On February 15, 2021, Ambassador Hirut Zemene, held a virtual discussion with Mrs Lise Betjes, Area Manager of Africa at the Flanders Investment and Trade Agency on strategic investment opportunities in Ethiopia and mutual cooperation. During the discussion, the Ambassador explained the untapped investment resources that exist for foreign investors in Ethiopia and the market access such as AGOA and EBA. She also noted the launching of the AfCFTA will provide another wide market opportunity to do business with Ethiopia and Africa. The availability of trainable and affordable labour force and a huge local market with more than 110 million population also makes Ethiopia more attractive to investors, she said.

H.E Ambassador Hirut Zemene also noted that there are some prominent companies from the Flanders region that have invested in Ethiopia which could encourage more companies from the region and Belgium at large to follow suit. She also said that more companies would be welcome to invest in the country. She further stated the importance of holding a business promotion event in cooperation with FIT to increase awareness of the investment opportunities in Ethiopia for mutual benefits.

Mrs Lise Betjes, on her part, thanked the Embassy for the briefing and said that the Flanders Investment and Trade Agency would work with the other regional investment and trade agencies to organize a business delegation to visit Ethiopia when the COVID-19 situation allows. She also expressed further interest in working with the embassy on sector-specific promotional activities.

The two sides agreed to explore areas of collaboration to promote Ethiopia in the Flanders region.
Flanders Investment and Trade Agency (FIT) is one of the three regional bodies promoting foreign trade and investment in Flanders region and abroad.

H.E. Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia and H.E. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Republic of Turkey had a discussion today (February 15) in Ankara on ways to strengthen the relationship between the two countries.

On the occasion, Mr. Demeke appreciated the all-weather friendship of Turkey and Ethiopia and called on to expedite the growth momentum of the Ethio-Turkish cooperation and strategic partnership.

Recalling the already strong ties, in investment, education, and cultural exchanges between Ethiopia and Turkey, the two Foreign Ministers underlined the need to further expand engagements in other sectors too.

The discussion between the two sides also covered the current situation between the Ethiopia-#Sudan border dispute and other regional issues of mutual concern.

During the discussion, Mr. Demeke reiterated Ethiopia’s unwavering stance to solve the Ethiopia-Sudan border dispute amicably.

Mr. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu, on his part, recalled that Ethiopia is one of the investment destinations for Turkish investors in Africa, where his country’s investment stands the second largest in Ethiopia.

The Turkish foreign minister concluded his remarks reiterating his countries keen interest to further cement relationships with Ethiopia.

At the time that the two countries are commemorating the 125th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Ethiopia and Turkey, the two Ministers have attended a photo exhibition and jointly inaugurated the newly constructed building of the residence of the Ethiopian ambassador in Ankara and the chancery as well.

Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, Mr. Demeke appreciated H.E. Dr. Mulatu Teshome, former President and Ambassador of Ethiopia to Turkey, and H.E. Ambassador Ayalew Gobeze , former Ambassador of Ethiopia to Turkey for exerting efforts to the construction of the building.

State Minister, H.E. Ambassador Birtukan Ayano also delivered a speech thanking the government and people of Turkey, including all responsible bodies that contributed to the successful completion of the building.

H.E. Ambassador Dina Mufti, Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, and H.E. Ambassador Girma Temesgen, Ethiopia’s Ambassador to Turkey, and other dignitaries from both sides have attended the ceremony.

MoFA

Following the law enforcement process in the Tigray Regional State, the Ministry of Peace has been coordinating extensive humanitarian and rehabilitation activities over the past three months in collaboration with more than 26 international organizations, including United Nations agencies.

Over the past three months, 75 members of international organizations who have applied for access to the Tigray Regional State have been granted access to support the humanitarian and rehabilitation process.

In its capacity as a co-chair of the Emergency Coordination Center (ECC), the United Nations Office of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA) is coordinating the emergency humanitarian assistance and rehabilitation process in collaboration with the Ethiopian Government.

