The assertion that the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam has no significant impact on downstream countries is based on scientific research, Water, Irrigation and Electricity Minister said on 25 November 2017.

When Ethiopia says that GERD has no significant impact on the downstream countries, this is not unempirical pronouncement but a factual statement based on scientific research, Dr. Sileshi Bekele stressed. Briefing journalists, the Minister said the dam will not have significant negative hydrologic simulation, socio-economic, and environmental impacts on downstream countries. Dr. Sileshi recalled the agreement reached by the tripartite countries to integrate any issues of concern by their respective National Technical Committees and submit them to the consultant. This approach has been practiced as per the agreement during the last three rounds.

However, differences have recently appeared as Ethiopia and Sudan strongly stood by the agreement reached earlier to submit the inception report in an integrated way, while Egypt wanted the inception report to be approved as it is, the Minister explained. According to him, the inception reports are ‘supplementary studies’ and not conclusive; but they are helpful in creating understanding about the dam among the tripartite countries.

Responding to the question whether the construction of the dam would be stopped mainly because of Egypt’s current stand, Dr. Sileshi said “the dam is 63 percent completed and it is being constructed around-the-clock. On our part we are constructing the dam according to the schedule, the quality and the standard that the dam of this size requires”, the Minister added.

He pointed out that the dam will have paramount contribution towards eradicating poverty, maintaining economic growth and regional integration. “We have to take this dam as a real opportunity that provides lots of benefits for the three countries. So these additional studies will really articulate on those kinds of dimensions and indicate if there is any significant harm so as to devise a mitigation strategy. But we have carried out relevant and adequate studies on our side which prove that the dam does not bring any significant impact on downstream countries”, the Minister further stated.

In the water filling strategy, Ethiopia has taken into account the drought scenario, mean flow scenario, and high water flow scenarios, which in turn minimize wastage of water and utilization throughout the year, he said. Besides, Egypt and Sudan will be benefitting from the renewable energy to be generated from the dam and this will serve as a water bank for both countries in any occurrences of drought. Sudan annually pays 50 million USD to clear the sands in its reservoir and irrigation dams, Dr. Sileshi noted, adding that GERD will reduce the possible accumulation of silt in the reservoirs and irrigation dams of both countries. “The study underway may bring additional recommendations. If so we will consider them together after they are authenticated by the three countries”, he stated.

The Minister revealed that Ethiopia has so far provided about 150 documents that are related to hydrological simulation and other things in dealing with the other parties in a transparent manner. Dr. Sileshi underscored that hydropower never consumes water and “Ethiopia is always careful in filling the dam, releasing adequate water to downstream countries and retaining reasonable amount of water.”

The conference had three panels of discussion. Each panellist and participants was focusing on the new approaches to the challenges that Africa is facing and strengthening the partnership between the two continents with special focuses on the youth. The three points of discussion were:

– Peace & Security and democracy, good governance and human rights,
– Attracting investments for sustainable and inclusive development and growth and
-Migration, youth and Human development.

Ethiopia embarked upon the long journey of democratisation by adopting a democratic Constitution in 1995 that recognised all rights, both democratic and human, without any limitations. This article was originally published in the 8th issue (October 2017) of The Ethiopian Messenger, the quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels.

Ethiopia’s Constitution states that “Human rights and freedoms, emanating from the nature of mankind, are inviolable and inalienable” (Article 10.1) and that “Human and democratic rights of citizens and peoples shall be respected” (Article 10.2). After adopting this Constitution, focus was therefore given by the Ethiopian government to the essential elements of the democratisation process: creating democratic institutions, formulating appropriate policies and strategies and instituting legal frameworks. Prime Minister Hailemariam said that the Ethiopian democracy, “which is now at an infant stage, is not immune from defects due to lack of awareness of law enforcement bodies, maladministration and other problems related to backward thinking”. Since 2013, the Human Rights Action Plans I and II have addressed some of these challenges facing human rights implementation. Promotion of human rights and democratic dialogue is also addressed in international consultations, among others with the European Union in the framework of the Ethiopia-EU partnership.

The Human Rights Commission

The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission is an independent body established by the House of Peoples’ Representatives for the purpose of promoting respect and protection of human rights in Ethiopia. Its mission is to educate the public, make sure human rights are protected, respected and fully enforced, as well as have the necessary measures taken where they are found to have been violated. The Commission has the responsibility and duty to conduct investigations in case of abuse and violation of human rights, either in response to complaints, or acting on its own initiative.

