ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – Ethiopia’s regime is not ready to bow to pressure to liberalize its telecoms and banking sectors while negotiating terms to join the World Trade Organisation (WTO), its trade minister said on Wednesday.
Analysts say the giant Horn of Africa country’s hopes for WTO membership hinge on calls for the authorities in Addis Ababa to open those areas to international competition.
“There is a demand from some WTO member countries for Ethiopia to liberalise some of our service sectors and it will be subject to discussion in future negotiations,” Trade Minister Girma Birru told Reuters in an interview.
“But from what we see now, we are not convinced it will be appropriate for our own economic policies to liberalise at this stage.”
[In this information age, the stupid minister has no reason for trying to keep Ethiopia in the 19th century. His boss, Meles Zenawi, wants to control the flow of information. That is the only reason.]
Girma said his ministry was answering questions about the Ethiopian economy from WTO members. U.S. officials have publicly said the nation should liberalise those sectors.
The country is one of Africa’s largest potential markets — with a population of about 80 million — and most of its people have no telephones or bank accounts.
It is attracting growing interest from foreign investors in agriculture, hydropower, and oil and gas exploration, and has recorded growth of more than 10 percent for the last five years.
Opposition parties, however, dispute those statistics.
The country remains one of the world’s poorest and it has suffered high inflation, power cuts and a shortage of foreign currency this year.
Girma said Ethiopia’s economic growth rate was the best argument against liberalisation.
“The policies we have in place prove themselves. They mean sustainable growth,” he said. “If liberalisation is not done in the right way and at the right time it will harm us.”
Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, a former Marxist rebel, told Reuters in an interview in July that he hoped negotiations to join the WTO will be finished within three years and admitted that competition may be inevitable.
Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo Church (EOTC), His Holiness Abune Merkorios, will officially open the St. Mary of Zion Church’s new building in New York Saturday, Nov. 28.
The inauguration program will start at 6 AM tomorrow in the presence of His Holiness as well as Abune Melketsedik, Abune Elias, Abune Samuel, Abune Baslios, and other religious leaders and guests from all over the United States.
The event will also celebrate the annual Saint Mary’s Day, according to Melakegenet Gezahegn G. Kirstos, the Church’s administrator.
New York’s St. Mary of Zion Church was first established in 1991 by the late Abune Yesehaq, Archbishop of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church in Western Hemisphere. It is the first Ethiopian church that took a stand against the illegal take over of the EOTC by a cadre of the ruling Woyanne junta, Ato Gebremedhin (formerly Aba Paulos).
(For further info call (917) 837-8245, (203) 645-0275, (631) 671-6090. Also visit stmaryofzion.com)
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – Ethiopia’s [tribal junta] will offer up to 14 licenses for oil and gas exploration over the next three years despite threats from rebels who say they will attack oilfields run by foreigners, the government said on Tuesday.
“We have 11 companies exploring in Ethiopia now,” said [Woyanne] Minister for Mines and Energy Alemayehu Tegenu.
“We are still inviting companies to come talk to us about licensing and we hope to have a total of 25 in three years time, and that will be enough,” he told Reuters in an interview.
The 11 foreign companies exploring the Horn of Africa nation include Africa Oil Corporation, South West Energy and Malaysia’s state-owned Petronas .
Apart from a small discovery of natural gas, which Petronas has signed a $1.9 million deal to extract, Ethiopia has not uncovered significant oil or gas deposits.
The government says, however, that the Ogaden basin may contain gas reserves of 4 trillion cubic feet and points to nearby countries such as Sudan and Yemen as evidence there could be major oil deposits under Ethiopia’s deserts.
The minister said Ethiopia would offer incentive packages to companies on a case-by-case basis, depending on the size of their investment.
“Incentives that we can discuss include duty-free imports of machinery and refunds of exploration costs should oil or gas be discovered,” Alemayehu said.
NO REBEL THREAT
Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) rebels in 2007 attacked an oil exploration field owned by a subsidiary of Sinopec, Asia’s biggest refiner and China’s second-largest oil and gas producer.
Sinopec then pulled out of the Ogaden region. Most of Ethiopia’s exploration activities have centred on the vast province, which borders unstable Somalia.
