The Ethiopian Messenger − April 2017 by The Ethiopian Messenger

The Ethiopian Messenger

ውድ አንባብያን!

Dear Readers,

ባለፈው አንድ ዓመት በሀገራችን በአንዳንድ አካባቢዎች ሰላማዊ ሰልፍ የተከሰተበትና ይህም

After violent protests in some parts of Ethiopia in 2016, the state of emergency was declared on the 8th of October 2016 to bring back stability throughout the country. In addition to this immediate measure decided by the Council of Ministers, the President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, H.E. Mulatu Teshome, expressed the country’s commitment to launch several reforms to broaden the political space and create job opportunities for the young people. An article in this issue of the magazine is giving a detailed overview of the measures and processes currently underway to realize these endeavours.

በሰው ህይወትና በንብረት ላይ ውድመት ያስከተለ ቢሆንም፣ መንግስት ችግሩን ሳይባባስ በህገ-መንግስቱ መሰረት የአስቸኳይ ጊዜ በማወጅ ሰላምና መረጋጋቱን ሙሉ በሙሉ መመለስ ተችሏል፡፡ ከዚህ በማስቀጠል በሚኒስትሮች ምክር ቤት ውሳኔ መሰረት እና በዓመቱ መጀመሪያ ክቡር ፕሬዝዳንት ዶክተር ሙላቱ ተሾመ ለሁለቱም ምክር ቤቶች መክፈቻ ላይ ባደረጉት ንግግር መሰረት በሀገራችን የፖለቲካ ምህዳሩን ለማስፋት፣ የወጣቶችን የስራ-እድል ለመፍጠርና ተጠቃሚ ለማድረግ እንዲቻል የተለያዩ እርምጃዎች በመወሰድ ላይ ናቸው፡፡ ስለሆነም በዚህ እትማችን ለወጣቱ የስራ እድል ለመፍጠርና ተጠቃሚነት ለማረጋገጥ እንዲሁም የፖለቲካ ምህዳሩን ለማስፋት እየተወሰዱ ያሉ እርምጃዎች በዝርዝር የሚያሳይ መረጃ አቅርበናል፡፡ እንዲሁም የአውሮፓ ህብረት ስደተኝነትን ለመከላከል እየተከተለው ያለውን ፖሊሲ እና አጠቃላይ እየሰጠ ያለውን ድጋፍ በተለይም የስደትን ችግር ከስር መሰረቱ በመከላከል ረገድ እያመጣ ያለውን ለውጥ ምን ይመስላል በሚል ይዳሰሳል፡፡ ከዚህ በተጨማሪ ዶ/ር ቴድሮስ አድሃኖም የቀጣዩ የዓለም ጤና ድርጅት ዋና ዳይሬክተር ሊሆኑ የሚችሉበትን አሳማኝ ምክንያቶች ተዘርዝረዋል፡፡ ከቤልጄየም ሶስት ፕሮፊሰሮች ጋር በሀገራችንና በቤልጄየም የትምህርት መስክ ትብብር እና ያስገኘውን ጥቅም እንዲሁም በቀጣይ ይህንን ግንኙነት እንዴት ማስፋት ይቻላል በሚል ተከታታይ ቃለ-መጠይቆችንም ተካተዋል፡፡ ከዚህ በተጨማሪ የሀገራችንን የቱሪዝም ፍሰት ለማሳደግና የሀገራችን ወይን ምርት በአውሮፓ ለማስተዋወቅ በበብራሰልስ በርካታ ጋዜጠኞች፣ የቱር ኦፕሬተሮች እንዲሁም የኢትዮጵያ ወዳጆች በተገኙበት የኢትዮጵያ ቱሪዝምና የባህል ምሽት በዓል እና የሀገራችን የገጽታ ግንባታ የተመለከተ ሀተታ ይዛለች፡፡ በምስራቅ አፍሪካ በሶማሊያ ያለውን ተስፋ ሰጭ የምርጫ ሂደትና የመንግስት መዋቅር በተመለከተ እንዲሁም በውጭ ያለው ኢትዮጵያዊና ትውልደ ኢትዮጵያዊ የዲያስፖራ አባላት ሁኔታ በተመለከተ በአማርኛ ጽሑፎችን በማካተት ተዘጋጅቷል፡፡ ሰለሆነም 6ኛ እትማችን ከላይ የተገለፁትን በርካታ ርዕሰ ጉዳዮች በማካተት የተዘጋጀች ሲሆን፣ ውድ አንባብያን መፅሔቷን እንደምትወዷት ተስፋ እናደርጋለን፡፡ በመጨረሻም በመፅሄቷ ላይ ያላችሁን ማናቸውንም አስተያየት እንድታደርሱንና በመፅሔቷ እንዲወጣላችሁ የምትፈልጉትን ፅሁፍ በመላክ ተሳትፎ እንድታደርጉ በአክብሮት እንጠይቃለን፡፡

የአርትኦት ኮሚቴ

In this magazine, we also ask the question whether the current EU policies to face the migration challenge are satisfactory to effectively address the mounting pressure. Another article explores several compelling reasons why Dr. Tedros Adhanom is the right candidate to become the next Secretary General of the World Health Organization. We are also pleased to publish three exclusive interviews with Professors who gave an assessment and future perspectives on the Ethio-Belgian university cooperation. Encouraging developments are also verified in the blooming horticulture industry of Ethiopia. In order to increase awareness in the Benelux countries about Ethiopia as a tourism destination, our Embassy has intensively promoted the sector at several occasions since the beginning of the year, as you can read in this magazine. Finally, we also offer an article about the latest encouraging news from Somalia, and an article in Amharic for the Ethiopian diaspora living in the Benelux countries. We would like to sincerely thank you for your attention and interest in the latest news about Ethiopia and its relations with the EU and Benelux countries. Your feedback on this magazine and open contributions for the next issue would be, as always, highly appreciated. Best regards, The Editorial Team

Content

Reform efforts continue in Ethiopia

Migration crisis: The need for a candid engagement

Dr. Tedros at the WHO: Ethiopian expertise going global

Assessment and perspectives of a successful academic cooperation

The blooming horticulture industry of Ethiopia

Ethiopia was vigorously promoted at tourism fairs in Benelux Countries

A new government to revive Somalia

ተደራጅቶ በማህበር መስራት አገራዊ አቅም ይፈጥራል- መደራጀት ሃይል ነው!

Quarterly magazine of the Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels. Editor: Embassy of Ethiopia in Brussels, Avenue de Tervuren 64, 1040 Etterbeek, Belgium. info@ethiopianembassy.be +32 2 771 32 94.

April - May - June 2017

Political affairs

Reform efforts continue in Ethiopia A reform process was started at the end of 2016 to provide a concrete answer to the preoccupations of the public. The first objectives of these reforms was to address unemployment, bad governance and further widen political space. Since then, several steps have been made in these three areas.

Ethiopian president presenting the Youth Fund at the opening of the Joint Session of the House of People’s Representatives and the House of Federation on the 10th of October 2016 In 2016, Ethiopia faced violent protests mainly driven by youth in the highly populated regional states of Oromia and Amhara, where high levels of unemployment persist despite the country’s strong economic growth.

The state of emergency was declared on 8th October 2016, in line with article 93 of the Constitution, to bring back peace and stability throughout the country. It also met a

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strong demand from the public to contain the destruction of public infrastructures such as water facilities, roads, bridges, schools, clinics and local industries. An Inquiry Committee was established by the House of Peoples Representatives to follow up the implementation of the state of emergency by visiting prisons and interviewing the apprehended youth about human right issues. In addition, the Ethiopian

Human Right Commission made an intensive investigation and submitted its findings to the Parliament, which then voted resolutions both on the excessive use of force by law enforcement agents and on the killing of security officers by the protesters. Lack of good governance, especially in services delivery sectors, corruption and increasing demand despite economic growth were identified among the root causes that ought to be addressed through a deep renewal of the leadership and reform activities in the aftermath of the protests. To address public grievances, the government of Ethiopia launched immediate and long-term reform efforts to bring back peace and security and further boost the confidence of investors, vital to economic growth, following the wide scale destructive protests that happened in the nation. According to the Secretary of the Command post, Mr. Siraj Fergessa, Minister of Defence, the thousands of young people involved in the violent protests that took lives and destroyed public infrastructures will be enrolled in extensive trainings and awareness actions established up to the regional level. The training programs also aim at increasing awareness on their constitutional rights and duties; informing them about peaceful ways to exercise their constitutional rights and contribute to the democratisation process of the country without destroying economic facilities and affecting the very survival of the country. After the training, many young people expressed their regrets and promised to not take part in such destructive protests again, by saying in Amharic “አይደገምም” (“ayedegemem”, meaning “it will not happen again”). After a thorough assessment of the situation, the secretariat announced that the State of Emergency will be extended for four months. It is to be recalled that the public opinion on wether to lift the state of emergency or not shows that 82 percent of those who participated on the survey are in favour of maintaining the decree.