In April 2017, the Commission published an independent inquiry on the protests and clashes which cost hundreds of lives in Oromia and Amhara regions during the year 2016. The report said that “Too many human lives have perished, many suffered physical injury and so much property was destroyed.” After consulting the victims and their families, officials, elders, religious leaders, representatives of the community, the investigation concluded that lack of good governance was the main cause for the violence. Lack of response to questions raised by the public, problems of land management, and rent seeking were also mentioned as reasons for the violence. The Commission also found out that in some cases, regional security forces used excessive force on some part of the population. Therefore, the EHRC recommended solutions to ensure good governance, create employment opportunities for young people, rehabilitate those affected by the unrest, avert ethnic-based attacks, bring responsible security forces to justice, respect and promote people’s rights and prevent movement of illegal weapons. the implementation of the human rights in Ethiopia and the long-term progress of the country in this way through the recommendations it makes to the Parliament.

The Human Rights Action Plan

Dr. Addisu Gebregziabher, Head of the Ethiopian Human Right Commission, said at an event in Washington on 20 July 2017 that “while successes have been registered so far in improving the human rights situation in the country, certain challenges do still remain. The primary challenge emanates from resource constraints and lack of capacity.” Therefore, in accordance with its own Constitution, but also with international targets set, among others, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, at the World Conference on Human Rights in Vienna in 1993 and by the Universal Periodic Review of the UN Human Rights Council, Ethiopia has developed a Human Rights Action Plan to identify and close gaps in this field. The main objective of the Human Rights Action Plan is to develop a comprehensive and structured mechanism to advance the respect, protection and fulfillment of human and democratic rights enshrined in the Ethiopian Constitution. The Action Plan reviews the current human rights situation of the country, identifies potential problems, and sets feasible solutions. The specific objectives of the Action Plan are to indicate the strategic guidelines to promote human and democratic rights in the country; set forth comprehensive, structured and sustainable strategies to respect and protect human rights in the coming years; define means to raise public awareness of human rights and indicate strategies on how the Government could work in collaboration with NGOs legally entitled to work on human and democratic rights, development partners, civil societies and other international stakeholders.

The first version of the plan was presented in October 2013 and gave 60 recommendations to cover existing gaps in areas such as education, justice, police, prisons, etc. On 27 April 2017, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn launched the second Human Rights Action Plan. This updated version encompasses civil and political rights, economic, social and cultural rights of vulnerable groups and the rights to clean environment and development. According to the Prime Minister, the plan will help to sustainably improve human rights conditions and build democracy in the country. The implementation of the second action plan will give a
meaningful response to the ever-growing demands of the people for development and good governance. The action plan is prepared in line with the laws, policies, strategies and the second Growth and Transformation Plan. It establishes a new and strong implementation procedure based on the lessons learned from the first Plan. A series of training for public officials, implementers, CSOs, professional associations and NGOs will be provided to ensure its effective implementation.

Defending women’s rights

The respect of human rights towards women requires a special attention. Therefore, respecting women’s rights in the Ethiopian society is a core concern of the Ethiopian government. To reach this objective, the government is actively working to bringing an end to all harmful practices against women. A new Federal Family Code, based on the principle of gender equality came into effect in July 2000. This family law was the first of its kind in the history of the nation. It cemented the irreversible equality of women not only before the law but also in the entire socio-economic fabric of the country. The Ethiopian Revised Penal code (2005) invariably criminalizes domestic violence and harmful traditional practices including early marriage, abduction and female genital mutilation. The Government has since shown a groundbreaking commitment to end FGM and child marriage by 2025.

High-level dialogue with the EU: The continuation of a strong partnership

Ethiopia and the EU have enjoyed over 40 years of strong and enduring partnership and cooperation on a range of bilateral, regional and international issues. The importance of this relationship has been underlined in the Ethio-EU Strategic Engagement Agreement (2016). Ethiopia is also an increasingly important partner in terms of migration, as demonstrated by the signature of a Declaration on a Common Agenda on Migration and Mobility (CAMM). In April 2017, the first Annual Human Rights and Governance Consultation took place in Addis Ababa. This Consultation is one of the six pillars of the Ethio-EU Strategic Engagement. During the first consultation, the two sides dealt at length on how to further ensure the respect of fundamental human and democratic rights including ensuring rule of law, due process of law, promoting youth employment, ensuring respect of children’s and women’s rights, widening the political space in Ethiopia and expanding cooperation in the fight against human trafficking.