Insurgents this month said they had seized seven small towns in Ogaden and again warned foreign firms not to invest.
Alemayehu dismissed the rebel threat and said Ethiopia was also offering companies the chance to explore in five basins outside of Ogaden.
“There was an attack in 2007 but companies exploring Ogaden are now secured by our military,” he said. “We don’t see any problems near our camps and exploration areas. The rebels make claims that aren’t reflected on the ground.”
The ONLF wants autonomy for the region, whose population is ethnic Somali, and the group has been waging an on-and-off campaign for more than 25 years.
Addis Ababa says the ONLF does not have the support of the local population and is being funded by arch enemy Eritrea to try to overthrow the government.
Ethiopia has the highest proportion of people at risk of getting trachoma (85% of its population, about 65 million people), according to a report by The Carter Center. Ethiopia has also the greatest number of people in the final, blinding stage of trachoma (more than 1 million). It has the greatest number of people who have gone blind from trachoma (138,000).
The predeterminants of trachoma are poverty, which manifests as poor access to sanitation, poor access to hygiene, high density living conditions, and a general poor health. All of those go together, then trachoma gets laid on top of it. It used to be the slums of London, now it’s the rural areas of populous countries, like Ethiopia. – Dr. Paul Emerson, director of The Carter Center Trachoma Control Program
The Carter Center has launched trachoma control programs in Ghana, Mali, Niger, Sudan and Nigeria, but its most challenging location is Ethiopia. The Ethiopia program began in 2001, in partnership with the federal Ministry of Health and the Lions Clubs of Ethiopia. It has focused its efforts on the country’s most affected region: the northwestern state of Amhara. Two thirds of its work there has been funded by money raised by the Lions Clubs of Ethiopia, through the Lions Clubs International Foundation. The antibiotic it has distributed, Zithromax, has all been donated by Pfizer. The Center aims to effectively control trachoma in the region by 2012.
Trachoma affects the lining of the eyelid, causing it to form granule-like bumps, and to appear red and irritated. Repeated infections over the years cause the underside of the eyelid to scar. The scar tissue pulls the eyelid inward, so that the eyelashes scratch against the cornea, a condition known as trichiasis. The constant rubbing against the globe of the eye is painful, and causes sensitivity to light and particulate matter, like dust and smoke. Within just 18 months, it can begin to cause irreversible visual impairment. If not surgically corrected, it causes blindness.
Amhara region: Ground Zero
Amhara region, which accounts for roughly 20% of Ethiopia’s population, carries 45% of the country’s trachoma burden.
More than 85% of Amhara’s 17 million people live in rural areas, situated in the mountainous highlands. They are overwhelmingly subsistence farmers, growing teff, a grain that is used to make injera, a spongy, flat bread typically served with Ethiopian meals.
In Ethiopia, Amhara region has the highest rate of active trachoma in children aged 1-9 (62%), and the highest rate of adults who have reached the final, blinding stage of trachoma (5.2%). The prevalence is attributed mainly to the area’s poverty, poor access to water, and poor sanitation. Families live in small huts, crowding a small space in which it’s easy for disease to spread from children to the parents. And in some areas of the rural mountains, mothers or children have to walk hours to get water, and then lug it back home. After cooking, drinking, and feeding the animals, there often isn’t enough left to wash hands, or children’s faces. This contributes to the spread of trachoma.
The other major contributing factor in Amhara is the presence of swarming flies, Musca sorbens, that thrive in places of poor sanitation. The flies like to breed in outdoor human stool, and they feed off of discharge around the eyes and nose. As they feed, they transmit the microorganism that infects they eyes with trachoma, from one person to the next. Sanitation facilities have historically been lacking in Amhara — another effect of the region’s poverty. Since 2003, however, hundreds of thousands of household latrines have been built with the help of The Carter Center and other development groups.
The World Health Organization endorses a four-pronged approach to trachoma control, known as the S.A.F.E. strategy.
S – Surgery to correct inverted eyelids, which occur in the most advanced stage of trachoma.
A – Antibiotics, namely azythromicin, to treat trachoma infection.
