Ethiopia has been named as the top country to visit in 2014 by U.K. based travel guide publisher, Rough Guides. The publication cited Ethiopia’s rich cultural attractions and its UNESCO World heritage sites as reason to make Ethiopia a top destination for 2014. Other countries in the list include Madagascar, Brazil and Rwanda.
Rough Guides’ top 10 countries to visit in 2014 are:
1. Ethiopia 2. Madagaskar 3. Brazil 4. Turkey 5. Georgia 6. Rwanda 7. Japan 8. Bulgaria 9. Macedonia 10. The Philippines
This culturally rich East African nation has always been an enticing destination, and though it remains poor, independent travel around the country is becoming easier thanks to a boom in small hotels and restaurants. Take your pick of spell-binding attractions: untouched national parks, the ancient cities of Axum, Harar and Lalibela, the world’s first coffee plantations, the largest cave in Africa at Sof Omar and the continent’s largest concentration of UNESCO sites.
22 January 2014,The New York Times has listed Addis Ababa as one of the 52 places that should be visited in 2014.The travel section of one of the biggest daily newspapers in the US labelled Addis Ababa as an ambitious art scene that is heading toward the international stage.
“Building on a strong historical legacy (Addis boasts one of East Africa’s oldest art schools) are a host of events scheduled for 2014: a photography festival, two film festivals and a jazz and world music festival. Thanks to the city’s diverse art institutions and galleries, including the artist-in-residence village Zoma Contemporary Art Center and the Asni Gallery (really more an art collective than a gallery), there is an art opening at least once a week. Even the local Sheraton puts on “Art of Ethiopia,” an annual show of new talent. But it’s the National Museum that, in May and June, will host this year’s blockbuster exhibit, “Ras Tafari: The Majesty and the Movement,” devoted to Emperor Haile-Selassie I and Rastafarianism,” The New York Times stated.
Apart from Addis, other African countries and specific cities and locations like Cape Town, South Africa, Laikipia Plateau, Kenya and Dar es Salaam, Tanzania are also picked by the newspaper.
January 20th, 2014,Ethiopia has readied 50,000 hectares of land to be leased for horticulture development, according to the Ethiopian Horticulture Producers Exporters Association (EHPEA).
Despite its huge potential for the development of horticulture, the size of land developed with flower, vegetables, and fruit until 2011/2012 is 12,552 hectares.
However, during the past five or six years, the industry has been growing significantly. Currently, over 120 companies are engaged in the cultivation of horticulture products.
Due to the prevailing investment environment, attractive incentive, by the government and cheap labor, Ethiopia has now become a center of attraction for foreign direct investment (FDI) in horticulture development.
“In order to meet the increasing flow of investment in the horticulture sector, the government has identified five corridors consisting of 50,000 hectares of land,” Tewodros Zewdie, Executive Director of EHPEA told WIC.
According to him, these corridors are found in Oromia, Amhara, Tigray, SNNP and Eastern region where there is huge potential of land, labor and infrastructures. Though horticulture development in Ethiopia started a decade ago, the industry has been playing a key role towards generating foreign exchange and creating labor.
The sector has generated some 265 million US dollars in 2011/12 and created million of jobs, Tewodros said. According to him, the revenue is expected to increase in the just conclude fiscal year. Flowers made up the biggest share in export value, according to the executive director. Ethiopia is the second largest supplier and exporter of flowers in Africa.
Europe is the major market destination of Ethiopia’s horticultural produces, especially flower. But activities are underway to search other market destinations.
“Efforts are being made to export Ethiopia’s horticulture products to North America, Japanese and African countries’ markets,” Tewodros pointed out.
Ethiopia and Yemen will soon sign an agreement for the purchase of electric power, making Yemen
the fourth country to buy electricity from Ethiopia. 100MW will be sold to Yemen for one year through
a power cable to be laid on the Red Sea floor.
So far, Ethiopia has signed an agreement with Sudan to sell 200MW of electric power, of which 100MW is already underway. Kenya and Djibouti are also receiving 100MW and 50MW respectively.
The Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Energy will exert maximum efforts to achieve the energy target
set in the Growth and Transformation Plan, in which electricity generation will increase to 10,000MW (currently 2,268MW) and its coverage to 75% (from 54%) by the end of 2015.
Water, Irrigation and Energy Minister, Alemayehu Tegenu, said power projects with more than 8,500MW capacity are being implemented around the country: 8,123MW from water, 153MW from wind, 300MW from solar and 50MW from garbage.
The ministry has also launched a solar project, which will be used to power up to 25,000 homes in rural areas. Since the launch, 23,000 solar systems have been installed. Ethiopia also plans to build 14,000 bio-gas technology plants within the GTP period – 3,500 bio-gas plants are being built every year. Ethiopia is saving 100MW daily through distributing power-saving bulbs to households, the Minister said.
Ethiopia has an exploitable power potential of 45,000MW from water, 1.3 million MW from wind and over 7,000MW from geothermal energy.
An Ethiopian delegation led by Minister of Education, Shiferaw Shigutie, attended “The Education World Forum: Global Summit for Education Ministers” held in London (January 20-22). The theme of the event was “Planning for 2014: Policy-making catalyst for a decade ahead”.
The plenary sessions, whose speakers provided overviews of their country’s educational goals and achievements, covered issues ranging from reach and measurement to driving improvements in education and learning as well as the potential impact and reach of education. They stressed the need to improve learning and their belief that the use of technology would help in this. There was focus on the need to increase access to education for girls and young women who so often did not yet have the ability to go to school. The ministerial discussions raised a number of high-level issues including projects which examined the policies and actions that have worked well in different contexts and approaches that have been less successful. They reflected on issues associated with reading, writing and literacy, and the steps that education systems need to take to tackle the causes and effects of illiteracy. They focused on steps being taken to improve the accuracy and efficacy of skills and knowledge assessment with the overall purpose of supporting learning and determining progress. A panel looked at technology and innovation developments and the extent to which these could be applied in new subject areas, and at the need to stimulate real innovation.
During his visit, Minister Shiferaw held talks with Lynne Featherstone, DFID’s Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State. Their discussions focused on strengthening the relationship between the two governments in the field of education with emphasis on education for girls, women and disabled persons. Minister Shiferaw affirmed Ethiopia’s commitment to delivering results in this area. The Minister and his delegation also visited the British Council and were briefed by senior officials on the work of the Council. Talks covered child protection in schools, improving relationship in schools and community responsibilities, the provision of effective education, education reform and measuring standards, training programs for teachers and head teachers, and for researchers as well as research in science and technology, enhancing TVET, English language improvement and digital self-access teaching and learning.
The delegation also visited the School of Oriental and African Studies and met the Director, Professor Paul Webley, to discuss building collaboration in research and training in PhD and Masters Program between Ethiopia’s Ministry of Education and SOAS. Ethiopia is interested to collaborate with SOAS in the provision of tailor-made programs for senior government officials and civil servants. They exchanged ideas on distance education and e-learning. An agreement was reached to send a group of experts from SOAS to Addis Ababa to pursue these areas of cooperation further.
The Ethiopian delegation, accompanied by Ambassador Berhanu Kebede, Ethiopia’s Ambassador to the U.K., also visited Nottingham University where they held talks with Professor David Greenway, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University, and Professor Martyn Poliakoff, Research Professor in Chemistry at the University and Foreign Secretary and Vice President of the Royal Society of Science. Discussions focused on enhancing and strengthening the existing cooperation between the Ministry of Education and Nottingham University. They agreed to revise the existing Memorandum of Understanding with special emphasis on PhD programs. Minister Shiferaw also held discussions with Ethiopian students at Nottingham University.
The IGAD Assembly of Heads of State and Government held its 24th Extraordinary Summit to discuss the situation in South Sudan on the sidelines of the AU Assembly on January 31 under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Hailemariam of Ethiopia, current IGAD chair. The meeting was preceded by an IGAD Ministerial Conference the previous day.
