Looking at a wide portion of Somali or Afar regions, one might be tempted to call it as an unproductive or non-loam soil because of the hottest temperature and the acacia trees as well as thorny prosopis juliflora (derogatorily otherwise known as Woyane tree).
Meanwhile, in the eye of anyone from Israel, this is a funny view. For them, Somali or Afar areas are like a virgin and fertile land.
For Ethiopian pastoralists, whose livelihood depends on animal husbandry, agriculture had almost ‘zero position’. For them livestock are everything. Most of them have a belief that there is no life without livestock.
Though the Ethiopian government, as a national development strategy, had attempted to introduce the agriculture system to pastoralist areas, most of them seem hardly manageable to accept agriculture as an alternative means to their livelihood. Their life is always mobile.
Within these prevailing facts and challenges an Israel company, Agropeace, came to Ethiopia two years ago to engage in the country’s large-scale agriculture mainly focusing in the mass production of biofuel plants and floricultures as well as crops, unlike most local as well as oversees investors who do not dare to engage in such ventures in the region. This is obviously seem that many of the investors, if not all, prefer putting their money near fertile lands of the country around Addis Ababa and in the nearest and relatively modest towns.
Meanwhile, Agropeace looks determined to grow more in one of the country’s hottest and remote areas of Somali region such as Shinile and Gad districts.
In fact, for a longtime, ploughing lands or having agriculture practice has been an unusual, or unpreferable business in Shinile and Gad localities which are not very far from the town of Dire Dawa.
Having secured nearly 2000 hectares from the Somali region four years ago, Agropeace launched its first pilot project by producing maize and caster seeds. Since such kind of agri-business has not been common in the pastoralist’s areas, for Agropeace it was a challenging mission to gain the support of the local residents.
According to the existing tradition of most pastoralists, every plot of land belongs to their communal property where they feed their cattle no matter the title deed given to them as is common in other parts of Ethiopia. As a result, the Israel company had not received positive welcome from the resident pastoralist communities from Shinile as well as Gad.
So, the company had to work hard to get the goodwill of the pastoralists. Eventually since water shortage is the serious problem of the, Agropeace first built around six wells and delivered water to the community for their livelihood and to their livestock. Next, in its first year the company produced tomato, green pepper and maize and distributed it to the community. This was also coupled by teaching them a new trend of agricultural production on how to produce it and create employment opportunities.
Recently, the company organized a two-days field trip where its major shareholders from the US and the UK, along with the Israeli Ambassador to Ethiopia, as well as local officials visited the project sites in Shinile and Gad.
Briefing on the progress of the project, the founder of the company, Zir Brosh, told visitors that “the project is very promising. So far, from this pilot project, we have learnt that the area is very fertile and suitable for castor, any crops and vegetables so that we are able to grow year round. “
Yohash Zohar, the general manager of Agropeace Ethiopia, said that despite some challenges the company faces as an initial development cost the company is profitable in a short period of time.
“This project, I believe, will be a benchmark for Ethiopia and will attract many other foreign investors,” he told The Reporter.
“We truly believe that the drier regions of Ethiopia such as Somali and Afar regions can actually be the bread-basket of Ethiopia,” he said, adding that with the right development and usage of underground water they (Afar and Somali regions) can produce more cash crops probably for all other parts of Ethiopia together.
He also explained that the advantage of investing in the Somali region is also advantageous, logistically citing its proximity to the Port of Djibouti.
“It makes a lot of sense to invest in such areas,” Zohar said.
According to the general manager, the company is investing a total amount of 20 million dollars for its 2000 hectare project, out of which 70 percent of the investment loan is acquired from Development Bank of Ethiopia (DBE) while the rest is partly financed from Agropeace, development partners as well as from the income generated from the project itself.
He told The Reporter that the company aims to start exporting in 2013 for the first time, starting with some 2000 tons of castor seed that is estimated to be roughly worth about 2.5 million dollars.
So far, over 350 hectares of land has been cleared for castor production.