Despite protests in some parts of the country in 2016, which in some cases led to confrontations and violence, necessary steps were taken to ensure safety of the public and of property with the imposition of a state of emergency between October 2016 and August 2017. Besides, the government launched wide-ranging reforms to address the legitimate grievances of the public as identified by the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, through job investments plans and an increased fight against maladministration and corruption, and to support the political dialogue. These efforts by the government and the civil society are also meant to serve a more democratic and prosperous society, and a better implementation of human rights in Ethiopia.

At the 10th annual joint consultative meeting between the AU Peace and Security Council (AU PSC) and the EU Political and Security Committee (EUPSC) on Friday (November 18) at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, the two sides have vowed to further enhance their cooperation in addressing challenges of peace and security on the African continent. Following the deliberatation a day earlier on migration of African youth who flee the continent in search of better life, but experience tragedies, the consultative meeting on Friday has mainly focused on current pressing security issues in Africa, particularly in the Sahel, the Horn of Africa, the Great Lakes region, the center and the north of the continent.

Cherif Mahamat Zene, Chad Ambassador to AU, who was also co-chair of the AU-EU consultative meeting, reiterated that conflicts, terrorist attacks, insecurity and instability continue to prevail in different parts of the continent. He added, “We will be able to identify, for each of the situations on our agenda, ways of finding joint solutions in a collective approach, taking into account, of course, new threats and developments that require us to readjust our tools in the face of insecurity and instability.”

Walter Stevens, Chair of the EUPSC, who has also co-chaired the meeting, underlined the need for AU and EU to agree to reinforce close cooperation in addressing the conflicts.

Managing migration is more than ever a thorn in Europe’s side, threatening its unity and integrity. As no single solution will be enough to tackle this complex issue, there is still work to do to establish a real partnership with African countries, which will be the key to a sustainable decrease illegal migration to Europe. This article was originally published in the 8th issue (October 2017) of The Ethiopian Messenger, the quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels.

More than two years since migrant flows reached their peak in the EU, managing migration is more than ever a thorn in Europe’s side, threatening its unity and integrity. Migration is one of the policy priorities of greatest concern to EU citizens, along with security and economic governance, and the issue has received constant attention from the Heads of State or Government. In 2016 alone, half of the conclusions of the six European Council meetings were dedicated to migration. Considerable work has been made to address the many aspects of this multidimensional challenge and reduce flows, protect EU’s borders and tackle the root causes of migration. Despite this attention and promising steps, recent decisions reveal a lack of coherent and long- term strategy on the part of the EU to have a real impact on the problem, while African priorities have sometimes been sidelined. As no single solution will be enough to tackle this complex issue, there is still work to do to establish a real partnership with African countries, which will be the key to a sustainable decrease illegal migration to Europe.

Blocking African migration.

Over recent years, the EU has developed several tools to handle migration from Africa. When the newly appointed Juncker Commission took office in 2014, a position of EU migration commissioner, indicating that migration would be the number one priority for its mandate. In 2012, a European Union Special Representative for the Horn of Africa was appointed by the European External Action Service, followed in 2015 by the nomination of an EU Special Representative for the Sahel. The establishment of these two positions aimed to enhance the quality, intensity and impact of the EU’s engagement in these strategic regions.

Following the first phase of the response to the crisis, which culminated in March 2016 with the signing of an agreement with Turkey, the European Union shifted its focus from the Western Balkans route to the Central Mediterranean, where the migratory pressure coming from Sub-Saharan Africa was far from being under control. EU leaders vowed to reduce the continuing high number of predominantly economic migrants through the implementation of partnership frameworks of cooperation with individual countries of origin and transit. Since then, the EU has been pursuing a double objective: relieving the immediate migration pressure through formal agreements with African states to return economic migrants to their home countries, while making a deeper investment in tackling root causes of irregular migration and open opportunities for regular migration.

In late August, African and European leaders meeting in Paris in another effort to stop illegal migration discussed the possibility to set up reception centres in Chad and Niger to identify refugees that are in a situation giving them a right to asylum, hence starting the asylum procedure on African territory and allowing women and men to avoid a dangerous journey. In addition, some 50 million euros were released to finance an African joint military task force aiming at cracking down on human trafficking, drug smuggling, weapon smuggling, and terrorism – another important step in tackling the root causes of migration. In theory, these small steps forward should be seen as hopeful signs for Africans migrants and European governments. However, in practice, in the absence of firm commitments for fresh investment or EU countries taking in more refugees, the current status quo is likely to continue, especially as previous problems have not been addressed.

