Day: May 22, 2023

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has today officially launched the 3rd National Competition of Innovation in Addis Ababa.

The competition organized by the Ministry of Labor and Skills will be held for the coming five days under the theme “Skill for Competitiveness”

Innovation workshops, panel discussions, and other related programs will be underway as part of the competition.

During the opening ceremony of the competition, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed urged innovators to exert efforts and play their part for the development of Ethiopia by effectively withstanding challenges they might encounter in the course of their effort.

He said the competition program will play crucial role for young Ethiopians with skills and talents to demonstrate their capabilities and create market linkages.

The premier further stressed the need to strengthen innovative skills as Ethiopia has no shortages of inputs urging innovators to use challenges as a springboard for their effective works.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

Minister of Finance, Ahmed Shide is in Sharma El Sheikh, Egypt for taking part in the 2023 Annual Meetings of the Boards of Governors of the African Development Bank (AfDB) Group.

The Annual Meetings of the African Development Bank Group will take place from May 22nd to 26th 2023 under the theme “Mobilizing Private Sector Financing for Climate and Green Growth in Africa” in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt.

The meeting is anticipated to discuss the challenges and opportunities for enhancing private sector investments in climate action and sustainable development on the continent, it was indicated.

Accordingly, Ethiopian Finance Minister, Ahmed Shide began his participation by attending the Eastern Africa Constituency Governors meeting on Sunday in Sharm El Sheikh.

The meeting focused on the reform of the governance of the AfDB, resource mobilization for development impact, and key issues related to energy access, climate adaptation and food security.

Ahmed will also chair a high-level ministerial dialogue on the Horn of Africa Initiative, which will focus on regional integration, notably to advance the discussion on harnessing private sector participation in the region.

This Ministerial Meeting, as usual, will bring together Finance Ministers of the six Horn of African countries and representatives of key Development Partners.

The African Development Bank is a Pan-African development finance institution that provides financial and technical assistance to the Government and private companies investing in Ethiopia.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen met today with Minister of International Development of Canada, Harjit Singh Sajjan, according to Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Among others, the two sides discussed ways of further enhancing development cooperation between Ethiopia and Canada against the backdrop of strong, longstanding ties.

Demeke told Minister Sajjan that the Government of Ethiopia is striving towards effecting development both at home and in the Horn of Africa by fostering investment and trade policies as well as forging strategic partnerships conducive to regional economic integration.

He said the Home-Grown Economic Reform Agenda and Digital Ethiopia 2025 are the pillars of Ethiopia’s transformative economic policy while capitalizing on youth job creation and women’s empowerment.

In this regard, international partners like Canada need to support Ethiopia’s development efforts and the ongoing peace consolidation efforts, as peace is the backbone of any development initiative, Demeke said.

The transitional justice, national dialogue and DDR processes need support and cooperation to be fully implemented and are stepping towards an integrated economic ecosystem suitable for potential investors in the agro-processing, mining, manufacturing, and tourism sectors, he said.

Ethiopia at the moment is focused on effecting the 2nd phase of the Home Grown Economic Reform Agenda, especially in the priority areas that are identified as key drivers of development , such as agriculture, manufacturing, mining, tourism, and renewable energy, as Demeke noted.

The recent launching of the LT-LEDS and the continuous Green Legacy Initiative is also a demonstration of Ethiopia’s commitment to building a climate-change resilient nation while ensuring a conducive milieu for international investors and development partners, he said.

Minister of International Development of Canada, Harjit Singh Sajjan, for his part, noted the longstanding Ethio-Canadian development cooperation and vowed to continue the tradition.

Among others, the minister expressed the Canadian government keenness to support initiatives aimed at increasing agricultural productivity on top of improving food security.

He added that improvements in the agricultural sector in Ethiopia should be seen not only as food security efforts but also as economic opportunities that businesses from Canada could take part in.

The Minister reassured the Demeke of Canadian support not only in the consolidation of peace but also in holistic development undertakings.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

Ethiopia notes with dismay that the resolution adopted by the recent Summit of the League of Arab States echoed Egyptian hostile rhetoric regarding the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.

In a statement it issued today, the Ministry said that the resolution is an affront to the African Union and its Member States, which are working to bring an amicable negotiated resolution to the GERD matter.

It also runs contrary to the cherished and shared history of the peoples of Africa and the Arab world, the statement added.

In 2015, Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan signed the Agreement on the Declaration of Principles, which unambiguously provides that the construction of the Dam shall continue in parallel to the negotiations on the guidelines and rules on the first filling and operation of the Dam. The details of dam filling, including the volume and duration, have been agreed upon between the experts of the three countries.

“Throughout the process, going out of its way, Ethiopia has catered to the concerns of Egypt and Sudan. Ethiopia is and will continue to act respecting the principle of equitable and reasonable utilization of the waters of the Nile.”

Thus, the ministry stated that the allegation that Ethiopia has taken unilateral measures is a deliberate mischaracterization. Egypt’s attempts to exert pressure on Ethiopia by using the Arab League forum represent its lack of good faith and violation of the Agreement on the Declaration of Principles it concluded with Ethiopia and Sudan.

According to the statement, Ethiopia works closely with Sudan on all bilateral matters, including regarding the GERD.

Ethiopia commended those Member States of the League of Arab States that cautioned against Egypt’s attempts to escalate the matter.

“Ethiopia is confident that members of the League, particularly the Member States of the African Union, will disassociate themselves from this resolution. They should prevent Egypt’s further misuse of the League that could potentially create a rift in the longstanding African-Arab friendship and historic relations,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs underlined.

Ethiopia called upon Egypt to abandon its unlawful claim to the monopoly of the Nile River, citing defunct colonial agreements and a colonial-mentality-based position negotiate in good faith and reach a win-win outcome.

Egypt should also act responsibly to lay the foundation for future generations of all the Nile River basin countries to nurture friendship and cooperation based on mutual respect, the statement said.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency