Sudanese parties have agreed to uphold previous agreements regarding the structures, powers and responsibilities of the transitional government, the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on June 12.

The agreement came following the discussion between Ethiopia’s Special Envoy to Sudan, Mohamoud Dirir, with various Sudanese parties with the objective of seeking peaceful resolution of the political situation in the Sudan.

According to the ministry, following the discussions with Ethiopia’s special envoy to Sudan, representatives of Sudan’s Transitional Military Council and the Forces for Freedom and Change “have agreed to uphold what they have agreed upon before the suspension of the negotiation, regarding the Structures, Powers and Responsibilities of the Transitional Government.”

The ministry also said that as per the agreement reached, “talks will resume soon in good-faith to iron-out the remaining outstanding points, including the Sovereign Council and other relevant matters.”

The two sides have also “agreed to refrain from inflammatory statements and de-escalate tensions,” according to the ministry.

Sudan’s Transitional Military Council has also agreed to take confidence-building measures including the release of political prisoners.

The Forces for Freedom and Change also “agreed to call-off the civil-disobedience.”

The agreement came after Ethiopia’s special envoy’s “fruitful discussions with General Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan, Chairman of the TMC, all the members of the TMC, and with representatives of the Forces for Freedom and Change,” according to the ministry.

Ethiopia’s special envoy had also exchanged views with the other Sudanese political groups and personalities.

Dirir was appointed by the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed as his special envoy following his visit to Sudan on June 7 to shuttle between the two sides to assist the parties to resume their talks in good faith and in the spirit of ironing out the remaining sticking points of previously started discussions and negotiations.

The Commercial Bank of Ethiopia is now offering mortgage loans to Ethiopians living abroad and foreigners of Ethiopian origin.

Click on the link below to learn more about the offer and access the application form.

Ethiopia’s finance minister Ahmed Shide proposed to parliament on Tuesday 386.9 billion birr ($13.5 billion) in government spending national budget for the next Ethiopian fiscal year which begins on July 8, 2019, which is 12% higher than 2018/19’s 346.9 billion birr figure ($12.8 billion at the exchange rate of that time)

Ethiopia’s economy is projected to grow by 9% in 2019/2020; Minister Ahmed Shide told lawmakers on June 10 as he presented plans to raise spending.

Out of the total, 130.7 billion birr ($4.5 billion) will be used as capital budget while some 140 billion birr (around $4.9 billion) will go to regions as budget support, according to the budget approved by the Council of Ministers.

The Council has also approved some 109 billion birr as recurrent budget Over 6 billion birr is also allocated for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals. After the Council of Ministers has approved the budget it has passed it to the Ethiopian Parliament for final endorsement.

In the 2017/18 budget year, Ethiopia’s budget deficit was estimated to reach 3.7 percent of its GDP. For the current fiscal year (2018/19) Ethiopia economy is expected to grow by 8.5 percent, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). In 2018, the IMF estimated Ethiopia’s total GDP at then market prices to reach 2.6 trillion birr (about $90 billion) in the current fiscal year. The IMF forecast (IMF Country Report No. 18/354) shows that in five years, Ethiopia’s GDP should reach 4.7 trillion birr.

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Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was in the northern Tigray region yesterday, where he held a series of meetings with stakeholders over a wide range of issues.

One of his main engagements had to do with efforts aimed at saving the historic obelisk located in the city of Axum. He visited the endangered obelisk of Axum to get first-hand information about its status. Following this visit, Prime Minister Abiy held discussions with the residents of Axum.

During the discussion, members of the community appreciated the Prime Minister’s understanding and responsiveness to their call.

The residents raised various issues during the discussion with the Prime Minister, including the fate of the Axum obelisk.

Besides, the Prime Minister addressed key queries raised regarding budgetary allocations, water shortages, infrastructure requirements, peace and security, and other issues. The Premier pledged to work in collaboration with stakeholders to protect the Axum obelisks.

The Axum Obelisk, probably carved and erected during the 4th century A.D, is a testament to Ethiopia’s historic civilizations. Ethiopia fought for years for the monument to be returned from Italy after it was taken away by Italian invaders. Abiy’s move is the latest in a series of efforts that saw the Minister of Tourism also visit the site last month.

Portions of the obelisk have collapsed to the ground whiles reports indicate that their foundations also remained weakened and in dire need of rehabilitation to arrest further deterioration.

A signing ceremony of a loan and grant agreements took place on June 6 at the Ministry of Finance between Ahmed Shide, Ethiopian Minister of Finance, Mr. Ignace Monkam-Daverat, the French Agency for Development (AFD) Country Director and Frederic Bontems, Ambassador of France to Ethiopia and to the African Union.

This support is the result of the joint declaration of intent signed between AFD and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia during the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron in Ethiopia on March 12^th, 2019.

Through these two agreements, a 100 million euros financing has been provided by AFD to support Ethiopia’s implementation of its ambitious economic reforms. Among this financing, 85 million is provided through a Public Policy concessional loan, and 15 million is provided as a grant for the global technical assistance program.