Unfinished business and growing tensions

While European countries are still at odds over how to deal with the number of migrants making the journey from North Africa to Italy and Spain, many decisions taken in 2015 still have to be implemented, mainly due to the security and political contexts of many European States. The refugee quota plan proposed by the Commission in September 2015 was bitterly opposed by central European countries, and so far only about one quarter of the 160,000 people the EU promised to disperse have been found a home. Fresh tensions have been rising over Austrian Defence Minister threatening to close its border with Italy, and send soldiers to guard it, while the Mediterranean country has taken in nearly 85 per cent of this year’s arrivals and has pleaded for help from other European Union nations. The question of terrorism and its intersection with illegal migration from North Africa is high on the list of concerns for many European countries, in light of the recent attacks in Spain. Germany, for its part, is determined to stop illegal migration from Africa and wants the EU to use development aid to strike border control deals with African nations in an effort to placate right-leaning German voters ahead of September’s federal election.

But more worrying are the failings in Europe’s long-term efforts to tackle the root causes of migration through development aid, opening up safe and legal pathways for genuine refugees. The Partnership Framework signed in June 2016 with five African countries (Ethiopia, Niger, Mali, Senegal and Nigeria) has little to show for, as European funds to infrastructure projects in exchange for return and readmission have led to few concrete projects. Development policy is, increasingly, in the service of migration policy, which would have been considered scandalous in the last few years, and many EU countries have been reporting the costs for hosting refugees as ODA, reducing funding available for development programs abroad and causing a drop in spending for the poorest nations.

Another crucial piece of the puzzle in achieving this is opening up safe and legal pathways for genuine refugees. Yet EU states trail behind the rest of the world in terms of resettlement from Africa. Of the almost 39,000 people resettled from Africa in 2016, only around 1,800 ended up in Europe. There is therefore little hope for the Commission’s grand resettlement campaign proposed in July 2017, offering to pay member states €10,000 for every person resettled from Egypt, Ethiopia, Libya, Niger and Sudan.

Time for a long-term vision

Compared to the chaos that took Europe by surprise in 2015, a more united approach for dealing with migration has emerged. But the absence of a long-term vision on migration at the European level raises questions, as all studies predict a population explosion in Africa in the coming decades. The decisions taken in 2015 and 2016 were made in response to the urgency, but EU and African leaders alike need to start thinking about what a sound migration policy should be for the next thirty years. Understanding the challenges, promises and realities of African migration is fundamental for the EU, as Europe’s security and prosperity depends heavily on what is happening in Africa.

At the moment, the vast majority of African migrants are still located in Africa, where human dams are forming in countries hosting large numbers of refugees. Economic development is the main challenge in the region and the EU despite being the world’s biggest donor, has failed to listen to Africa’s priorities, such as industrialization and infrastructure, focusing on humanitarian assistance instead. Similarly, recent EU proposals focusing on transit countries rather than countries of origins revealed that the EU’s first objective is to stop people from reaching Europe rather than keeping them from leaving their countries. The EU’s newfound will to use its visa policy as leverage to encourage third countries to speed up the readmission of migrants arriving in Italy is a further illustration of this fact. Moreover, the strengthening of controls at the Union’s external borders and returning illegal immigrants seems to be the only subjects on which consensus has been reached in Europe when it comes to migration, while a clear distinction between “good migrants”, who would be the refugees, and the “bad” economic migrants” has emerged in the European leadership. One can only hope that these conceptions will not keep the two continents from avoiding mass displacements, saving lives at sea and put in place a real cooperation.

President Dr. Mulatu Teshome held discussions on Wednesday (November 15) with President of the Republic of Estonia Kersti Kajulaid, who is on a state visit to Ethiopia. Welcoming President Kersti who took an oath as the first female President of Estonia on October 2016, Dr. Mulatu expressed his country’s strong desire to further enhance its ties with all members of the European Union such as the Baltic States and closely work on both multi-lateral and bilateral fronts. The President noted Estonia’s presidency of the council of the EU will afford the opportunity for both countries to work closely together on African, Global and Bilateral issues of common interest.

President Mulatu explained the Estonian side the immense investment and business opportunities his country owns ready to be seized by Estonian business. Dr. Mulatu also urged the need to support Ethiopia’s ongoing efforts to address the root causes of migration through youth employment. Dr. Mulatu suggested that the EU-Africa cooperation would be more robust if it can largely focus more on socio-economic development using instruments such as Agenda 2063 and SDG’s.