Dialogue between political parties Though the Ethiopian state has more than three thousand years of history, its experience of democratic governance is very recent. For the past two decades, the country has been striving to introduce a multiparty electoral democratic system by establishing democratic institutions. According to the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia , there are 79 political parties at national and regional levels that have been registered and competing at the elections either as individual political parties or as fronts, coalitions or unions. So far, the country has experienced five rounds of regional and national elections, that helped the country’s efforts to realize electoral democracy. During the last round of national elections, the ruling party won 500 seats out of 547 parliamentary seat, while the remaining 47 seats were won by the Stakeholders Party from the five regional states (Afar, Benishangul, Gambella, Harari and Somali). This victory of the ruling party can be explained by several factors: the first-past-the-post electoral system, the successive economic and social developments achieved by the coalition as well as the serious division among the opposition political parties. In the last election in 2015, nearly four million people have

“The political consultations included five rounds of negotiations and all 21 political parties have submitted their proposals to the House of Peoples Representative on how to make the debate and the dialogue more effective and efficient” voted for the opposition, but failed to secure the 50 percent of the votes required to win a seat. During the opening ceremony of the joint parliamentary session of the HPR and House of Federation, H.E. Dr Mulatu Teshome, President of the FDRE, made an inaugural speech focusing on the need to reform the electoral law and electoral regulations to accommodate the voices of the opposition and expand the political space in the country. The ruling party has also created institutions to strengthen the capacity of democratic institutions like the Human Right Commission, the Ombudsman, Office of the Federal Auditor General and the Federal Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission. Furthermore, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) has launched a political dialogue and negotiation with 21 political parties, including opposition parties that did not sign the Political

Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen at the discussion between political parties

April - May - June 2017

Discussion between political parties Party Code of Conduct. This political parties dialogue can be seen as one of the reform initiatives taken to respond the public demand for more political inclusiveness and that will further contribute to the democratization process of the country. The political consultations included five rounds of negotiations and all 21 political parties have already submitted their proposals to the House of Peoples Representative on how to manage the debate and the dialogue more effective and efficient. The proposal contains issues like who will lead the parties debate, who will give a press briefing to the medias and who will participate as a witness during the debate. Political parties have agreed to develop a common framework document to guide the upcoming negotiation on a number of policy issues. The ruling party expressed its readiness to take the feedbacks and comments from the negotiations to adjust some legislations and regulations under each policy

“The government of Ethiopia has allocated around 10 billion birr (500 million dollars) to a Youth Revolving Fund to create job opportunities to the youth throughout the nation”

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areas and to correct issues related to the implementations of its policies. The main opposition party, Medrek, defined its objective as resolving the problems of political space in the country, while the Geda political party stated that its main objective is to resolve the unemployment problems of the youth. During the political parties’ discussions, the ruling party EPRDF stated that the debate had to be all inclusive and should open debate to all regional and national political parties legally registered by the National Electoral Board of Ethiopia. However, Medrek’s views differed, as they suggested that only six political parties should participate in the debate. They finally agreed that only three representatives from each nationally registered political party would participate in the debate. Until now, the political parties negotiation has been positive. All parties have agreed on the procedural aspects to begin the actual policy debate. Debates were calm, inclusive and included compromises, which is essential for the long-term democratisation processes of the country. Furthermore, the political parties established a Joint Executive Committee with seven members mandated to develop a common framework document that will serve as a guide for the policy negotiations between the parties. Other issues agreed on include the objectives of the negotiations, which political parties will participate in the debate, the agendas of the negotiation, the designation of speakers and leadership during the negotiations, the role of observers, ethics and discipline of the negotiations and logistics and administrative issues. While the ruling party is flexible to the extent to negotiate with the opposition as a group or individually and to leave the role of moderating to the other parties, as politics is a sovereign and internal affair, the role of mediation should be left to Ethiopians.

Deep renewal and civil services evaluation Following violent protests in some parts of the country, the government made a detailed analysis and promised to address the root causes of the dissatisfaction. These include first a lack of good governance, especially in the services delivery areas. Sectorial reform activities were quickly launched in response to the problem and have continued all over in the country, up to district level. The government has developed a framework document and all the public servants, including those at desks officer level, had to make a self-evaluation on the role they have played with regards to aggravating the public grievances in terms of corruption and lack of providing fair and just services to the ordinary citizen. Hundreds of public servants and government officials involved in rent-seeking and corruption activities were held accountable following investigation by law enforcement bodies. Officials who did not provide the expected services were removed from their positions. Moreover, millions of birr and thousands of hectares of inappropriately transferred land and other public properties were returned to the people and to the government. The evaluation also led to a reshuffling of ministerial posts at national and local district levels. The government of Ethiopia has identified areas of corruption and rent seeking activities such as land and its leasing to investors, over and under estimations of revenue, and grand government procurements. The Oromia regional state, where some of the mass protests happened, led an inclusive public consultation up to local level, identified the individuals who aggravated the protests and held them accountable. According to the Oromia Regional State Communication Office, 14,000 political leaders were removed from their responsibilities due to lack of capacity, corruption and other rent-seeking activities. 250,000 hectares of land and around 7 million birr, two buildings and around 40 houses were confiscated and returned to the public. The Amhara Regional State also made an intensive evaluation that began by reshuffling the regional leaders up to the local level and removed around 1,300 local administrative and held some of them accountable. The South Nation, Nationalities and Peoples and Tigray Regional State have also made an intensive evaluation up to individual level and get rid of hundreds of local leaders and civil servants to resolve the good governance problems and the lack of fair economic distributions by making the corrupted officials accountable to justice.

Final preparations to implement the Youth Revolving Fund Even though Ethiopia’s rapid economic growth has been creating one million job per year and the vigorous creation of Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) extricated thousands of youth out of poverty in rural and urban areas, one of the grievances of the youth involved in the protests concerned job opportunities and demanding more economic benefits. Therefore, the government of Ethiopia has allocated around one billion dollars (both from Federal and Regional States’ sources) to a Youth Revolving Fund to create job

opportunities for young people throughout the nation, along with political reforms. A National Committee chaired by Mr. Demeke Mekonen, Deputy Prime Minister, was established to follow up the implementation of the fund. The National Committee engaged with the responsible regional officials and stakeholders, including local civil society organizations, to discuss how to properly implement the fund to make sure it equally benefits all the youth. According to the National Bank of Ethiopia, 3,900 branch offices and other 1,700 micro finance institutions in the country are ready to provide financial and technical assistance and counselling to the youth to implement these projects. Furthermore, the Deputy Prime Minister has expanded the scope of the projects by providing training, granting working sheds in urban areas and farmland in rural areas and granting financial allocation which have already benefited 2.9 million youths throughout the country.

Conclusion The recent violent protests not only cost hundreds of lives and inflicted damages in the tourism and investment sectors, but also temporarily affected the image of the country.

However, the peace and stability as well as the tourism flows and the economic growth of the country were maintained thanks to the effective implementation of the state of emergency with the collaboration of the people. FDI flow even increased by 35 percent in the last six months compared to the same period last year. Though under state of emergency, the country has hosted major regional and international conferences as well as several business meetings, which testifies of the peace and tranquillity of the country. The youth who were involved in the protests are getting back to the society and playing a positive role by starting small and medium businesses. Political parties, for their part, yet to be seen though, have further agreed to modify rules, laws and regulations, build up democratic relationships among themselves and have agreed to provide the people with alternative policy options and help their constituencies to choose each party based on policy options, to increase the national consensus and the contribution of political parties to further strengthen the multiparty political system in the country. Political parties have now to show more readiness by going beyond their individual political party interests. They should prioritize national interests by respecting the agreed principles of negotiations with due respect and tolerance among each other. The government of Ethiopia has continued its deep reform activities in the civil services sectors and has obtained remarkable outcomes in addressing the root causes of the protests such as lack of good governances down to the local level. The political parties’ negotiation is expected to expand and sustain the democratization process, for the prevalence of peace, stability and the economic developments of the country. It is also expected to increase the national consensus on various national issues, as democratization is a long-term process that needs the contributions of all political actors and strong democratic institutions.

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April - May - June 2017

Ethiopia-EU cooperation

Migration crisis: The need for a candid engagement Since the beginning of the current migration crisis, several measures have been agreed by the EU partners to address the root causes of migration. However, the actions implemented so far have not been responding effectively to the mounting migration pressure. To really address the issue, Europe should look at Africa beyond the current problems and crisis faced by the continent.

4th EU-Africa Summit in Brussels on 2-3 April 2014 The history of migration is as old as that of humanity. It already existed in the past, is still a very noticeable phenomenon today, and it will continue to exist in the future, notably in countries undergoing traumatic economic and political transformations, where there is conflict, persecution, where individuals are in search of better life elsewhere.

Current measures are insufficient Acknowledging this reality and in order to address the root cause of the current migration problem, the meeting between the European Union (EU) and African Heads of States and Governments in April 2014 in Brussels under the theme “Investing in people, prosperity and peace” adopted a Joint declaration on mobility and agreed to prepare an Action Plan for the period 2014-2017. In this declaration, they agreed to: “…..foster synergies between migration and development, including by reducing the costs of remittances, enhancing the role and engagement of the diaspora and consolidating the African Institute for Remittances. To better organize

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intra and inter-regional labour mobility and that of business persons. To enhance cooperation to address trafficking in human beings, notably by strengthening partnership and cooperation on prevention, protection and prosecution. To cooperate on irregular migration, addressing all its relevant aspects, including strengthened migration management, return and readmission as well as the promotion of alternatives to irregular migration. And finally, to work together in the field of international protection and asylum, and towards promoting respect of the human rights of migrants.” (Article 36) Even though the level of migration flows in 2014 had not yet reached height they would attain in subsequent years, the problem was well articulated and indicated possible remedies that could be used in the current migration crisis. However, the main problem has since then been laying in the implementation of decisions taken. Later in November 2015, leaders of the two continents gathered in Malta and adopted five pillars and 16 priority areas to address migration-related problems and established a 1.8 billion euros EU Trust Fund for Africa to finance projects to implement these priorities in 33 African countries. Nearly a year and half after the Malta Summit,

the operational committee established to govern the Trust fund approved nearly €1.589 billion under three windows, namely the Sahel-Lake Chad, the Horn of Africa and the North Africa windows. Of the approved fund, projects worth of 600 million euros (37.75%) have been contracted out and only 163 million euros (10.25%) of the total approved has been spent. This clearly shows the complexity and slowness of this process which involves several countries It has also to be noted that the implementation of nearly 50% of the projects was given to NGOs, International Organizations and EU Member States. Local institutions that could have used this opportunity to build their capacity will therefore miss this chance. Moreover, despite the emphasis given during both meetings, efforts made to promote legal migration and to encourage remittances were minimal. Of course, many positive steps were taken in this framework. Several discussions and researches which could contribute to address migration problem were organized. The cooperation in the area of prevention, protection and prosecution is also worth mentioning. But if one raises the question whether the activities taken so far are responding to the mounting migration pressure, particularly in countries of origin, the answer is clearly negative. In addition to that, the mass deportations, construction of fences, xenophobia and growing nationalism prevailing today in Europe have raised scepticism on Africa’s side on wether the EU is still cooperating with Africa on the issue of migration with candour. More recently, the affirmation by the High Representative Federica Mogherini in Malta during the Senior officials meeting on the 8th of February 2017 that Europe “unlike others, will not build a wall”, the announcement of a European external investment plan (whose implementation is yet to be seen) and the job compact initiated by the Commission were some indications that the EU is willing to extend a credible offer to Africa. However, this is not enough.