F – Facial cleanliness, particularly important for children, to clear off infectious ocular and nasal discharge that attracts eye-seeking flies, and which they spread to other people.
E – Environmental improvements, such as the building of latrines and access to water. Latrines help to reduce the population of flies that spread trachoma, and access to water promotes cleanliness.
(NPR) – Marcus Samuelsson was born in Ethiopia, raised in Sweden and now is a world-renowned chef in New York City. His cooking style is as international as his life story.
He sat down with NPR’s Steve Inskeep to discuss his multicultural Thanksgiving traditions.
“Like most immigrants, we roast turkey — we have turkey on the table,” said Samuelsson. “But our table is filled with people from all over the world that are Americans like us, new Americans … [So] there’s also the dishes from our [home] country.”
“I have Swedish potatoes au gratin,” said Samuelsson. “I have gravlax on the table. Then my wife makes a mean doro wat, which is this chicken stew from Ethiopia. She will always have some injera bread there.
“I think Thanksgiving is this incredible, great example where we as immigrants, we as Americans, bring in the culture or the history of where we come from,” said Samuelsson. “And then we serve it to our family, and I just think it’s a perfect marriage where you can show your identity, and you’re really proud to be an American.”
“Cooking for me is also a way of looking back,” said Samuelsson. “When I make the apple cake, I see my mother.
“So much of cooking and eating is about, ‘Where do we want to go in our memories?’ ” said Samuelsson. “We want to revisit the vacation. We want to revisit our college years. We want to revisit our childhood years.”
Growing up, he’d help his mother make her classic apple cake. “My job was always to sort of make the clock,” Samuelsson said, in describing the way the apples were arranged on top of the dessert. “My mom always cut 12 pieces.
“I always wanted to mess it up — I wanted to put apples all over,” he said. But his mother made sure the apples were adorned properly, because each person should get a slice of apple on their slice of cake.
Samuelsson feels everyone has a food story like his apple cake one.
“We all have food stories,” he said. “We all come from incredible backgrounds. And we can … share those memories … through food. And that’s the reason I love living in this country.”
Marcus Samuelsson’s Apple Cake Recipe
“I always joke about how bad my mom’s cooking was, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to realize that a lot of what I know about cooking came from her. I can’t even count how many times she made this honest, simple apple cake — it seems as if we always had one in the refrigerator and another in the freezer, just in case we had unexpected company. Even now, when we are all out of the house, she always has apples on hand, just in case she needs to whip up a quick dessert for visitors.”
Ingredients
2 tablespoons unseasoned bread crumbs
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
2 Granny Smith apples
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan
1 large egg
1-1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2/3 cup half-and-half
2 teaspoons confectioners’ sugar
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and coat with the bread crumbs.
2. Toss together the granulated sugar and brown sugar. Set aside.
3. Peel and core the apples, then slice one apple into 16 wedges. Combine the cinnamon and 1/3 cup of the sugar mixture in a medium bowl. Add the apple wedges and toss to coat. Roughly dice the remaining apple.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat together the butter and the remaining sugar mixture on medium speed until light, fluffy, and lemon colored, about 2 minutes. Add the egg and mix until combined. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour and baking powder. Slowly add the half-and-half, and mix until combined. Fold the diced apple into the batter.
5. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Arrange 14 of the apple wedges fanned along the outer edge of the pan and place the 2 remaining wedges in the center. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the center is golden brown.
6. Remove from the oven to a wire rack to cool completely. Run a small offset spatula around the edges to release the cake from the pan and remove the springform. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar, then cut into 12 wedges.
Ethiopian Review had reported 6 months ago that former Woyanne defense minister in Ethiopia, Ato Seye Abraha, was planning to join the Unity for Democracy and Justice Party (UDJ). He and former figurehead president Negasso Gidada today have announced that they are now members of UDJ whose head, Wz. Birtukan Mideksa, is currently in jail as a political prisoner.
Before joining UDJ, Seye had already become an influencial figure behind the party. He has brought with him his supporters and disgruntled members of the ruling Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) to UDJ. Now that he is officially a member, he is the de facto leader of the party. Thus the stage is set for a face off between Woyanne + AEUP vs. Woyanne + UDJ/Medrek. This is not a real choice for the people of Ethiopia.