Praising the Ethiopian side for the warm welcome accorded to her, President Kersti said Estonia is keen to strengthen its ties with Ethiopia. The President noted scaling up the relations with Ethiopia would greatly help her country to forge relations with Africa. Mrs. Kersti expressed her country’s intense interest in sharing its experiences in IT and e-governance.

President Kersti has also met the African Union trade and industry commissioner, Albert M. Muchanga. The two sides discussed mainly on digital issues and talked about the forthcoming summit between the European Union and the African Union. On the occasion she noted, Africa has a rather unique opportunity – to leave a number of steps in the development of digital society, which have been spending a lot of time and energy in Europe.

A United Nations report entitled ‘Report of the Monitoring Group on Somalia and Eritrea’ presented to the U.N. Security Council (UNSC), stressed Eritrea’s continued support for some anti-government elements continues to heighten security in the Horn of Africa region. The activities of the said groups are intended at destabilizing Ethiopia and Djibouti. “Eritrea continued to provide support to armed groups intent on destabilizing Ethiopia and Djibouti, including the Benishangul People’s Liberation Movement, the Front for the Restoration of Unity and Democracy (FRUD-Armé), Patriotic Ginbot Sebat (PG7) and the Tigray People’s Democratic Movement. It also noted, “While none of these groups poses a critical threat to either Djibouti or Ethiopia, the support of Eritrea for them continues to generate insecurity in the region and undermines the normalization of relations between regional Member States,” the report said.

Ethiopian Horticulture Producers and Exporters Association (EHPEA) and companies who work in the cut flower industry in the country are participating at the 8th International Floriculture Trade Fair (IFTF) Expo which is being held in the Netherlands this week.

The participants of IFTF are exhibiting the globally renowned flowers Ethiopia produces and exports to the international market. The event is serving all segments of the Floriculture & Horticulture industry chain. More than 250 companies are taking part at the fair according to the Ethiopian Embassy in Brussels. The Embassy noted that Ethiopia is one of the leading countries forging a strategic partnership with the Netherlands in trade and investment. This demonstrates Government’s unflinching commitment in providing significant favorable environment and incentive to investors in the country. Participants also noted that the floriculture industry is increasingly becoming one of the most attractive investment arrays in the country.

Invitation to the celebration of the Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Day

Diplomats of different foreign countries residing in Ethiopia commended the government’s initiative towards advancing democratic system in the country. The diplomats whom ENA has talked to following the briefing by the Foreign Minister about current situations of the country on Tuesday praised the ongoing political reforms towards widening the political space.

Finnish ambassador to Ethiopia, Helena Airaksien told ENA that the government is taking a good initiative towards enhancing democracy. She also said that her country welcomes the reform and hopes to see that it would continue from this vantage point. Mentioning that Finland follows mixed electoral system, which Ethiopia has set to implement; Airaksien said “we support the move of the government towards democratization”. The Ambassador said Finland is keen to share its experiences in deepening democracy. “I think the Ethiopian government is good in working with partners, they are ready to listen they are ready open dialogue and will definitely continue this dialogue on democratization process”

Australian Ambassador to Ethiopia, Mark Sawers on his part appreciated the political reform as “an important announcement”. “We welcome the government’s move down this path in close cooperation with the opposition parties” Ambassador Sawers said. “As a development it is an important step towards opening up the political space to see more opportunity, different viewpoints to be heard in the political system” he emphasized.

Speaking of the role of the international community and partners in further enhancing the ongoing democratization process, the Australian ambassador said “What we can do is to support from the sideline through assistance and technical aspects of electoral form or funding”. “Of course what we want to see is Ethiopia moving in the direction it is trying to move forward with the reform and we think it is very important for Ethiopia’s long-term stability and future. It will also be very important for Ethiopia’s trajectory in terms of a developing country and the developmental role” he elaborated.

It is to be recalled that the ruling party – EPRDF – and 15 national political parties had been negotiating on various agendas over the past months within the agreed objectives of strengthening democratization and widening the political space. Accordingly, the negotiations that have been taking place have brought changes in the electoral system besides revising some of the country’s proclamations. Thus, under the new electoral law, Ethiopia will have a hybrid electoral system composed of 80 percent simple majority vote and 20 percent proportional. Agreement has also been reached among the negotiating parties in financing political parties.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency