Rwandair, Ethiopian Airlines CEOs Urge Swifter SAATM Implementation
The CEOs of RwandAir and Ethiopian Airlines have called on governments to accelerate air transport development in Africa to support the continent’s economic growth. Makolo welcomed the realization that progress in aviation cannot be achieved by waiting for all 55 Africa Union countries to come together. Mesfin Bekele, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, echoed Makolo’s sentiments, emphasizing that the development of air transport is crucial for the economic advancement of Africa. “The only viable means of transport is air transport in Africa today. So, if Africa is to develop fast, the air transport industry has to develop and support this economic development of the continent,” Bekele added.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 13:25 UTC
The Tigray War Is Over. Ethiopia’s Conflict in Oromia Is Raging On
A first round of peace talks between the Ethiopian federal government and rebels from the country’s Oromia region held at the end of April ended without an agreement to permanently halt their hostilities. The negotiations centered on the decades-long conflict between government forces and the Oromo Liberation Front-Oromo Liberation Army, or OLF-OLA, which continues to cause immense suffering and cripple the region’s economy. The ongoing insurgency in Oromia was largely overshadowed by the two-year war in the northern Tigray region between the Ethiopian government and its allies on one side, and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF, on the other. But the fighting actually intensified alongside the Tigray war, during which OLA forces were able to take control of large swathes of Oromia. With the end of the war in Tigray in November 2022, the fighting in Oromia—Ethiopia’s largest region, with more than 40 million inhabitants—has continued and even escalated.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 13:02 UTC
Korea’s Busan Economic Promotion Agency to Train Actors in the Ethiopian Footwear Industry
The Busan Economic Promotion Agency (BEPA) Footwear Industrial Promotion Center has announced its intention to launch a footwear production capacity-building project in Ethiopia. The project, which will be funded with a USD 10 million grant from the Republic of Korea Official Development Assistance (ODA), aims to enhance the competitiveness of Ethiopia's leather and leather products industry, particularly the footwear sector. The project will begin in 2023 and continue until 2027, providing the necessary training and assistance to local footwear producers and officials to improve their productivity and effectiveness. The Ethiopian Ambassador to Korea, Dessie Dalkie, attended the kickoff and Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signing ceremony for the project, which was organized by the Busan Metropolitan City and BEPA Footwear Industrial Promotion Center in Busan, South Korea. Ambassador Dessie expressed highlighted the advantages of investing in Ethiopia's leather and leather products industry due to the availability of a highly employable youth workforce and abundant inputs in the country.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 12:14 UTC
RobotLAB Announces Partnership With Hospitality Automation Innovators Bear Robotics
This partnership further cements RobotLAB’s position as a leader in robotics integration, and comes on the heels of RobotLAB’s robotics integration franchise program launch – a first for the industry. “We are excited to partner with Bear Robotics, a company that shares our commitment to innovation and excellence in the robotics industry,” said RobotLAB Founder and CEO, Elad Inbar. “We are thrilled to partner with RobotLAB and offer our Servi and Servi Plus robots to their clients in the hospitality industry,” said Bear Robotics COO, Juan Higueros. In 2023, RobotLAB launched the first robotics integration franchise program to best serve growing demand for robotics across the U.S. in nearly all business sectors. About Bear RoboticsFounded in 2017, Bear Robotics manufactures self-driving indoor robots to assist employees with daily tasks that can ease their workload.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 12:12 UTC
An Ethiopian Investment Seminar to be Held in Tokyo
The United Nations Industrial Development Organization's Investment and Technology Promotion Office (ITPO), in collaboration with the Ethiopian Embassy in Tokyo, will jointly host an Ethiopian Investment Seminar at the United Nations University in Tokyo on June 27, 2023. The Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC) and the Industrial Parks Development Corporation of Ethiopia (IPDC) will introduce the latest investment environment, incentives, and opportunities in Ethiopia at the seminar. The event is expected to be attended by Chief Commissioner of the EIC Ms. Lelise Neme, Director of UNIDO Office in Tokyo Mr. Fumio Adachi, CEO of IPDC Mr. Aklilu Taddese, UNIDO Tokyo Office Advisor in Ethiopia Mr. Tadesse Segni, and Ethiopian Ambassador to Japan Mr. Daba Debele, among others. The Japanese External Trade Organization will provide support for the success of the seminar. According to UNIDO, the Ethiopian government is working to implement a market economy system and increase trade and investment, with the aim of reducing poverty, improving unemployment, and boosting productivity and competitiveness.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 12:04 UTC
World Bank completes investment into Safaricom Ethiopia
Two World Bank members revealed plans to invest in Safaricom Ethiopia, intending to invest US$157.4 million in the operator’s parent company and loan the operator US$100 million, to enable expansion plans. The World Bank stated that its International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) will provide financial support. The IFC will make the US$157.4 million equity investment in Global Partnership for Ethiopia BV (GPE) and the $100 million A-loan to its wholly owned subsidiary, Safaricom Telecommunications Ethiopia Private Limited Company (Safaricom Ethiopia). MIGA will provide a 10-year guarantee of US$1 billion to cover investments to cover the equity investments of Safaricom Ethiopia's shareholders: Vodafone Group, Vodacom, Safaricom, and British International Investment. Safaricom Ethiopia launched services in 2022 and became the first private operator in Ethiopia to rival state-owned operator Ethio Telecom.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 11:17 UTC
King Charles’s ethical dilemma over looted objects in the Royal Collection
Unlike most UK national museums, the Royal Collection is able to deaccession, provided that this is advised by its trustees and authorised by the monarch. Two new trustees, who were appointed in April 2022, will bring a fresh perspective to objects seized during the colonial period. Massacres, battles and warsSo how did contested material enter the Royal Collection? Thousands of royal objects, including the famed Benin Bronzes, were looted in his capital, Edo (now Benin City). Royal Collection Trust; © His Majesty King Charles IIIAsante state sword (19th century), on display at Windsor CastleThese state swords were worn by high-ranking members of the Asante court.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 11:15 UTC
Uncertainty Lingers Over Sirika’s Claims On Nigeria Air
The unveiling of Nigeria Air, the supposed national carrier, has sparked controversy with no resolution in sight. On May 26, 2023, a program to unveil Nigeria Air was organized by the ministry under Sirika’s supervision. Despite the preceding backlash regarding the use of an Ethiopian Airlines plane for the unveiling, Sirika was pleased that the Federal Government had followed through on the project. An invitation letter issued by the ministry invites guests to the “official unveiling of Nigeria Air,” with the venue listed as the Nigeria Air Operations Control Centre at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja. Several aviation stakeholders that spoke with Daily Trust confirmed that they received invitations from the ministry, further clouding the narrative surrounding Nigeria Air’s unveiling.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 10:56 UTC
Arise News Interview: Sirika Lied About Us – Air Peace
However, in a swift response, Air Peace, in a statement by its Chief Operating Officer, Toyin Olajide, described Sirika’s claim as a blatant, stark lie. Olajide said Air Peace never stopped the Dubai operations because of lack of capacity. “Air Peace never incurred such a loss, we never paid rentals contrary to his lies. “We implore the general public to disregard these lies told by the former minister of Aviation against Air Peace during the Arise TV Interview. “We take serious exception to a situation where Air Peace is being misrepresented in the public sphere, causing wrong perceptions about our brand.”
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 08:26 UTC
Africa: IGAD to Convene 14th Ordinary Summit in Djibouti By Tomorrow
Addis Ababa — The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) is going to convene its 14th Ordinary Summit of Heads of State and Government in Djibouti by tomorrow 12 June 2023. In its press advisory sent to ENA, IGAD said that the summit will bring leaders and officials of various countries to discuss on regional issues including IGAD's response to the regions endeavors. The meeting is also expected to review the progress of the peace process in South Sudan. It is to be recall that the 13th Ordinary Summit of the IGAD Heads of State and Government was held on 29 November 2019 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 07:29 UTC
Ethiopia government criticizes WFP admist USAID food aid suspension
Ethiopia has criticised the suspension of food aid to the country by the United States and the UN World Food Program (WFP). Government spokesman Legesse Tulu, on Saturday called the decision "political" saying the suspension "punishes millions of people". More than 15% of the country's population depends on food aid. On Thursday, USAID, the US government's international aid agency, announced the suspension of its food aid, denouncing a "widespread and coordinated detour operation". This suspension of food aid "punishes millions of people", reacted government spokesman Legesse Tulu at a press conference, calling the decision "political".
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 05:43 UTC
You are a liar, Rep accused of bribery fires back at Sirika
The immediate past Chairman of House of Representatives Committee on Aviation, Hon Nnolim Nnaji, has accused Senator Hadi Sirika, former Minister of Aviation, of lying against him. The former minister of aviation while appearing on an ARISE TV programme on Sunday, had said the lawmaker asked for 5 percent share of Nigeria Air. So, I think you should go to those people and ask for the 5 percent,” Sirika had said. But responding in a statement on Sunday, Nnaji said Sirika lied against him because he insisted on doing the right thing. Let him tell Nigerians the truth about the contraption he sold to us as Nigeria Air.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 04:58 UTC
Sirika: We didn’t pay a dime for chartered Ethiopian aircraft, says ‘only N3bn released for Nigeria Air’
Former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika, on Sunday, revealed that the federal government released only N3 billion for the Nigeria Air project in the last seven years. This is even as he declared that the country did not pay a dime for the chartered Ethiopian Aircraft showcased a few days before the end of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration. Reacting to the allegation that the Aviation Ministry under him spent N85 billion on the Nigeria Air project, the former Minister said:“From 2016 to 2023, all of the money voted and budgeted for Nigeria Air is N5 billion. But all that was released was in the neighborhood of N3 billion, not N85 billion, and not all of the N3 billion has been expended as of the time I left office. Sirika also disclosed that a member of the House of Representatives demanded bribe from him on the Nigeria Air project.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 01:15 UTC
Ethiopia says food aid suspension ‘punishes millions’
NAIROBI: The Ethiopian government on Sunday criticised a move by two major aid organisations to halt the sending of food assistance to the country after discovering it was being diverted from those who need it. The Ethiopian government´s spokesman Legesse Tulu told journalists the decision by USAID and the World Food Programme (WFP) “punishes millions”. On Thursday, USAID, the US government´s main international aid agency, said it was halting food distribution “until reforms are in place” to the way in which the aid is delivered.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 12, 2023 01:06 UTC
We Didn’t Pay A Dime For Using Ethiopia Airlines’ Plane To Unveil Nigeria Air, Says Sirika
By Abimbola OgunnaikeImmediate-past Minister of Aviation, Senator Hadi Sirika, has disclosed that not a dime was paid for chattering the Ethiopian Airlines aircraft that was used for the unveiling of Nigeria Air, Daily Trust reports. Recall that it was reported how the Federal Government flew in a Boeing 737-800 series aircraft belonging to Ethiopian Airlines into Abuja for the unveiling of Nigeria Air. Shortly after the aircraft landed, Hadi Sirika, Minister of Aviation, expressed delight that after “a very long, tedious, daunting and difficult path”, the project had taken off. However, the minister was silent on many details about the aircraft and project launch despite multiple questions from the public. But when the Acting Managing Director of Nigeria Air, Capt.
Source:Ethiopian News
June 11, 2023 22:55 UTC