No one takes former fake president Negasso Gidada seriously, despite BBC’s report that he is a popular figure. He is popular only among comedians. BBC and Reuters reported the following:
Ethiopia’s former President Negasso Gidada has joined an opposition party, as the country builds up to a [fake] election scheduled for next May.
Mr Negasso, in power [what power?] between 1995 and 2001, said he had joined the Unity for Democracy and Justice Party (UDJ) to try to unite Ethiopia.
Analysts say his defection and that of ex-Defence Minister Seye Abraha are likely to boost the UDJ’s popularity.
Its leader Birtukan Medeksa is in jail over protests after the last poll, in 2005.
She was arrested after violence broke out when opposition parties organized protests, citing election fraud.
Some rights groups have accused Prime Crime Minister Meles Zenawi of trying to ensure election victory by suppressing opposition — allegations he denies.
Pardons
The BBC’s Uduak Amimo in Addis Ababa says the two defections are a significant symbol of opposition to the government.
But she says the UDJ and its allies are unlikely to overhaul (?) the governing party in next year’s election.
Mr Negasso, whose role as president was largely symbolic, is said to be a popular politician. [According to who?]
He told Reuters news agency: “Our joining the UDJ sends a signal that we have to work hard for the unity of the country and the Ethiopian people.”
Some 200 people were killed after security forces opened fire during the protests which followed the 2005 elections. More than 100 opposition leaders, activists and journalists were convicted and jailed but most have since been pardoned.
Ethiopian ex-president, ex-minister join opposition
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) – A former Ethiopian president and a former defense minister have joined the same opposition party, strengthening it against a government accused of suppressing critics before national elections in May.
Negaso Gidada, president from 1997 to 2001, and Seye Abraha a former rebel leader who became defense minister for four years from 1991, joined the Unity for Democracy and Justice party (UDJ) on Thursday.
The UDJ is part of an eight-party coalition called Medrek, or the Forum, that most Ethiopians view as the most significant threat to the government at the ballot box. The UDJ’s leader Birtukan Mideksa, 36, has been in prison since last December.
“Our joining the UDJ sends a signal that we have to work hard for the unity of the country and the Ethiopian people,” Negaso told Reuters, adding that if Ethiopian political parties were not ethnically diverse then the country could split.
Ethiopia has about 80 ethnicities and parties have traditionally been formed along ethnic lines. UDJ leaders now come from the three most prominent groups.
Seye was jailed for corruption in 2001 after falling out with Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and, after his release in 2007, he became a vocal opponent of the government, which has been in power for nearly 20 years.
“POLITICAL PRISONERS”
Meles and Seye come from the Tigrayan ethnic group, who make up just 6 percent of the population but dominate politics.
Most analysts agree Meles’ Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) will win easily at the ballot box, despite growing allegations of squashing political criticism.
“They say that because the landscape is unfavourable for free and fair elections,” Seye told Reuters. “There are laws that can be used against voices of dissent. We will be making the release of political prisoners a campaign priority.”
Meles says the opposition is trying to discredit an election that it has no chance of winning and therefore provoke the West into stopping the aid which the poor country relies on.
Opposition leaders told Reuters this month that their members were being refused food aid to force them to join the ruling party. The government denied it.
Ethiopia’s last national elections in 2005 ended violently when security forces killed about 200 protesters in the capital Addis Ababa after the opposition said the government rigged the poll. Seven policemen were also killed.
Birtukan was jailed after a 2005 poll, pardoned in 2007 and sent back to prison for violating the terms of that pardon.
The country has never seen a peaceful change of government. Meles took power in 1991 after rebels led by him, Seye and others overthrew a Soviet-backed regime.
Patriarch of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahdo Church (EOTC), His Holiness Abune Merkorios, will officially open the St. Mary of Zion Church’s new building in New York Saturday, Nov. 28.
Ethiopia has the highest proportion of people at risk of getting trachoma (85% of its population, about 65 million people), according to a report by The Carter Center. Ethiopia has also the greatest number of people in the final, blinding stage of trachoma (more than 1 million). It has the greatest number of people who have gone blind from trachoma (138,000).
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Ethiopian Review had