The Eminence ll March 2016

Page 1

Š EMINENCE - Freecopy ISSUE 17-March 2016

THE

EMINENCE

COFFEE UNDER EVOLUTION changing traditional coffee ceremony

Discovering Ethiopia: The true cradle of humankind

The growing revenue of our tourism sector

A Seat at the UNSC: Ethiopia and its role in international organizations

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 1


2 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016


Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 3


CONTENTS Eminence Spotlight

8

8. Hospitality: a growing sector, skills still in shortage 10. Discovering Ethiopia- The true cradle of humankind: Interview with Dr. Yonas Beyene 14. ERCS Launches Campaign to Respond to Drought

Hospitality 360 0

16

16. Setting the record straight on: “ The rediscovery of Panthera Leo” 18. Taste of Addis: A place for foodies 20. The Growing Revenue of Ethiopia’s Tourism Sector

26

Cultural Panorama 24. A Seat at the UNSC: Ethiopia and its role in international organizations 26. Closure of Yohannes Palace could impact tourism to Mekelle

28

Made In Ethiopia 28. Finding value in Traditional jewelry 32. Packed Coffee: changing Traditional coffee ceremony

Reflections

43 34 http://www.theeminencemagazine.com/

4 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

34. Observing Black History Month as an Ethiopian 36. Antiques and collectibles: What to know before buying them 37. Addis-Bench Maji-USA, a trip worth traveling

Entertainment 42. The Eminence pick of the month 43. Recipe & Tourist Corner 44. Classifieds


Asnake Amanuel ( Founder ) aamanuel@eminence-se.com

EDITOR’S NOTE

Dawit Kebede ( CEO ) Dkebedel@eminence-se.com Managing Editor Tsewaye Muluneh tmuluneh@eminence-se.com Editor-in- Chief Frehiwot Gebrewold fgebrewold@eminence-se.com Lideta s.c Woreda 04 H. No 175 Senior Editor

Apart from being rich in history and culture, Ethiopia is also notable among local and international archeologists and paleontologists for their scientific research and pre-historic studies. Moreover, the country stands as the uncontested site of the origin of humans. This is mainly due to the country’s geographical location, situated in the Great East African Rift System which passes through it. It is in this rift system that fossil remains of the world’s most important human ancestors and their relatives were discovered. For instance, 8 million years ago, Chororapithecus abyssinicus, a possible ancestor to the modern gorilla was thriving in western Harerge area. Findings from this area show that this is the only site which testifies an insitu evolution of African fauna in Ethiopia. Chororapithecu sabyssinicus is known only to be from Ethiopia. Homo erectus, dated to be 1.4 million years old and Homo rhodesiensis dated between 0.6 and 0.2 million years ago are also found in Ethiopia. Our own species, Homo sapiens, who lived from 0.2 million years ago to the present, is also found in Ethiopia. The oldest record of the latter is from the Ethiopian sites of Omo and Herto in the Afar Region.

only. In addition, the Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritages (ARCCH), in collaboration with the French Embassy, has restored and constructed a center of permanent exhibition of pre-history and paleontology. Nevertheless, when we see how other nations promote their pre-historic heritage we learn that we are lagging behind. South African brands itself as “Cradle of Humankind” through promoting Australopithecus africanus a.k.a Mrs Ples (now believed to be a Mister Ples), which dates back 2.5million years and was discovered in the Strekfontein Caves. France has designated exclusive excavating areas for any person who is interested at Caune de l’Arago excavation site. This area later became a tourist destination village after the discovery of the Tautavel Man in Caune de l’Arago, a cave in the Tautavel commune. The French are promoting this area and making it a tourist destination. They even have come up with a wine called Tautavel, which they claim to be the first wine in the world.

Regarding stone tool technologies, all of the hallmarks of technological innovations have been discovered from the Ethiopian sites. For example, the oldest stone tools are from Gona and dated back to 2.6 million years ago; the oldest hand axes are from the Konso Gardula sites and dated back 1.75 million years, and the oldest Middle Stone Age technologies are from the Gada-mota sites near Ziway and dated back 270,000 years.

Having all the scientific and research-based evidence mentioned aboveand many more, it is clear that Ethiopia is not promoting its pre-historical findings in the way it should be. The findings and the history of the excavating areas have the power to attract more researchers and more tourists. However, this is not happening and this leaves us to raise many questions; what are we lacking towards meeting this goal? What is holding us back from promoting those excavation sites? Why are we not branding ourselves after these unique findings?

These findings and many others, including the remains of Lucy and Selam, Australopithecus afarensis are preserved and on display in Addis Ababa. More specifically the lower level of the Addis Ababa National Museum is dedicated to showcasing these findings

As per the definition of Oxford Dictionary; pre-history is the period of time before written records. Hence, to know and understand the history of a country or a particular occurrence or phenomenon, it is imperative that we know our pre-history.

@EminencEthiopia

Eminence-se Entrepreneurs

facebook.com/EminencEthiopia

pinterest.com/EminencEthiopia

Issue 17 -

Helina Abraham habraham@eminence-se.com Reporter Henok Solomon hsolomon@eminence-se.com Regular Contributors Brook Abdu jambong52@gmail.com Lucy Kassa lucykassa6@gmail.com Contributors Tseday Mekbib Caroline Kurtz Editor Samson Haileyesus samsonfikre@gmail.com Copy Editor Carolyn Curti cutyrmc@yahoo.com Graphics and Layout Design Atnafu Yilma Website Administrator Samson Tegegn Photographers Sentayehu Bekele Sbekele@eminence-se.com Gonzalo Guajardo

gguajardo@eminence-se.com Finance and Administration Tizita Paulos Distribution Tariku Tessema Editorial Address: Tel. +251-118-678-187 Mob. +251-939-858-724 P.O Box 794 code 1110 contact@eminence-se.com social@eminence-se.com Web:www.theeminencemagazine.com www.eminencemagazine.com Bole s.c Namibia Street, Behind Edna Mall, Adika Bldg 5th Floor This edition is printed at Central PP Kirkos Subcity, Woreda 03 H.No 414 MarchAddis 2016 - The Eminence | 5 Ababa, Ethiopia.


News Highlights www.ebc.et

www.fbc.com

www.thereporterethiopia.com

Ethiopians and foreign nationals of Ethiopian origin living in North America, Australia and other countries are to build a 17-storey business center “Ethiopian Grand Mall” in Addis Ababa at a cost of 2.6 billion birr. The mall will be erected on 19 hectares of land. It will comprise cinema halls and various shops. The construction of the mall will be commenced in no longer than a year.

An Ethio-Japanese led international research team revealed that it has found an eight million-year-old ape and other fossils in Oromia Regional State, Western Harerge Chiro Zone, Mieso woreda. The new dates and fossils strengthen the view that human and modern ape lines emerged in Africa between around ten and seven million years ago.

The statue of Abune Petros was successfully restored to its original location on February 7, 2016 after three years of temporary shelter at the National Museum of Ethiopia. The statue was removed from Abune Petros Avenue due to the construction of the Addis Ababa Light Railway Transport project.

www.usembassy.com

Memorandum of Understanding for grant provided by the US government has been signed between the Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage and World Monuments Fund on February 12, 2016 for the preservation of Yemerhanna Christos Church. The U.S. Government provided a $150,000 grant. In the presence of the U.S. Ambassador Patricia M. Haslach; His Holiness Aba Matias and H.E. Minister Aisha Mohammed presented during the ceremony. Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

www.thereporter.com

National Archive and Library Agency in collaboration with Afar Culture and Tourism Bureau organized a book fair in Semera University from February 13 – 16, 2016. Mobile archive reading service was provided for researchers for the first time in the fair. The Agency organizes the fair 4 times within a year and the next one will take place in Diredawa in April, 2016.

Twenty nine years old Ethiopian American fashion designer and architect Azmara Assefa’s laser-cut jackets have reportedly become popular to ventilate the hot summer days. Named after her name, Azmara Assefa, the collection featured in last October’s Phoenix Fashion Week and selected as one of 13 best emerging fashion designers in the United States.

6 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

A four star Hotel called Foyat was opened in February 13, 2016. The hotel started with capital of 150 Million ETB. Foyat is located around bole bridge, right next to brass hospital 3.1 kilometres from the Addis Ababa International Airport. The new hotel has 55 rooms, built in 3900 square meter.


Events March

www.edexpo.catalystexpo.com Addis Student Fair 25th & 26th March, 2016 Monarch Hotel

The Addis Student Fair will showcase wide range of educational products and services associated with this field. The fair will take place in Monarch Hotel, Addis Ababa from 25– 26th of March, 2016. The fair provides an excellent opportunity for high school seniors, university students and graduates, career counselors, education agents and parents to gain first-hand knowledge on higher education.

footprint2africa.com

The 4th Construction for Ethiopian Renaissance Exhibition is organized by Association of Ethiopian Class One Constructors. Companies in Construction, Manufacturing, Consultants, Architects, Importers and many more will participate at Exhibition. The event will take place at the Addis Ababa Exhibition Center on March 16, 2016.

MICE East Africa Expo and Forum March, 2016 UNECA

Ozzie Business and Hospitality Group, the organizer of the 3rd Hotel Show Ethiopia, announced that MICE East Africa Expo and Forum will be held in Addis in March 2016 at the United Nation Conference Center. MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conference and Exhibition) is a type of forum where prominent groups and stakeholders come together for a specific purpose.

www.un.org

The Conference of Ministers, organized by the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa will take place from 27th March to the 1st April 2016 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The conference will cover areas like adopt dynamic industrial policies with innovative institutions, effective processes and flexible mechanisms to transform their economies to bring about inclusive and sustainable economic and social development. www.coffee2016.com 17th Session of the Regional Coordination Mechanism for Africa 2 – 3 April, 2016 UNCC

The 4th World Coffee Conference will be held from March 6 – 8, 2016 in the UNCC, Addis Ababa. The program includes informative and relevant presentations, forums and discussions. In addition, the conference is accompanied by an exhibition, which allows coffee stakeholders to demonstrate and publicize their products and organizations to the global coffee audience.

www.ethiohealthexpo.com

The 2016 “Ethio Health Exhibition & Congress” session will be held from 11th - 13th March at the Addis Ababa Millennium Hall under patronage Food, Medicine and Healthcare Administration and Control Authority of Ethiopia and support of Ministry of Health and Addis Ababa Health Bureau. This event will show cases more than 150 brands of products & services.

The Seventeenth Session of Regional Coordination Mechanism for Africa (RCM-Africa) will take place on the margins of the Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development. The theme for this year’s session is “United Nations Support to the AU for the Implementation of Agenda 2063 and Sustainable Development Goals”

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 7


EMINENCE SPOTLIGHT: ETHIO-TOPICAL

http://www.cogefim.com

HOSPITALITY: A GROWING SECTOR, SKILLS STILL IN SHORTAGE

The development of the hotel and hospitality sector in Ethiopia is quickly outpacing the development of the skilled workforce to run it. And despite some efforts from government and hotel companies alike, there remains little relief on the horizon. In a study conducted by the Culture & Tourism Bureau in December 2010, out of the 46,700 people employed in the culture and tourism industry in Addis Ababa, only 322 employees had degrees, 899 had diplomas and 1,789 had certificates- indicating that only 3,010 people had received professional training, just 6.44 per cent of those employed within the industry.

By Haewon Asfaw Staff Writer

As Ethiopia continues to be recognized as a world-renowned tourist destination, it is key that just as much attention is given to hiring, training and educating those working in this rapidly growing sector. In Addis Ababa alone, there are 10,800 institutions in the hotel and tourism sector, but among the 46,000 workforce in Addis Ababa, only 6,000 of them are trained in hotel and tourism according to Tsega Temam, head of the special assistant of the Culture & Tourism Bureau of Addis Ababa. The hospitality sector’s lack of proper training and education is due, in part, to the lack of adequate schools and training facilities in the country. Abdulfetah Temam worked in the Catering and Tourism Training Institute (CTTI) - a government run training center for hotels before becoming the director and owner of IATA Tourism Training Center. During his time in the industry, he noticed many gaps in the training given to tourism