The Assembly was attended by President Omar Hassan Al-Bashir of the Sudan, President Ismail Omar Guelleh of Djibouti, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia, President Uhuru Kenyatta of Kenya, Vice President James Wani Igga of South Sudan and Sam Kutesa, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Uganda. Also present were Ambassador Ismail Chergui, Commissioner of Peace and Security of the African Union Commission; Ambassador Mahboub Maalim, Executive Secretary of IGAD; and representatives of the People’s Republic of China, the European Union, of the IGAD Partners Forum (IPF) and the Troika of the Governments of Norway, the UK and the US.
President Uhuru Kenyatta, current rapporteur of IGAD, presented a report on the situation in South Sudan. Congratulating South Sudan on the signing of the Agreements on Cessation of Hostilities and the Question of Detainees, he told the Assembly that seven of the detainees had arrived in Nairobi. He noted that there were accusations by both sides over observance of the ceasefire agreement. Stressing the importance of abiding by the agreements, he appealed to both sides to observe the letter and spirit of the agreement.
Ambassador Donald Booth, US Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, spoke on behalf of the US government and the Troika, assuring the Assembly that the US Government and the Troika would support the operationalization of the Monitoring and Verification Mechanism (MVM) both technically and financially. He noted the MVM would report to the Special Envoys on the observance of the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement and that it would coordinate its activities with the mandate of UNMISS. He welcomed the release of the seven detainees and stressed that IGAD and its partners should work for truly inclusive dialogue, adding that “the rest of the detainees should be released through expedited process.” Ambassador Booth underlined that South Sudan should be encouraged to embark on establishing a framework and workable modalities that would enable it transition to a stable democratic state.
The Ambassador of Italy to Ethiopia, Renzo Rosso, speaking on behalf of the IGAD Partners Forum, said that although there was progress in the negotiations, peace remained fragile. He cautioned that if left unattended prolonged conflict might invite other spoilers at the risk of affecting the neutral mediating role of IGAD. He reaffirmed the IPF’s continued support to IGAD’s mediation efforts..
Speaking on behalf of Ambassador Jan Eliasson, the Deputy Secretary General of the United Nations, UN Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan, Haile Menkorios stressed the importance of bringing to justice those who had committed crimes of extrajudicial killing, rape or illegal detention after an enquiry process as recommended by the African Union. He noted that more than 80,000 people had taken refuge in UN premises. He said that it was fitting that IGAD had taken measures to stop the conflict situation given its admirable record in peace and security matters in the sub- region as shown by the successful signing of the CPA. He thanked the relentless efforts of the Special Envoys, Ambassador Seyoum, General Lazaro Sumbeiywo of Kenya and General Mohamed Ahmed Mustefa Eldabi of Sudan.
Smail Chergui, the AU Commissioner of Peace and Security also commended IGAD’s mediation efforts, and said that as a member of the MVM, the AU will do its best to make the truce hold. He said the AU would also stand by IGAD in mobilizing resources from internal and external sources as it did earlier during the negotiations for the CPA. He said the AU would continue to support IGAD.
Ambassador Seyoum, Chairperson of the Special Envoys of IGAD, presented the Special Envoys report: “Ending the Crisis in South Sudan through Mediation as chair of the Special Envoys of IGAD”. He said that through the process of mediation, the negotiating parties and the international community had come to realize that IGAD’S mediation effort was the best opportunity to resolve the crisis. The Parties had committed to cooperate fully with the international community to alleviate the suffering of the people of South Sudan through emergency assistance and the rehabilitation of IDPs. They had come, he said, to the understanding that peace was the only battle worth fighting. Welcoming the release of the seven detainees he said” the issue of the detainees still remained a challenge.” Ambassador Seyoum said there was still danger that cross-purposes among stakeholders might undermine and complicate the crisis.
The Special Envoys made a number of recommendations to the IGAD Summit. They urged both parties to respect and expeditiously implement the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement as well as provide all necessary support to ensure the implementation of the of the MVM as soon as possible. They called on the parties to urgently address the critical humanitarian crisis, provide protection and assistance and explore durable solutions for the predicament of the refugees and internally displaced persons in full collaboration and coordination with local and international humanitarian organizations. They commended the Government of South Sudan for deciding to release seven of the detainees on bail but called on it to expedite the legal process for those remaining in detention. They urged the parties, IGAD and the African Union to work together to ensure that alleged human rights violations, abuses and crimes are investigated and those found culpable are brought to justice.