Looking at Africa beyond the current problems Europe should look at Africa beyond the current problems and crisis faced by the continent. Those problems will be overcome, but to do so, Africa needs a credible friend to help at this critical moment. For historical and geographical reasons, Europe stands on the top to do this. After the end of the Second World War, Europe was as devastated, if not more devastated than many African and Middle East countries today. There are arguments that both migration and refugees played a significant role in Europe’s reconstruction after the war. The actions taken to reconstruct the continent were far-sighted, and bore fruits. The stable and prosperous Europe of today is in part the result of such courageous and generous initiatives by countries both inside and outside Europe. As Europe was saved by the implementation of the Marshall plan, so could Africa. That is why Germany established an “African Marshall plan”. Jean-Pierre Lehmann in his article, “Refugee and migrants: Europe’s past History and future challenges”, articulately

said that “the current economic hardships, social transformations, political oppressions, ethnic hostilities, religious and racial persecutions, and traumas of wars that are occurring at various degrees of intensity in the Middle East, Africa and parts of Asia in many fundamental ways reflect what occurred in the not too distant past in Europe.” The important lesson to draw here is that Europe was largely able to overcome tremendous challenges, build a stable and prosperous continent and overcome the traumas of WWII thanks to the Marshall Plan. Migration problems in Africa remain largely the responsibility of African countries. Europe cannot and should not fix those problems on behalf of African authorities.

The EU and Africa can either join hands to fix the problem in the foreseeable future, or Europe can wait until African countries fix their problem, regardless of the time it may take, while investing huge budgets to close its borders in the meantime. A viable solution would be to take multi-action efforts ranging from generous support to boost Africa’s economy through FDI and financial support to infrastructure construction, to easing the currently difficult EU trade policies to help African farmers and manufacturers increase their production, expand their activities and employ more people. Among the critical missing links in the development of most African countries is the absence of skilled manpower who can adopt or innovate in new technologies and improve the way things are done locally. For this to happen, the EU and its Member States have a moral obligation to offer more scholarships and avail encouragement for those who pursue their education in Europe to return back to their countries and help themselves and their people. EU and AU leaders are scheduled to meet in Abidjan in

“Europe should look at Africa beyond the current problems and crisis faced by the continent” November 2017. Of the potential agenda items to be discussed, migration will be on the top. The real question is: will the leaders as usual, simply “call”, “reiterate”, “acknowledge” the need for action, or will they dig into the core of the matter and come up with workable policies aimed at opening EU’s markets to Africa, support Africa private sector both in finance and networking, and encourage EU’s investors to invest in Africa? Focusing on business ties will certainly benefit both continents. Strong and flexible ties can be regarded, more than anything else, as the guarantee to quell the irregular migration crisis looming in Europe and Africa. The EU should look at tomorrow’s Africa as a potential market for Europe, both in terms of import and export instead of barely interacting with the world’s future most populated continent as a region in need of help.

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Ethiopia in the world

Dr. Tedros at the WHO: Ethiopian expertise going global The next Director-General of the World Health Organization will have to face several challenges, including new global health threats, but also to reform and give a new impetus to the organization. Dr. Tedros precisely combines the balance of technical and political competences that can help the WHO to move forward.

The next Director-General of the World Health Organization will be chosen in May 2017 following a final selection among the three remaining candidates. One European, one African, and one South Asian are competing to succeed to Dr. Margaret Chan, whose second term as WHO DirectorGeneral ends on the 30th of June 2017. Ethiopia’s nominee, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, distinguishes himself from his contenders in several respects. Leveraging from a rich professional experience, the sole African candidate of the selection holds a PhD in Community Health and benefits from a dual professional path both as health expert and seasoned diplomat. During his tenure as one of the longest serving Health ministers in Africa, he overcame some of the country’s greatest health challenges and saw dramatic gains in indicators such as child and maternal health. Now, Dr. Tedros seeks to make his efforts global by using his unique background and expertise to become the first African Director-General of the World Health Organization and contribute to its revival.

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Lifelong commitment to Health Dr. Tedros’s personal and professional paths reflect his lifelong dedication to improving healthcare. As a young man, Dr. Tedros saw the impact of disease outbreaks and poor health care first-hand, in particular the suffering and deaths caused by malaria in his community. He later unsurprisingly chose to study the effects of malaria as his PhD dissertation’s topic. In 2001, while he was the head of the Tigray Regional Health Bureau, Dr. Tedros was credited with making a 22.3 percent reduction in AIDS prevalence in the region and a 68.5 percent reduction in meningitis cases. After being appointed Minister of Health in 2005, he implemented an ambitious health reform agenda. During the 2005-2008 period alone, the Ethiopian Ministry of Health built 4,000 health centres, trained and deployed more than 30,000 health extension workers and developed a new cadre of hospital management professionals. These impressive results also helped Ethiopia to achieve almost all of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): maternal mortality was reduced by 71 percent, HIV mortality was

reduced by 90 percent and under-five mortality decreased by two-third. During his time as Minister of Health of Ethiopia, Tedros took part in several global health initiatives and made a profound impact in the global health architecture by leading, as a board chair, many global institutions such as UNAIDS, Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health and Roll Back Malaria. In 2009, after assuming leadership of the Global fund, a partnership organization designed to accelerate the end of AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria as epidemics, he notoriously turned the thencriticized institution into an up and running one. During his two-year term, Dr Tedros guided the Global Fund to address significant challenges and to make important decisions that have led to the development of a comprehensive reform agenda and a more efficient and effective Global Fund.

A Global Vision for challenges ahead In previous decades, the World Health Organization has played a crucial role in achieving major milestones in combatting HIV, tuberculosis and malaria, and reducing maternal, child and infant mortality. Scientific, technological and social progress over the last century have made the lives of millions of people longer and healthier. However, the world is now facing daunting challenges and unprecedented health threats. Unhealthy lifestyles are leading to rising obesity, while globalization has made the transmission of infectious disease pathogens easier. Climate and environmental factors are likely to increase the frequency of deadly phenomena such as the 2003 heat wave that claimed the lives of 70.000 persons. Between 2030 and 2050, climate change is expected to cause approximately 250,000 additional deaths per year and the direct damage costs to health is estimated to be between two and four billion dollars a year by 2030. The World Health Organisation, which essentially operates as an international organization, with the World Health Assembly, WHO’s supreme decision-making body, at its center, will also inevitably be affected by the rapidly evolving world architecture. Recent events such as the UK’s decision to leave the European Union and the arrival of a new administration in the United States have shaken up old alliances and generated uncertainties for the future. Therefore, WHO’s incoming Director-General will need to balance scientific priorities with the politics of members states and donors, and should not only possess experience in the health sector, but also political knowledge and diplomatic skills. Dr. Tedros precisely possesses the balance of technical and political competence that can help the WHO to move forward. His experience at the Ministry of Health and of Ethiopia’s representation in global health initiatives afford him valuable insights that he brings to bear on challenges facing the WHO. Throughout his career, Dr. Tedros has also pursued creative new fund-raising schemes to make the institutions he led sustainable, a crucial ability since financing is often cited as one of WHO’s greatest challenges. He is already known for being a coalition builder with a

“As Director-General, Dr. Tedros’ vision, collaborative approach and proven effectiveness will certainly help WHO better protect the health of all people” collaborative, context-specific, and solutions-oriented approach to global health and international relations. As Director-General, Dr. Tedros’ vision, collaborative approach and proven effectiveness will certainly help WHO better protect the health of all people.

Africa’s Turn For the past months, the word in international circles was that it was Africa’s turn, as an African has never led the WHO – or any important UN body for that matter. Indeed, things are looking promising for Dr. Tedros. Ethiopia’s candidate has first won the endorsement of the African Union’s Executive Council and is the only prospective candidate from the continent. Dr. Tedros was shortlisted as the front runner out of six candidates through two rounds of secret voting, collecting most votes during both rounds during the 140th meeting of the Executive board in January 2017. A winning of the African candidate would have substantial symbolic and practical consequences. First, this would not only be an acknowledgment of Dr. Tedros’ innovative efforts, but of the current change sweeping the African continent. Overall, the continent achieved average real annual GDP growth of 5.4 percent between 2000 and 2010. African countries are at the forefront when it comes to peacekeeping and diplomatic negotiations in war-torn regions. Moreover, Africa is the continent most afflicted by potential international public health concerns, but recent cases such the WHO’s management of the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa was perceived as inept and showed the WHO’s vulnerabilities when it comes to early detection and rapid response in Africa. For its part, Dr. Tedros, as Minister of Foreign Affairs, played a pivotal leadership role in the Africa Union’s response to the Ebola epidemic by facilitating greater country ownership and urging countries to adhere to the WHO guidelines. As an experienced reformer acquainted with the intricacies of global diplomacy and coming from exemplary high-performing country, there is no doubt that Dr. Tedros will deliver in boosting the surveillance system and the communication between countries, while seeking input and consultation about how the organization can be reformed.

