of ending female genital mutilation (FGM), and the benefits of maternal health care.

Because girls who leave school are more likely to be married off, and because many child brides are forced to drop out, the Women’s Development Groups also work closely with the local schools. If a girl drops out, the volunteers speak with her family to convince them of the importance of education over early marriage. If necessary, they refer cases of child marriage to local authorities.

Empowering girls

In schools, girls’ clubs are also helping to end child marriage. The clubs meet every two weeks with a specially trained mentor, who explains the harms of child marriage.

The girls also receive other information, including the basics of sexual and reproductive health and how to prevent sexually transmitted infections. They also gain life skills such as financial literacy skills.

The idea is to empower girls to not only reject child marriage but to minimize their vulnerability by improving their prospects for the future.

Merhawit Mezgebe, 18, is a 10th grader, and has been attending this programme for the past two years. Like other girls in the club, she has opened a savings account and is eager to plan for her future.

“I want to use my savings to finance my college studies without bothering my parents,” she said, smiling.

The girls are also helping to stamp out child marriage in their communities, she added.

When members of the club hear about possible child marriages taking place, they report it back to their mentor, who works with authorities to take action.

https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/ethiopian-women-and-girls-see-remarkable-results-ending-child-marriage

Ethiopia pardons prominent opposition figure, journalist

Ethiopia’s attorney general said on 8 February that  746 more prisoners will be released, including a journalist and a senior opposition official who were jailed for conspiracy to commit terrorist acts.

About 417 of the pardoned inmates are federal prisoners jailed on terrorism, inciting violence, religious extremism and other related convictions.

The decision follows a series of changes announced by the government to try to reduce tension in the country. Nearly 6,000 prisoners have been freed since January. Most were detained in connection with mass protests and violence that broke out three years ago in the country’s Oromia and Amhara regions. The names of the prisoners have been forwarded to President Mulatu Teshome, who has the power to grant their freedom.

Mr Nega, a blogger and journalist, was arrested in 2011 and accused of trying to incite violence with a series of online articles.  In the same case, Mr Arage, a member of the opposition Unity for Democracy and Justice party, was sentenced to life imprisonment. Both were among a group of 20 people on trial. Among the others were five exiled journalists who were sentenced in absentia to prison terms of 15 years to life.

The Federal Attorney General recently released 528 suspects, including 115 at the federal level, in the first round. The remaining 413 were from SNNP regional state.

Oromia and Amhara regional states also pardoned 2,345 and 3,503 suspects respectively.

 

2018, a pivotal year for Ethiopia’s electricity sector

Ethiopia is expected to considerably step up its electricity production capacity in 2018. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) will start generating electricity as the first two 375 MW turbines will enter into service. In parallel, the National Electrification Program (NEP) will help the country’s objective to reach universal access by 2025. This article was originally published in the 9th issue (January 2018) of The Ethiopian Messenger, the quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels.

                                                                                                   The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, whose construction started in 2011, will start generating power this year

Next year, Ethiopia is expected to considerably step up its electricity production capacity and achieve other stepping stones in its the energy sector. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, a landmark project in Ethiopia’s endeavour to become a middle-income country by 2025, will start generating electricity as the first two 375 MW turbines will enter into service. In parallel, the National Electrification Program (NEP) was launched in order to increase the access of the population to the electrical network. Universal access should be reached by 2025 using both on-grid and off-grid solutions.

The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam: starting operations

Built on the Blue Nile in Ethiopia since 2011, the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) is expected to start generating hydroelectric power in 2018. Two of the sixteen turbines will be activated, with a generating power of 750 MW of electricity. Upon completion, the dam will be Africa’s largest with an installed capacity of 6,450 MW − equivalent to four to six nuclear reactors −, and it will double Ethiopia’s total capacity, that is expected to reach an approximate 14,000 MW upon completion of ongoing projects including the Koysho dam that is currently being built. The construction site is currently the biggest in Africa, with 10,000 men and women working day and night to achieve this gigantic national effort. Once completed, the Grand Ethiopian Dam will be the largest dam on the continent: 1,780 meters long and 145 meters high. Built for an estimated cost of 4.7 billion USD thanks to entirely domestic funds, the dam has been considered to be a landmark project signalling Ethiopia’s Renaissance.

