In its 29th regular session today, the House of People’s Representatives (HPR), passed the draft law proposed by the Council of Ministers to lift the State of Emergency.
The House passed the draft bill with majority in favour and eight abstentions.
Ethiopia declared the State of Emergency on February 16, 2018.
Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen underscored the need to ensure food security of people living below the poverty line so as to achieve Ethiopia’s target of development at the launching of the second phase urban safety net program in the capital Addis Ababa yesterday.
The government would give due attention to ensure food security of people living below poverty line, he added.
Diriba Kuma, the Mayor of Addis Ababa, specified that that 200,000 dwellers living in 55 woredas (districts) would benefit from the 2nd phase of the program. About 600,000 people are estimated to live below the poverty line in Addis Ababa and more than 320,000 people have so far benefited from the first and second safety net programs.
The urban safety net program was launched in 2016 in partnership with the World Bank a cost of 450 million US dollars. The Ethiopian government allocated 150 million US dollars for the program, while the remaining 300 million US dollars was a loan from the World Bank.
Ethiopia’s parliament is set to lift the six-month state of emergency two months early after the cabinet approved a draft law that said calm had been restored. The government imposed emergency rule in February.
Since then, the authorities have pledged to push through a raft of reforms that have included the release of thousands of prisoners. The draft will now be sent to parliament for its consideration. Ethiopia’s 547-seat House of People’s Representatives often holds its sessions today.
Abiy Ahmed, who replaced Hailemariam Desalegn as premier, has travelled to several areas of the country to discuss with the population and address their grievances. Since being selected by the ruling party and taking office in April, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has helped bring greater stability. He has freed thousands of prisoners and toured the country listening to people’s grievances. He has also reached out to opposition figures both inside and outside Ethiopia.
During an Iftar (Ramadan breakfast) feast in Sudan for news agencies and the local press, organised by the Ethiopian embassy, Zoudi added that “work in the dam is in full swing.”
“As you know, it is a huge project, and we still have a lot to wait for, but the construction process is going well and has not stopped for a minute. So far we have completed more than 65% of the construction and very soon, maybe in less than a year, we will celebrate the completion of the GERD,” he explained.
He pointed out that the three countries managed to overcome their dispute, saying all fears would disappear when the three parties reached a technical compromise on the dam.
The Ethiopian Ambassador underscored the three countries would advantage from the GERD.
Sudan, Ethiopia and Egypt agreed last month on disputed issues about the technical impact studies and options for filling and operating the GERD.
The agreement was reached in a sitting of the ministerial board on the GERD together with foreign affairs and water ministers and heads of security and intelligence services of the three countries in Addis Ababa.
The contract provides to send a letter to the consultant including observations and questions of the three countries on the initial technical report and to discuss the reaction at the meeting of the national technical committee in Cairo.
During a discussion with senior members of the Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF) last weekend, PM Abiy asked the security chiefs to focus on improving the professionalism of the army. The army plays a critical role in the securing national interests and sovereignty, in addition to ‘protecting the Constitution and working for the befit of the people’.
“Our national capacity will be evidenced when we are able to achieve our goals of peace, development and democracy as well as guarantee the dignity of our people and sovereignty of the country,” he said.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also disclosed that Ethiopia is planning to build a navy. “Following the efforts made to build the capacity of our national defence, we built one of the stronger ground and air forces in Africa”. “We should build our naval force capacity in the future.”
Ethiopia currently has a civilian Ethiopian Maritime Training Institute on Lake Tana. It trains more than 500 electromechanical engineers and technicians each year and plans to increase this number to more than 1,000 officers a year.
As part of his national tour, PM Abiy Ahmed travelled to Gambella regional state last weekend, where he addressed residents of the city of Gambella and its environs gathered at the Gambella Stadium.
Speaking to the crowds, he said the rest of Ethiopians always remember the sacrifice paid by residents of the regional state for the sovereignty of the country. After praising the residents for guarding border areas, the Premier pledged to provide the necessary support for their efforts. He further called on the residents to maintain their commitment to the unity and sovereignty of the country. Peace should prevail first to carry out development activities and expand investment in the region, he said, adding the federal government, in partnership with the regional state, will do to this end.
PM Dr Abiy further said the federal government would provide support for the protection of the UNESCO-registered forest protected areas of the regional state.
During a discussion with representatives of the residents, the Premier said his government would do more to alleviate problems of good governance, infrastructure and unemployment in the regional state.
He also called on natives of the regional state to come to their country of origin from abroad and contribute their share to the development of the region.
Over the past three years, the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels has been actively promoting Ethiopian tourism destinations and attractions by participating in holiday fairs and organising tourism events. This article was originally published in the 10th issue (April 2018) of The Ethiopian Messenger, the quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels.
Over the past three years, the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels has been actively promoting Ethiopian tourism destinations in Benelux and Baltic countries, in collaboration with Ethiopian Airlines in Brussels (EAL), the Ethiopian Tourism Organization (ETO) and the Ethiopian Tour Operators Association (ETOA). Considering the European public’s habit of visiting holiday fairs to discover future travel destinations, the Embassy took the lead in coordinating various Ethiopian tourism stakeholders to take part in major holiday fairs in the Benelux Countries. A significant number of people were able to discover the country’s rich culture and natural beauty through such events.
On each occasion, the elaborate Ethiopian stands, in addition to the traditional music, dances and coffee ceremony never failed to catch the eyes of intrigued visitors. By stopping at the stand, visitors not only obtained practical information about the country but also experienced the hospitality of Ethiopia by enjoying a warm cup of coffee while sitting on a traditional stool, surrounded by the aroma of Ethiopian roasted coffee beans.
A new image for the country
A key moment for European visitors is to discover the reality of a country that is miles away from the barren land described in the 1980s. After broadening their knowledge, most visitors conclude that Ethiopia is a must-see destination and inevitably ask the same question: “When the best season to visit Ethiopia?”. Tour operators and Ethiopian Airlines play a crucial role in providing information on Ethiopia’s tourism destinations and flight details. Over time, holiday fairs have also become a platform where Europeans travellers who have visited Ethiopia to share their testimonies. It is not rare for them to express their intention to visit Ethiopian again. The Embassy has worked tirelessly to make use of this crucial platform to showcase Ethiopia as a must-see touristic destination in Africa offering a uniquely rich culture and endowed with the awe-inspiring natural scenery.
Many factors have played a role in the constantly increasing number of tourists visiting Ethiopia, such as its stability and its dynamic economic development. The growing interest of European media also played a positive role in placing Ethiopia as an important cultural touristic destination in Africa. More and more journalists are visiting Ethiopia to film documentaries or write articles about the country. In parallel, Ethiopia has caught the attention of several bloggers and travel magazines. For instance, the Daily Mail vaunted the beauty of Ethiopia in an article titled “Forget sunny Spain, enchanting Thailand and the romance of France: Ethiopia is named ‘World’s Best Tourism Destination.” Thanks to their reporting and testimonies, the image of Ethiopia of the 80s is beginning to fade away from popular memory.