8 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

and hotel professionals, which included material provisions and limited learning resources. He also shared that all of the schools have identical training, which is based more on theory than experience. Moreover, he emphasized that there are barely enough people in the industry. He cites a research by the Addis Ababa Culture and Tourism Bureau stating that there is only 4.6 per cent of trained manpower. This number is not enough to keep up with the needs of Ethiopia’s growing hospitality industry. If the shortage persists, the industry will face two key challenges: The first is the rising cost of skilled labor and second, hotel companies will have to enhance the capacity of their in-house training programs. “[The] Bottom line is supply and demand,” says Benyam Bisrat, CEO of Jupiter Hotel Group, “We just don’t have the people, well-

trained expertise and qualified Ethiopians.” He notes that in the past seven years, every month one new hotel opens in Addis Ababa alone. He claims that in the next five years the city will be looking adding 1.5 new hotels every month. This means that there are nearly 1,500 new rooms being made available every month in the city. “We were at around 2,500 rooms seven years ago … we have now reached 8,000 rooms and we are looking to double that by 2020,” stated Benyam. In general, one room entails on average of up to two employees to service it, which organically creates a 3,000 person workforce in the hospitality sector every year. But, when one looks at the hotel hospitality schools and training centers in all of Ethiopia, they produce fewer than 500 trained professionals each year. In this sense, there has been a stagnating


www.nmihotelandtourisminstitute.com

been released, as consultations are needed with hotels and the Ministry before the research is finalized and published. “The findings do show that there is a shortage of trained manpower in hotels,” Dawit said. But this lack of emphasis of education is not just illustrated through the limited number of schools, teachers and students, but also in the hiring practices of those in the industry. According to the same study conducted by the Culture & Tourism Bureau, the largest percentage of employees (93.5 percent) has an education level below 10-12th grade. This implies that not only is there a shortage of educated manpower in the industry, but also that hotel owners don’t have the interest or motivation to hire educated people.

Students in a class room at the New Millennium Hotel and Tourism School Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

The reason the Ethiopian Tourism Organization (ETO) was created was for destination development, destination management, destination market and destination branding, but nowhere in this is the discussion of human capital. With the hospitality sector as part of the service industry, it is not just about creating, but also training human capital.

The Catering and Tourism Training Institute (CTTI) under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MoCT) rather than growing workforce. Staffing cannot keep up with the industry’s needs. For example, when a new hotel opens there is a tendency for workers to migrate because of incentives, like slightly higher wages. “For every chain hotel that opens up in the city, I lose about 15% of my workforce,” said Benyam. Abdulfetah opened IATA Tourism Training Center using 200,000 Ethiopian Birr in capital, in hopes of curbing the shortage of skilled labour in the hospitality sector. The school is located in Odda Tower on Tito Street near Zemen Bank in Casanchis. It is a Technical and Vocational Training Center (TVET), offering a maximum of three years of training. They offer courses in Hotel Management, Tourism Management, and Tour Guide and Tour Operation. The private school operates like a traveling center and is internationally accredited by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), which is a trade association of 250 world airlines. IATA sends representatives to administer tests and check if the trainings are at par with international standards. There are only two classrooms in the facility, which indicates that few students

are registering. The labs, including thekitchen and bedroom, seem efficient and well-equipped. They said that the government uses the facility to administer tests for students taking Certificate of Competencies (CoC) for hotel and tourism students in government TVET programs. Abdulfetah points out a shortage of qualified teachers, stating “There is a dearth of experienced teachers in the sector.” Despite this, Abdulfetah has succeeded in training 590 students who have graduated from the school. Dawit Hailu, Deputy General Director of (CTTI), indicated that his school trains instructors from other TVET institutions. During CTTI’s 45 years it has managed to open two campuses, one located near Tegbare Ed around Mexico and the other near Genet Hotel. It offers 11 major areas of specialization in the hotel and tourism sector. There is an in-house training center, industry trainers and hotel instructors who have degrees in hotel management. Dawit said that he has a draft document of a study conducted in collaboration with the Central Statistic Authority (CSA) showing how many hotel institutions have trained manpower. Dawit said the study has not yet