Since the GERD is being constructed on the Blue Nile, that has its source in Ethiopia and flows to Sudan and Egypt, Ethiopia took the initiative to establish international consultations with the other riparian countries. A major step was achieved on 23 March 2015 in Khartoum, when the leaders of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan signed a declaration of principle on Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance dam project. “We could cooperate and accomplish great things or disagree and hurt each other… we have chosen to cooperate,” the Egyptian President El-Sisi stated on this occasion. On his side, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn stressed that the Renaissance Dam will not cause any significant harm to the Egyptian people: Egypt and the rest of the Nile Basin countries are one family, he said. Moreover, on 1st of June 2016, Egypt’s foreign affairs minister Sameh Shoukry noted that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has become a reality and that it is “pointless to bury our heads in the sand by not acknowledging a tangible physical reality.” Two French consultancy firms – BRL and Artelia – were also selected to undertake studies on the possible impacts of the dam.

Regional agreement

Ethiopia is expected to considerably step up its electricity production capacity in 2018. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) will start generating electricity as the first two 375 MW turbines will enter into service. In parallel, the National Electrification Program (NEP) will help the country’s objective to reach universal access by 2025.

In October 2017, Ethiopia facilitated a visit of Egypt, Ethiopia and Sudan signed a cooperation deal in March 2015 the Ministers of Water Affairs of Ethiopia, Egypt, to ensure a fair distribution of the dam resources and Sudan to further boost the existing level of transparency and increase confidence among the three countries about the Dam. During the visit, the Minister of water, irrigation, and electricity of Ethiopia, Engineer Sileshi Bekele, presented to his counterparts the major positive impacts the megaproject will have in Ethiopia as well as in the countries of the region upon its completion. On the next day, a trilateral ministerial meeting took place during which the pending issues regarding the International Panel of Experts (IPoE) and two recommended studies were discussed. During the meeting, Water Ministers of Ethiopia, Egypt, and Sudan drafted a guideline that will guide the activities of the two consulting firms in charge of conducting the impact analysis.

The assertion that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has no significant impact on downstream countries is based on scientific research. Several studies carried out by Ethiopia have shown that the dam will have no significant negative hydrologic simulation, socio-economic, and environmental impacts on downstream countries. The country has so far provided about 150 documents related to the hydrological simulation and other issues in dealing with other parties in a transparent manner. Ethiopia has also taken into account the drought scenario in the water filling strategy, mean flow scenario, and high-water flows scenarios, which in turn minimize wastage of water and utilization throughout the year. Downstream countries will benefit from the renewable energy to be generated from the dam, which will serve as a water bank for both countries in case of drought. Sudan annually pays 50 million USD to clear the sands in its reservoir and irrigation dams and the GERD will reduce the possible accumulation of silt in the reservoirs and irrigation dams of both countries. Most importantly, the dam will have a paramount contribution towards eradicating poverty, maintaining economic growth and pushing for more regional integration.

With a hydropower potential of 45,000 MW largely untapped until today, Ethiopia has a real opportunity to transform its economy and accelerate the economic integration of the whole region thanks to cheap and abundant energy. The goal of the country is to reach a generating power of 17,000 MW by the end of the Growth and Transformation Plan in 2020. Plants constructed to this end during the last ten years include Tekeze (300MW, completed in 2009), Tana Belese (460 MW), Gilgel Gibe II (420 MW, completed in 2010), Gilgel Gibe III (1970 MW. Koysho Dam (2,200 MW) is currently under construction.

An expanding distribution network

On 27 November, the government of Ethiopia launched the National Electrification Program (NEP) to reach universal access by 2025, using both on-grid and off-grid solutions. The goal of the NEP is to better cover the country’s population and also provide electricity to neighbouring countries. Through the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, whose construction started in 2011, will start generating power this year the first phase of the program (2018-2022), 4.5 million new grid connections are anticipated. Launching the program, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said access to adequate, reliable and affordable electric service is a critical enabler to Ethiopia’s transformation into a middle- income country. The NEP will also enable the country to reach the corresponding UN Sustainable Development Goal target ahead of time by providing adequate, reliable and affordable electricity for all by 2030.

The program will be realized in collaboration with multilateral and bilateral financial institutions and development partners. About USD 1.5 billion of investment and technical assistance is expected to be covered by the government, multilateral and bilateral financial institutions and development partners as well as the private sector. In this framework, the World Bank is ready to confirm its support to the government of Ethiopia to realize its ambitious national electrification program and could extend 375 million USD in credit for the program.

A strong commitment to green economy

The progress of Ethiopia’s energy sector expected for the year 2018 will represent an important step for the country on its way to economic development. As a matter of fact, cheap and abundant energy is crucial for the well-being of Ethiopian citizens, the development of the economy, tourism and especially for the industrial sector. Combined with a large, cheap and trainable labour force, robust infrastructure, political stability and a strategic location, the growth of the energy sector will boost the attractiveness of the country. Furthermore, these new electricity production facilities will enable Ethiopia to export cheap electricity to neighbouring countries.

