The Oromo People Democratic Organization (OPDO) has rebranded itself, changing its name and logo.

OPDO has changed its name to the Oromo Democratic Party (ODP) at the organizational conference held in the town of Jimma, in the presence of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who is the chairperson of the party.

The decision was announced yesterday during the party’s 9th Congress. The party also introduced a new party logo which features Oda tree and Geda colours (red, black and white) Explaining why the changes were needed, OPDO (now ODP) officials say that it is meant to reflect the new chapter the party has reached.

In his speech at the opening of the conference, Chairperson of the Party, PM Abiy has said that the party will come up with a new philosophy to the country.

The 9th conference attended by over 6000 members of the party has also retired 14 long-serving officials: Abadula Gemeda, Getachew Bedane, Kuma Demeksa, Girma Biru, Diriba Kuma, Eshetu Desie, Teferi Tiyaru, Shiferaw Jarso, Degfe Bula, Suleiman Dedefo, Abera Hailu, Itefa Tola, Dagnachew Shiferaw and Gifti Abasia.

The government of Ethiopia and the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) discussed modalities of peace talks in Asmara, Eritrea on Tuesday 18 September.

The Ethiopian government delegation was led by Minister of Communications and Chairman of the Somali People Democratic Party, Ahmed Shide, according to Yemane Gebremeskel, Eritrea’s Information Minister.

The ONLF side was led by its Chairman, Admiral Mohamed Omar.

According to a Joint statement issued by the government of Ethiopia and the ONLF after the meeting, the parties have reached a common understanding on the issues discussed and the way forward.

‘‘They agreed to work together peacefully to protect the interests of the people of the Somali Region and collaborate on national issues including the future of Horn of Africa integration,’‘ according to the ONLF statement.

“Substantive talks will be finalized soon,” the statement added.

The 9th organisational conference of the Oromo People Democratic Organization (OPDO) kicked off in the city of Jimma, Oromia regional state, yesterday.

The conference attracted a total of 6,000 participants, including Chairman and Deputy Chairman of the Organization, Prime Minister Dr Abiy Ahmed and Lemma Megersa.

In his opening remark, Prime Minister Dr Abiy Ahmed called for more unity and teamwork to make Ethiopia stronger and a model for Africa.

He urged the public to fight against defeatist attitudes with better and winning ideas so as to defeat those who want to undermine national and Oromo unity.

The Premier further called for a return to Oromo’s Gadaa tradition and inclusive culture to strengthen the unity of the Oromo people.

The Premier also urged political parties to refrain from trading in the name of Oromo people and its struggle.

He also called on OPDO and the Oromo people to join hands and provide leadership that accommodates, embraces and works for all.

Chief Administrator of Oromia regional state, Lemma Megersa for his part urged political parties organised in the name of Oromo people to safeguard the ongoing reforms by resolving their differences through dialogue.

The conference will pass historic decisions as well as review OPDO’s past three-year performances.

It will also deliberate on a draft proposal presented to change the name, emblem, and the anthem of the Organization.

“Fig Tree,” the debut film by Israeli-Ethiopian director Alamork Marsha, won the prestigious Audentia Prize at the Toronto International Film Festival Sunday.

The prize, which includes a €30,000 award, is given by the European foundation Eurimages to the best film directed by a woman.

“Fig Tree” was screened as part of the Discovery Section of the 2018 Toronto Film Festival.

Filmed entirely in Ethiopia, “Fig Tree” tells the story of 14-year-old Mina, a Jewish girl attempting to navigate the final days of her youth in pastoral Ethiopia, where she spends her time with her friends and Christian boyfriend Eli.

Alamork Marsha (Courtesy Alamork Marsha Facebook page)

The 93-minute-film won the $50,000 top prize at the 2014 Sam Spiegel International Film Lab.

The film s in Amharic with translation to Hebrew and English.

Marsha shot the film in Ethiopia, and cast it with amateurs and actors from the local theatre scene in Addis Ababa.

Leaders from Ethiopia and Eritrea signed a peace agreement on Sunday during a summit in Saudi Arabia, yet another sign of warming ties between two nations that have faced decades of war and unease.

Ethiopia’s Foreign Ministry described it as a “seven-point agreement”.