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Education and research

Assessment and perspectives of a successful academic cooperation After two successful Institutional University Collaborations (IUCs) between the five Flemish universities and Mekele and Jimma universities, two new IUCs are now on track with Bahir Dar and Arba Minch universities. This cooperation is coordinated through the Flemish Interuniversity umbrella organization for development cooperation, VLIR-UOS. The VLIR-UOS cooperation framework includes the provision of an extensive scholarship scheme and implementation of inter-university projects that are formulated to develop the teaching, research, institutional management and community services of partner country universities. The projects support the development of high-level scientific knowledge and skills through the collaboration between Belgian and Ethiopian universities, among others. This unique arrangement has enabled Flemish Universities to share and transfer their expertise, experience and know-how in fields like agricultural technology, public health, water and sanitation sciences, natural resource conservation with two Ethiopian

Universities, Mekele (2003-2014) and Jimma (20062016), selected under the first Institutional University Collaboration (IUC) framework. Today, this first IUC is currently in its phase-out, but cooperation will continue for research and educational capacities of Jimma University. Two new IUC’s have also been approved between Bahir Dar University and Arba Minch University and the five Flemish universities, coordinated by Ghent University and KU Leuven respectively. We interviewed Pr. Dr. Luc Duchateau (Gent University), Pr. Dr. Roel Merckx (Leuven University) and Pr. Dr. Jan Nyssen (Gent University) to ask their assessments about these past programs and their insights about the future IUCs and cooperation.

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“We are happy to collaborate and support Ethiopian universities” WHAT ARE THE AREAS OF COOPERATION FOR THE IUC BETWEEN JIMMA AND FLEMISH UNIVERSITIES? The Institutional University Collaboration project between Jimma University and the different Flemish universities under the umbrella of the Flemish Interuniversity Council (VLIR-UOS) lasted from 2006 to 2016 and is curretnly in its phase-out. The program included many projects across about 30 disciplines, each involving a number of PhD students. The general focus of these projects was about remediating the side-effects of the Gilgel Gibe Dam. Fifty PhDs will have been awarded in the framework of this program, some from Flemish universities, and some jointly between Jimma and Ghent university. We had seven projects: 1. Zoonotic and animal diseases with subprojects on trypanosomosis, mastitis, animal nutrition and aquaculture. Tryanosomosis or sleeping sickness is epidemic in cattle in many locations. The PhD students studied the resistance of the parasite against trypanocidal drugs. Drug resistance abounds but nonetheless the drug still helps an animal to deal with the disease and survive. 2. Child health and nutrition with sub-projects on food supplement and psychometric stimulation. Malnourished children obviously need food supplementation but also

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Pr. Dr. Luc Duchateau, Gent University. Fields of research: statistics and biostatistics, malariology, Coordinator of the IUC with Jimma University.

psychometric stimulation, as starvation also leads to mental retardation. 3. Ecology with sub-projects on forest and aquatic ecology and environmental sanitation. One of the sub-projects focused on biodiversity of coffee. In fact, the genetic pool of coffee is more diversified in Ethiopia than in the rest of the world, as coffee originates from Ethiopia! It is important to conserve the gene pool. 4. Infectious diseases with sub-projects on tuberculosis, HIV and malaria, soil-transmitted helminths (worms) and drug quality. The malaria research led to an important

finding that completely changed the way the malaria vector is controlled in Ethiopia. It was shown that the DDT insecticide used until then against the malaria mosquito was inefficient because the mosquito was completely resistant and therefore was banned in a new regulation by the Health Ministry. Research is continuing now to find new ways of controlling the malaria mosquito, mainly based on zooprohylaxis. Although it is often assumed that dams like the Gilgel Gibe dam act as large breeding sites for mosquitoes, the Gilgel Gibe dam had no impact on malaria incidence. 5. Soil with sub-projects on soil fertility and sedimentation. Erosion makes that rivers are filled with sediment which eventually can lead to siltation of the dam. PhD students investigated which locations contributed most to this siltation process and worked out solutions to avoid excessive sedimentation and erosion, for example by growing special trees or grasses to fortify the river banks. 6. Statistics. A master of biostatistics was set up at Jimma university, which was the first to be established in Ethiopia. About a hundred students have already finished their Masters in this programme. 7. ICT and library. Due to the trainings set up in this project, Jimma University is at the forefront of the country when it comes to ICT. The IUC-JU programme also established local PhD schools, notably in ecology, horticulture, infectious diseases and nutrition, so that academic staff members can also obtain their PhD in Ethiopia or a double-degree PhD from Jimma University and a Flemish university.

in tuberculosis, in collaboration with the Ethiopian government, a molecular biology lab, a malaria lab and a drug quality lab that is already WHO pre-qualified and should be soon qualified by WHO to test the quality of drugs in the whole country. It will be a decisive step for the Ethiopian pharmaceutical sector, since it will be the first WHO-certified lab in Ethiopia. The Ministry of Education wanted to go ahead with such activities after the IUC-JU programme was finished and proposed a Tripartite Agreement between Jimma University, Ghent University and the Ministry of Education of Ethiopia. This agreement will enable to start up joint PhDs where the Ministry of Education of Ethiopia sponsors the PhD student. Within 2017, about 25 students will start but the number will grow to about 100 students within the coming four years. PhD students will be selected from the academic staff of all Ethiopian universities, whereas the local supervisor will come from Jimma University. WHAT ARE THE MUTUAL BENEFITS? The IUC-JU programme has given me a lot of scientific and human joy. Every time again it gives deep satisfaction to have an Ethiopian student finishing his PhD knowing that it will strengthen Jimma University. Much of the research that is done in Ethiopia is quite unique and it allows us also with simple interventions to have much more impact than our research results in Belgium typically have. It is also benefiting Ethiopia, where PhD students are worth gold. We are therefore happy to collaborate and support Ethiopian universities in the two areas in which Flemish universities excel: research and teaching.

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The IUC-JU programme also built substantial infrastructure. In addition to ICT, we also established a national lab

“The impact of some projects has been enormous” WHAT ARE THE COOPERATION’S PROJECT AREAS? The main goal is to address the needs of communities in the Southern Rift Valley of Ethiopia, and improving ecosystem services.

The VLIR-UOS has a specific framework. It is about cooperation, not about organizing a paid course. All parties have a stake in the programs. For the Belgian side, the essential part is the academic research in scientific fields such as science, agronomy, food security, water resources, environmental conservation where the challenges are huge in Ethiopia. The conflict between an increasing population, expansion of farmland and conservation of natural ecosystems, puts pressure on resources like water which are very important in Ethiopia. It is natural that we seek cooperation with academics to jointly set up research programmes that are of benefit for both parties. The IUC programme with Arba Minch University focuses mainly on capacity-building. The number of universities is increasing rapidly in Ethiopia. However, the number of trained staff is limited. Training in order to organize education which is research-based is the main reason for

Pr. Dr. Roel Merckx, KU Leuven University. Division Soil and Water Management, Department Earth and Environmental Sciences; Coordinator of the IUC with Arba Minch University. setting up this cooperation. In the first year, there will be 13 PhD students in the program, and they are the core of the program. In these programs, students focus on field research in Ethiopia on – among others −nature conservation, agriculture, soil science, sociology and anthropology. They do their experimental work and survey in Ethiopia. Hence, their stay in Belgium is limited, first because it is expensive, and secondly because the goal is to empower them to do research in their country. This is why this program is so relevant for the Belgian development cooperation: the money is going to those who need it.

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WHAT ARE THE MUTUAL BENEFITS? Benefits for universities in Belgium are real: expanding knowledge on major global challenges, expanding research capacity on the ground and learning how to ask the right questions. We are dependent on the Ethiopian partners and PhDs to teach us and introduce us to the context. On our part, we can share our experience about scientific standards and expose them to state-of-the-art technologies and information. This turns this partnership into an excellent symbiosis. I see another important benefit: thanks to this kind of exposure, I think that my teaching to Belgians students is improving. The relevancy and quality of what I teach is improving, because of this field experience on the topics. I can teach based on real-life situations and personal impressions. Only for this aspect already, it is really important that Belgium continues sponsoring this programme, because it lifts the quality of higher education in Belgium to a higher level. VLIR-UOS programs are rather modest finance-wise compared to large programs such as those set up by USAID or the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. We have a budget of 500,000 euros per year for six different projects. It is comparatively little money in comparison with our ambitions. Yet, the money does not tell the complete story as our programs are based on large amounts of good will and commitment. The IUC with Mekele that started 12 years ago has been a real success in all the mentioned aspects. Soon, our university will visit Mekele to discuss continuing collaboration, for instance with all the KU Leuven alumni. DID PAST PROJECTS SUCCESSFULLY IMPROVED THE LIVES OF THE COMMUNITIES? There is a well-documented story of the VLIR-IUC program with Mekele to improve food-security. The impact has been

enormous. It changed the university, boosted the research findings and it changed the life of communities. Local people are still very grateful when we pass by. Before this program, there were each year about four or five months where the food was not sufficient in these communities. Today, this problem is resolved, and they can grow enough food to sell the surplus. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ETHIOPIAN ACADEMIC SECTOR? I have seen the government’s five-years plan for the education. It is very ambitious and based on correct principles like gender equality and increasing the number of PhDs in the professorship. It is a very good policy document. The challenges, of course, are huge: the number of people wanting to have a degree is enormous, and there are concerns on how to make sure there is a sufficient number of qualified teachers. Kenya, for example, has a similar problem. It is not easy to fill the positions with qualified professors. But the policy document is very good, like other policies of the government: the swift reply to the invitation from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCC) to submit the so called ‘Intended Nationally Determined Contributions’ (INDC) to substantially reduce its Greenhouse Gas emissions was commended by Europe. From my limited experience with Arba Minch University so far, I can tell you that I am quite impressed from the level of cooperation. The promises and the deadlines are being kept by our Ethiopian partners, and this is quite promising.