This will have a positive effect on regional integration and development. The sustainable development lies at the very centre of Ethiopia’s economic strategy. This commitment has been demonstrated through the clean energy generation projects, through investments in electric transportation infrastructure (railway), extensive rural environmental rehabilitation works, among others. Various awareness creation programs regarding desertification and environmental rehabilitation work such as reforestation and afforestation have in fact been taking place country-wide and have been taken as an example in many parts of the world.

As a result, the country’s forest coverage has reached 15 percent, which was at an all-time low of less than 4 percent almost two decades ago. By concretely advancing towards the realization of a green economy, Ethiopia has enabled itself to play a leading role in international climate change negotiations. The country is currently engaged in a successful climate diplomacy so that the voice of developing countries is heard on this pressing issue on the international arena.

The innovative Reppie Waste-to-energy plant

Another landmark project for Ethiopia’s green economy will be the launch of the Reppie waste-to-energy plant in Addis Ababa. Starting in 2018, Ethiopia’s first waste-to-energy plant will produce 185 gigawatt GWh per year and protect the environment by diverting huge amounts of waste while covering 30 percent of the capital city’s household’s electricity needs. The facility located alongside the 50-year- old Koshe dump site is one of the various energy projects being implemented in line with Ethiopia’s Climate Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) strategy that aims to limit the country’s carbon footprint to less than 2010 levels by 2030 as it becomes a middle-income nation. The plant has been built according to the highest environmental and technical standards and will bet the first of its kind on the African continent. ■

Democratisation in Ethiopia: A new chapter in the making

Following months of negotiation, the ruling party and the opposition made the historic decision last September to adopt a mixed type electoral system by adding proportional representation to the current simple majority system of the country. This initiative is expected to increase the voice of the opposition in the parliament. This article was originally published in the 9th issue (January 2018) of The Ethiopian Messenger, the quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels.

The 2010 Ethiopian New Year (September 2017) witnessed a breakthrough in the democratisation process of Ethiopia, as the ruling party, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), and several legal opposition parties made the significant decision to adopt a mixed type electoral system by adding proportional representation to the prevailing plurality electoral system of the country. This initiative aims at entertaining the voices of the opposition through their increased representation in the parliament and deepen the country’s democratisation process.

Following thorough discussions, the coalition party also decided early January to pardon or drop the charges of some political leaders currently facing prosecution for being suspected of committing a crime and those already sentenced by the court, in accordance with the relevant law of the country. In addition, “Maekelawi”, one of the detention centres of the country, will be closed and turned in to a museum.

Majority system

It is to be recalled that the Ethiopian electoral system uses the simple majority vote (first-past-the-post system) to elect representatives to the Federal Parliament and regional councils. According to the First Past the Post electoral system, a candidate who gets the most votes in an election is regarded as the winner and stands duly elected as a member of parliament (MP).

In addition to its easy implementation, the FPTP system produces stability. It avoids fragmentation of legislatures because it can produce a decisive majority with little or no coalition government needed in any deliberation process. From now on, both the majority and the opposition agreed to adopt a mixed electoral system combining a majority rule and a proportional representation system, which will be respectively applied to 80 and 20 percent seats in the Federal Parliament.

Even if the current electoral system (simple majority) is used in older democracies such as the United Kingdom and Canada, it has received sharp critiques when applied to

Ethiopia. Critics argued that it is not suited for the overall political and socio-economic situation of the country and that Ethiopia’s current level of democracy does not allow it to accommodate such a system. They further argue that in contexts where the government has historically been deeply involved in the overall affairs of the country, and where the existence of a vibrant multi-party system is very poor, recent, the simple majority system tends to exclude opposition voices.

As all systems, the majority election system has deficiencies, such as the exclusion of opposition voices that fall short of attaining the simple majority. However, the first-past-the-post system is not the sole responsibility for the absence of opposition seats in the Parliament, as the number of seats of opposition parties in the Federal Parliament and regional councils also dwindled from election to election due to their sustainability and endurance problems.

The way ahead

Following the address of President Mulatu Teshome to the two Houses of the Parliament in 2015, during which he stressed the need to engage opposition parties and members of the civil society to quickly move forward in nurturing democracy, the ruling and opposition parties have engaged in an extensive dialogue. So far, they have identified 12 issues for negotiation. Out of these 12 issues, an agreement was reached on two important points: The electoral system and the requirements for establishing a political party.