Tadesse Endaylalu is head of the Tourism Services Competence Accreditation Directorate and was part of the team that did the hotel star rating standardization. “A huge part of the assessment for service provision concentrated on looking at [the available] trained manpower,” he noted. He also said that out of the 123 hotels 47.2 percent were in the low category in regards to service provision. The country is filled with talent and skill and those looking to work; the opportunity just needs to be there. Benyam emphasized that it is important for Ethiopia to train and educate its people to keep up with the demands of the sector, which is why he is working to create a training academy through a Private - Public Partnership (PPP) to make up for shortages of skilled labour in the hospitality sector. As of now, there is no full-fledged hospitality academy which trains in all aspects of service—from culinary arts, to housekeeping to the front and back of the house. “A foreign investor will not open up a training academy because they are not interested in the country and in building the expertise of the people,” says Benyam, “Which is why we need to do it ourselves.”

Issue Issue 17 - 17 March -March 2016 - The - The Eminence Eminence | | 9


EMINENCE SPOTLIGHT: INTERVIEW

Discovering Ethiopia: The true cradle of humankind Doctor Yonas Beyene got his first degree in History from the Addis Ababa University. He then started working at the National Museum where he fell in love with prehistory. Soon after, he went to France where he joined one of the best schools in prehistory, Institute de Paleontology Humaine (National Natural History Museum) where he earned his PhD in 1991. While pursuing his studies he excavated in a cave called La Caune de l’Arago near Tautavel and in a cave called Le Lazaret, in Nice and other caves along the Mediterranean coast. That is how he became an expert at prehistory. The Eminence’s Hanna Haile, sat down with Dr. Yonas to discuss stone-tools made and used by prehistoric people and his experience in the area.

Photo by:Gonzalo Guajardo

Dr. Yonas Beyene Ethiopia’s senior paleolithic archeologist, credited with the discovery of the world’s earliest Acheulean (hand axe) tools at Konso, Ethiopia.

10 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016


How did tools appear, what are their evolutionary implications? How did these prehistoric tools contribute to the technological revolution we are seeing today? Stone tools appeared because there was a need for them. Around 2.6 million years ago, early humans needed to access food sources which are rich in protein. In order to get protein rich food, they had to use stone tools. So they started to make flakes and use the sharp edged heavier implements which are called choppers, to cut animal meat and break bones to access the marrow. The fossils of human ancestors discovered at this remote past were not yet Homo. The first stone tool makers and users are believed to be the small-brained ancestors known as Australopithecus Garhi, known from the Ethiopian sites of Buriin in the Afar region and dating back around 2.5 million years ago. Since then, fossil records show an expansion of the brain capacity of human ancestors. This may be because of their new diet.

discovered an important set of teeth which later became the holo type for Ardipithecus ramidus. Since then both Ethiopian and our foreign colleagues have conducted several years of field research and many fossil bones representing many individuals were discovered. Ethiopian scientists were members of the research team from the beginning. Ethiopian researchers conceived the research plan, did the field work and the laboratory research with a team of 48 scientists from more than 14 countries. During the field work which lasted over several years, Ethiopian scientists discovered several individuals.

The world’s earliest stone tools were discovered in the Gona paleoanthropological site in Afar region and are dated back to 2.6 million years ago.

Our Japanese colleague from the University of Tokyo, Professor Gen Suwa was the first person to discover the first tooth of Ardipithicus ramidus in 1993. The next year, our Afar field assistant Gadi,

Australopithicus boisie from Konso-Gardula - fromKonso-Gardula Research Project

How did you choose to excavate that area? I know that you have many sites that you are working on. What is the process that you use to locate these sites? Some sites are discovered by accidental, while others are discovered through meticulously conceived methodologies. For example the Melka-Kunture site, located 50 kms. south of Addis was discovered accidentally by a hydro-geologist who was surveying the area for hydro-geological reasons. On the other side there are sites that were

Photo by: K. Sano.