The Special Envoys also suggested they should be mandated to establish an initial Monitoring and Verification Mechanism presence in South Sudan within 48 hours. They urged Parties to ensure the progressive withdrawal of armed groups and all allied forces invited by either side from the theatre of operations, and to maintain the momentum of the peace process, by launching the Second Phase of the negotiations on February 7 in Addis Ababa as agreed. They suggested the Special Envoys should be instructed to develop a framework for the next phase of negotiations including specific modalities on structure, representation, and a timeframe, so as to ensure dialogue is truly inclusive, and to ensure this is developed to involve a broad range of South Sudanese government, political, and civil society actors in a reinvigorated constitutional process.
The Special Envoys appreciated the 8-point roadmap outlined by President Salva Kiir on January 20 and the commitment of the SPLM in Opposition to wide consultations with all stakeholders and resolve the conflict in South Sudan in an all-inclusive manner. The Special Envoys therefore suggest the Summit might wish to instruct them to organize a series of public consultations to generate input for a framework of political dialogue and national reconciliation. These consultations might include political parties, traditional and religious leaders, and groups representing women, youth, intellectuals, refugees and IDPs, business communities and other stakeholders. They also suggest the IGAD Special Envoys should hold consultations with IGAD Member States and key partners to ensure a common approach to the next phase. The Special Envoys also suggest the Heads of State and Government of IGAD might wish to reaffirm their commitment to resolve the South Sudan crisis.
After deliberating on the report of the Special Envoys, the Summit welcomed the signing of Agreements on the Cessation of Hostilities and The Status of Detainees by the Government of the Republic of South Sudan and SPLM in Opposition on January 23, and noted this marked the first significant step in finding a lasting peaceful political solution to the crisis in South Sudan, and commended their commitment to the pursuit of a peaceful political solution to the crisis. The IGAD leaders also applauded the work of the IGAD Special Envoys for their tireless and sustained efforts to resolve the crisis.
The IGAD Assembly of Heads of State and Government then adopted the Recommendations of the Special Envoys by consensus.
With the aim of brainstorming and exchanging ideas on critical issues relating to Africa’s Agenda 2063, and the state of the African Union, a three day Ministerial Retreat of the AU Executive Council hosted by and under the Chair Personship of Ethiopia was held in Bahir Dar, capital of the Amhara Regional State (January 24-26). The overall theme was “Defining Agenda 2063 for Africa”, and the retreat was attended by AU Foreign Ministers and Members of the Executive Council, the Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, Dr. Carlos Lopez; Erastus Mwencha, Deputy Chairperson of the AU Commission; AU Commissioners, and members of the Permanent Representatives Committee and other officials.
Agenda 2063 seeks to elaborate the agenda for Africa for the next fifty years, to galvanize and unite all Africans and the Diaspora in action around a common vision of a peaceful, integrated and prosperous Africa, driven by its citizens and taking its rightful place in the world. The proposed overall framework will provide internal coherence and coordination for various continental, regional and national structures and plans adopted by the African Union, Member States and Regional Economic Communities (RECs).
The discussions in the Bahir Dar retreat were guided by presentations from lead speakers on five sub-themes: “Learning from the Past: State of the Union, Achievements and Challenges over the last 50 years”; “Towards a Paradigm Shift: Keeping the Momentum for sustainable peace and structural transformation in Africa”; “Agenda 2063: strategizing for the realization of a peaceful, integrated and prosperous Africa”; “Threats and Risks: addressing internal and external challenges confronting Africa”; and “Critical Success Factors: creating the enabling condition to unleash Africa’s potential”.
