Security Alert – Dire Dawa, Harar, Jijiga and the Somali Region

The American Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, reminds American citizens to avoid travel to the cities of Dire Dawa, Harar, and Jijiga, including the areas surrounding these cities, and to the Somali Region of Ethiopia. American citizens who do travel to or reside in these areas are advised to avoid public gatherings and public places, including hotels, and should avoid using public transportation and transportation hubs. The Embassy reminds Americans that there is still a heightened state of alert for these areas, as was noted in the warden message and security alert of June 6, 2008. U.S. Embassy employees are prohibited from traveling to these areas except for essential travel, which is reviewed and approved on a case-by-case basis only.

American citizens are reminded to review their personal safety and security posture and to remain vigilant especially at public events and venues. Beware of unattended baggage or packages left in any location, including in minibuses and taxis. American citizens are strongly urged to review all the Department of State’s cautions about travel in Ethiopia, contained in the Country Specific Information for Ethiopia on the Department’s website. The Embassy’s recent warden messages are available here.

For the latest security information, American citizens living and traveling abroad should regularly monitor the Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs internet website, where the current Worldwide Caution, Travel Alerts, and Travel Warnings can be found. Up-to-date information on security can also be obtained by calling 1-888-407-4747 toll-free in the U.S. and Canada, or, for callers outside the U.S. and Canada, a regular toll-line at 1-202-501-4444. These numbers are available from 8 AM to 8 PM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday (except U.S. Federal Holidays.)

The U.S. Embassy is located at Entoto Avenue, P.O. Box 1014, in Addis Ababa

A massive protest rally is being organized in London on April 2 to oppose the invitation by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to Ethiopia’s dictator Meles Zenawi to attend the G-20 meeting. Ethiopians through out Europe are preparing head to London to confront the butcher of Addis Ababa and Mogadishu. The Somali community in London is also joining Ethiopians in the protest rally.

Ethiopians in the San Francisco Bay Area have organized a similar demonstration in front of the British Consulate on April 2.

Place: 1 Sansome Street, #850, San Francisco (Take the San Francisco Bart, get off at Montgomery St. and walk toward Sansome Street). The rally in San Francisco is being organized by Andinet Oakland & San Francisco Support Chapters

Ethiopians Living in the U.S., Listen Up!

A study is being conducted on Ethiopians living in the United States and Health Care Utilization. To be part of the survey, just answer 5 questions at:  http://tsehainy.com/survey.html.

In order to participate in this survey you must:

Be over the age of 18;
Have lived in America for the past year; and
If female, not have been pregnant during the past year.

Survey coordinator: Tiberah Tsehai

Azeb Mesfin, the wife of Ethiopia’s dictator Meles Zenawi (also known as “The Wicked Witch of Ethiopia”), has become deputy head of the Endowment Fund for the Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT), which owns several multimillion-dollar companies. She will serve under Abadi Zemu, the chief executive officer (CEO) of EFFORT, replacing Sebhat Nega, the most senior leader of the TPLF.

[There has been an intense behind the scene power struggle between Azeb and Sebhat as she moved to take total control of Woyanne’s assets.]

This appointment is yet another public role Azeb assumes following the split within the leadership of the TPLF in early 2000. Not only was Azeb elected to the Federal Parliament in 2005 by a constituency in Welkait, she is also a chairperson of its Standing Committee on Social Affairs. She was also elected as a member of the Central Committee of the TPLF, a place she first got four years ago.

Azeb is not new to EFFORT; she has been in charge of one of its subsidiaries, Mega Publishing, whose office and printing facility is inside Mega Building, on Africa Avenue (Bole Road). It is the printing arm of Mega Net Corporation, an umbrella of several subsidiaries, which was first registered in March 1993 as Mega Net Printing & Distribution Share Company, with an initial capital of one million Birr. It was restructured to Mega Net Corporation and increased its capital to 10 million Br, with EFFORT controlling the largest share.

