Local investor to develop 100 MW from solar energy

A private investor is going to develop a-100 megawatts (MW) of solar energy in Ethiopia for the first time, according to the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Electricity (MoWIE).

A local investor, who will build the solar farm, has been identified following the culmination of the bidding process. Preparations are underway to ink the final agreement with the inventor. The solar energy farm will be built around Metehara, 200 km southeast of the capital Addis Ababa.

After selling the power it generated to the government for 20 consecutive years, the investor will hand over the farm to the government. The construction of the farm is expected to take 7-8 years.

Ethiopia has designed favorable policy and strategies for the private sector to engage in hydro-power, wind and solar energy development.   The country has been providing various incentives to attract more foreign and local investors and companies in the sector.

In addition to solar energy, private sector investors are participating in the development of geothermal energy, such as the two Canadian companies that will develop geothermal energy plants at Corbetti and Tulu Moye. Each company is expected to generate 500MW.

Ethiopia seeks to raise its power generation capacity to 17, 347 by 2020. It has so far developed 4, 284 MW and the construction of projects that have the capacity to generate 9,000 MW is also underway in various parts of the country.

Massive release of prisoners continue

Ethiopia has released hundreds of prisoners and dropped charges against others in recent weeks. Following the decision of the Executive Committee of EPRDF, the government of Ethiopia has been dropping charges and pardoning individuals imprisoned for inciting violence, terrorism and religious extremism.

Additional suspects whose charges were dropped or were granted pardon were released from prison on 14 February, including Eskinder Nega, Andualem Arage and former chief administrator of Gambella Regional State, Okelo Aquay, Ustaz Ahmedin Jebel, Kalid Ibrahim, Ahmed Mustefa and Mohammed Abate. Seven suspects, including Bekele Gerba, were also freed on 13 February.

Prosecutors in Ethiopia also dropped charges against two bloggers on 14 February and announced they would abandon the prosecution of a third amid a wave of prisoner releases.  Six Zone 9 bloggers were arrested in April 2014. Two were released in July of the following year, while the remaining four were charged with terrorism.

http://www.fanabc.com/english/index.php/news/item/11345-ethiopia-releases-detainees,-including-eskinder-nega,-andualem-arage-and-ahmedin-jebel

Four foreign companies set to commence production at Kombolcha industrial park

Four foreign companies have begun installing machinery to commence production at the Kombolcha industrial park, Amhara regional state.

Azimeraw Dejene, project coordinator of the park told ENA that the industrial park is attracting various global companies.

Companies from South Korea, China, Italy and the US have so far been installing and transporting industrial machinery since last September.

When the companies start production, they will stimulate industrial activities in the area and create a good opportunity for local companies to gain better experience and, he said.

The four companies are expected to go operational this Ethiopian fiscal year once the finished installation of machinery.

They will create jobs for 20,000 people once they started production with their full capacity, he said.

Built at a cost of 90 million US dollars, Kombolcha industrial park was inaugurated last July in attendance of Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn.

Fairfax Africa Fund, Asia partner to build $4 billion refinery in Ethiopia

A US-based investment firm is collaborating with partners from Asian countries to build an oil refinery in Ethiopia.

The project, worth $4 billion, is expected to serve the country and the rest of East African market. Located in the eastern Ethiopian town of Awash; some 220 kilometres from the capital Addis Ababa, the refinery will have the capacity to process 120,000 barrels per day. That is equal to six million metric tonnes of crude oil.

“Here in Ethiopia over the next ten to fifteen years there is going to be a very massive transformation in the economy from what used to be an agrarian to what is to become an industrial based economy,”  said Zemedeneh Negatu, Global Chairperson at the Fairfax Africa Fund. “That means a very significant increase in transportation which is what is what this refinery comes into. By the way, it’s not just a refinery. The refinery is just the first component…we are going to have an entire petrochemical over the next fifteen years.”

At the moment Ethiopia uses three million metric tons of fuel every year.

“The aim is to service all of East Africa. To just give you a very quick reference point …all of East Africa…which is a couple of hundred million people…has just one tiny refinery. And yet East Africa is actually the fastest growing region in Africa as a whole. And on the later of that the fact that there is a lot of urbanisation going on we figured this is a viable project. Now the 4 billion is an estimate. It could be slightly lower or it could be slightly higher.” Negatu said.

