The spokesperson of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, H.E. Ambassador Dina Mufti, gave the Ministry’s biweekly press briefing today (March 10, 2022) to the media. In his presentation, the Ambassador focused on political diplomacy, economic diplomacy, citizen-centered diplomacy, and capacity-building activities over the week.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, H.E. Demeke Mekonnen chaired a consultative meeting last week (March 04) with members of the National Committee that was established to repatriate and rehabilitate Ethiopian citizens from Saudi Arabia.
• During the discussion, the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister,
➢ Said protecting the safety of Ethiopians living abroad is one of the priorities of the government.
➢ Recalled the recent discussions of Ethiopia’s delegation and officials of Saudi Arabia on easing situations to Ethiopians residing in the country and repatriating those suffering in various detention centers.
➢ Said sustainable measures have to be taken to dry up the causes of illegal migration.
• Present at the occasion, State Minister, H.E. Ambassador Birtukan Ayano said besides reuniting returnees with their families, the government in partnership with partners would reinstate and rehabilitate the returnees in a sustainable manner.
• According to the repatriation plan tabled by the national committee, preparations have been made to repatriate more than 100 thousand Ethiopians from Saudi Arabia in the upcoming weeks.
• About 750,000 Ethiopians are now living in Saudi Arabia of whom 450,000 are suspected to reside in the country without proper legal documents.
• The National Committee is composed of 16 government institutions, including the National Disaster Risk Management Commission, Women and Social Affairs Ministry, Labor and Skills Ministry and Health Ministry, among others.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs H.E. Demeke Mekonnen met at his office H.E. Ambassador Tracey Ann Jacobson, Charge d’ Affaires of the Embassy of the United States of America to Ethiopia. The Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister,
• Welcomed the Charge d’ Affaires to Ethiopia, expressing Ethiopia’s keen interest to cement bilateral relations with the United States of America.
• Explained the establishment of the National Dialogue Commission, the appointment of the Commissioners, and preparation for the commencement of the inclusive national dialogue sooner.
• Mentioned the lifting of the state of emergency and the release of high-profile political figures from prisons as positive steps that promote sustainable peace and stability in Ethiopia.
• Spoke about the efforts of the government of Ethiopia in implementing the recommendations of the joint UN-UEHRC investigations on alleged human rights abuses in Tigray, mentioning the need to probe into the human rights abuses perpetrated by the TPLF in the Afar and Amhara regions.
• Explained the efforts of the government of Ethiopia in providing unfettered humanitarian access to Tigray. However, he said, due to the TPLF’s attack and expansion of the conflict to the Afar Region, the safe passage of humanitarian supplies to Tigray is compromised, further obstructing humanitarian aid efforts. In this regard, he said Ethiopia expects the U.S. government to hold the TPLF accountable for its atrocious acts and continued provocations in the Afar and Amhara region.
• He also said measures, such as the exclusion of Ethiopia from AGOA eligibility and the proposed Draft Bill HR6600 do not commensurate with the longstanding relationship between the two countries.
Ambassador Tracey Jacobson, on her part,
• Thanked the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister for the briefing and expressed her government’s concerns over human rights and humanitarian issues related to the conflict in the northern part of the country.
• She also expressed interest in further strengthening the relationship between Ethiopia and the United States.
H.E Mr. Temesgen Oumer, Consul General of Ethiopia in Beirut conferred with H.E. Najib Azmi Mikati, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Lebanon, and exchanged views on the current situation in Ethiopia and regional issues, including ways to strengthen bilateral ties between the two sides. Aside from explaining the peace initiatives of the government, the Consul General also took the occasion to explain the commencement of initial power generation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and noted his government’s dedication to working with downstream countries based on equitable utilization of the waters of the Nile and through the ongoing AU facilitation on the tripartite negotiation. The Prime Minister, on his part, appreciated the endeavor and current signals for peace and stability in Ethiopia and also stressed continuing the current process of negotiation taking the concerns among the three countries on the filling of the Dam.
H.E. Ambassador Hirut Zemene conferred with H.E. Ambassador Frank Felix, Director for Africa at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium and exchanged views on the current situation in Ethiopia, strengthening bilateral ties between the two sides and regional issues. During the meeting, Ambassador Hirut briefed the Director on the current developments in Ethiopia with reference to the path to peace and dialogue, humanitarian access and steps taken to address Human Rights violations.
Ethiopia’s ambassador in Sudan, H.E. Yibeltal Aemero had a discussion with Sudan’s Federal Governance Minister, Her. E. Buseina Dinar on ways of strengthening Ethiopia-Sudan relations. They, in particular talked about the commencement of border trade between the two countries, cooperation in common security issues, and further cementing people-to-people relationships.
The newly appointed Ambassador of the Republic of the Congo to Ethiopia, Daniel Owassa, presented a copy of his credentials to the Chief of Protocol Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Demeke Atanafu. The ambassador said he will work hard to enhance the country’s long-standing friendship with Ethiopia.
• As Prime Minister H.E. Abiy Ahmed said in a statement over the week, we all are interdependent wherever we live and a problem that occurs at one corner of the world affects the other corner, particularly vulnerable people. Ethiopia is not an island, so the Russia-Ukraine situation, just like the COVID-19 Pandemic, concerns us since the issue has the potential to cause political and economic upheavals.
• Ethiopia believes that Russia, Ukraine and all concerned parties would get peaceful alternatives to the current status quo. We believe that “the multilateral institutions and international norms we have built collectively need not be a site of isolation but a mechanism for problem solving.”