“In Israel we have a lot of experiences in developing deserts and turn it into productive agricultural farm. Once you have enough water and use it with kid gloves, it will be advantageous because being very dry is an advantage. When you have water for irrigation, you can absolutely control how much water you can use for your farm.”
For the company, infrastructure development is a bottleneck challenge that has already forced it to incur core investment costs.
Anteneh Gelaye, chief operation manager of the project, explained that such a kind of investment is the first project in the area.
Anteneh told The Reporter that at that demonstration site, Agropeace has carried out pilot project and has seen satisfactory results particularly in castor seed, soya bean, groundnut as well as maize.
“Though this areas is semi-desert, for example, last year using Israeli technology we grew an American maize seed. And we have harvested about 80 quintals from a hectare while is 30 quintals in normal case.”
The Israeli Ambassador to Ethiopia, Belaynesh Zevadia, hailed the company’s project saying, “I’m happy about this promising achievement. They did a great job.”
She also told the company, “I hope in a couple of years, you would reap good production.
“There is a jewish saying that goes “If you save one life, you will save the world”, Belaynesh said after she saw the water wells the company provided for the local residents “I was born in Gondar and grew up in Addis Ababa before leaving for Israel when I was 17. I didn’t know we have such kind of place. Now I’m proud of being Jewish. I’m proud of Ethiopia. Please keep saving more lives.”
Similarly, the vice president of development DBE, Tadesse Oge’e, praised the company for its project.
“Your commitment to invest in such kind of area is very fantastic while most investors prefer to invest in Addis Ababa and surrounding areas. We are ready to support this project and continue to support it.
Issayas Kebede, from Ministry of Agriculture, on his part said, “This is the kind of development that Ethiopia seeks. When you lose, we lose, when your gain we gain.
For a long time the area was known as one of the country’s smuggling corridor and black market zones.
Muslims defied threats by Ethiopia’s TPLF regime as hundreds of thousands marched following Eid prayers on Friday. Protests engulfed not only Addis Ababa, but also other major Ethiopian cities as well. They asked the government to stop interference in religious affairs.
A short film about the search for a dog provides a vivid insight into life in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa. Directed by Miguel Llansó and Yohannes Feleke. Screened at the International Film Festival in Rotterdam.
A couple of days after Ethiopia’ new Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn voiced his government’s stubborn stance towards the legitimate demands of the country’s Muslims, the faithful continued their nationwide protests against government interference in religious affairs.
The mosque-based protest was staged on Friday, October 19, at Anwar and Nur mosques, two major mosques in the capital Addis Ababa, as well as at mosques in a number of towns across the country. Friday’s protests took place in predominantly Muslim cities such as Harar, Dessie, Bati and Kemise, among others.
Muslim communities have been staging similar weekly peaceful protests for the last eleven months. The last of such massive protests was staged in Addis Ababa and several cities across the country on October 5, 2012.
The October 5 nationwide protest was meant to send a strong message to the government that Muslim communities all over the nation are not taking part in the ruling-party-orchestrated election of Majlis leadership that was slated for October 7.
The October 7 election was significantly boycotted by the country’s Muslims, but that did not prevent the ruling EPRDF from orchestrating a politico-farce drama employing every means, which included coercion, intimidation, involvement of non-Muslims as well as unwary Muslims, especially in rural areas.
The election drama was accentuated by the EPRDF-controlled TV station, which gave a 25-minute-long coverage for a selection of well-orchestrated election-proceedings and interviews. With a carefully-framed close-ups and long shots, the TV report was “effective” in attaining its sole purpose – that of cheating the public. And, for a party that cherishes its own follies, that was sufficient to make the claim: “Ethiopian Muslims have elected their leaders in a free, fair and democratic election.”
Mockery at the Highest-level
What was screened on ETV was also sufficient for the newly appointed Prime Minister to “congratulate” Ethiopian Muslims for “electing their leaders democratically.”
In his first appearance at the Parliament after swearing in as Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, the successor of the late PM Meles Zenawi, Hailemariam appeared no less stubborn than his former boss did. “I would like to congratulate the Muslim population for being able to elect their leaders in a free and democratic election!”