As stated above, after extensive discussions and negotiations, the parties have agreed to change the existing electoral system of the country by combining the simple majority rule and the proportional systems. Based on this agreement, total seats in the federal parliament will also increase to 660 from the current 547 seats. This agreement entails the amendment of the article 54 of the Ethiopian Constitution.

Requirements for establishing a political party. Previously, the minimum required to establish a political party was to have 1,500 members. Taking into account the total population of Ethiopia and in order to give weight to the establishment of political parties, minimum membership requirement was increased to 3000. In addition to that, newly established political parties are now required to open an office in at least 4 of the 9 regional administrations and to have a full-time employee(s) in their offices.

Historic Process

To grasp the importance of these successful negotiations between ruling and legal opposition parties, it can be useful to take a step back and look at history. It is important to keep in mind that Ethiopia had known only known two types of regimes until the 1990s: the feudal system and a Marxist military junta. During

the Feudal system, the Emperor and its subordinates exercised a monopoly over access to resources and decision-m

aking. As the king was considered the “law”, rules and regulations were merely written to satisfy foreign allies or to fulfil requirements put in place by international organizations such as the UN. Even if there were exercises to send representatives (ENDERASE) from the periphery to the centre, the prerequisite for appointed representatives was a total loyalty to the king, and hence, these representatives were not working in the interest of the people but to satisfy the Emperor. From 1974 to 1991, all political, economic and social powers where highly centralized under a military junta. Despite a few attempts to “allow” the formation of political parties, in practice, the system was not tolerant of opposition parties which could possibly challenge the military government. Officially, there was no opposition party legally registered and functioning in the country. Many of them were based in foreign lands.

In a genuine attempt to reverse the heritage of repressive regimes and to install a democratic government, in 1991, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front invited all factions and previously established parties to participate in the making of the Ethiopian Constitution and were offered with positions in the EPRDF-led government. Despite the efforts to create a vibrant multi-party system, due to various factors, this project did not materialize. In 2005, in an attempt to encourage opposition parties, the ruling party by providing considerable political space for the opposition, going as far as tolerating some of their wrongdoings.

The then CUD (Coalition for Unity and Democracy) or locally known as “Kinijit” which had managed to win the capital Addis Ababa and a noticeable number of seats in the Federal Parliament ultimately decided to boycott any participation to power, even though the ruling party had finalized all preparations to hand over the capital city to them. That historic mistake is regarded as a major setback to years of efforts to strengthen the multi-party system, that brought back the democratization process in Ethiopia back to square one.

Today, a new chapter is in the making. It is up to the political parties, and notably oppositions parties, to use this golden opportunity to deal with issues of interest to the large public. ■

Ethiopian Airlines launches mobile app for iOS & Android devices

Ethiopia’s national carrier, Ethiopian Airlines, has eased airt ticketing with the launch of a mobile application. Passengers originating from Addis Ababa will now have the option to make the payment either through mobile payment or internet banking.

This new initiative will gradually replace the ticketing service that is being rendered in Addis Ababa and domestic ticket offices, the airline said.

“The mobile applications for iOS and Android devices will enable us to avail a high degree of personalized experience to our esteemed customers,” said Tewolde Gebre Mariam, Group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines. “Our customers will be able to use their mobile devices to book their flights, do their flight check-in, issue their boarding pass and self-board their flights, check the status of their flight, get actual arrival and departure times of our flights and remain connected and informed throughout their journey in real-time.”

Customers will enjoy 10 percent discount on all bookings made through Ethiopian mobile app.

Ethiopian Airlines operates to more than 100 destinations across five continents. It has a fleet that comprises of ultra-modern and environmentally friendly aircraft such as Airbus A350, Boeing 787-8, Boeing 787-9, Boeing 777-300ER, Boeing 777-200LR, Boeing 777-200 Freighter, Bombardier Q-400 double cabin with an average fleet age of five years.

Direct Flight to Belgium to Transport Flowers Takes Off

Ethiopian Airlines’ direct freighter flight from Bahir Dar, the capital of Amhara Regional State, to Liege, Belgium, one of the largest Ethiopian flower destinations, took-off with 45tns of flowers on January 24, 2018.

The maiden flight shipped the products from Tana Flora, Ethio Agri-CEFT and Koga Veg Agricultural Development, the three horticulture farms among the 16 located in Bahir Dar. These 16 farms occupy 1,300ha of land secured from the Amhara Regional State. “We aim to deliver fresh flowers timely and directly from the farms,” said Tewolde Gebremariam, group CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, which has over 100 international and 21 local destinations.

The Airlines is planning to transport 130tns of flowers in three direct flights every week.