In collaboration with governmental and non-governmental partners, the Ministry of Health and the temporary regional health bureau administration have continued providing the necessary support for emergency response and restoration of health services in different parts of Tigray.

Together with estimated 71 million birr worth of medications and medical supplies that was sent to the region few weeks ago, the Ethiopian Pharmaceutical Supply Agency Hubs of Mekelle and Shire have more than 500 million birr worth of medicine and supplies in storage and are being distributed to hospitals and health centers. So far, distribution has been done to more than 70 health facilities in various woredas of Tigray. An estimated 1.5 million worth of vaccines have also been distributed.

The Ministry of health has sent 12 ambulances, 11 pickup trucks, one refrigerated vehicle, and 100 computers to the region. 37 million birr has been transferred to the regional health bureau so far for rehabilitation and strengthening of health services, and additional budget will be transferred this week. A multidisciplinary team from Ministry of Health, EPHI and agencies has been sent to the region and working with the regional health bureau team and Mekelle ECC.
To reinitiate COVID-19 testing, care and treatment, a team sent from the National EOC did an assessment and is doing the necessary preparations with the regional team to reinitiate the service in the coming few days.

To strengthen blood and blood product services, 952 units of blood were distributed to different locations from the regional blood banks, and 2,803 units of blood were collected from voluntary blood donors in Mekele. Numerous supplemental foods and female sanitary products were collected and distributed from partner organizations.

Currently, the Health facilities in Tigray region are partially functional with 46 percent of the hospitals giving service. The Ministry of Health is working in close collaboration with the RHB and other stakeholders for the full functionality of all the health facilities.

Together with the food aid provided by the National Disaster and Risk Commission, mobile medical teams are also screening and giving medical and nutritional support to internally displaced people in the region especially to vulnerable women and children.

In addition to the two rounds of visits by the Ministerial National Emergency Coordinating Committee to Mekele, a delegation from the Ministry of Health’s Emergency and Recovery task force led by State Minister W/ro Alemtsehay Paulos visited the recovery efforts in different facilities in Mekele and held a fruitful discussion with responsible officials.

MoH

H.E Ambassador Hirut Zemene presented her letter of credence that accredited her to the EU and its institutions to His Excellency Mr. Charles Michel, President of the European Council today, February 11, 2021.

On the occasion, Ambassador Hirut Zemene had an opportunity to exchange views with President Michel on EU-Ethiopia’s relation including the current situation in Ethiopia.

President Michel has expressed the EU’s support to the ongoing reform in Ethiopia and his wish to see the resolution of the existing humanitarian and related issues in Ethiopia.

Ambassador Hirut has had a chance to brief President Michael about the ongoing humanitarian efforts to address the needy population and undertakings in the reform in Ethiopia including about the upcoming election.

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The government of #Ethiopia has reached more than two Million people in Tigray with emergency food distribution and this number is expected to reach 2.5 million at the end of this week. Damaged infrastructures by the TPLF forces are being repaired, and services are restored in most parts of the region.

#Telephone, #electricity, and #bankingServices are already restored in most parts of the region. For example, 363 mobile sites which include mobile voices and fixed services have been resumed in many parts of the region– Mekelle, Wikro, Humera, Sekota,Adwa,Edaga Hamus,Mytsebri,Hewanie, Axum,Adishehu,Maykadra, Firewoyne, Adigrat, Adi Gudom, Korem, Seleklaka, Shire Endesellase, Agula, Alemata, Betmera , Negash, Wukro Maria, Michew, Dansha, Turkan and Samre.

 

 

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister H.E. Demeke Mekonnen received at his office today (February 10) the EU Envoy and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland, H.E. Pekka Haavisto.

At the meeting, Mr. Demeke briefed the Envoy on the ongoing rehabilitation and reconstruction activities in the Tigray region.

The Government in collaboration with the interim administration in the region and international organizations is working tirelessly to provide the necessary humanitarian assistance while putting back various infrastructure destroyed by the TPLF back to service, said the Minister.