Ethiopia’s Foreign Affairs Minister, the Chairperson of the AU Executive Council, Dr. Tedros Adhanom, in his opening remarks highlighted Africa’s need to address such issues as economic emancipation, peace and stability, acceleration of rapid economic growth, governance and democratization, leadership and the need to build a critical mass of people with a developmental mindset, in order to realize the continent’s long term agendas. He emphasized the significance of Agenda 2063 for the future of Africa and the achievement of the African Renaissance. “If we want to claim the 21st century as ours and realize the African Renaissance, there is a need for a paradigm shift in our political and socio-economic governance and development”, Dr. Tedros stressed.
Dr. Dlamini Zuma, African Union Commission Chairperson, said that Africa had just emerged from the collective reflections on Pan Africanism and African Renaissance that preceded the Golden Jubilee celebrations and looked ahead towards the next fifty years. She noted that the Retreat presented an opportunity to revisit some of the debates in a convivial atmosphere. Dr. Dlamini Zuma said that the decision to hold the retreat to discuss Agenda 2063 was well-timed, offering the opportunity “to enable this august body to add its collective contribution towards the Africa we want and the milestones we must set towards this end”. She pointed out that the Africa’s Agenda 2063 discussions were coming after a year of robust consultations with civil society on the future they wanted.
Representing the host Regional State, Mr. Gedu Andargachew, President of the Amhara National Regional State, welcomed participants to Bahir Dar, noting that the event would offer a good opportunity for our people to enhance their understanding of our continental organization and its activities, and for participants to see something of the development of Ethiopia outside Addis Ababa.
Among presentations was an imaginative e-mail from the future (2063), to Kwame Nkruma written by Dr. Dlamini Zuma, underlining the dreams and aspirations of a peaceful, integrated and prosperous Africa, the dream shared by all Africans. The Chairperson noted in her e-mail “from the future” that “Planning fifty years ahead allowed us to dream, think creatively, and sometimes crazily – to see us leapfrog beyond the immediate challenges.” (http://summits.au.int/en/22ndsummit/events/agenda-2063-e-mail-future-presentation-dr-nkosazana-dlamini-zuma-chairperson-au-co).
At the end of the Ministerial Retreat, members of the Executive Council acceded to the continental consensus of the African vision and agreed that the dream of an Africa that is integrated, peaceful and prosperous was achievable, provided the future is constructed on the basis of action taken now. The Retreat noted that Africa’s transformation was taking place in the context of an unfolding global situation and various trends. These included ongoing realignments of the global economic, geopolitical, security and social landscapes; changes and advances in technology, production, trade, knowledge and labor markets; the opportunities presented by global demographic trends; and the appearance of a growing global middle class in emerging and developing countries and regions. After analyzing previous and potential threats to the continent, the Retreat agreed that the challenges could be mitigated and turned into opportunities through collective strategies and effective public policies and actions. The Ministers agreed on the need to position Africa in the world by strengthening their common perspectives on partnerships that reflects the unity of the continent and on its priorities and perspectives on matters of global importance. This in turn would provide for increased bargaining power.
During the three-day meeting, key enablers that could be expected to facilitate Africa’s drive for transformation were identified. These included, among others, effective management and the use of African resources to provide for the structural transformation of African economies and societies, for investment in human capital development, for the building and promotion of peace and security, and for effective and visionary leadership with political commitment and accountability coupled with effective, accountable and participatory institutions and governance, domestic mobilization of finances and resources, accelerated regional integration, paradigm shifts in attitudes and values, and taking charge of the narrative and the development of Brand Africa. Two specific propositions were made, one to establish a Ministerial Committee, which will work together with the UN Economic Commission for Africa and the African Development Bank to finalize Agenda 2063. The second to create an African platform where political and business leaders as well as all other concerned stakeholders could regularly meet to brainstorm about the continent’s development and integration agendas.
Agenda 2063 is a broad strategic framework for collective action to fast-track Africa’s socio-economic and political development. Participants of the Retreat identified a number of strategic initiatives to give added impetus to this process. Among key initiatives proposed was accelerating human capital development, encouraging regional integration, strengthening the financial independence of key continental bodies and expanding efforts to end conflicts.