Recent holiday fairs
The Embassy’s efforts would not have succeeded without the active support of Ethiopian Airlines Benelux Area Office. The national carrier is connecting Africa to the world thanks to its flights to 56 cities in Africa, to 18 Europe & America destinations and 26 terminals in Gulf countries, the Middle East & Asia. The Airline has always been a part of the Embassy’s efforts in promoting the new tourism brand dubbed ‘Ethiopia Land of Origins’ in several tourism events organised in the past. Mr Bisrat Tedla, manager of EAL Brussels, has made a valuable contribution towards promoting Ethiopia in the Benelux countries. The Embassy has been playing a major role in facilitating the participation of several Ethiopian tour operators through active engagements with the respective organizers of the fairs. So far this year, the participation of Ethiopian tourism stakeholders to the holiday fair of Brussels (Salon des vacances) and of Luxembourg (Vacanz) has been widely successful. The Brussels holiday fair was marked by a stand designed to replicate the Church of Lalibela, while the traditional coffee ceremony got the attention of Belgian RTL TV channel and several other journalists and bloggers. Similarly, Ethiopia’s participation to the Vakanz Tourism Fair of Luxembourg included cultural performances by the Ethiopian Diaspora in Luxembourg and the Luxemburger Wort daily featured Ethiopia’s stand in its front page dedicated to the fair.
Major tourism promotional event in Ghent
More significantly, the Ethiopian Embassy organized a workshop on tourism on 13 March 2018 in close collaboration with the University of Ghent and Koombana Bay Tourism Marketing & Communication Agency. Over 19 Ethiopian tour operators and Ethiopian officials lead by H.E. Meaza G/Medhin, State Minister for Tourism, took part to the event for the first time. The workshop also served a platform to establish a Business to Business (B2B) and Business to Government (B2G) links, as it has brought together over 150 Destination Management Companies, Tour Operators, journalists and bloggers from Belgium and the Netherlands. After welcoming remarks by Ambassador Ewnetu Blata, charge d’affaires at the Ethiopian Embassy in Brussels, and an opening speech of H.E. Meaza G/Medhin which gave an insight about the development of Ethiopia’s tourism sector to attendees. The Acting CEO of the ETO, Yechale Mihret, and Area Manager of the EAL (Benelux Area Office) presented several Ethiopian tourism attractions and the flight destinations of EAL. ETOA’s Representative, Mr Desale Mitiku mentioned the untapped tourism potential of the country and underscored that visiting Ethiopia is like visiting three countries at the same time due to the country’s long and rich history, unique nature and incredible cultural diversity.
Later, ample time was given for networking opportunities resulting in fruitful connections among the participants. The workshop also contributed in promoting the Ethiopian culture as were offered Ethiopian authentic food by Toukoul Restaurant (Brussels), were entertained with a coffee ceremony and Washint Music (an Ethiopian traditional instrument similar to flute) and an exhibition of Ethiopian traditional costumes and crafts organized by Mrs Tezerash Asfaw-an, a prominent member of the diaspora in Belgium. In a nutshell, this tourism event was successful as it brought together all the key stakeholders in tourism and the European public to scale up the flow of tourism to Ethiopia.
At the invitation of King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, Prime Minister Dr Abiy Ahmed has arrived in Saudi Arabia today for an official working visit.
During his first visit to the Middle East, the Ethiopian Premier will meet with Saudi officials to discuss on bilateral and continental issues.
Saudi Arabia is among the first countries which sent congratulatory messages to Dr Abiy on his election as Prime Minister of Ethiopia.
Previously, the premier had visited Djibouti, Kenya, and Sudan.
As part of a move to enhance its diplomatic role at the international fora, Ethiopia is to open two embassies.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, preparations have been finalised to open the embassies in The Hague in Europe and Tanzania in Africa.
The Ministry revealed this while presenting yesterday its nine-month performance report to the House of People’s Representatives (HPR).
During the past nine months, the Country has opened an embassy in Indonesia to boost its market destinations and attract more Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from Asia, said Dr Workneh Gebeyehu, Minister of Foreign Affairs.
A total of eight honorary consuls were also appointed in Paris, Azerbaijan, Togo, Equatorial Guinea, Singapore, South Korea and Calgary.
In order to increase the flow of FDI, the Ministry has invited 64 big companies from Asia, Europe, Middle East and other parts of the world to visit Ethiopia, the Minister indicated.
About 22 companies specialised in leather and leather products, textile and apparel, construction and other sectors have also started production during the past nine months, according to the Minister.