Reports suggest Ethiopia built its first oil refinery in 1967 in the Port of Assab in current Eritrea.

The then refinery built by Russian engineers had the capacity of producing 500,000MT of fuel per year only. Then it was upgraded to process 800,000MT of fuel per annum.

But the new facility will eventually have the capacity of refining 12 million metric tons of crude oil yearly. That will boost the confidence of Ethiopia’s energy security program.

Intrade Co to invest $100 million to build a textile factory in Ethiopia

The British firm Intrade Co, specialized in agricultural raw materials, will disburse $100 million for the construction of a textile factory in Ethiopia.

The facility will be built over more than 10 ha inside Mekelle industrial park, in Tigray region located 783 km from Addis-Ababa. The construction is set to last 18 months and is expected to generate 1,300 local jobs once the operational phase is launched.

This new investment reflects a general trend of many foreign investors attracted in particular by the competitive salaries, an abundance of energy as well as a favourable fiscal environment.

Lower valley of the Omo river: Ethiopia’s Southern jewel

Located in Southwest Ethiopia, the Lower Omo Valley is one of the most diverse areas in East Africa. Home to some of Africa’s most traditional tribes, the region was once inhabited by our earliest ancestors and is the place where the earliest known discovery of Homo Sapiens fossil fragments was found. This exceptional archaeological and cultural wealth led the area to be designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980. The spectacularly beautiful Omo Valley also boasts a diverse ecosystem ranging from arid lowlands to lush high-mountain areas, volcanic outcrops, and one of the few remaining ‘pristine’ riverine forests in semi-arid Africa which supports a wide variety of wildlife.

Archeological Wealth

Ethiopia possesses an exceptional archaeological wealth, exceptionally significant to the research of prehistoric human and its material culture. The site was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1980 for its renewed prehistoric discovery of fossils and exceptional present cultural activities. The Unesco also noted that the discoveries of ancient stone tools in an encampment offers evidence of the oldest known technical activities of prehistoric beings, thus making the property one of the most significant for mankind. All these awe-inspiring archaeological findings contributed to give Ethiopia the title of “cradle of mankind”.

The entire Omo river basin is significant geologically and archaeologically: the age-old sedimentary deposits in the Lower Omo Valley are world renowned for the discovery of many hominid fossils, that have been of fundamental importance in the study of human origins and evolution. These fossils include the remains of Homo gracilis and Australopithicines estimated at some 2.5 million years old, as well as the earliest known bone fragments of Homo sapiens, dating from 195,000 years ago.

A mosaic of cultures

In addition to its scientific significance, the tribes that live in the lower Omo Valley are believed to be among the most fascinating on the continent of Africa and around the world, as the lower valley of the Omo has been a crossroads for thousands of years as various cultures and ethnic groups migrated around the region. More than forty tribes reside in the area and the valley is home to about 200,000 people.

The authenticity and cultural diversity of the Mursi, Suri, Nyangatom Dizi and Me’en have attracted researchers on diversity. The place is also a home for Omotic-speakers of the South Omo and includes the Ari, Maale, Daasanach, and Hamar-Banna. In her article titled ”Why Is Ethiopia’s Omo Valley Region So Rich in Culture?” Albee Yeend (2017) observed the distinctive features of each tribe: the Karo’s decorate their bodies and hair with chalk paint to imitate the guinea fowl and paint multi-coloured facemasks; the Mursi, for their part, are quite simply one of the most fascinating tribes, as women wear huge clay lip-plates while men have stick fighting rituals. As for the Hamer tribe, the men practice the ‘Bull Jumping’ – a three-day initiation rite held every spring – and the women are some of the most beautiful in East Africa; and let’s not forget the crocodile- hunting Dassanech, the most southerly of the tribes who live in Omo Valley. The Bana, Tsamai, Konso, Erbore, Borana and Gabbra have their own equally exclusive and interesting customs.

The traditions of the Omo Valley tribes are deeply embedded, and each tribe’s identity is vividly clear, even to outsiders. Researchers have noted that this extraordinary wealth of traditional human cultures and small tribal groups exhibiting an amazing wealth of body decoration and adornment was due to their long isolation. Most travel advice websites, such as Lonely Planet, strongly recommend visitors to experience the fascinating culture of the ethnic groups settled in the Omo Valley by visiting traditional Daasanach villages, watching Hamer people performing a Jumping of the Bulls ceremony or seeing the Mursi’s mind-blowing lip plates.

Spectacular landscapes

Besides cultural attractions, the Lower Omo Valley is endowed with astonishing flora and fauna. It is a spectacularly beautiful area with diverse ecosystems including grasslands, volcanic outcrops, and one of the few remaining ‘pristine’ riverine forests in semi-arid Africa which supports a wide variety of wildlife.

The Mago National Park intersects the park and flows into the Omo River covered by dense acacia woodland. The Park is actually the home for over 100 types of wild animals of which are the buffalo and elephant, lesser kudu and a few other antelopes, leopard, jackals, cheetahs and lions, olive baboons and velvet monkeys roam within the park’s boundaries. The area is highly favourable for birdwatchers as it inhabits 300 species of birds like the Egyptian plover; Pel’s fishing owl, the Black-rumped waxbill and the dusky babbler. The area also includes other national Parks of Ethiopia such as the Omo National Park and Chelbi Wildlife Reserve. The valley is also the home of the Adenium obesum or the Desert Rose, a wonderful dark and light pink little trees whose trunk looks like a very small Baobab tree. As the area is more accessible than it was a decade ago due to new road networks and the development of telecommunication networks and sustainable tourism tours, Omo Valley is increasingly a must-see destination for all the lovers of scientific research, nature and culture. If you visit the area on your way from Arba Minch to Keyafer to Jinka market in the afternoon, you might have the chance to witness the wedding ceremony of a Hamer couple or an incredible bull jumping ceremony. If you manage to visit this place, its fond memories shall remain with you forever. ■

 

Ethiopia: The Next Hub for World Apparel Investment and Sourcing

In the last 5 to 6 years, Ethiopia’s textile and apparel industry has grown at an average of 51% and more than 65 international textile investment projects have been licensed for foreign investors. The decision of the Ethiopian Government to prioritize the sector and design incentives to attract investment in view of worldwide competition has played a big role in the development of the sector’s economic status. This article was originally published in the 9th issue (January 2018) of The Ethiopian Messenger, the quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels.

Slow beginnings

Ethiopia’s long history of textile production began in 1939 when Dire Dawa Textile Factory, the first modern garment and textile factory of the country, was established. Later, Addis Garment PLC (formerly known as Augusta) was established in 1958. From then to 1991, the growth of the sector was sluggish; in fact, by 1991 there were only 19 textile and garment factories in Ethiopia, all owned by the State due to the command economic policy of the country.

Following Ethiopia’s adoption of a free market economy in 1991, the number of textile and apparel manufacturing companies increased to over 90. However, despite the government’s efforts, few transformational changes were witnessed in the sector until 2010.

A booming sector

Ethiopia’s textile and apparel industry has experienced major development over recent years, mainly driven by the country’s wide availability of raw materials, cheap labour, low energy costs, and several bilateral trade agreements with the world’s biggest markets. Data shows that in the last 5 to 6 years, Ethiopia’s textile and apparel industry has grown at an average of 51%, and more than 65 international textile investment projects have been licensed for foreign investors during this period. This recent surge in Ethiopia’s textile and apparel production and export to the global markets shows that the country has the potential to become one of the leading textile and apparel hubs in Africa, capable of exporting the equivalent of 30 billion USD with a bold vision of transforming the nation into a compelling new apparel sourcing hub for brands, retailers and their supplier.

The sector has become a top priority for Ethiopia as part of its goal to become a middle-income country by 2025. The key objective is to make the sector globally competitive and to bring the necessary structural transformation to the nation’s economy to export industrial outputs, create thousands of jobs, attract much-needed foreign currency and above all, contribute to poverty reduction.

In the last 5 to 6 years, Ethiopia’s textile and apparel industry has grown at an average of 51% and more than 65 international textile investment projects have been licensed for foreign investors. The decision of the Ethiopian Government to prioritize the sector and design incentives to attract investment in view of worldwide competition has played a big role in the development of the sector’s economic status. At present, the Ethiopian textiles and apparel industry consists of approximately 188 medium and large-scale factories, 112 of which are foreign-owned. The total industrial sector in the country equals about 17% of the country’s GDP, with textiles and leather dominating the exports.

Industrial parks, strong infrastructure and convenient logistics facilities

Based on the Growth and Transformation Plan I and II, the government intends to construct 15 export-geared, state-of-the-art and eco-friendly industrial parks in different regional states’ main cities. Five are already operational and two will be inaugurated in the upcoming months. In addition, one private industrial park built by a Chinese company in the Eastern Industrial Zone is operational and seven more are under construction, among which one is dedicated to textiles and apparel. All parks have an international standard building with high infrastructure, safety facilities and low carbon footprint. They also boast a wide range of government facilities on site under the Ethiopian Investment Commission’s one-stop service from banking to visa and immigration facilities, import and export licenses, work permits and customs clearance, etc.

Among other things, the cluster of specialised operational state-run parks, the Hawassa, Mekele, Bole Lemi, Kombolcha parks and the Adama Industrial Parks are also dedicated to textile and apparel. The flagship eco-friendly Hawassa Industrial Park, which is dedicated to textile and apparel manufacturing industries, encompasses 1.4 million square meters, 410,00 square meters of factory spaces across 37 shades, making it Africa’s largest manufacturing park with 100% occupancy secured from the very beginning. The park is planned to generate 1 billion USD foreign currency per year and employs 60,000 workers at its fullest operational capacity.

These initiatives have already attracted several international investors. Among the firms currently setting up operations in the Hawassa Industrial Park are: PVH Corp, owner of the Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger brands; Hong Kong-based dress shirt specialist TAL Apparel; Indian denim giant

Arvind Ltd, Chinese fabric mill Wuxi Jinmao; Indonesian Busana Apparel Group in garments; Hong Kong garments company EPIC; British Hela Clothing Group, the Spanish Quadrant Apparel Group PLC and Best Corporations Indian Private Limited Textile Company.

Transport infrastructure is constantly improved: the newly built electric railway network that links Addis Ababa, the dry port city of Modjo, and Djibouti reduced cargo transit times from three days by road to 10-12 hours by train and rail corridors that will make up a 6000 kilometres network are underway to create a series of trade routes to neighbouring Kenya, South Sudan and Sudan are being built. In addition, Ethiopian Airlines, the largest and the fastest-growing airline in Africa, plays a key role in the logistics process.

Incentives of the sector

The textile sector is open to foreign investors and Ethiopian Diaspora. The minimum capital required for a foreign investor is 200,000 USD per project, and if a foreign investor invests in partnership with a domestic investor, the minimum capital required is 150,000 USD per project. The land will be given on a lease basis and the lease payment differs on the location of the investment. However, the government encourages foreign investors to invest in the newly built textile and apparel specialized parks that are located along key economic corridors, connected to ports by electric-powered railway lines and roads with lucrative incentive packages.

In addition, the Government provided the following incentives to encourage investment in the sector:

– Up to 10 years corporate exemption of income tax depending on sector engagement;

– Up to 6 years exemption depending on sector engagement;

– Additio=nal 2-4 year exemption for industrial park enterprises with at least 80% export or input supply to exporters;

– Additional 2-year exemption for 60% exporters or input suppliers to exporters within or outside of industrial parks

– Additional 30% deduction for 3 consecutive years if the investment is in underdeveloped regions.

– Up to 5 years personal income tax exemption for expatriate employees of industrial park enterprises (tenants) following the issuance of a business license.

– 60-80 years of land lease right at a promotional rate; with sublease right for industrial parks enterprises.

-Reliable electricity at global competitive rate government avails dedicated power substation for industrial parks.

Regarding customs duty

– 100% exemption from the payment of customs duties and other taxes levied on imports is granted to all capital goods, such as plant, machinery and equipment and materials;

– Spare parts worth up to 15% of the total value imported of the imported investment capital goods, provided that the goods also exempt, from payment of customs duties;

– An investor granted with customs duty exemption will be allowed to import capital goods duty-free indefinitely

– An investor entitled to a duty-free privilege buys capital goods or construction materials from local manufacturing industries shall be refunded customs duty paid for raw materials or components used as inputs for the production of such goods;

– Investment capital goods imported without the payment of customs duties and other taxes levied on imports may be transferred to another investor enjoying similar privileges.