For Ethiopian Muslims the Premier’s congratulatory remark is a mockery at the highest level. It is a mockery at democracy, the rule of law and, above all, the country’s constitution. If anything, Friday’s nationwide protest was a direct reaction to this mockery.
The popular Muslims’ movement was prompted by years of accumulated grievances over the failure of the Ethiopian Islamic Affairs Supreme Council, otherwise known as Majlis, to deliver meaningful services to the Muslim community.
In a clear violation of the country’s constitution, the Majlis has been under the full control of the ruling Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) for the past 18 years. The Muslims’ accumulated grievances burst out in December last year after the government set out in a bold attempt to impose a Lebanese-born sect called al-Ahbash on the Muslim population.
The unconstitutional and adventurous project was jointly launched in July 2011 by the Ministry of Federal Affairs and the Majlis, whose leaders were followers of Ahbash, and appointed by the ruling party.
For Ethiopian Muslims, who continued their peaceful protests for the past eleven months, changing the Ahbash-dominated leadership of the Majlis through a truly democratic and free election is a matter not only of asserting constitutional rights, but also of defending their faith and unity. It is also about reclaiming and protecting their institution.
For EPRDF, analysts say, it is a matter of asserting its ideology of Revolutionary Democracy, which dictates full control of all mass-based institutions. This assertion puts the ruling-EPRDF in full collision with the constitution, which is regarded as the supreme law of the land. Over the years, this collision has manifested in several instances.
In this particular instance, EPRDF’s continued desire to control the Majlis is in clear contravention to Article 11, sub-Article 3 of the constitution, which stipulates non-interference of the state in religious matters, and that of religion in state affairs; as well as Article 27, sub-Article 2, which provides for the rights of believers “to establish institutions of religious education and administration in order to propagate and organize their religion.” Alas, that is how Ethiopian politics has been going since the constitution was endorsed 18 years ago, amidst jubilant “nations, nationalities and peoples.”
Nevertheless, EPRDF denies all accusations from every direction. In his last appearance at the Parliament, the late Prime Minister was asked by a fellow MP about the allegation of government interference in Muslim religious affairs. The late PM responded: “No, we did not interfere in religious affairs, and we cannot interfere in religion. … That is because the constitution does not allow us to do so.”
The new Prime Minister, in his first appearance to the parliament last Tuesday, repeated this statement verbatim. He not only repeated the statement, but also imitated the gestures of the late PM. That seems as per his promise “to continue the legacy of the great leader.”
In March 2012, I posted the report below about the trafficking of Ethiopian women to the Middle East and identified one of the major players behind it. The report was a result of thorough investigations, corroborated by multiple witnesses who are residing in Addis Ababa. Several months after the report was published, the TPLF regime banned the trafficking of Ethiopian women to UAE, but not to Saudi Arabia and other countries. Meanwhile, Jemal Ahmed, Al Amoudi’s business partner who is identified in my report, has filed a defamation lawsuit against me in the United States District Court, Northern District of Georgia. The notorious law firm, DLA Piper, is representing Jemal in the lawsuit. DLA Piper has hired a $250-per hour private investigator, a former FBI agent, to follow me all over the Untied States. In a court document, the private investigator, Harold Corpus, testified that he has observed me at the balcony of my parents’ residence, among other places. Since the apartment has a security gate, he must have committed trespassing to enter inside. Human trafficking is just the tip of the iceberg of the predatory business practices that Jemal Ahmed and his partner, Mohammed Al Amoudi, are involved in with the backing of the TPLF regime in Ethiopia. In just recent months, they have forcibly removed tens of thousands of people in western Ethiopia after confiscating their land which they are using to grow flower and vegetable to be exported to Saudi Arabia and UAE. If Al Amoudi, Jemal and their allies in the TPLF junta think that they can intimidate and silence me by hiring former FBI agents and a mercenary law firm, they chose a wrong target. I will continue to expose them until they stop plundering my country and robbing my people. I am confident that the U.S. justice system will not allow them to trample upon the freedom of exiled Ethiopian journalists.