• Last week the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution demanding the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine. Ethiopia did not cast its vote and the decision is consistent with our nonalignment policy.
III. #EconomicDiplomacy
Ethiopia is participating in the Dubai expo 2020. The Expo aims to advertise Ethiopia’s immense potential in trade, investment and tourism sectors to investors drawn from all over the world. High-level government officials, including the Ministers of Industry, Trade and Regional Integration, including the Minister of Culture and Sport have visited the Ethiopian pavilion.
Ethiopian Airlines, Air Djibouti, the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone (DIFTZ), and SGTD Doraleh Terminal signed the Sea-Air Logistics Model Agreement on Thursday (March 03). The partnership will strengthen regional connectivity by utilizing an innovative multimodal transportation system developed by the Djibouti port and free zone authorities, Air Djibouti, and Ethiopian Airlines. The Sea-Air cargo initiative is twice as fast as sea-only transportation and twice as cheap as air-only transportation. This will significantly improve trade links between the two countries as well as between the continents of Africa and Asia.
In related news, H.E. Ambassador Berhanu Tsegaye, the Ethiopian Ambassador to Djibouti, held a meeting with Mr. Aboubaker Omer Hadi, Chairman of the Djibouti Ports and Free Zones Authority, at the Djibouti International Free Trade Zone, to discuss issues of bilateral importance, with a focus on ways to improve the efficient and effective movement of Ethiopia’s cargoes from Djibouti Ports and Free Zones to various parts of Ethiopia.
Ethiopian ambassador in the Republic of Turkey, H.E. Adem Mohammod had a meeting with the president of the Turkish Confederation of Industrialists, Businesswomen, and Businessmen (Sankon) to discuss investment, trade, and market opportunities in Ethiopia. The two sides have agreed to co-organize an Ethio-Turkey business forum in the upcoming April.
IV. #CitizenCentred Diplomacy
The spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs H.E. Ambassador Dina Mufti has participated in a seminar organized by Arbaminch University Public Diplomacy Center. Ethiopian higher education institutions need to scale up their supportive work to the digital diplomacy activities of the country. Research papers on Ethiopia’s international relations and undue external pressures were tabled for further discussion. It is to be recalled that various higher education institutions have started to establish their digital diplomacy centers since last year.
The Ethiopian Consulate General in Lebanon announced over the week that it has repatriated, in collaboration with the IOM (International Organization for Migration) 59 Ethiopians who were living in Lebanon without proper legal documents. They were staying in makeshift shelters provided by the Ethiopian Community in Lebanon.
Ethiopian Ambassador in Germany, H.E. Mulu Solomon had a meeting with leaders of various associations of Ethiopians in Frankfurt. The Ambassador appreciated the participation of Ethiopians in the Diaspora in causes that call for their support at home. She, in particular, mentioned the impressive response given to the Great Ethiopian Homecoming challenge. The leaders, on their part, tabled their plans to continue supporting the GERD project and affected people due to the conflict in the northern part of the country. Discussion was also held on various issues related to services provided by the embassy to the Ethiopian community in Germany.
The Ethiopian Embassy in France held consultations with various Ethiopian religious leaders in Paris. During the meeting, discussions were held on the role that religious institutions and their followers can play in supporting and strengthening national unity, and assisting victims of man-made and natural disasters. An agreement was reached to work closely on issues related to national unity and development.
Our missions in Israel, South Africa, U.A.E., Turkey, India, Japan, China, Nairobi, Djibouti, South Sudan, Brussels, London, U.S.A, Moscow, including Ethiopian Consulate in Beirut, Ethiopian Consulate in Dubai and the Northern Emirates have celebrated the Adwa Victory day with Ethiopian communities. Some of the missions have also celebrated International Women’s day too.
Ethiopian ambassador in Israel, H.E. Ambassador Reta Alemu had a meeting with the Deputy President of Ben Gorion University. The two sides discussed possibilities in creating linkages, particularly in agriculture, medicine, technology between Ethiopian higher institutions and the Israeli Uni8versity.
In related news, Ethiopia’s ambassador in Sudan, H.E. Yibeltal Aemero had a meeting with scholars from the University of Science and Technology of Sudan. The two sides discussed the ongoing cooperation between the university and higher education institutions in Ethiopia, in particular, Bahrdar and Gondar Universities. They also underscored that educational institutions should play important role in strengthening people-to-people ties between the two countries.
The capacity-building training that was given to newly appointed ambassadors for two weeks was concluded on Sunday (March 06). On the closing ceremony,
• Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister H.E. Demeke Mekonnen stressed the need to be disciplined and be able to quickly understand the unpredictable and constantly changing socio-economic realities to protect the interest of the country. He also said Ethiopia expects the ambassadors to scale up a fraternal relationship with Africa and its people for accelerated economic engagement and beneficial effects in the political sphere.
• State Minister, H.E. Ambassador Burtukan Ayano, said the training covered about 20 topics, including, among others, tourism and image building, business and economy, citizen-centered and Diaspora engagements, consular services, and communication and digital diplomacy. She expressed her hope that the ambassadors are equipped with the necessary knowledge that would help them shoulder huge responsibilities and make knowledge-based decisions.
• The ambassadors expressed appreciation to the Ministry for the training session that helped them to deliberate issues that would have importance on carrying out their responsibilities.