Exemptions of Customs Tax and Duties on raw material through a set of incentive schemes: Duty drawback, Voucher, Bonded manufacturing warehouse and on-site (factory) custom inspection of imported raw materials and exportable products.

A fast-growing export market

When it comes to international exports, Ethiopia is now at one-third of the use of its capacity and one-tenth of potential export value. Given the forecasted growth of the population (which is expected to double to 180 million inhabitants in 2025-2030), the sector will need to grow rapidly and

Desta PLC’s textile manufacturing facility located in Addis Ababa

mature a lot faster than other developing nations. The Ethiopian government plan for the sector to reach maturity in the upcoming 5-10 years, which is three times faster than other emerging nations. In that sense, Ethiopia differs a lot from nations like Bangladesh, for instance, where the sector has come to blossom with an active intervention of government, making the local market much more attractive for Ethiopian textiles and apparel companies.

In recent years, the global market has become increasingly accessible to countries such as Ethiopia. New export opportunities were created through initiatives such as AGOA (the African Growth and Opportunity Act), COMESA (the Common Market of Eastern and Southern Africa) and the many bilateral trade agreements concluded with Western countries, including the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg. Ethiopia is also part of the “Everything But Arms” program that has been set up to provide access to the EU market for Lesser Developed Beneficiary Countries, free of duty and without quota restrictions, for all export products except arms.

Textiles and apparel exports from Ethiopia have increased substantially over the last decade. Based on figures from the Ethiopian Revenue and Customs Authority, Ethiopia’s textile industry obtained about $89.34 million worth of exports in the 2015/2016 fiscal year. According to the Ethiopian Textile Development Institute, Ethiopia has currently five major public textile factories producing mostly workwear garments for the domestic market, while about 180 privately-owned local and international factories produce shirts, suits, work clothes and uniforms for national and foreign markets.

Verticalisation and social and environmental responsibility

Verticalisation is another factor the government has considered in creating a fully vertical supply chain from the ground up. The full cycle of textile business opportunities is encouraged in Ethiopia and more than 50,000 hectares of cotton is under cultivation, while an additional 45,000 hectares of high-quality cotton is cultivated by small-scale farmers. The production of cotton is already well integrated into the textile sector, with garment factories relying heavily on domestically-produced cotton.

Textile and apparel companies operating in Ethiopia are also obliged to meet the social and environmental requirements of their buyers which demand certifications based on their performance on the ground. The Industrial Parks Development Corporation makes sure that the parks are eco-friendly and that these facilities are in place in usage. The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs also ensures that the textiles and apparel companies’ labour recruitment, benefits, occupational health and safety comply with the labour law of the land.

Besides, international institutions like Swedish apparel giant H&M, the International Labor Organisation (ILO) and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) have launched an industrial relations project aiming to improve the development of a socially sustainable textile and apparel industry in Ethiopia. They are also dedicated to providing training and technology transfer in the sector, which all stand in favour of boosting Ethiopia’s textile and apparel industry.

Promising context and remaining challenges

Over 80 years of development, Ethiopia’s textile and apparel industry has transformed from one of the country’s least developed sectors to today’s fully integrated industry and value chain with a significant contribution to the nation’s GDP.

Meanwhile, the government of Ethiopia has also been taking actions to encourage investment in this sector and has created various incentives to support the industry and due to this many international apparel companies are making their preferred investment and sourcing destination to Ethiopia.

As we have seen, the major strengths of Ethiopia’s textiles and apparel sector are the very high commitment of the government in support of the sector, the availability of abundant labor at low cost, cheap electricity costs and goods and the many incentives put in place by the government (tax holidays, income tax holidays up to 2 years for expatriate technicians, integration possibilities with raw materials) as well as fast and convenient transportation infrastructure. Existing challenges are related to the immaturity of the sector and its actors, such as the limited availability of raw materials and the inefficiency of digital processing in business.

Therefore, the Ethiopian Government highly encourages and welcomes the Ethiopian Diaspora and foreign investors and traders to source and invest in textile and apparel industry independently or in a joint venture with preference in textile and apparel parks. ■

The 5th AU-EU Summit: a (small) step forward

African leaders and their European counterparts met in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, to debate on how to solve some mutual problems ranging from youth unemployment and security to investment and migration. Coming at a time when migration is high on the political agenda, the Summit’s discussions were dominated by migration with one objective: reinforcing existing measures to curb the illegal immigration of young Africans to Europe. This article was originally published in the 9th issue (January 2018) of The Ethiopian Messenger, the quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels.