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Al Amoudi’s human trafficker in Ethiopia identified
By Elias Kifle
It’s been suspected that Sheik Saudi agent Mohammed Al Amoudi is behind the planned “export” of 45,000 Ethiopian women per month from the Amhara and Oromo regions of Ethiopia to Saudi Arabia. The women, most of whom are teenage girls, will be working in slave-like conditions, often subjected to beatings and other kinds of abuses. Ethiopian Review Intelligence Unit has now confirmed Al Amoudi’s involvement in this massive human trafficking, and also we have been able to identified the person whom he has put in charge of the operation.
His name is Jemal Ahmed. He is an Ethiopian, resides in Addis Ababa, and frequently travels to Saudi Arabia and other Arab counties as an employee of Al Amoudi.
Jemal’s responsibilities extend beyond human trafficking. He is also in charge of Horizon Plantations, one of Al Amoudi’s companies that is engaged in destructive commercial farms that are used for growing and exporting cash crops. In 2009, the Woyanne gave Al Amoudi 250,000 hectares of land in southern and western Ethiopia, in many cases forcibly removing local farmers from their lands. Because of excessive use of chemical fertilizers, the land will be totally useless in just a few years. The ground water will also be unusable
Jemal and other partners of Al Amoudi who are pillaging and plundering Ethiopia, and selling our women as slaves to Arab countries, must be stopped. Share this information and take the necessary action.
We Ethiopians currently have no government to protect us. So let’s protect each other and fight to save our country.
Debretsion Gebremichael, TPLF spy chief who also doubles as Minister of Communication and Information Technology, appears to suggest that the ruling party has mobilized to crush peaceful Muslim protests. Debretsion used Addis Ababa University as a platform to declare war on what he called “religious radicalism” and “terrorism.”
Eskedar Kifle | Capital Ethiopia
October 8, 2012
The Addis Ababa University, the longest serving higher institution in Ethiopia, gave a three day seminar to its teachers in all campuses, Capital learned. The meeting was originally intended to take place at one location from October 3 to 5, but they later decided to carry it out separately on different campuses.
The notorious Debretsion who intercepts email, other electronic communications
When the seminar came to a close at the Sidist Kilo Main campus on Friday, October 5, DebretsionGebremichael (PhD), Minister of Information and Communication Technology gave guidance to the participants saying that in the coming years the university must focus on the problems of religious radicalism and the dangers of terrorism.
“We don’t want to have a destabilization movement under the guise of religion. In every religion we trace fundamentalism which is contrary to the basic principle of religion that teaches coexistence with each other,” Debretstion was quoted as saying. This movement has to be stopped, he strongly warned.
He also attended the meeting at the Arat Kilo Science Faculty on Thursday, October 3. Sources told Capital that at Science Faculty like in other faculties raised questions about the teachers’ salary increase. Dr. Debretsion discouraged the issue out of hand by saying:
“This time don’t expect a pay raise. You have the capacity to generate additional income by having additional work elsewhere. We don’t like that option. But on the government side there is no plan to increase the salary of teachers at this time,” he said.
A teacher who preferred anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue told Capital that he is not happy with the response of Debretsion. “Inflation is extremely high. So life is difficult to manage with the salary we are receiving now. House rent is increasing literally every month. The government wants us to provide a quality education. With this small pay it is impossible to have first class teachers. So the fall of the standard of education, due to mediocre teachers, is an avoidable fact,” he said.
But Dr. Debretsion was positive about the housing question. “I know that the late Prime Minister wanted the housing problem of the university teachers to be tackled. Accordingly something has been done in that direction all through. So we will exert every effort to resolve the housing problem that the teachers face,” Dr. Debretsion said.
The other major discussion point was about the quality of education. There was a consensus that the quality of education has tremendously gone down. Though all of them agreed to improve the quality of education, no viable future plan was put in place. “We all said that we will improve the quality of education. This is a cliché like saying we shall realize the dreams of the visionary leader,” remarked one disgruntled teacher. But making change requires a backbreaking job, he concluded.