Mr. Demeke also pointed out that access to humanitarian actors who desire to provide services to the needy has already been granted and 26 humanitarian agencies are now on the ground working with local authorities to reach out to the beneficiaries.

Stressing the need to further strengthen the close partnership with the EU, the Deputy Prime Minister expressed the concerns of the Ethiopian Government regarding the statements by the EU’s Commission, particularly the decision to postpone the budget sector support and indicated that the action is counterproductive to the collective efforts underway to timely and effectively address the humanitarian situation and sustain the development gains achieved since the reform has begun.

He also called on the EU to understand the situation, and as a strategic partner, to continue to play a constructive role to help Ethiopia overcome its challenges.

On the border situation with Sudan, Mr. Demeke recounted the events that took place since 06 November 2020 and explained to the Envoy of Ethiopia’s position regarding the matter, particularly the unflinching stance of respecting the pre-November 06 status quo and allowing the established mechanisms to continue to discharge their duties.

He also reiterated the commitment of the Ethiopian Government to resolve the matter amicably and peacefully.

Attending the meeting was also Dr. SeleshiBekele, Minister of Water, Irrigation, and Energy who briefed Mr. Haavsito regarding the negotiations of the GERD.

Mr. Seleshi expressed the readiness of Ethiopia to finalize the negotiations and stressed the need to urge the other parties to do the same within the framework of the African Union through the spirit of providing African solutions to African problems.

Mr. Haavisto, on his part, said that the European Union understands the measures that the Ethiopian Government is taking to address the humanitarian situation and emphasized the need to scale up access and provisions of humanitarian assistance to the region.

He also pointed out for Ethiopian Human Rights Commission to step up its efforts in investigating human rights cases and expressed the importance of maintaining the strategic partnership between Ethiopia and the EU on various fields of cooperation.

MoFA

 

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, H.E. Demeke Mekonnen gave a briefing today (February 10) to Resident Ambassadors and Diplomats of African countries in Ethiopia regarding the current status of the humanitarian assistance process in the Tigray region and the preparations for the upcoming general elections in Ethiopia.

Along with Mr. Demeke, Minister of Water, Irrigation and Energy of Ethiopia, H.E. Dr. Eng. Seleshi Bekele and Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, H.E. Ambassador Woineshet Taddesse, have also delivered briefings on the current status of the GERD negotiations and the Ethiopia-Sudan Border dispute respectively.

According to the Deputy Prime Minister, about 26 International humanitarian organizations are working on the ground in Tigray by getting all the necessary access that they need to properly function, while the government has not been willing to accept questions to access the region without proper notifications, documents, and contrary to the agreement that the Ethiopian government has already consented to.

He said salary has started to be properly being paid to civil servants, financial access through banks is improving and markets in the region are gradually opening up making life in the region go back to normalcy.

Reconstruction, rehabilitation works coupled with the government plan to smooth up the post-conflict normalization process with continuous dialogues with elders, the Interim government, and political parties are going well too, he said.

Regarding the Eritrean refugees in Tigray, Mr. Demeke said, the government is trying to gather scattered refugees from the already plundered and destroyed Hitsats and Shimelba camps and relocate them to safer camps.

In his briefing about the upcoming election, the Minister recalled the resilience and shock-absorbing capacity of the Ethiopian government and its preparations to have fair, free, and democratic elections withstanding all the critical issues that it is facing today.

Explaining pivotal issues regarding GERD, Dr. Eng. Sileshi said the construction of the dam is going on as planned and there is no way that the filling of the dam’s reservoir in the coming July could be escaped.

He appreciated the government of South Africa and its leaders for tirelessly trying to bridge the gaps between the negotiating parties and reiterated the Ethiopian government’s unparalleled political will and commitment to give the issue a viable solution by sticking to the principles of equitable and reasonable utilization of the river basin without causing significant harm to downstream countries.

Ambassador Woinshet Tadesse, on her part, stated how the Sudanese army encroached into the Ethiopian borders while Ethiopia was deploying its military force in Tigray for the law and enforcement operation and she reiterated the Ethiopian government position to solve the Ethiopia-Sudan border dispute amicably through applying existing mechanisms between the two countries.