Expectations were high in the run-up to the 5th AU-EU Summit, which took place from 29-30 November 2017 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire. More than four tumultuous years after the previous Summit and with considerable challenges laying at both shores of the Mediterranean, AU and EU Member States alike hoped to take concrete commitments in the best interest of their respective populations. As the Cotonou Partnership Agreement, which governs relations between the EU and the ACP States, is about to expire, many stakeholders were also hoping for a complete rethinking of EU-Africa relations.

Promising signs and persisting limitations

However, this historic summit that was supposed to be dedicated to youth, investment, development and strengthening security in African states ultimately turned into a meeting of Heads of State and government on the migratory emergency, and this longer-term perspective was overshadowed by short-term measures to curb migration, which dominated the discussions between both continents.

This Summit also demonstrated the growing importance of Africa-EU Summits for both continents. Participants of the summit included 83 heads of state from Europe and Africa, representatives of the institutions of the European Union and the African Union, as well as non-profit associations and undertakings. Whereas the second (2010) and third (2014) summits had been ignored or boycotted by some EU and AU Head of States, the 5th Summit saw a high turnout of key African and European leaders including Nigeria’s Muhammadu Buhari, South Africa’s Jacob Zuma, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, European Council President Donald Tusk and AU Commission President Moussa Faki Mahamat. U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres also give a statement during the opening ceremony. It was also the first time African and European leaders were holding their three- yearly Summit in sub-Saharan Africa.

While most of the older EU members were represented by their heads of state or government, nine Central and Eastern European countries also attended the Summit. However, they were mostly represented by State Secretaries, proving once again their lack of interest in the EU-Africa framework.

Migration front and centre

Although the official theme of the summit was “investing in youth for a sustainable future”, the attention of the first Africa-EU meeting since the start of the migrant crisis quickly turned to migration and allegations of slavery in Libya. European and African leaders pledged to help youth find work and repatriate some 3,800 migrants stuck in a Libyan detention camp and the final Summit declaration and signed a separate declaration on the creation of a joint task force specifically focused on reversing the humanitarian emergency.

EU-AU commission and United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres agreed to create a joint EU-AU-U.N. task force in order to save and protect the lives of migrants and refugees along the routes and in particular inside Libya. AU Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat and President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker also agreed to accelerate the voluntary return of migrants to origin countries, resettle those in need and seek to disband of human trafficking networks.

Even though the decision to rescue migrants in Libya and the action plan announced in the Ivory Coast are welcome initiatives that should be implemented as soon as possible, many experts also say the root causes of migration must be simultaneously addressed. Several AU and EU member states representatives clearly attended the Summit with the aim of obtaining a strong and fast commitment from Africa to accept the return of economic migrants.

Need for long-term strategies

Stakeholders missed a valuable opportunity for renewing and tightening the cooperation between the two continents. Attendants failed to address the most dysfunctional aspects of the relationship, as no substantial decisions were taken on the future of ACP-EU relations and Africa-EU relations. The most complicated negotiations still are still ahead of us and long-term initiatives have yet to be taken.

Even though both sides agreed that EU-Africa cooperation must be increased in education, employment and integration of youth, discussions failed to find common ground between European leaders, who wanted to see more progress on border security and AU states accepting people deported from the EU and African leaders who expect more legal pathways for people seeking short-term stays in Europe. The key topic of the Summit, “Investing in youth for a sustainable future” was a timely and major issue, in the light of demographic trends in Africa and the urgent need for jobs and measures to tackle growing insecurity and migration. Only a strategic long-term vision and initiatives such as the EU’s External Investment Plan (EIP) for Africa will enable us to fight effectively against the root causes of precarious migration and ensure a better future for African and European generations. Even though

Europe is a key partner for Africa – currently contributing more than one-third of the overall foreign direct investment in the continent, with 32 billion euros invested in Africa by EU companies in 2015 –, the Summit failed to launch of a structured dialogue with European and African private sector under a Sustainable Business for Africa platform. There also seem to be little agreement over what the root causes of migration are, and that it is unclear what definition is being used to guide policy. The implementation of initiatives has been worryingly slow, as EU leaders had committed to “conduct a joint EU-Africa analysis of the root causes of irregular migration and forced displacement to improve the evidence base of public policies”, but this analysis has yet to materialize more than two years later.