I have experience with several programs in Vietnam, Congo, Tanzania, Kenya and Nigeria among others. In terms of making solid appointments and agreements, as well as to have committed responses, Ethiopia is among the best in Africa. Of course, like in Kenya, it depends from case to case. Ethiopia still has a huge gender imbalance. But so far, I am very pleased with the way we cooperate. In other countries, it can be slower and more difficult.

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“Universities in Ethiopia have developed tremendously” WHAT ARE THE AREAS OF COOPERATION FOR THE IUC BETWEEN BAHIR DAR AND FLEMISH UNIVERSITIES? I would say there are two main goals: one goal is to have a cooperation between our university and Ethiopia, and a second goal is to improve the research capacity. Bahir Dar University for example has a large staff, but relatively few of them have a PhD degree. In this cooperation, we are going to train 17 Bahir Dar University staff to the level of PhD. The research itself is mostly related to development issues. Many research projects are related to the land, to the water, to the socioeconomic, environment and food processing. Therefore, this research has a direct relevance for the community and contributes to a sustainable livelihood, while on the same time uplifting the capacity of Bahir Dar University. For example, we had a project with Bahir Dar University about Lake Tana where we tried to calculate the water balance: how much water is coming in, how much is

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Prof. Dr. Jan Nyssen, Gent University. Teaching: Geomorphology, Hydrology, Physical Environment and Development, Microclimatology, and Regional Geomorphology. Research (mainly in Ethiopia): identification and quantification of changes in the coupled system “humansenvironment”Coordinator of the IUC with BahirDar University. evaporating, pumped out, or diverted for hydro-power? Another question was: how much sediment is entering into the lake? Two PhDs and six MSC holders worked on the question. At the end, we were able to organize a big

“This research has a direct relevance for the community and contributes to a sustainable livelihood” Pr. Dr. Jan Nyssen international academic conference on the Lake Tana to show the findings. More than 100 academic guests and other stakeholders came from Ethiopia and many other countries to attend the conference, and a book was published, both in Amharic and in English. This conference was an opportunity to share the outcome of our research both to the decision makers, other stakeholders and to the scientific community. WHAT ARE THE MUTUAL BENEFITS? The professors involved in such a program are interested to contribute to the development of Ethiopia and generally they are also «Africa-minded», with a personal commitment to make things better. But we also see a lot of opportunities, for the research that we could not do otherwise. It enables us to do research about the landscape, to get a real natural environment. For example, opening a soil profile for some research is very difficult in Belgium, both to find a good location and in terms of procedures. In Ethiopia, the landscape is very favourable for this kind of research and the observation can start very soon if you have good communication with the local people. As a university, cooperation with Ethiopia is very positively evaluated, as we get very good MSc and PhD students. This is important, since we have our objectives like having strong research results, publishing papers, etc. PhD candidates

from Ethiopia have a good success rate. It has maybe to do with the fact that Ethiopia is a big country, where the selection is very competitive, with high selection criteria. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE ETHIOPIAN ACADEMIC SECTOR? Since I started visiting Ethiopia in 1994, universities have developed very rapidly, in line with other developments in society. The difference between that time and today is tremendous. When we started working in the rural areas in Ethiopia, at that time, we only found 3rd or 4th grade students to assist us. Today, university students are taking part in our research. There is a school in every village now, and girls go to school although they still drop out a bit early. The fast development of the Mekele University is a good example. Twenty-two years ago, they were lecturing under the tree. Today, they have numerous university buildings, and the campuses keep on expanding. At the time, the professors were lecturing based on case-studies from the US, while today they have case-studies and examples from Ethiopia. In general, you see there is a lot of capacity in the country. You see it when you travel: there are dams, electricity, roads. A lot of people are being trained. In the field of agriculture for example: the mapping of the soil fertility in the country enables fertilizer recommendations to the level of every farmland. Such developments indicate that there are trained people available to support it. Of course, this fast development comes with challenges. The intake of students is increasing tremendously, maybe even too fast; the buildings are not sufficient for the needs. When you enter a university, you have the feeling to enter a building site, with lorries driving up and down. The expansion is continuous, but of course the infrastructure needs to be built fast to meet the needs.

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Invitation to the launching event of the IUC with Bahir Dar University in January 2017

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Business

The blooming horticulture industry of Ethiopia Ethiopia is blessed with many advantages when it comes to horticulture. In the span of ten years, the country was able to transform its flower sector from a tiny sector into a 225 million dollars cut flowers export business with many opportunities for further growth. Since the downfall of the Derg regime in 1991, the economic policies and strategies of the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia have brought about enormous developments in the economic sector. Horticulture can be counted as one of these success stories, as Ethiopia has transformed its flower sector from a tiny sector into a 225 million dollars cut flowers export business within a span of ten years. Until recently, the Ethiopian horticulture sector was mainly based on traditional agriculture. The introduction of mechanized agricultural practices boosted the growth of the industry, which has now become a significant contributor to national export earnings, and to the private sector development in the country.

Favourable conditions for horticulture Ethiopia is blessed with many advantages when it comes to horticulture. The country has a favourable climate with diverse agro-climatic zones and long growing seasons which offer ideal conditions for growing a wide array of fruits, vegetables, flowers, spices and herbs. Moreover, about 12,797 hectares of suitable land is available for horticulture, with only 11 percent of this surface is already used for horticulture. Finally, a large workforce is available. The sector has already created about 183,000 jobs, out of which 70 percent are for women. Other advantages include readily accessible water for irrigation (including 125 billion cubic meters of surface water and 2.6 billion cubic meter of ground water), cold chain facilities at three international airports (Bole, Bahir Dar and Hawassa), an extended rail transport network and the incentive package provided by the government, that have all contributed to the phenomenal growth of the horticulture sector in the last decade.

Overview of the sectorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s growth The Ethiopian horticultural sector is composed of fruits, vegetables, flowers, herbs and spices. Although the sector is only about a decade old, mechanized horticulture production has shown a great increase in farm number, revenue

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generation and volume of export. There are currently over 130 investments in the sector, made up of local investors (56), foreign direct investors (64) and joint venture partnership (10). Flower farms occupy 1,426 hectares, while fruits and vegetables take up 11,371 hectares. The sector provides employment for approximately 183,000 persons and has been growing exponentially, generating 275 million dollars in 2015-2016 compared to 28.5 million dollars in 2004-2005. This makes the sector the fifth largest foreign revenue generator for the country.

Floriculture Ethiopia now has over 130 active flower-growing farms and is the fourth largest non-EU exporter of cut-flower to the European Union and the second largest flower exporter from Africa. Floriculture has contributed to 225 million dollars, or 80 percent of the total foreign revenue earning of the sector. The majority of the production is made of roses (about 80 percent of the production), and the country is noted for the high quality, long stems, large buds and vibrant colour of its roses. In addition to the rose farms, five farms are engaged in the production of cuttings and eight farms produce a variety of other types of flower crops, including gypsophilia, hypericum, limonium, chrysanthemum, carnations, static, pot plants and a range of summer flowers.

Fruits Ethiopia has a long history of producing fruits in a traditional way for home consumption and export to neighbouring countries. The main fruits produced and exported by the country are mangoes, banana, papaya, avocados, citrus and pineapple. However, recent larger scale investments in fruit growing have favoured the production of new crops such as strawberries, table grapes and passion fruits, and in addition pears, plums as emerging fruits. There are currently eight operators engaged in large scale and nontraditional fruit crop production, which is seen as an area that has enormous potential for development.

Vegetables

Market proximity and destination

Vegetables grown in Ethiopia include, among others, green beans, snow peas, broccoli, asparagus, cherry tomatoes, cauliflower, eggplant and cucumber, onion and garlic. Much of the land available for growing fruits and vegetables in the country is suitable for organic certification. In 2014, there were 22 vegetable farms throughout the country â&#x20AC;&#x201C; 16 owned by local entrepreneurs, five financed by foreign direct investments, and one joint venture.

In addition to its many natural gifts, Ethiopia benefits from its location, close to the markets of Europe and the Middle East, and possesses good freight links to all major and emerging markets including Western Europe, the Middle and Far East, Russia and the USA.

Herbs and spices

Fruits and vegetables have traditionally been exported by road to neighbouring countries, Somalia (56.8 percent), Djibouti and the Sudan, but increasing quantities are now also being shipped by air to the Netherlands, the UAE, the United Kingdom, Germany, Belgium, Russia and Yemen. The new fast track electric-powered railway line connecting Addis Ababa to Djibouti, other railway lines under construction and improvements to the internal highway roads will also open up opportunities for road or rail transport of production to the coast, and then sea freight to a range of market destinations.

The major spices cultivated in Ethiopia are ginger, hot pepper, fenugreek, turmeric, coriander, cumin, cardamom, and black pepper. Close to 122,700 hectares are being used for spice farming, with spice production reaching 244,000 tonnes per year. Potential areas for the cultivation of spices are the regions of Amhara, Oromia, Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Region and Gambella Region. The total potential for lowland spice farming is estimated to be 200,000 hectares. The companies already engaged in spices and herbs are highly productive and produce over 21 varieties of herbs and herbs for local consumption and export as fresh product to many international market destinations. Production standards are high and all investors in this sector comply with the Good Agricultural Practice and Food Safety Standards required for food crops entering the European market.