“The peace deal resulted in the restoration of normal relations between the countries, on the basis of the close bonds of geography, history and culture between the two nations and their peoples,” Saudi Arabia said in a statement Sunday, calling the accord the “Jeddah Agreement.”

“The kingdom of Saudi Arabia praised the leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea for exercising leadership and courage to restore the brotherly relations between the two countries, thus forming the foundation for a new phase that will bring significant developments in the relations between the two nations in all fields,” the statement added.

Saudi King Salman and his 33-year-old son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, were on hand for the summit in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah. Also attending was Emirati Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

“There is a wind of hope blowing in the Horn of Africa,” Guterres told journalists after the signing. “It is not only the peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea — it is the fact that tomorrow and the day after tomorrow we will have, here in Saudi Arabia, the president of Djibouti and the president of Eritrea — two countries that have also been at odds with each other.”

Thawing relations

In September, an Ethiopian-mediated effort saw relations normalise between Eritrea and Djibouti after a long border dispute.

King Salman also awarded the Ethiopian and Eritrean leaders with the Order of Abdulaziz Al Saud Medal, the kingdom’s highest civilian honour. They earlier won similar honours in the UAE.

Ethiopia fought a bloody war with Eritrea from 1998 to 2000 over a border dispute that killed tens of thousands of people. The conflict ended in an uneasy peace with Eritrea, which earlier fought a decades-long war of independence from Ethiopia.

Yet that suddenly changed with the election of Abiy Ahmed as prime minister. A whirlwind of talks suddenly ended the long conflict between the two nations in July, with telephone calls and flights suddenly possible between the two nations.

The South Sudanese warring factions have signed the revitalised agreement on Wednesday to end five years of civil war.

The parties signed the agreement in Addis Ababa during the 33rd Extraordinary Summit of the IGAD Heads of state and government chaired by Prime Minster Abiy Ahmed.

The agreement, which signed following a three-month dialogue held in Khartoum, Sudan, would end human suffering.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Chairman of IGAD, Ethiopia’s Prime Minster Abiy Ahmed appreciated the mediators and leaders in the region who exerted maximum efforts to seek a solution for South Sudan.

He added the south Sudanese peace agreement has come at a right time while the entire East African region is celebrating magnificent achievement of peace and reconciliation.

“Our gathering here today is an opportunity we have to lay a groundwork to the prosperous and harmonious region for the generation to come. Once the positive development has been gained in our region, the reconciliation process in South Sudan has realised ”, he said.

According to Abiy, IGAD has continued its track record of bringing tangible result at the South Sudan case.

“The eyes of the world are upon us as South Sudan’s leaders signed a reconciliation agreement and lasting peace to their country which is indeed a great stride towards building a lasting peace,” Abiy said.

He further urged the South Sudanese leaders to implement the agreement without any delay “whatever your difference, you must not allow a single drop of blood to be spilt and life to be lost”.

He affirmed that IGAD would give the necessary support and work together with the parties for the full implementation of the accord.

Executive Secretary of IGAD,  Mahboub Maalim said the East African region has been witnessing a paradigm shift and creating hope to be a stable region, mentioning the agreement.

The Executive Secretary said the peace agreement is “great achievement” for IGAD.

He also admired the leadership of Prime Minster Abiy Ahmed who has brought peace and stability to the region.

Addis Ababa City Administration set to create over 161 thousand Job opportunities for the unemployed in the 2011 Ethiopian fiscal year.

Deputy Head of Addis Ababa City Administration Mircro and Small Scale Enterprises Development,  Mikias Mulugeta said over 2.4 billion birr has been earmarked jointly by Addis Saving and Credit Institution and the youth revolving fund to finance the creation of jobs for over 161 thousand job seekers.

Of the total jobs to be created this year, over 50 per cent will be for the youth and 70 per cent for women, he stated.

In the fiscal year, more attention will be paid to creating job opportunities for women and youth.

“A team has been established for identifying sectors, stakeholders and people with no jobs”.

Noting that sectors expected to create job opportunities include construction, manufacturing, urban agriculture, trade and service, more attention will be given to construction and manufacturing for technology transfer and development, he stated.

To solve financial constraints and facilitate the job creations, preparations are already finalised to use the financial resource both from Addis Saving and Credit Institution and the youth revolving fund, he added.