The Public Policy Loan will aim to support the Government of Ethiopia in the implementation of GTP II economic reforms by focusing on maximizing finance for development, improving the business environment, and improving the management, transparency, and accountability of public enterprises. It will be complementary to the World Bank Ethiopian Growth and Competitiveness Development Policy Financing (DPF).

This Public Policy Loan will be coupled with a grant-funded technical assistance program that would support key reform actors such as the Ministry of Finance, the PPP Directorate General and the Public Enterprise Holding Administration Agency. Part of this technical assistance program will be directly implemented by the Ethiopian Government, while another part will be channeled through Expertise France, the French public agency for international technical assistance, and as a contribution to the Multi-Donor Trust Fund managed by the World Bank.

The Agence Française de Développement (AFD) is the French bilateral development bank, which has been working for more than 70 years implementing French development-aid policy.

Chinese group Huajian Group signed an agreement with Ethiopian authorities on May 30, 2019, for the management of  Jimma industrial park.

In the framework of that agreement, the Chinese group will invest $100 million in the construction of shoe manufacturing and coffee processing plants. The agreement also includes setting up a Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) center. 

It will also help attract other Chinese groups in this 75-hectare park. Lelise Neme, managing director of the Ethiopia Industrial Parks Development Corporation, indicated that Jimma park would create 15,000 jobs in the long term.  

Built by the China Communications Construction Company, Jimma industrial park was inaugurated in December 2018 by Ethiopian prime minister Abiy Ahmed.

Huajian Group has been operating in Ethiopia since 2011. It already has two shoe manufacturing plants that produce 5 million pairs yearly and employ more than 7,000 people.

On June 4, President Sahle-Work Zewde met with Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, in Vancouver, to discuss various issues of mutual concern.

The two leaders spoke of their shared commitment to advancing women, peace and security and support for the Elsie Initiative.

They noted the deep and warm relationship between Ethiopia and Canada, reflected in strong people-to-people ties and shared values of diversity and inclusion, particularly in the context of federalism.

They discussed the importance of investing in grassroots women’s organizations to drive lasting change and welcomed the launch of the Equality Fund.

They discussed the importance of investing in infrastructure to support growth and change as well as looked forward to strengthening bilateral cooperation and committed to staying in close contact.

President Sahle-Work commended Canada’s stronger partnership with Ethiopia, including at difficult times, and expressed the government’s commitment to strengthen its economic cooperation with Canada in particular.

Prime minister Trudeau expressed his appreciation for the President’s attendance at Women Deliver and for her leadership on advancing gender equality for Ethiopians.

He noted Ethiopia’s continued commitment to building peace in the Horn of Africa, making a substantial contribution to stability and prosperity in the region.

Prime Minister Trudeau welcomed the recent significant reforms and transformation in Ethiopia and took note of the elections planned for 2020.

The Ethiopian Ministry of Innovation and Technology on June 4 launched a new initiative that aimed to boost women’s participation in technology-related entrepreneurship.

The newly launched initiative mainly aimed to promote women entrepreneurs in technology and software science through trainings for women drawn from different parts of the country.

The newly launched initiative, which is said to be an outcome of a joint partnership among the Ethiopian Ministry of Innovation and Technology and the Entoto Fellowship, an Ethiopian-based think-tank, will offer trainings for a first batch of 25 women who have gathered in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, it was noted.

Women and Youth Division Director at the ministry, Elisabeth Gebreselassie, said during the launching event that the Ethiopian government is committed to boost women’s participation in line with the ever-transforming technological advancement around the world.

The Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed, had recently stressed his government’s ambition to make the information, communication and technology sector as a “key anchor” of the country’s economic development endeavors.

The Ministry of Peace has announced plans to return all internally displaced persons (IDPs) to their areas of origin by the end of this month.

Minister of Peace, Muferiat Kamil, told journalists yesterday that the repatriation process will be conducted voluntarily.

Out of the total 2.3 million IDPs, 1.2 million people were displaced before March 2018 and the remaining 1.1 million after April 2018, she said.

The IDPs received food and non-food assistance in their temporary sites, with the government of Ethiopia covering 60 percent of the spending and donors contributing the remaining 40 percent, according to Muferiat.

As a result of the efforts undertaken during the past two months, 1.3 million people have returned to their areas of origin, the Minister indicated.

She said the returnees would be provided with all the necessary rehabilitation support for the coming six months.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed received President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed of Somalia on Sunday 2 June and held discussions at the office of the Prime Minister.

In their discussions, they raised bilateral issues of mutual interest, including further strengthening cooperation in regional peace and security.

Relations between the two countries have further strengthened in recent months, with visits by both leaders to their respective capitals. Somali President last visited Addis Ababa a few months back, following which he flew with PM Abiy to Nairobi to mediate on a diplomatic spat between Kenya and Somalia.

He also went to Ethiopia for a tripartite meeting between the two countries and neighboring Eritrea.

The two leaders, accompanied by the First Lady of Somalia, planted seedlings within the compound.

Prime Minister Abiy launched last week a campaign to plant four billion trees across Ethiopia. He kicked off the initiative in Adama, Oromia region and has since joined visitors to plant seedlings.