Among the 100 destinations of Ethiopian flowers, vegetables, herbs, cuttings and fruit products, Belgium leads importing over half of the products. Apart from Belgium and the European Union member state countries, the United States, Russia and the Middle East buy Ethiopian horticulture varieties.

Ethiopia is the fourth largest non-European Union (EU) member exporter to the EU cut flower market and the second largest flower exporter from Africa next to Kenya. The country has 12,552ha of land ideal for horticulture but only 11pc of this is cultivated with such varieties.

Companies in Bahir Dar have been struggling to transport the products to Bole International Airport, according to Nega Mekuanint, managing director of Tana Flora, one of the companies that shipped its products on the maiden flight. Founded in October 2011 on 11ha of land, Tana shipped 30tns of flowers in the first trip.

“Most of our products get damaged while transporting them to Addis Abeba via road,” said Nega, whose company targets to ship between 74tns and 90tns of flowers via air every week.

Ethiopian Airlines aims to support the export sector and the country’s economy through such strategies. The country’s import bill reached 17 billion dollars last year and is surging and it has struggled in boosting its export earnings stagnating at around three billion dollars for the past two years.

http://allafrica.com/stories/201802060611.html

Ethiopia Given Mantle to Host CHAN 2020

Ethiopia will host the next Championship of African Nations (CHAN) tournament scheduled for the year 2020. The country’s football chief received the mantle from the president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) after the 2018 final in Morocco.

CAF president Ahmad Ahmad along with EFF president Juneidi Basha displayed the Ethiopian flag with the CAF flag handed over to Basha.

View image on TwitterView image on Twitter

On Sunday 4 February, Morocco made history by becoming the first host nation to win the tournament.

They are the third north African side to win the competition after Tunisia (2011) and Libya (2014). South of the Sahara, only Democratic Republic of Congo have won it in 2009 and 2016.

It is played between the best national teams of Africa, exclusively featuring players who are active in the national championships and qualified to play in the ongoing season.

http://www.africanews.com/2018/02/06/ethiopia-officially-handed-mantle-to-host-chan-2020/

Ethiopia created more than 800,000 jobs within the last six months

The Federal Urban Job Creation and Food Security Agency said more than 800 thousand permanent and temporary jobs have been created within the last six months of this fiscal year.

During the Agency’s 6 months job creation performance assessment forum held in Adama, Hirut Birasa, State Minister of Urban Development and Housing said compared to same time last year, the job creation has shown a 13 percent increase. Some 39 percent of the beneficiaries are women, according to her.

The state minister stated urban job creation is among the strategic pillars of GTP-II, and a wide range of activities have been undertaken within the last six months to achieve this goal.

Federal and state executive bodies should properly discharge their national responsibility by identifying the bottlenecks of the sector, Hirut indicated.

Federal Urban Job Creation and Food Security Agency Director Zenebe Kumo, said based on the previous year’s annual performance, it is planned to create some two million jobs for citizens.

According to Menen Meles, Agency Strategic Plan Preparation and Assessment Director, 3.5 billion Birr loan has been provided for those who benefited from the job creation to start their businesses. A market linkage worth of 5.8 billion has also been created to 101,000 entrepreneurs. The government has also provided the entrepreneurs with 1220 hectares of fertile land as a working area, added Menen.

Global Fund to provide $379 mln for Ethiopia

The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria has provided 379 million US dollars support for Ethiopia.

The fund will be utilized to prevent HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as well as to put in place effective health system between 2018 and 2021, Dr Kebede Worku, State Minister of Health, told journalists yesterday.

About 194 million US dollars of the total fund will be used to fight HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, while 158 million will be channelled to tuberculosis and malaria prevention activities, he said.

The remaining 27 million US dollars will be used to fund the establishment of an effective health system, the State Minister said.

According to Dr Kebede, efforts will be made to utilize the fund properly and for the intended purpose.

The Global Fund is an innovative financing mechanism that seeks to rapidly raise and disburse funding for programs that reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in low- and middle-income countries.

Charges against 598 suspects dropped, 2, 905 inmates pardoned in Amhara regional state

On 30 January 2018, the Federal Attorney General said charges against 598 suspects have been dropped in Amhara regional state.  The suspects will be released after rehabilitation training.

Of the suspects 224 are from north Gondar, 176 from Awi, 107 from west Gojam, 41 from east Gojam, 17 from south Wollo, 14 from Oromo Special zone, two from Wag Himra and one from north Shoa zones. Similarly, the regional state pardoned 2, 905 inmates, according to Nigussu Tilahun, head of the regional state communication affairs office.

The move is part of the decisions made by heads of the four member parties of EPRDF to pardon some politicians and individuals in order to build national consensus and widen the political space.