The grant will support research to validate the improved semi-dwarf tef in Ethiopia under greenhouse and multi-location field conditions and generate lodging resistance traits in already improved breeding lines. "By harnessing the genome editing technology, it was possible to achieve semi-dwarf lodging resistant lines that breeders have been looking for decades," said Getu Duguma, PhD, senior research scientist and principal investigator at the Danforth Center. Tef (Eragrostis tef) is the largest cereal cultivated by area in Ethiopia. To address the issue of tef lodging, Duguma and his collaborators deployed gene editing to generate semi-dwarf tef lines that are 10-50% shorter than the original. These improved lines have demonstrated lodging resistance in the Danforth Center's greenhouse and Field Research Site.

The UN Environment Program’s (UNEP) International Resource Panel (IRP) has published the second edition of its Global Resources Outlook which argues that for the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to succeed, better resource management is essential, and provides recommendations to “bend the trend” on material extraction and use. With resource use projected to go up 60% from 2020 levels by 2060, unsustainable levels of production and consumption could derail efforts to achieve much of the 2030 Agenda. According to Global Resources Outlook 2024, high-income countries use six times more materials and generate ten times more climate impacts than low-income countries. It uses scenario modeling to illustrate the possibility of reducing resource use while at the same time growing the economy, reducing inequality, improving well-being, and reducing environmental impacts in wealthy and poor countries alike. “We should not accept that meeting human needs must be resource intensive,” said IRP Co-Chair Janez Potočnik.

A recent defense deal between Somalia and Turkey has great significance for Somalia and the region’s security. The agreement, which covers both land and sea, aims to enhance defense cooperation between Turkey and Somalia. Turkey, the more powerful partner, signed the agreement to bolster its reputation as a security partner and an important actor in sub-Saharan Africa. These two recent deals in the Horn of Africa, however, are driven by the national interests of Somalia, Ethiopia, and Somaliland. This was similarly the case with the 2017 Berbera Port deal between Ethiopia, Somaliland, and Dubai’s DP World.

Ethiopia-focused roasted and green coffee company Lucy Coffee (Instagram link) recently opened its first retail cafe in Aurora, Colorado, completing a full circle of coffee and cultural connections. A coffee-toned mural showing a map of the Bean Belt with a producer’s hands and a cup of Lucy Coffee fills an entire wall. “I want the people to see how the process went, for coffee,” Lucy Coffee Co-Owner Mickias (Micki) Alamirew told Daily Coffee News. Lucy Coffee Founders Micki and Mehret Alamirew met as members of the Ethiopian expat community in Aurora in the 1990. Lucy Coffee has invested in equipment and training on the farm, with a particular emphasis on building incomes for women and for workers with families.

Ethiopia’s largest church has condemned the LGBTQ community’s existence. According to the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, which is one of the world’s oldest religious denominations, the LGBTQ community is synonymous with the West and not with Ethiopia or Africa. The church in a statement said the right to various gender identities, what it describes as gender conversion therapy and allowing same-sex relationships leads to complex religious, social and cultural problems. According to the Inter-Religious Council of Ethiopia, the federal government should withdraw from the agreement because of terms and conditions that seek to uphold LGBTQ rights. LGBTQ Ethiopians have faced increased online attacks and at times even arbitrary arrests.

Habtamu Belayneh (Photo : from VOA Amharic)borkenaToronto – Habtamu Belayneh, member of Amhara Regional Council and Member of the House of Federation, has reportedly been missing since Friday last week. The politician is a member of National Movement of Amhara (NaMA). According to a VOA Amharic report, published on Wednesday, Mr. Habtamu did not return home since he left his residence last Friday. They have contacted police headquarter in the capital Addis Ababa and other places “where they detain people,” as his friend told VOA Amharic. Habtamu Belayneh is the first parliamentarian to be reported missing.

A Facebook page claiming to represent the Ethiopian embassy in Canada claims 10,000 such opportunities are on offer for Ethiopians and Eritreans, implying their visa and travel costs would be covered. The official stamp reads “Embassy of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia Ottawa”, not “Embassy of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia Canada”. Non-existent programmeThe Ethiopian embassy in Canada has not made any announcements regarding free work opportunities in Canada on any of its platforms. “The claim is incorrect; no such programme exists,” the ministry’s spokesman Erin Kerbel told AFP Fact Check. AFP Fact Check has previously debunked similar posts promising free travel and job opportunities in Canada and the US here, here and here.

The Ethiopian Horticulture Producer Exporters Association (EHPEA) announced that Ethiopia exported a significant amount of flowers for Valentine's Day this year. This year's Valentine's Day flower exports represent a notable increase compared to last year. In 2023, Ethiopia exported over 2,165 tons of flowers during the same period, generating over USD 3.28 million in revenue. This destructive pest poses a potential risk to European markets, which account for a large portion of Ethiopian flower exports. The EU Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has also reported findings of FCM on Ethiopian flowers since 2018.

From February 27 to 29, 2024, Vietnam Airlines played a lead role in shaping the future of aviation by hosting the International Airline Symposium (IAS) 2024 in Hanoi. Charting Course in a ‘Never Normal’ WorldThis year’s symposium, themed “Navigating Aviation in a Never Normal World,” featured four dedicated discussion sessions. Image Credit: BoeingThe Road Ahead for Vietnam AirlinesAs the host airline, Vietnam Airlines gained valuable insights into the evolving challenges and opportunities shaping the aviation industry. The International Airline SymposiumThe International Airline Symposium was organized by the Ohio State University Center for Aviation Studies. Click the photo to join our WhatsApp channel so then you can stay up to date with everything going on in the aviation industry!

The Boeing Company BA recently clinched an order from Ethiopian Airlines to deliver eight of its 777-9 widebody jets, with an additional opportunity for supplying up to 20 aircraft. EADSY boasts a long-term (three- to five years) earnings growth rate of 12.4%. ERJ boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 17%. TXT boasts a long-term earnings growth rate of 11.7%. Click to get this free reportThe Boeing Company (BA) : Free Stock Analysis ReportEmbraer-Empresa Brasileira de Aeronautica (ERJ) : Free Stock Analysis ReportTextron Inc. (TXT) : Free Stock Analysis ReportAirbus Group (EADSY) : Free Stock Analysis ReportTo read this article on Zacks.com click here.

Art students, gallery staff, archival storage facilities, frustrating databases, bureaucracy, and even bad arts journalism all get their licks. Bobby’s hot-headed wife, Elizabeth (Tilda Swinton), recruits Alejandro in her quest to fulfill her husband’s dream of a solo exhibition. Torres wrote the character of Bobby specifically as a Black male painter based on his interactions with New School art students, and observing how the art market treated people differently. The scenes are meant to evoke the confusion, panic, and stress Torres felt after finishing college and frequently getting turned down for jobs due to his need for sponsorship. “Or she doesn’t see it that way, at least.”Since Problemista was first shown last April, immigration has become an even more contentious topic in the US.

Following the completion of the national ICT contest, nine Ethiopian university students have the opportunity to represent their country at the 8th Huawei ICT Competition 2023-2024 Regional Final in Tunisia. Ethiopian university students who won the national final Huawei ICT competition in Addis Abeba are representing Ethiopia in the regional competition, which is now taking place in Tunisia. Among them, nine passed the regional Huawei ICT final exam, which is taking place in Tunisia from March 5 to 8, 2024. Huawei ICT Competition is a competitive ICT talent exchange event designed for global college students. Ethiopian students previously achieved third place at the 7th Huawei ICT global final competition, which took place in Shenzhen, China, from 24 to 28 May 2023.

The Fano preceded but rose to prominence during the Tigray War (2020-22), when they fought beside government forces. The Amhara conflict coexists with a no-war-no-peace situation in the Tigray region, where famine-like conditions and starvation-induced deaths have been reported, and armed confrontation, kidnappings, and regular travel disruptions in the Oromia region. The move also came alongside the Abiy government’s failure to implement the October 2022 agreement, brokered in Pretoria, South Africa, that ended the Tigray War. Moreover, in recent years, civilians attempting to enter Addis Ababa from the Amhara region have been barred, seemingly because they are perceived as a collective security threat. It was clear that the Amhara-federal alliance was a marriage of convenience and would collapse once the Tigray War ended.

The Route Development Forum for Asia, Routes Asia 2024, held from 27 to 29 February 2024 in Malaysia, served as a key gathering for the aviation industry. MIA Participation in Routes Asia 2024Macau International Airport (MIA) had a presence at the event, having operated 213 round-trip flights per week to 18 cities in Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia as of February 2024. Airlines and Hub: MFM serves as a hub for several airlines, including Air Macau, Viva Macau, and Macau Asia Express. MFM serves as a hub for several airlines, including Air Macau, Viva Macau, and Macau Asia Express. Future ProspectsParticipation in Routes Asia 2024 positioned MIA at the forefront of industry developments.

According to the Council, a group of 285 laborers from the Gardula and Ale Zones in Southern Ethiopia region were kidnapped by “extremist armed groups” in the Amhara region while traveling to work on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Ltd., a private company that subsequently signed an agreement with the Labor and Social Affairs Office of Derashe District located in Gardula Zone to hire employees for the tree-cutting tasks. Based on this agreement, a total of 285 laborers, comprising 246 individuals from Derashe district and 39 individuals from Ale Zone, were assembled and provided with 6 public transportation buses by the organization to travel to the worksite while reaching the Amhara region. However, upon reaching the Amhara region, the group of 285 laborers was kidnapped on the road by “extremist armed groups” operating within the region, the council said. In response to the incident, the Gardula Zone Council has called upon all relevant authorities and parties to work towards ensuring the safe return of the kidnapped citizens to their home villages through peaceful means.