Did Ethiopians discover Ardi?

Photo by: Gen Suwa

The Eminence: Where was the oldest tool in the world found?

What is the most important site that you have discovered and worked in? All sites are important. The ones I mentioned above are important sites discovered through the inventory survey program. For the understanding of the emergence of humans, the Afar sites are the most important in the world. If you look at the Middle Awash sites you have a package of sediments that has a thickness of 1,000 meters section. These 1,000 meters of sediment was formed over the past 6 million years. In the 6 million years old sedimentary package we found a series of human ancestors dated between 5.8 million years and 50,000 years ago. The Fejej site dates all the way back to 4 million years; whereas, the Konso-Gardula site dates between 800,000 and 1.9 million years. We have also discovered new sites in areas that have already been identified. For example the recently announced, Chororapithecus abyssinicus, dating back 8 million years ago was discovered by our team. We published this in the journal called Nature on February 11 of this year.

The earliest stone tools were simple flakes made by a direct percussion technique. This primitive stone tool-making technology was a milestone in human technological innovations and heralded as the beginning of the human material culture. Since this moment, humans were continuously adapting to changing environments by improving their stone tool technologies. The continuous expansion and perfection of stone tools adapted to the continually changing human need led to the cultural revolution that we call the Neolithic Period the beginning of agriculture; and then to the Metal Age. What followed after that is what we see in the historical records of the great civilizations around the world.

discovered through intentionally planned survey, such as the ones we did between 1988 and 1990. This survey was organized in Ethiopia under the project leadership of Dr. Berhane Asfaw. Drs. Yohannes Haileselassie, Sileshi Semaw and I have taken part in the project. We were guided by satellite and aerial photos. Then we would drive to the area and walk the sediments until we found fossil bones or artifacts. Using these techniques, we were able to discover the Konso-Gardula, Fejej, Kessem-Kebena, Woito, Burji paleoanthropological sites, among others.

The world’s oldest hand-axes: dated at (a- KGA 6-A1) 1.75 million years from Konso-Gardula Research Project

Issue -March 2016 - The Eminence Issue 17 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | | 11


EMINENCE SPOTLIGHT: INTERVIEW

Do you love your profession? Every time, my profession takes me into the unknown. This profession gives you the liberty to reason logically and based on facts. It is an investigative job in which you study materials left by prehistoric people, understand their contextual meaning and associations and try to look into the invisible. You try to see how they lived and how they used their landscape - the place of man in his environment and how he shaped his destiny. Understanding the long way that man traversed - from Man the stone tool maker to the Man the space walker is very fascinating. Yes, I love my profession.

Aziz Ahmed

How do you know something is a tool and not just another rock? There are scars on the flaking surface of the stones which are not created accidently or naturally. You see signatures and patterns that are not naturally created. There is also an issue of context, an association of various materials such as human activity markers found together.

Photo by:Gonzalo Guajardo

What is the cutoff point of prehistory and history?

Dr. Yonas passionately explaining about how Ethiopia is rich in pre-history

How does the knowledge transfer happen when researchers are present in Ethiopia?

Photo by: Gen Suwa

The demarcation point between the prehistoric period and historical period is not always simple for the latter part of prehistory. This is because until very recently, in some places, people were living in a prehistoric way. For example, the Australian aborigine people still make stone tools using techniques which might have been used during the prehistoric period. It is generally accepted that the point of demarcation is set at the beginning of writing. For some researchers, prehistory stops and history begins when people began making pottery.

Researchers are always present in Ethiopia. Ethiopian researchers who have attained world class recognition are working in different research areas and forming their own research teams. Some live abroad whereas some are based in Ethiopia. The knowledge needed in paleoanthropological research is diverse. No one researcher can attain credible result by working alone; so a team of different professionals work together. This way, knowledge is transferred between researchers themselves. Young Ethiopian researchers take part in scientific field work and laboratory activities. To be a good paleoanthropologist, the apprentice will work and learn continuously in both the field and laboratories for several years. There are some young Ethiopians who are studying this line of work. However, they are not many. They need to be trained formally in higher educational institutions both at home and abroad. The profession takes several years of dedication and hard work on the part of the young.

Australopithicusboisie from Konso-Gardula Research Project

Other than being called ‘Cradle of Mankind’ what does Ethiopia benefit from these sites?

12 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

The fossils and the sites are resources. Knowledge is a resource. Tourists come to visit these sites and to see the fossils such as Lucy and Ardi. Researchers also come to study these unique specimens. Researchers and tourists spend money; they fly Ethiopian Airlines and stay in hotels. Documentary filmmakers pay hard currencies to get permits for filming. Had we worked hard and the tourism sector was developed as it should have been, Ethiopia could have benefited from the yet fully untapped tourism industry. It is important to research and to understand how other countries have used their resources and benefited from it and learn from them. What more can be done? What more do you expect? You cannot expect to generate big revenues by only showcasing important fossils such as Lucy. One needs to work hard and build around these important discoveries. That is why I noted that thematic research is needed. There are countries and communities who have worked intelligently around the very little discoveries they have made and marketed. They have benefited from them by building their tourism industry


Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 13


EMINENCE SPOTLIGHT: SOCIETY

ERCS

Launches Campaign to Respond to Drought

It has been exactly ten years since the El Niño weather anomaly caused consequential drought all around the world with the least developed nations like Ethiopia being the most affected ones. By its nature, El Niño happens every seven to ten years, causing disruption to many natural climatic cycles, especially rain. This is what is happening in Ethiopia currently- the effect of the cycle came after ten years,causing failed rains and leaving millions of people hungry. By Brook Abdu Eminence Contributor

Still being criticized for a lack of support by technological findings and mechanical improvements, agriculture in Ethiopians heavily dependent on rain. This obviously makes the agrarian society and their produce vulnerable to effects of climatic changes.

According to government reports, more than 10 million people need emergency food assistance. Of these 1.7 million are children or pregnant or lactating mothers requiring specialized nutritional support. “The El Niño global-climactic event has wreaked havoc on Ethiopia’s [Meher]summer rains. This comes on the heels off-ailed spring rains, and has driven food insecurity, malnutrition and water shortages in affected areas of the country,” stated the weekly humanitarian bulletin of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) released in December 2015. The report further calls for international donors and humanitarian organizations to extend their hands and provide additional funding to meet the demand. They also call for reviewing options to re‐program the existing development funding to prioritize the humanitarian response for the affected people, and seeking additional resources. In response to this and similar calls from different institutions, both local and

14 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

www.redcrosseth.org

In the Ethiopian farming community, more than 90 percent are small farmers who mostly depend on rain-fed agriculture. This has become fuel for the already burning fire when El Niño happened.

Red Cross has always been helping destitute; handing out cooking oil and flour for those who are in need of it

international donors and humanitarian organizations started to take their share out of the required $1.4 billion. Apart from the international donors and humanitarian organizations, local organizations are also playing roles in trying to meet the needed aid. One of the local companies in the field of humanitarian activities is the Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS), a member of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies Association. Established in 1935 in the aftermath of the Ethio-Italian war, the ERCS has been involved in humanitarian activities both in times of disasters and in times of peace. “As is our main purpose of establishment, we engaged ourselves in the support of the people that are in need of emergency food aid because of the drought,” said Degsew Amanu, communications and resource

mobilization head at the ERCS. ERCS is also a member of the national committee at the Disaster Risk Management and Food Security Sector (DRMFSS), a government body responsible for reporting needs for humanitarian aid and assessing the levels of the impact along with the impacted sections of the society, is doing its part to help those who need food. “We have taken the initiative to deliver the required need to reach at least 10 percent of the people who are affected by the drought,” explained Degsew. ERCS is currently working to collect 122 million birr both from the local and international sister societies in order first to feed the children, pregnant and lactating mothers. These people are the most affected ones who need specialized food supply compared to the others, according to Degsew.