Currently, Ethiopian floriculture is mainly exported to the Netherlands (80.3 percent), but exports extend to France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Norway, Belgium, Sweden, UK, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Japan, USA and other EU countries.

Development of new horticulture hubs With the aim of accelerating the transformation of the horticulture industry, the Ethiopian government established new horticultural hubs at four geographical locations: Alagae, Arbaminch, Bahir Dar and Hawassa, which are conducive for investment. The four horticulture hubs identified have several competitive advantages (see table below).

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Crop plantation in Ethiopia

Incentives applicable to new horticulture hubs

Ethiopian Horticulture Producers and Exporters Association (EHPEA) closely works with the members of the association, the government and other stakeholders.

Investors in horticulture have zero tax privilege on exports. They are exempted from income tax for 8-10 years and from duties and other taxes on imports of machinery, construction materials, spare parts, raw materials and vehicles and provided with a one-stop government services and essential infrastructure. They have access to finance with loan facilities (up to 70 percent of the total investment) from the Development Bank of Ethiopia, with 30 days of loan approval and readily allocated finance. They benefit from aboundant land and water, with over 6,000 hectares of available land, 30 years of zero charge land lease, 15 days of handover period and abundance of ground and surface water.

The EHPEA code of practice introduced in 2007 has been revised and upgraded on several occasions to reflect the increasing requirements of the market and the need to maintain continuous improvement on the farms. The Code contains requirements for Good Agricultural Practices, Protection for the Environment, Employment Conditions and Staff Safety and Welfare. The benchmarking Version is 4.0 of the Code with Global GAP and the Global Social Compliance Program with a view to achieving full market recognition for the standard and reducing the audit burden on farms supplying multiple clients in the international market. EHPEA is committed to standards and employs a Team of Trainers to provide training, advice and support for farms to meet Code and other Market Label standards. In addition to contributing to the overall economic development of the country, the horticultural export industry has created job opportunities for about 183,000 people, 70 percent of whom are women. This is an important contribution to local economy, to the empowerment of women in the community and to household food security.

In terms of logistics, the national carrier, Ethiopian airlines, flies to over 98 destinations worldwide both on freighters and belly hold, with state-of-the art cooling facilities specialized in handling horticulture products.

A responsible and sustainable industry People who invest in horticulture in Ethiopia have to respect corporate social responsibility, Integrated Pest Management, code of practice and provide employment to local people. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is the farm’s sense of responsibility towards the community and environment (both ecological and social) in which they operate. It includes support of medical care via construction of farm clinics or hospital, support for education by providing training to the staff, support for construction of local schools, provision of water in rural areas, affordable meals for employees and rehabilitation. Most farms fund these activities from their farm revenue and some farms are also certified by Fair Trade labels. Integrated Pest Management, including the use of Biological Controls makes an important contribution to operator safety, the protection of the environment and the production of safe food. Many farms are applying this principle and the

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In a nutshell, looking into the untapped and lucrative opportunities and incentive packages given to the industry, foreign direct investors and the Ethiopian diaspora are invited to invest in Ethiopia in the sector in general, and in the four identified new horticulture hubs in particular, to enjoy the benefits of this growing industry. The Federal and regional institutions responsible for the horticulture sector development in Ethiopia are: Ethiopian Horticulture and Agriculture Investment Authority, Ethiopian Investment Commission, and Investment Commissions of respective Regional States. The Ethiopian Horticulture Producers and Exporters Association is a pioneer horticulture legal entity representing actors in the sector. References: Ethiopian Horticulture Producers & Exporters Association (EHPEA); Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC) database of licensed projects; All Africa “Ethiopia: Revenue of Horticulture Export Increasing”, 26 December 2014.

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Horticulture Investment Opportunities

Potential Development of Ethiopia in Horticulture

Highly Disciplined and Trainable

• Very Minimal Land Lease Rates • Ethiopian Airlines Flying to more than 98 Destinations, Close to EU & Middle E. • Sunshine throughout the year

More than 11 Million Hectare Irrigable Land April - May - June 2017

Tourism

Ethiopia was vigorously promoted at tourism fairs in Benelux countries In early 2017, the Ethiopian Embassy in Brussels in collaboration with Ethiopian Airlines, the Ethiopian Tourism Organization (ETO) and Tour Operators Association, participated to three major tourism fairs in Benelux countries to vigorously promote the country’s rich tourism destinations to the Benelux market.

Traditional coffee ceremony at the Ethiopian stand at the Utrecht Vakantiebeurs on the 10th of January 2017 Visiting Holiday fairs is an occasion for citizens of Benelux countries to get information on new destinations, booking their holidays and having a nice day out. Hence, in addition to directly taking part in these fairs directly, the Embassy has been playing a major role in facilitating the participation of several Ethiopian tour operators through active engagements with the respective organizers of the fairs. This year, the Vakantiebeurs of Utrecht (the Netherlands), the Holiday fair of Brussels and Vakanz of Luxembourg have respectively received the representation of Ethiopia with its colourful and marvellously constructed stands. Visitors were entertained with special coffee ceremonies until the last days of the fairs. In addition, cultural performances were organised in Utrecht and Brussels. This year’s

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participation was significant to robustly promote Ethiopia’s tourism destinations, as the flow of tourists declined due to the unrest that occurred in some parts of the country. The fairs aimed at propagating the message that Ethiopia has peaceful conditions for tourists visiting the country for business or leisure. The platform offered by the fairs was also significant in promoting the newly introduced Ethiopian tourism brand, dubbed as “Ethiopia Land of Origins”.

Ethiopia in Vakantiebeurs in Utrecht After three years of non-attendance, Ethiopia joined Vakantiebeurs of Utrecht held from 11 to 15 January 2017.

The organizers of the fair were delighted with the return of Ethiopiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s colourful appearance. The Embassy of Ethiopia, together with the Ethiopian Tourism Organization (ETO), Ethiopian Airlines (EAL) and five Ethiopian tour operators, took part in this major tourism and leisure fair which hosted 1,000 exhibitors and 120,000 visitors. H.E. Teshome Toga, Ambassador of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to the Benelux and Baltic countries and European Union jointly with Mr. Jemal Kidir, Deputy CEO of ETO and Mr. Bisrat Tedla, Area Manager of EAL, took part in cutting the ribbon and opened the superbly constructed Ethiopian stand for visitors. All throughout the fair, aromas of the sweet incense burning and coffee roasting with its colourful ceremony attracted visitors to pass by the stand and enjoy a cup of coffee while sitting on wooden stools. Cultural musical performance presented by the Ethiopian Diasporas living in the Netherlands warmed the heart and minds of the visitors. Meanwhile, five Ethiopian tour operating companies, namely Julian Tours, Horizon Ethiopia Tour, JM Tours, Boundless Ethiopia Tours, Abune Yemata Tours and Covenant Ethiopia Tours, were in the forefront in promoting the destinations. The same day, a press conference was organized for both Dutch and Belgian Tour operators, journalists and investors. H.E. Teshome Toga, Mr. Jemal Kidir, Mr. Bisrat Tedla and Mr. Dejan Petrovic, Ethiopian Airlines Sales and Marketing Manager for the Netherlands, gave briefings about Ethiopian tourism destinations. Ambassador Teshome presented the efforts of his government in transforming the tourism sector in relation to the Ethiopian tourism policy. He underlined the achievements of his government in developing significant infrastructures for tourism destinations via engaging the private sector. Similarly, he informed the guests regarding the unrest that occurred in some parts of the country and how it affected temporarily the flow of tourism. Realising the dividend of peace for the country in general and for tourism in particular, the government declared the state of emergency to swiftly maintain the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s long-lasting peace and security. He also indicated how the state of

From the top: opening ceremony and coffee ceremony in Utrecht; promotion in Brussels; and flags view in Leuven

April - May - June 2017

emergency facilitated an increase on tourists inflow to the country, particularly for Timket festival. On his part Mr., Jemal Kidir presented the potential of Ethiopian tourism destinations and briefed the guests on the commitment of the government in re-organising the tourism sector by establishing an independent organization mandated to develop the untapped tourism potential of the country. He has also presented the varied selection of exciting tourism destinations ranging from the natural, cultural and historic attractions of the country to its 28 tangible and intangible heritage sites and festivals. In relation to the EAL, Mr. Bisrat Tedla, and Mr. Dejan Petrovic, further informed the participants about the airlines’ 98 international destinations including 12 destinations to Europe and North America. Mr. Bisrat mentioned that Ethiopian Airlines remains one of the largest and fastestgrowing national carriers in Africa with its state-of-the-art Boeing 787 dreamliner and Airbus A350 fleet. Meanwhile, he used this platform to invite participants to fly Ethiopian Airlines. Finally, participants gave testimonies on their experiences of visiting the country and reiterated the conduciveness and peaceful situation of the country, convenient for any travels. After the briefing, guests were entertained by Ethiopian cultural music and dances. Meanwhile, the Walia Ethiopian restaurant in Breda, Netherlands, hosted a reception offering fine Ethiopian cuisine. Many Media organizations in Ethiopia and in the Netherlands covered this event. Our esteemed readers

are kindly invited to watch the videos of this event on our YouTube page: https://youtu.be/buciVlIpAZY

Ethiopia at Vakanz of Luxembourg Ethiopia has been continuously present at the Vakanz tourism fair in Luxembourg for several years. This year, the Embassy participated at Vakanz from 13-15 January, 2017 together with Ethiopian Airlines. This tourism fair hosted 200 exhibitors and 20,000 visitors. The Embassy and EAL put together their effort and funds to successfully promote the Ethiopian tourism destination to the Luxemburgish visitors. The Ethiopian stand attracted many visitors both from Luxembourg and neighbouring countries, mainly from France and Germany. The stand was the first of its kind, as it was constructed professionally and colourfully and most visitors and even the organizers were overwhelmed with the awe-inspiring pictures of destinations on the stand. The Ethiopian coffee ceremony with the roasted coffee and sweet aroma of the incense burning attracted visitors to come in and grab their cup of coffee. The coffee ceremony was carried out by an Ethiopian diaspora living in Luxembourg who actually speaks six languages. The Embassy together with Madame Henoke Wolde-Medhin, Honorary Council of Ethiopia to Luxembourg, published an article entitled “L’Éthiopie étoile du tourisme africain” in the newspaper Le Jeudi. Ethiopia’s continuous presence in Vakanz has created awareness about the country’s tourism

Ethiopian stand at the Luxembourg fair Vakanz, on the 16th of January 2017

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Stand at the Brussels fair Salon des Vacances potential and we have witnessed an increasing interest of visiting Ethiopia. Similarly, after attending the Fair as a simple visitor, Tema tour was convinced by the opportunities offered by Vakanz and showed interest to jointly participate in the 2018.