He stated that delivering one window service is already started to stave off mal-administration in the sector.

Two border crossings between Ethiopia and Eritrea reopened on Tuesday 11 September, strengthening a promise of reconciliation between the countries’ leaders after a border war and 20 years of bitter relations.

In the presence of their defence forces, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and President Isaias Afwerki opened the frontier at Bure, at the easternmost end of their common border. It was once an area of intense fighting.

The ceremony coincided with celebrations for the Ethiopian New Year.

“We heralded the new year by demolishing the trenches along our border,” Abiy told media. “As of today, Ethiopia’s defence forces (along the border with Eritrea) will be gathered to camps and ease the tension that was often extreme. The same will be done from the Eritrean side.”

Video and photos emerged of people embracing, dancing and weeping as flags of both nations flapped in the breeze.

Some analysts have compared the events to fall of the Berlin Wall. Families that were separated on either side of the border are finally able to reconnect. The border reopening will also bring back trade. Bure gives landlocked Ethiopia access to Red Sea ports. The other reopened crossing, in the frontier town of Zalambessa, is northwest of Bure and on a major trade route between the countries.

The path toward peace began shortly after Abiy took office. In July, he stepped off a plane in Asmara, the capital of Eritrea, and hugged its president. Together they rewrote the future of their countries by signing a peace deal.

The reopening of the border is the latest sign that the once icy relations have thawed. The summer saw telephone connections restored, the first commercial flight in 20 years from Ethiopia to Eritrea and embassies reopening in the capitals.

The Chief of Staff for the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Fitsum Arega, called the border reopening “the full normalization” of relations. He said that with roads linking the countries open, “our recent tragic history is coming to an end.”

“This is the happiest day of my life,” Ruta Haddis, an Eritrean who lives near Zalambessa, told media. “I never thought this would take place in my lifetime.”

Prime Minster Abiy Ahmed said that China has agreed to extend debt repayment period for Addis Ababa-Djibouti cross-border railway.

According to him, China has pledged to extend the debt repayment period for a loan it has acquired to construct the Ethio-Djibouti railway from 10 to 30 years.

Mentioning that Ethiopia has received a considerable amount of loan and investment from China, the two countries held extensive discussions on ways of balancing the trade volume between Ethiopia and China, he stated.

Prime Minster Abiy who was in Beijing to attend the 7th Forum on China-Africa Cooperation had a bilateral dialogue with Chinese officials. Notably, the two sides agreed on extending loan payment, revising interest rates and identifying options that enable to shift from loan to development assistance, he indicated.

He noted that “During our stay in China, we have got a chance to make some adjustment on some types of loans, we gained especially an opportunity on the Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway.”

“We conducted wide ranges of discussions with China especially how can we balance the trade volume between the two counties and increase our export products to China through expanding the destination for Ethiopian Airlines,” the Premier added.

Moreover, the two parties have reached an agreement on loan adjustments of some projects and expand assistance, he said.

Upon his arrival to Addis Ababa, the Premier briefed journalists on his trip to China which he said was successful and fruitful. He noted that Ethiopia participated in the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and was also invited for an official visit to China.

On the sidelines of the FOCAC, Ethiopia conducted successful bilateral discussions with different countries and international organisations including China; he pointed out.

He stated that Beijing is pledging to extend new funding worth 60 billion USD to Africa, aimed at supporting African inclusive development, adding that Ethiopia will exert a maximum effort to utilise its fair-share from the assistance.

“We need to have a better position and readiness to best benefit from the allocated resource (60 billion USD),” he pointed out.

China also says it will cancel a substantial amount of debts wipe for certain African countries when interest-free loans come due later this year.

Addis Ababa City Roads Authority signed over 1.2 billion Birr road designing and road construction agreements with six constructors and five consultancy companies.

The agreements are aimed to construct 25.32 km new asphalt concrete roads, 74 km road construction supervision and consultancy services, and 156 km new road construction designing works in different parts of the city.

Speaking on the signing ceremony, the Authority Director-General Engineer Moges Tibebu said that the construction of the roads is part of the city’s three years Road Master Plan that adopted in 2017.

In this regard, the Authority is preparing various modern road designs by identifying the roads in different parts of the city, he said.

The Director-General added that the road construction projects will further facilitate flexible traffic movements and increases new road coverage in the city.