She specifically raised the 1972 Exchange of Notes between the two countries that clearly stated the agreement between the two to keep the status quo until an amicable solution is reached to solve the dispute and she called on the Sudanese government to respect the agreement and leave the area that it has forcefully occupied by displacing Ethiopian farmers.

The ambassadors appreciated the Ethiopian government’s initiative to brief them on crucial issues of the country which will enable them to understand the matters clearly and better communicate with the leaders of their respective countries.

MoFA

 

The Government of Ethiopia is deeply concerned by the statements the European Union is issuing regarding the situation in Tigray. These statements not only failed to reflect the reality on the ground but also turned a blind eye to the efforts exerted by the Government to address the pressing humanitarian needs of the people in the region.

In what seems an unchanging tone since the Ethiopian Government has launched the law enforcement operation, the EU Commission’s statements have either ignored or failed the need to recognize from the start the overall objective of the operation and continued to project unbalanced and overrated view of the situation. Even if the law enforcement measure taken against those who defied the constitutional order and declared war on the Ethiopian National Defense Forces came to a successful completion, and massive efforts in collaboration with our partners have been launched to respond to the needs of the people in the region, the list of demands and conditions have made the task of soliciting the necessary amount of support to swiftly address the humanitarian activities difficult. If at all, constructive engagement from the start could have contributed to expediting the response and helped the Government and partners quickly delve into the colossal task of investing in the development projects to improve the livelihoods of the people in the region.

As has been stated time and again in many of the Government’s communications and briefings given to the international community, access to many of the humanitarian actors has been given to many of the places in Tigray under a government-led process. This is critical because it both helps to scale up the provision of humanitarian assistance in a coordinated manner, and enhance results in terms of reaching out to a large number of targeted groups and beneficiaries. These efforts were made apparent for all to see, including governments and UN officials who recently paid a visit to Ethiopia.

While the Government ensures all people in need of humanitarian assistance are properly provided with the necessary supplies, it has never failed in its responsibility to investigate the human rights violations committed during the law enforcement operation against the TPLF and bring those who were involved and perpetrators harboured these criminals to justice. Such investigations have also been carried out by an independent human rights commission in the country whose findings and that of the Government are now made publicly available.

As a country known for hosting close to a million refugees from different countries, Ethiopia’s hospitality and support to refugees from Eritrea is reassuring and questions raised in this regard are not and should be of no concern. Regarding the allegations about the Eritrean refugee camps in Shimelba and Hitsats, anyone who has been closely working with the refugees there knows that the Shimelba camp is located 20 KM away from Eritrea, and Hitsats in a very inhospitable area to any human beings. The Government of Ethiopia had tried to relocate the refugees in these camps to another area had it not been for the stubborn refusal of the TPLF that was administering the region before the beginning of the law enforcement operation. The Ethiopian Government does not think the High Representative of the EU was unaware of this fact. A number of refugees have been

relocated to the remaining two camps that host Eritrean refugees while the others are disbursed in Addis Ababa, Tigray and Amhara regions. The High Representative’s allegation against Ethiopia in this regard does not take into account Ethiopia’s internationally acclaimed commitment to protecting and even expanding the rights of about one million refugees from 27 different countries.
It is the view of the Ethiopian Government that it is of no consequences to pronounce concerns that has been and in the process of being attained to in the Tigray region. It is only through constructive engagement that the aforesaid and other humanitarian and development challenges can effectively be addressed. As a strategic partner, the European Union should continue to stand by and support Ethiopia in its efforts to overcome its development bottlenecks and expedite its march towards achieving sustainable peace and development. Much has been achieved since the political and democratic dispensation have ushered in since the reform began, and the people and Government of Ethiopia stand strong in their resolve to build a democratic and prosperous country. Ethiopia is confident our development partners, including the European Union, join us in this journey and help us achieve to bring these grand objectives to fruition.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Spokesperson
February 09, 2021