Ethiopia at Salon des Vacances of Brussels Ethiopian tourism destinations were greatly promoted at the Salon des Vacances of Brussels held from February 2-4, 2017. The Embassy together with Ethiopian Airlines and five tour operators namely Karibu Ethiopia Tour, OffTrack Ethiopia Tour & Travel, Tema Tour Ethiopia, Vast Ethiopia Tour and Walk in Ethiopia took part to the fair. On February 2, 2017, Mr. Tesfaye Tadesse, Minister Counsellor of the Ethiopian Embassy and Mr. Bisrat cut the ribbon and officially opened the stand for visitors. Ethiopia has been participating on this fair for so many years. However, the countryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s participation this time was unique, as the stand was constructed specifically to promote its tourism destinations professionally and colourfully for Belgian visitors. Guests were entertained with Ethiopian cultural music and dances presented by the Ethiopian Diasporas living in Belgium. The Coffee ceremony, with its colourful presentation, was also the main integral part of the program which took place throughout the fair. Ethiopian Airlines issued a free round trip plane lottery ticket for visitors to win a holiday in Ethiopia. The winner has been identified and received the award from the hands of H.E. Teshome Toga, and Mr. Bisrat Tedla on Ethiopian Tourism Night which took place on the 27th of March 2017. On January 8th 2017, the Embassy has also independently participated at the tourism fair organized by one of the

Stand at the Brussels fair Salon des Vacances biggest tour operating companies in Leuven, known as HOBO. Several visitors visited our stand as they were attracted by the coffee ceremony and took the tourism flyers with them. Hobo Reizen has for a long time been taking groups to Ethiopia three times a year. The Embassy received several great stories by tourists who have visited Ethiopia and their testimonies are really filled with lots of heartfelt emotions and memories. Similarly, it was witnessed that tourists who have already visited Ethiopia were eager to encourage others to consider visiting Ethiopia.

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April - May - June 2017

Regional affairs

A new government to revive Somalia After a long journey to ensure peace and stability in the framework of a peaceful power transfer, the Somali presidential election process was concluded last February with the election of former Prime minister Mohamed Abdullahi, known by his nickname Farmajo, as the ninth President of the Federal government of Somalia.

New President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed with Incumbent President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. Picture: © Reuters Mohamed Abdullahi, a former Prime minister with experience in the Foreign Service, is a dual US-Somali national. During his time in Villa Somalia (seat of government), he was credited with ensuring that government workers and soldiers’ salaries were paid on time, cracking down on corruption and managed to liberate most of Mogadishu from Al-Shabab militants with the support of AMISOM allies. The election of Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, a 55-yearold with a reputation for independence and competence, raised the hopes of millions of Somali and is expected to flag up the interests of the wider Somali society. On the day of election, he enjoyed remarkable support in the streets of Mogadishu, where he remains popular. Thousands of Somali poured into the streets of Somalia’s cities and villages to celebrate his victory. Soldiers in Mogadishu emptied the magazines of their weapons in the air to signal their approval and hope. After all, the man who did his best to

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secure their salaries while in office is now at Villa Somalia, raising their hope for better treatment in the future. The tasks identified by President Farmajo in his speech to the Parliament on election day put emphasis on security and services to the poor, which clearly prefigures that he will focus on these important and much needed problems.

“This victory belongs to the Somali people,” President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo declared after taking the oath of office. “This is the beginning of the era of unity, the democracy of Somalia and the beginning of the fight against corruption.” “There is a daunting task ahead of me, and I know that,” he said. Incumbent President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud conceded defeat after two rounds of voting, saying: “History was made. We have taken this path to democracy.” He courteously accepted defeat, congratulated the new president and commended the people of Somalia to remain united and

support their new president for the benefit of the country. “I urge the people of Somalia, both in the country and in the diaspora, to support the new president and work very closely with him to enable him to discharge his duties and develop the country. I also want to congratulate the new president and wish him well.”

The newly elected President Abdullahi will have to deal with multiple challenges: the threat posed by the terrorist group Al-Shabab, a looming famine, weak institutions, feuding factions and rampant unemployment.

“On the day of election, he enjoyed remarkable support in the streets of Mogadishu, where he remains popular. Thousands of Somali poured into the streets of Somalia’s cities and villages to celebrate his victory. Soldiers in Mogadishu emptied the magazines of their weapons in the air to signal their approval and hope.” However, in reaction to President Abdullahi campaign’s promise to deal with Al-Shaebab, Sheikh Hassan Yaqub, a Senior commander of Al-shabab vowed to continue fighting the new government in an audio released by their radio, which is the first official comment from the terrorist group since the new government took office. After assuming office, the President clearly tabled his position on Al-shebab by saying there is an urgent need to fight and defeat the terrorist organisation if Somalia is to achieve prosperity. He also promised to be a true partner in combating terrorism and that his government was ready to play its role, with the help of international partners, to defeat Al-shabab.

on the 18th of February 2017 after the meeting. “That is the vision I would like to see happen in the next two years to bring peace and stability to Somalia,” he added. Other challenges facing Farmajo’s new government are wide-ranging, including the reform of security and justice institutions, providing basic social services and lead in reconciliation and the peaceful resolution processes of a number of local conflicts. In addition, the government will have to finalise all outstanding issues left without completion by the previous government, which includes the recommencement of the constitutional review process and ensuring universal suffrage in 2020, which are crucial issues that should be given priority. International partners urge all political forces in Somalia to work together in support of President Farmajo and of the new government. The president started the formation of his government by appointing a new Prime minister, Hassan Ali Khayre, a technocrat with no prior political experience. The Prime minister, who has dual Somali-Norwegian nationality, is described by Somali and Western commentators as a logical choice for Farmaajo. Members of the Somali Federal Parliament have already approved the President’s appointment of Hasan Ali Khayre as the new Prime minister of the Federal government. In his first official address as a Prime minister, Hassan Ali Khayre said that he “will form an inclusive government which meets the expectations and aspirations of Somalis. I will also consult widely with Parliament and the President.”

As per his promise, Hassan Ali Khayre named his cabinet ministers on the 22nd of March 2017, just a few weeks after being nominated as Prime Minister. The cabinet is made up of 26 ministers, one deputy minister and includes six women. Nineteen Federal Members of Parliaments are included in the ministerial portfolio. However, it was strongly opposed by members of the federal Parliament and a petition led by Speaker of Parliament asked the Prime Minister to change the listing because it is not in line with the clans’ power-sharing formula. In the end it seems that the MP’s were persuaded to abandon the petition. Subsequently, the new Ministers were sworn into their respective positions after winning the vote of confidence from the Parliament, ending a deadlock that could have brought the country into the usual political chaos. President Farmajo will face formidable challenges in meeting the expectations of the Somali people. All Somalis hope that Farmaajo will succeed in reviving an effective Somali state. However, if he does not succeed in taking some early steps toward fulfilling his pledges of rebuilding security forces and state institutions, tackling corruption and unifying the country, dissatisfaction could trigger a serious public backlash.