EEFORT was first established in 1995 as a non-governmental foundation. Its leaders often argue that it got its seed money from the TPLF that acquired assets during the period of armed struggle against the Derg. Although this argument has been directed to fierce criticisms from those opposing the administration of the Revolutionary Democrats, its supporters claim EFFORT was created to invest in areas where the public or private sectors are not interested or capable of involvement.

Its first Board of Directors of seven were all senior leaders of the TPLF/EPRDF; EFFORT’s first Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer was Seyee Abraha, a politburo member of the TPLF from the late 1970s, until he was flushed out of the party in early 2000. His chairmanship position was filled by Seyoum Mesfin, who is also minister of Foreign Affairs.

Sebhat took over the chief executive position and served up until this year, before he handed over to Abadi, who has always served as a director of the council. The latter transferred to the board and head of the industrial wing of EFFORT.

The conglomerate has over 25 companies that it controls in the industry, finance, trade, mining, construction, transport and agricultural sectors.

By PAWLOS BELETE | ADDIS FORTUNE

RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA (Reuters) – A consortium of Saudi agricultural companies is looking to invest 150 million riyals ($40 million) into food production in Ethiopia and Sudan, the Agriculture Ministry said on Sunday.

Food security has topped the policy agenda in the Gulf Arab region following rampant inflation in 2008 that underscored the peninsula’s dependence on imports and forced countries to invest abroad to ensure supplies of staples like rice and wheat.

The consortium, called Jenat, was set up to lead farm investments abroad for a group of local companies, the ministry said in a newsletter published on Sunday.

The firms include Tabuk Agricultural Development Co (Tadco), dairy firm Almarai, Food Products Co and Aljouf Agricultural Development Co, the newsletter said.

Jenat has already launched a 70 million riyals project to plant barley, wheat and livestock feed in a 10,000 hectares of farm land in Egypt, the newsletter quoted as saying Jenat’s board chairman Mohammed Al-Rajhi.

“Our future aim … is to go to Sudan and Ethiopia,” he said. Jenat plans to invest 80 million riyals in the two countries, he added without elaborating.

“We expect to start this (Sudan and Ethiopia) project this year,” Rajhi said.

Saudi Arabia has urged companies to invest in farm projects abroad after deciding last year to reduce wheat production by 12.5 percent per year, abandoning a 30-year-old programme to grow its own, which achieved self-sufficiency but depleted the desert kingdom’s scarce water supplies.

The decision has forced many local agricultural companies, which has been growing wheat for the domestic market, to explore alternatives to compensate the resulting drop in their revenues.
State-owned Saudi Industrial Development Fund is granting financing facilities to firms exploring agricultural investments abroad.

A food security panel, affiliated to Riyadh’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry, has identified wheat, barley, corn, soybean, maize, rice and sugar among strategic crops that should constitute priorities for foreign investments, a spokesman said.

Saudi investors have launched agricultural projects in Indonesia worth $1.3 billion last year, Mohamed Abdulkader al-Fadel, who chairs Saudi Arabia’s Commerce and Industry Chambers Council, said earlier this month.

Tadco said earlier this month that it was “looking into joint-venture proposals from firms abroad and mulls relocating some of its activities to countries offering comparative incentives for investment”.
The world’s largest oil exporter said in January it had received the first batch of rice to be produced abroad by local investors as part of the King Abdullah Initiative for Saudi Agricultural Investment Abroad.

(Reporting by Souhail Karam, Editing by Thomas Atkins and Rupert Winchester)

Addis Ababa (APA) – Ethiopia welcomed on Monday its athletes who brought home three gold and one bronze medals from World Cross Country Championships in Amman, Jordan.

Fans and families of the athletes warmly welcomed the athletes at the Bole International air port where they were decorated with flowers.

“We really did good group work, which helped us to get good results in the championships,” said GebreEgziabher Gebremariam who brought gold in the 12 km race.

“What we were told before we traveled to Jordan was that the weather was hot. But it was a little bit cold. But we succeeded,” said Genzebe Dibaba who won gold in the women’s junior six km. race.

Genzebe is a younger sister of Tirunesh Dibaba known for her unforgettable achievements in international athletics.

Ethiopia had sent 24 athletes to Jordan and won three gold medals.