In his closing remarks, Dr. Tedros Adhanom expressed satisfaction at the successful conclusion of the Retreat. He emphasized that “dreams and aspirations will not be translated into a reality without making a paradigm shift in our political and economic governance,” and urged that the meeting “should be the beginning of a strong political commitment to implement our vision and meet the aspirations of our peoples”. Acknowledging Africa’s internal and external challenges still militated against the prospect for peace and prosperity, Dr. Tedros underlined the responsibility of African leaders to lay a solid foundation for the realization of the continent’s dream. We should demonstrate the necessary strong leadership, political commitment and selfless sacrifice to take the tough decisions to ensure a better future for the African peoples, he said.
The 22nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union opened on Thursday January 30, 2014 under the theme of Agriculture and Food Security, launching “2014 Year of Agriculture and Food Security, Marking 10th Anniversary of the Adoption of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP)”.
In its two days of deliberation (January 30-31) the Assembly, which has elected the President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz as the Chairperson of the Union for 2014, will adopt decisions on the basis of the recommendations of the Executive Council and consider reports of the various bodies of the AU. These will include the Progress Report of the Commission on the African Union on Agenda 2063, and the Report of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) on its activities and the State of Peace and Security in Africa, including the activities of the Panel of the Wise and renewal of its membership, as well as the Report on the assessment of the African Standby Force (ASF) and the Operationalization of the African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises (ACIRC).
The Assembly will also consider the Reports of President Macky Sall, President of the Republic of Senegal and Chairperson of the NEPAD Heads of State and Government Orientation Committee (HSGOC); President Dr. Ernest Bai Koroma, President of the Republic of Sierra Leone and Chairperson of the Committee of Ten on the UN Reforms; President Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, President of the United Republic of Tanzania and Coordinator of the Committee of African Heads of State and Government on Climate Change (CAHOSCC), including the outcome of Climate Change Negotiations at the 19th Conference of Parties (COP 19) of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Other reports considered will include the Report of the Commission on the Implementation of previous decisions on UNCCD and the outcomes of COP 11 held in Windhoek, Namibia, in September 2013; the Report of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of the Republic of Liberia and Chairperson of the High Level Committee on the Post-2015 Development Agenda and the Proposed Draft African Position on the Post-2015 Development Agenda; and the Report on the International Conference on Maternal, New-born and Child Health, Johannesburg, South Africa in August last year.
The Chairperson of the Commission will also present her report on the Implementation of Decision on Africa’s Relationship with the International Criminal Court (ICC), to be considered by Heads of State and Government. The Assembly will adopt the appointment of the ten members of the Peace and Security Council elected for a two year term. Ethiopia along with Burundi, Chad, Gambia, Guinea, Libya, Namibia, Niger, Tanzania and South Africa were elected. It will adopt the decisions and recommendations of the 24th Ordinary Session of the Executive Council as well as the decisions and declarations of the 22nd Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the Union.
In his opening remarks, Prime Minster Hailemariam, as the outgoing chair of the AU, noted the theme of this year’s African Union summit, “Agriculture and Food Security” marking the 10th anniversary of the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Program (CAADP) and said that it was time for Africa to celebrate the progress made over the past decade in implementing CAADP’s goals and objectives and renew commitments to do more in the future. Emphasizing that agricultural transformation holds the key to the success of collective efforts to realize its vision, Prime Minister Hailemariam said more and more countries were allocating 10% of their national budget to the agricultural sector.
Reflecting on Ethiopia’s Chairmanship of the past year, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia has achieved most of the priorities it set when it took over the chairmanship in January 2013. Top on the priorities was the celebration of the Golden Jubilee of the OAU/AU. “As a proud host of our continental organization for the last 50 years,” he said, it was a special time to assume the Chairmanship and mark this anniversary together with the Commission, member States and other relevant stakeholders. The Jubilee celebration had been marked by a collective reflection of the past, present and future under the overarching theme of “Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance”.
Prime Minster Hailemariam said Ethiopia had assumed the chairmanship at a time when multilateral negotiations have started in earnest to formulate a global development framework for the post 2015 era. During this formulation process, he said, it was imperative for Ethiopia “to ensure that the progress made thus far in achieving the Millennium Development Goals is sustained and that Africa’s development priorities are fully taken on board in the post-2015 Development Agenda as well as in the formulation of the Sustainable Development Goals.” Stressing the need for Africa to speak with one voice on the basis of an African Common Position, he said the Post-2015 development Agenda “is currently perhaps the most important process with respect to defining the nature of international development cooperation for the next decades.” The Committee of African Heads of State and Government to lead efforts in canvassing support for Africa’s development priorities in the context of the post-2015 development agenda under the chairmanship of President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf is a critical element in this. The Committee report will urge the Assembly to take the necessary action soon as negotiations on the formulation of Sustainable Development Goals is going to commence in March.
Prime Minister Hailemariam told the Assembly that there had been enhanced cooperation and partnership between Africa and its strategic partners during the past year. He cited the 3rd Africa-South America Summit, the 5th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD V), the 3rd Afro-Arab Summit and the 12th Annual AGOA Forum. These partnership forums, he said, served as platforms to advance Africa’s development agenda and further strengthen its partnerships to ensuring mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. Ethiopia had also participated at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Warsaw (COP-19) representing Africa, he said, and delivered Africa’s key messages on the on-going global climate change negotiations at the G-8 and G-20 Summits held in Northern Ireland and St. Petersburg, advancing the continental development agenda.
The Prime Minister noted that the other major preoccupation during the past year was the issue of peace and security. While he was encouraged to note the progress that Africa has made in resolving some of the conflict situations in the continent, “I am nevertheless deeply concerned by the emergence of new conflicts which, if not addressed urgently, will have a potential to seriously threaten our collective peace and security and undermine the gains that we have made in recent years.” He referred the unfolding situation in South Sudan and Central African Republic and emphasized the need to find urgent solutions “to rescue these countries from falling into the abyss”. He said: “Failure to do so will have serious implications for peace and security in the region and indeed the whole continent.”Helping these two States in restoring peace and stability and addressing their internal challenges was primarily the responsibility of Africans, he underlined. In South Sudan, he emphasized that “both protagonists should know that the problem cannot be resolved through the barrel of the gun and they should be fully committed to seat at the negotiating table without any preconditions so as to find a political settlement to the crisis.” He called on South Sudanese political actors to rise to the occasion and avoid the country from falling over the precipice. The parties should demonstrate the necessary political leadership and compromise in order that the peace process initiated by IGAD and supported by the African Union, the United Nations and other international partners should succeed and achieve peace and durable reconciliation.
On the Central African Republic, he said “the senseless violence that has taken a heavy toll on the civilian population” remained a matter of concern for Africa. He emphasized the necessity to take urgent action to avert the further escalation of the problems. The African-led Peace Support Mission in the Central African Republic (MISCA) faced daunting challenges in restoring peace and security and ensuring a successful transition towards a constitutional order. He urged the international community to remain fully committed to support the Central African Republic in the difficult task of stabilizing itself and organizing elections to ensure a successful political transition.
Prime Minister Hailemariam commended the conduct of legislative and presidential elections in a number of countries pointing out elections had certainly helped some member States to come out of political crisis and others to consolidate democratic governance. In this regard, he welcomed the restoration of constitutional order in Mali, and urged ECOWAS, the African Union, the United Nations and other partners to continue their support to help consolidate the gains made and enable the country address its many challenges. He also commended “the people of Madagascar for conducting a successful presidential election, which is critical in ending the country’s political crisis.” Looking forward to the holding of elections which are expected to facilitate the restoration of constitutional order in Guinea Bissau in March, he expressed his appreciation of ECOWAS and other international partners for their sustained efforts to assist Guinea Bissau.