Hope for the future

The change of tone and power dynamics demonstrated during the Summit is a welcome development for Africa, and the Africa-EU framework seems to be genuinely evolving towards a real partnership. Yet, this constructive attitude will have to transform into concrete actions. In a speech in September, the EU’s foreign affairs chief, Federica Mogherini, said that “the time when we had the illusion of managing migration flows only through border management is gone.” European commissioner for migration, home affairs and citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos, said for its part that it was “essential” to “open real alternatives to taking perilous irregular journeys. Investing in more legal pathways, both for protection but also for study or work.”

Africa also has work to do. Rwanda President Paul Kagame Kagame, who is spearheading the AU reform process, described the AU reform as urgent and a necessity as the continent’s economic and security environment depends on the quality of its cooperation. In this view, the African Union institutional reform will create a self-sufficient Union and lead to more reliable external partnerships, including with the EU. To do so, AU Member States should strive to increase their ownership by implementing the Agenda 2063.

The years ahead of the 6th AU-EU Summit, that will take place in 2022 in the EU, will be key to see if this vision can actually turn into reality. ■

1139 Villages Get Electric Access in GTP-II

In the first two years of the second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP-II), some 993 villages have received access to electricity and 146 towns’ electric supply has been upgraded, according to the Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Electricity. The Ministry further said that during the last six months, under the National Electrification Program, 254 villages have got access and the electric system of 35 towns has been upgraded.

The National Electrification Program aimed at raising the electric access of the country to 90 percent at the end of the GTP-II through electrifying 10,205 towns and villages.

Accordingly, during the last two years of GTP-II, the Program has electrified 65 new villages and upgraded the services of three towns in Amhara State, has electrified 346 and upgraded the services to 82 towns in Oromia and 228 and 47 in Southern Regions respectively.

GTP-II still has two years and a half to go. At the end of the first Growth and Transformation Plan, about 4727 towns had access to electricity. The electricity coverage was 54.25 percent.

Ethiopian women and girls see remarkable results in ending child marriage

Child marriage is a global phenomenon that leaves girls vulnerable to abuse and health problems, including potentially deadly pregnancy complications. In 2014, Ethiopia committed to ending child marriage by 2025.

But some districts of the country are on track to meet this goal even earlier.

In Kolla Tembein District, an outreach program reached some 1,200 unmarried girls through school programmes like the girls’ clubs. Community outreach efforts engaged another 1,200 girls who were already married. Thanks to such efforts, there have not been any cases of child marriage reported in those localities in the past last three years, and the dropout rate among female students has fallen to almost zero.

The programme now is set to expand to the rest of the district.

The community’s women and girls are mobilizing to change things – and they are seeing enormous success.

Women take action

The programme works with women’s volunteer networks called Women’s Development Groups. The volunteers received information about the consequences of child marriage, as well as related issues such as gender equality, the importance of ending female genital mutilation (FGM), and the benefits of maternal health care.

Because girls who leave school are more likely to be married off, and because many child brides are forced to drop out, the Women’s Development Groups also work closely with the local schools. If a girl drops out, the volunteers speak with her family to convince them of the importance of education over early marriage. If necessary, they refer cases of child marriage to local authorities.

Empowering girls

In schools, girls’ clubs are also helping to end child marriage. The clubs meet every two weeks with a specially trained mentor, who explains the harms of child marriage.

The girls also receive other information, including the basics of sexual and reproductive health and how to prevent sexually transmitted infections. They also gain life skills such as financial literacy skills.

The idea is to empower girls to not only reject child marriage but to minimize their vulnerability by improving their prospects for the future.

Merhawit Mezgebe, 18, is a 10th grader, and has been attending this programme for the past two years. Like other girls in the club, she has opened a savings account and is eager to plan for her future.

“I want to use my savings to finance my college studies without bothering my parents,” she said, smiling.

The girls are also helping to stamp out child marriage in their communities, she added.

When members of the club hear about possible child marriages taking place, they report it back to their mentor, who works with authorities to take action.

https://reliefweb.int/report/ethiopia/ethiopian-women-and-girls-see-remarkable-results-ending-child-marriage