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While meeting with African Union leadership and ambassadors of Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) in Mogadishu, Farmajo said his vision was to flush the militant group out of the country, as it poses the biggest threat to peace and security in the country. “My vision is to defeat Al-Shabaab in the next two years. Hopefully if we work very closely together, we will be able to defeat Al-Shabaab,” Farmajo said in a statement issued

April - May - June 2017

Diaspora

ተደራጅቶ በማህበር መስራት አገራዊ አቅም ይፈጥራል- መደራጀት ሃይል ነው! ዳያስፖራ በትውልድ አገሩ የሚያደርገው የኢኮኖሚ ልማት እንቅስቃሴ ውጤታማ ያደረጉ የመንግስት ዝግጁነት እና ከዳያስፖራ ጋር ያለው ትስስር የተመቻቸ እንዲሆን በመደረጉ ዳያስፖራ በአገሩ ልማት ሂደት ተጨባጭ ሚና የተጫወተ መሆኑን ተረጋግጠዋል፡፡ በተለያዩ አገሮች የዳያስፖራ አባላት በአገራቸው ያደረጉት የልማት እንቅስቃሴ ተሞክሮ ውጤታማ የነበረ መሆኑን በዳያስፖራ ላይ የተደረጉ ጥናቶች ያስረዳሉ፡፡ በዚህ መስክ የተገኘ ውጤት በዓለም ደረጃ እስካሁን ድረስ ገዥ ተግባር ሆኖ ቀጥሏል፡፡ አገሮች በተለይ በማደግ ላይ ያሉ አገሮች የየአገራቸው ዳያስፖራ ዓቅም ለመጠቀም የሚያስችላቸው የተመቻቸ ሁኔታና ቀልጣፋ ሲስተም/አሰራር መፍጠር እንደሚያስፈልጋቸው የታወቀ ጉዳይ ሆነዋል፡፡

እና ከግል ህይወታችን ማወቅ የሚቻል ተግባር ነው፡፡ ለዚህ ምሳሌ የሚሆነን “መደራጀት ሃይል ነው” የሚል መፈክር ያለምክንያት የተባለ አለመሆኑ ነው።

የአገራችን ጉዳይ ስንመለከት ዳያስፖራ በአገራቸው ልማት ለማስተሳሰር በመንግስት

በኢትዮጵያ ውስጥ የዳያስፖራ አባላት በየአካባቢው በማህበር ተደራጅተው የቤት ልማት ስራ እያካሄዱ ይገኛሉ፡፡ በማህበር መደራጀት በግል ማድረግ የማይቻለው ወይም ለአንድና ሁለት ሰው የሚያስቸግር የልማት እንቅስቃሴ በማህበር በማደራጀት ብዙ ሰዎች የስራ ክፍፍል፣ የተጠራቀመ የገንዘብ አቅም ክምችት ‘የስራ ተሞክሮና ችሎታ ቅንጅት እና የማናጅመንትና ክህሎት ትስስር ወዘተ በአጠቃላይ ትልቅ የሰው ሃይል’ ገንዘብና የማተሪያል አቅም አቀናጅቶ የሚሰራ ስራ በመሆኑ ያለጥርጥር በከፍተኛ ደረጃ ተጠቃሚነት የሚያረጋግጥ የልማት እንቅስቃሴ ነው፡፡ በዚህ መንገድ ልማታዊ የዳያስፖራ ድርጅት መገንባት ያስችላል፡፡ ይህ ማለት ኢትዮጵያዊ

እየተደረጉ ያሉት እንቅስቃሴዎች በርካታ ናቸው፡፡ የዳያስፖራ ፖሊሲ ቀርፆ ስራ ላይ ከማዋል ጀምሮ የሕግ አሰራር ማዕቀፎች በማውጣት ከነችግሩም ቢሆን የሚያበረታታ ሁኔታ መፍጠር ችሏል፡፡

ወገናቸው የስራ እድል መፍጠር ነው፡፡ ይህ ማለት የአገራችን ስራ አጥነት የመቀነስ ድርሻ መወጣት ሲሆን በድህነት ቅነሳ የበኩላችን አስተዋጽኦ ማድረጋችን ርኡይ ተግባር ይሆናል ማለት ነው፡፡

ከላይ የተጠቀሰው አመቺ ሁኔታ በመጠቀም በርካታ የዳያስፖራ አባላት በአገራቸው ትስስር ፈጥረዋል፡፡ በልማት ላይ ተሳታፊ በመሆን ራሳቸው ጠቅመው አገራቸውን በማልማት ሂደት የተሳተፉ ቁጥራቸው ብዙ ናቸው፡፡ በ2008 ዓ.ም በረሚታንስ አላላክ ብቻ የተገኘ የውጭ ምንዛሪ ከ4 ቢልዮን በላይ የአሜሪካ ዶላር እንደሆነ የብሔራዊ ባንክ ዓመታዊ ሪፖርቶች ያስረዳሉ፡፡

በማህበር መደራጀት ከመንግስት ጋር ለሚኖር ግንኙነት የበለጠ ቀልጣፋና ተፅእኖ ፈጣሪ በመሆን በልማቱ አጋዥ ዓቅም ሆኖ ለመስራት ያስችላል፡፡

በረሚታንስ መልኩ የተገኘ የውጭ ምንዛሪ አቅም በሌሎች መስኮች መደገም አለበት፡፡ በድህነት ቅነሳ፣ በኢኮኖሚ ዕድገት፣ በኢንቨስትመንት እና በንግድ ወዘተ በስፋት መሳተፍ የሚችሉበት ሁኔታ አለ፡፡ መንግስት ልዩ ትኩረት በመስጠት ዳያስፖራ በሙሉ ዓቅማቸው በሁሉም መስክ በስፋት መሳተፍ እንዲችሉ ሁሉም አይነት ጥረቶች እያደረገ መጥቷል፡፡ በመንግስት የተደረጉ ጥረቶች እንከን የለውም ማለት አይደለም፡፡ ነገር ግን ለማልማት የተነሱ የዳያስፖራ አባላት አገራቸው በማልማት ተጠቃሚነታቸው የሚያረጋግጡበት አሰራር ከላይ እስከታች የተፈጠረ በመሆኑ አሰራሩን በማወቅ መንቀሳቀስ ይጠቃል:: እስካሁን በአገራቸው ልማት የሳተፉ ዳያስፖራ ቁጥራቸው በርካታ ናቸው፡፡ በልማት ሂደት ተሳትፎአቸው ውጤታማ መሆናቸውን በራሳቸው አንደበት በተለዩ መድረኮችና በዳያስፖራ ጉዳይ የተፃፉ ሰነዶች ተገልፆአል፡፡ ነገር ግን በውጭ ካሉ የዳያስፖራ ቁጥር አንፃር ሲታይ በጣም አነስተኛ ደረጃ ላይ ይገኛል፡፡ ዳያስፖራ በአገራቸው ልማት ለመሳተፍ የሚችሉባቸው የተሉያዩ መንገዶች አሉ፡፡ በተናጠል በመረጡት የትውልድ አካባቢያቸው በዓቅማቸው ማልማት የሚችሉበት ሁኔታ አለ፡፡ ሌላው በመደራጀት የሚደረገው የልማት እንቅስቃሴ ነው። የተለያዩ ለየብቻቸው የነበሩ ዓቅሞች አንድ ላይ እንዲያብር በማድረግ ጠንካራ የልማት ድርጅት መፍጠር የሚችሉበት ሁኔታ አለ፡፡ ዳያስፖራው በልማት ተሳትፎአቸው ውጤታማ ስለመሆናቸው የሚያጠራጥር ጉዳይ አይደለም፡፡ ነገር ግን በተናጠል ከሚደረገው የልማት ስራ በመደራጀት የሚደረገው እንቅስቃሴ የበለጠ ውጤታማ መሆኑ በዓለም ተሞክሮ የሚታወቅ ብቻ ሳይሆን ከዕለታዊ የአገራችን’ የአካባቢያችን

The Ethiopian Messenger

መንግስት ለዳያስፖራ ማህበረሰብ የተለያዩ የልማት ፕሮግራሞች አቅርቦ በስራ ላይ ውለዋል፡፡ ከነዚህ የልማት ፕሮግራሞች ውስጥ የቤት ልማት ፕሮግራም አንዱ ነው፡ ፡ የቤት ልማት ፕሮግራም በግልም ሆነ በመደራጀት በተለያዩ ቦታዎች እየተሰራ ይገኛል፡፡ የቤት ልማት ፕሮግራም አሁን አሁን በግል እንቅስቃሴ የማይቻልበት ሁኔታ እየተፈጠረ መጥቷል፡፡ በተለይ በትላልቅ ከተሞች የሚሰራ የቤት ልማት ፕሮግራም ዲዛይኑ በዘመናዊ መልክ አፓርትመንት የመገንባት ስራ ብቻ ሳይሆን አፓርትመንቱ በርከት ያሉ ሰዎች በአንድ የመኖሪያ ፎቅ ውስጥ በማካተት የሚገነባ በመሆኑ በጋራ በአንድ ማህበር ወይም ማናጅመንት ውስጥ ሆነው ማስተዳደር የሚችሉበት የግንባታ አደረጃጀት ሆኖዋል፡፡ በተለያዩ አገሮች ትልልቅ ከተሞች የተገነቡ ፎቆች የሚያሳየን ተሞክሮ ይህ ነው። በዚህ መሠረት ቀደም ብለው የተጀመሩ የቤት ልማት ፕሮግራሞች በማህበር የሚሰሩ በርካታ የዳያስፖራ አባላት መኖራቸው እንዳለ ሆኖ ነገር ግን ከዳያስፖራ ማህበረሰብ ብዛት አንፃር ሲታይ ጥቂት ናቸው ማለት ይቻላል፡፡ በ2005 ዓ.ም. ለዳያስፖራ አባላት ክፍት የተደረገ የቤት ልማት ፕሮግራም ዕድል ለመጠቀም ተደራጅቶ የቀረበ የዳያስፖራ ማህበር ጥቂት መሆኑን በየጊዜው የቀረቡ መረጃዎች ያሳያሉ፡፡ በመደራጀትና ከሌሎች የንግድና የኢንቬስትሜንት ተቋማት በመቀናጀት ራሳቸው አገራቸው በማልማት ተጠቃሚ ለመሆን በሚደረገው እንቅስቃሴ እንቅፋቶች ካጋጠሙ ከመንግስት ጋር ተቀራርቦ በመወያየት መፍታት እንደሚቻል የመንግስት ኃላፊዎች መግለጫ መስጠታቸው ይታወሳል፡፡ ዋናው ነገር ተደራጅቶና ተቀናጅቶ የሚቻለውን ርቀት በመጓዝ ለማልማት ቁርጠኛ የሆነ አካል ራሱን ጠቅሞ ወገኑ ለመርዳትና የአገሩን ጠንካራ የልማት አጋርነትን ማረጋገጥ ስለሆነ አሁንም በተፈጠረው እድል መጠቀም ይገባል፡፡

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The Ethiopian Messenger