Prime Minister Hailemariam cited the adoption of the Strategic Plan of the Union for the years 2014-2017 and emphasized the need to mobilize all necessary efforts of member States, the Commission and other organs of our Union to ensure the implementation of the eight priorities identified in the strategic plan to make a difference in the lives of people. He indicated the importance of elaborating the Framework for Agenda 2063 through a consultative process involving all sections of African society and called on the leaders at the Assembly to add their input and contribution. This would provide a guide to Africa’s efforts over coming years as the AU strives to achieve the socio-economic transformation of the continent. Emphasizing the need to build on the progress achieved in the past year and calling for more effort to address some of the still emerging challenges of the continent, Prime Minister Hailemariam handed over the Chairmanship of the African Union to the President of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz. He pledged his full support for future work on these issues and for advancing the objectives of the Union.
In his acceptance speech, President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz expressed his gratitude for being elected the Chairperson of the African Union for 2014. He pledged to work achieve the noble objectives to which Africans aspire, including the strengthening of the role and place of Africa in the world, the preservation of its unity in the context of democracy, freedom, peace, security, stability and good governance. President Aziz said he proposed to hold a major international conference, under the auspices of the African Union, devoted to migration and its impact on African economies and societies as well as the countries of destination, to draw up a shared vision on this phenomenon and minimize its tragic dimension.
UN Deputy Secretary General, Ambassador Jan Eliasson, in his statement to the Assembly said the Summit was being held at a time of advancement and impressive growth for Africa while the rest of the world still struggled to recover from the economic crisis. He reminded the Assembly that this growth should now be translated into transformative economic development, more jobs, greater equality and better living conditions and said “the United Nations is your unwavering partner in this pursuit.” He said that the AU Agenda 2063 could serve to mobilize Africa to fulfill its potential. It was a fitting tribute to the OAU/AU jubilee, and he noted Africa had already made major strides towards the Millennium Development Goals, especially in education, maternal and child health, and in gender equality, but many MDG targets remained unfulfilled. The Deputy Secretary General expressed his admiration for the leadership Africa had shown in formulating the post-2015 agenda and applauded the emerging African Common Position’s focus on structural transformation and inclusive economic growth. There was hardly any higher priority for the United Nations than tangible and sustainable development in Africa, he said, and he pledged UN support to African-owned and African-led efforts to achieve this objective.
Jan 22, 2014,3 area which is based in and around Baidoa and Beled Weyne as well as in Gedo region from the Burundian Central Force Commander. The Ethiopian Ambassador to Mogadishu, Ambassador Wondimu Asaminew, the EU ambassador to Somalia, the Somali Federal Government Administrator for Bay Region and the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Somali Armed Forces as well as elders were attended the ceremony. During the ceremony Ambassador Wondinu thanked the Ugandan and Burundian forces for their sacrifice in keeping the peace and security of the region. He also thanked the people and Government of Somalia and pledged Ethiopia’s continuous support for Somalia.
The Council of the European Union chaired by Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, met on Monday (January 20). The discussions covered Iran, Central African Republic and Syria as well as South Sudan and other areas. On South Sudan the Council said the European Union condemned the ongoing hostilities in South Sudan and deplored the resulting suffering and loss of life. It called on all parties to agree an immediate cessation to hostilities and urged all political and military leaders to act in the interests of the South Sudanese people as a whole. It said the European Union stood firmly behind the mediation led by the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development and commended its efforts to achieve an immediate ceasefire accompanied by effective monitoring and open the way for an inclusive political dialogue. It called for the immediate release of all political leaders currently detained in Juba and for all parties to negotiate in good faith. It encouraged all regional and international efforts to support IGAD mediation efforts and strongly discouraged external intervention that could exacerbate political and military tensions, and added that the EU was ready to consider financial support for the negotiations and their eventual outcome, including a possible ceasefire monitoring mechanism. The Council was alarmed by the deteriorating humanitarian situation and said it was deeply concerned at reports of widespread human rights violations and abuses, including ethnic targeting. All those responsible for violations of international humanitarian law and international human rights law must be held accountable for their actions, and the Council welcomed the AU’s intention to establish a Commission to investigate the human rights violations and abuses committed since 15 December 2013, and encouraged the Commission to begin its work as soon as possible. The Council also said the EU also supported the efforts of the United Nations (UN), in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 2132 (2013), to allow for the strengthening of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
