Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa has overtaken Dubai as the leading gateway to Sub-Saharan Africa using at least one measure, according to analyst ForwardKeys.

Addis Ababa Bole International Airport has grown its volume of international transfer passengers to the region for five years in a row (2013-17) to achieve that position. The airport is currently being upgraded with a new terminal at the cost of US$345 million, ForwardKeys noted.

The findings were released by ForwardKeys during a presentation by Vice-President, Insights Olivier Ponti at the World Travel and Tourism Council’s Africa Leaders Forum in Stellenbosch, South Africa.

Ponti highlighted Ethiopia’s “extraordinary rise” as both a destination and a transfer hub for long-haul travel to Sub-Saharan Africa.

He said at least some of Ethiopia’s increase in international flight bookings could be attributed to “new-found confidence in the wake of reforms carried out by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed since he took office in April.” These include signing a peace deal with Eritrea in July, a new e-visa policy introduced in June, which allows all international visitors to apply for a visa online, and a promise to open Ethiopia’s markets to private investment.

International bookings for Ethiopia for the period from this November to January next year are ahead by more than 40% on the same period in 2017, ForwardKeys said. Bookings are well ahead of all other destinations in Sub-Saharan Africa.

While visitors to Ethiopia and the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa are coming from across the globe, Europe dominates as a source market, according to the analyst’s findings, having grown by +4% since the start of the year. ForwardKeys said growth in visitors from Asia Pacific was “sluggish,” increasing just +1% since the beginning of the year.

Ponti said the relaxing of visa regimes for international travelers represented one of the major opportunities for destinations in the region. The Chinese market is particularly important as it is now the strongest in the world by numbers of people and by expenditure. According to ForwardKeys data, liberalized visa policies have had a transformative effect on Chinese tourism to Morocco and Tunisia in recent years, dramatically lifting visitor numbers.

“Sub-Saharan Africa is a market of opportunity. Across the region, carriers are increasing seat capacity on international flights by +6% on average; that is an encouraging sign,” said Ponti.

“If more governments follow the go-ahead example set by Ethiopia, including reducing conflict and taking advantage of the benefits that can flow from more relaxed visa policies, I would expect to see a healthy growth in tourism in 2019.”

Source: ©The Moodie Davitt Report

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has begun a discussion with 81 opposition political party leaders registered in Ethiopia and parties that have recently returned home from exile.

The discussion reportedly focused on the ongoing sweeping reform and democratization process in the country.

Together, they will discuss the electoral reforms required to be addressed in order to make the forthcoming national election democratic, free and fair.

Last week, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s administration secured parliamentary approval to appoint Birtukan Mideksa, who used to be an opposition leader, as the new election board chairperson. She is the first election board official not affiliated with the ruling coalition, directly or indirectly.

Ethiopia and the United Kingdom have agreed to expand bilateral cooperation and strengthen trade and investment, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA).

Foreign Affairs State Minister Hirut Zemene held talks with Harriett Baldwin, UK Minister of State for Africa at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office yesterday.

The two sides have agreed to expand cooperation between the countries.

The statement added that the officials have noted the growing trade and investment ties between Ethiopia and the United Kingdom, and emphasized the need to strengthen the level of trade and investment cooperation further.

The trade volume between the countries has reached 2 billion USD.

UK Minister Harriett Baldwin expressed her country’s continued commitment to support the efforts of ensuring regional peace, stability and economic integration in the Horn of Africa.

Ethiopia and the UK have enjoyed rich diplomatic relations covering a range of areas, including trade, culture, education and development cooperation.

Former rebels belonging to Ethiopia’s Ogaden National Liberation Front, ONLF, on Wednesday returned to the country from their base in neighboring Eritrea.

The contingent was flown from Asmara to Jijiga, capital of the Somali Regional State, SRSby an Ethiopian Airlines flight. They were received with cultural displays upon their arrival at the airport.

In mid-November, the group signed a peace deal with the Ethiopian federal government in Asmara, where they had been based for several years.

As part of the agreement, “The two sides have reached a historical agreement regarding the political rights of the people from Somali Regional State and genuinely addressing the root causes of the conflict between ONLF and the Ethiopian government”.

As at the last meeting, there was also the announcement of a joint committee established for further discussions. The first round of talks between the two parties was in September this year. Months earlier the Ethiopian parliament had struck them off a list of terrorist organizations whiles they also called a ceasefire.

The ONLF was formed in 1984 amid a resurgence of separatist sentiment in the ethnically Somali Ogaden region on Ethiopia’s border with Somalia.

 

The House of Peoples` Representatives (HPR) appointed Birtukan Mideksa as the new Chairperson of the National Electoral Board (NEBE) today.

Nominated by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Birtukan replaced Ambassador Samia Zekaria, who was the chairperson of NEBE since last year.

Premier Abiy has pledged to deliver a credible election in 2020.

Birtukan recently returned to Ethiopia after seven years in exile in the United States and was compelled to return by the ongoing reforms. She has always been a vocal advocate for the rule of law and respect for the constitution.

She has in the past years resigned from her position as chairperson of Ethiopian Unity Party and before being nominated to the chairpersonship NEBE, she has been engaged in the National Endowment for democracy in Washington D.C. as a non-partisan research institute formed by Ethiopians.

She founded the opposition Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ) party in 2008 and had previously worked with opposition parties including Rainbow Ethiopia: Movement for Democracy and Social Justice and Coalition for Unity and Democracy.

The National Electoral Board is accountable to the House of Peoples Representatives and is an independent and autonomous organ for conducting elections having its own legal personality.

The Broad has nine members who are nominated by the Prime Minister and appointed by the House of Peoples Representatives.

The composition of the Board Members has taken into consideration the national diversity, gender representation and includes legal professionals.

Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed who has implemented several reforms across the political, economic, social and diplomatic front, has also recently appointed several women to key government positions including the president.

Birtukan Midekssa was elected as the first female NEBE chairperson on the 7th regular session of this year’s HPR meeting with four members against and three abstentions.

 

With an average growth rate of 6.7% between 2013 and 2017 – double the African average – East Africa is one of the fastest growing regions in the world, accompanied by rapid social improvements.

Average life expectancy has increased by 5.3 years over the past decade, with some countries registering historically unprecedented gains (e.g., 8.5 years in Kenya and Rwanda).

“There are of course still many challenges – chief amongst them being the need for faster job creation for the rapidly growing population – but on balance, progress has been impressive. Life expectancy is a good general indicator of living standards, and the pace of change is one of the fastest in history”, said Andrew Mold, the Acting Director of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) in Eastern Africa, presenting an overview of economic and social developments in the region at the 22nd meeting of the Intergovernmental Committee of Experts, ICE.

The three-day meeting takes place in Kigali, Rwanda, and gathers more than 250 economic stakeholders and decision makers of 14 countries in East Africa.

In 2019, the region is expected to grow at 6.2%, thanks to sustained public and private investment, renewed optimism in the Horn of Africa, and the opening up of new trade opportunities under the AfCFTA.

Minister of Finance and Economic Planning of Rwanda, Dr. Uzziel Ndagijimana, noted that “ In many aspects, the Eastern Africa region has been leading continental trends – be it in terms of economic progress but also social – with life expectancy and other indicators improving a lot over the last decade.”

Amongst the challenges are the impact of climate change on agricultural production, rising levels of debt in some countries, and peace and security concerns.

Outside the continent, the specter of trade wars and moderating global demand could also impact on regional growth. At such a time, ECA argues that African countries should focus their attention on the more resilient and dynamic regional trading relations.

Participants of the ICE meeting will discuss how to strengthen regional integration through the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, AfCFTA.

The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) approved on 19 November additional resources to Ethiopia’s Basic Services Transformation Program in the form of a 123- million US dollars grant.

The Basic Services Transformation Programme Supplementary Financing (BSTP-SF) will be for the fiscal years 2018/19 to 2019/20, according to a press release issued by the bank.

The proposed support is consistent with the Ethiopian government’s Growth and Transformation Plan II (GTP II) 2015/16 – 2019/20), with specific reference to the strategic pillar on accelerating human development and technological capacity building and ensuring its sustainability.

The additional financial support is a continuation of the African Development Bank Group’s commitment to deliver quality basic services in Ethiopia in sectors such as healthcare, education and water and sanitation.

The original support program was approved in December 2015, the statement noted.

It will also enable Ethiopia to continue with programs that increase access to better basic services at the local level; strengthen accountability and transparency in service delivery and improve citizen’s engagement in service delivery.

According to the statement, Ethiopia has made strong progress in human capital development. It increased net enrolment rate in primary schools from 77.5 percent (2006) to 99 percent (2016); reduced child mortality from 72 children per 1000 in 2006 to 20 children per 1000 by 2016, and improved rural water supply from 46 percent in 2006 to 74 percent as at the end of 2017.

In approving the additional support, the Board of Directors of the African Development Fund noted Ethiopia’s progressive economic development and structural transformation process.

The East African nation’s fiscal policy in 2018/19 is expected to sustain focus on fiscal consolidation, characterized by stable pro-poor spending and improvements in public revenue mobilization.

BSTP-SF was developed jointly by the African Development Fund and the Government of Ethiopia, in close consultation with key development partners supporting basic service delivery (the World Bank, EU, Austria Development Agency and Italy Development Cooperation).

On 19 November 2018, the Council adopted conclusions on Ethiopia. The Council notes that Ethiopia has witnessed momentous change and that political and economic reforms have gained a new impetus under the leadership of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. His ambitious agenda towards a more democratic and just Ethiopian society is a positive example for the region and beyond.

The Council welcomes the commitment of the government of Ethiopia to multi-party democracy, respect for human rights, the rule of law and gender equality. The EU encourages the government to continue its efforts in this area and towards developing an inclusive dialogue with all stakeholders, including federal and regional authorities, opposition groups, civil society, youth groups, and media, on sustainable solutions towards better governance, justice and accountability, elections, job creation, and security challenges.

Read the full text of the conclusions

Ethiopia and Egypt will hold talks in the next two weeks to iron out differences over an Ethiopian dam on the River Nile.

The two countries and Sudan have held a series of constructive meetings over the $4 billion hydroelectric Grand Renaissance Dam, but have yet to reach a deal on managing flows and other issues.

Ethiopia is also one of the countries with the highest energy poverty in the world, while the energy demand is increasing by 32 percent each year. The utilization of the waters of the Nile River is indispensable to eradicate poverty and the centrepiece of Ethiopia’s developmental project.

However, Egypt fears the scheme will restrict the waters coming down from Ethiopia’s highlands, through the deserts of Sudan, to its fields and reservoirs. Ethiopia, which wants to become Africa’s biggest power exporter, says it will have no such impact.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed conferred with Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly on the sideline of the 11th African Union Extraordinary Summit yesterday.

Egypt’s prime minister, Mostafa Madbouly, said he and his Ethiopian counterpart, Abiy Ahmed, agreed “to start bilateral discussions in the next two weeks to agree on the points that remain unagreed”.

PM Abiy repeated that he wanted to preserve Egypt’s Nile river rights.

In 2013, Ethiopia began construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), located in the headwaters of the Blue Nile River. Upon completion, the dam will be Africa’s largest hydroelectric power plant and will boost the economic growth of Ethiopia.