A TEXT

SEND

---------------------

To 8161 for 3 birr, To 8163 for 10 birr, To 8164 for 20 birr, To 8165 for 50 birr

The text lines and the amount of money one contributes when sending the text

Apart from the national and international societies and government, ERCS is working with different organizations and donors like the Ethio Telecom which collaborated to send short campaign messages to its subscribers. According to the texts that reached the mobile subscribers reads, “Hiwot le Hiwot [Life for Life], support your kinsmen who are affected by drought. Send a text to 8161 for three birr, to 8163 for ten birr, to 8164 for 20 birr and to 8165 for 50 birr.” The drought was detected in the country exactly one year ago when the meher season (the long rainy season stretching from June to September planting season in Ethiopia) when the rains failed resulting in agricultural production below expectations, according to Wondimu Filate, public relations deputy bureau head at the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources. Since then, the Ministry has been helping farmers by supplying irrigation materials, improved seeds that can produce crop sin shorter periods of time and agricultural inputs like fertilizers. It also supplied water for livestock in the pastoralist areas. “Because of this, the year’s production plan that was set at 301 million quintals for major crops [cereals and pulses] was met,” said Wondimu. “This is because of the preparation that we did prior to the drought.” A total of 405 metric tons of grain was also distributed from the reserve bank of food to the affected places, according

to Wondimu. The grain was taken from the national reserve and has already been replaced by imports from abroad. By the end of the second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) that will extend up to 2020, the country plans to make sure that every farmer has at least one water alternative and isable to produce crops at least twice a year. “We have to create resilience to climatic changes – the shortage of rain and the El Niño effect might continue as they are natural, but the concern is how we can create resilience,” Wondimu explained.

“The year’s production plan that was set at 301 million quintals for major crops [cereals and pulses] was met.”

number of people in need of humanitarian aid should decrease- even people have to act at individual levels.” The ERCS also plans to continue to help these people until they are mitigated. They have spent 27 million birr to support them. There is a gap of around 56 million birr that is still needed. Until now ERCS had distributed food aid to Somalia, Afar, Oromia and some parts of Amhara region. In addition to the short message text campaigns, ERCS is also planning to have other events to collect the needed money. On February 25 there was a walk for humanitarian event; from April28 to May 2 there will be an exhibition at the Addis Ababa Market Development and Exhibition Center; and on July 23 the plan is to have a fundraising dinner at Hilton Addis Ababa Hotel. The effects of the El Niño are expected to continue through the year according to various reports. UNOCHA’s report underlines the most affected areas are found in the eastern Africa.

For the long-term resilience to climatic changes, the country had devised a Climate Resilient Green Economy (CRGE) strategy that can enable the country to fight the ever-changing climatic change and global warming. “The support, especially by local organizations, for people who are currently being affected by the drought is very important,” he commented. “The

“An estimated 12.1 million people are currently in need of humanitarian assistance. The areas of major concern where “Crisis” and “Emergency” food and nutrition insecurity exist include parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Central African Republic (CAR), South Sudan, Ethiopia, north-eastern Kenya, parts of Karamoja in north-eastern Uganda, Darfur in Sudan and Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) sites in Somalia,” the report stated

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 15


HOSPITALITY 3600: HOSPI-TOURISM

www.stylepinner.com

www.nerdist.com

A picture taken at Altash National Park by the trap camera while the team conducted the research

SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT ON

“The rediscovery of Panthera Leo” By Henok Solomon Staff Writer In the beginning of February 2016 Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA) announced a report concerning the ascertained species of lions Panthera Leo in the Altash National Park area, North Western Ethiopia in the Amhara Regional State of Ethiopia. Following this report different news outlets and social media gave coverage for finding the new species of lion, Panthera Leo, in Ethiopia. Even though this report received wide coverage on different media, the news reports regarding the situation was different from the original report from what the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority had announced.

area.” But as Director of Research at EWCA Kahsaye Gebretensae explained, the media misunderstood the Authority’s report and created the confusion. In addition Kahsaye stated "The work that was done by the Authority was an ascertaining work of the species Panthera Leo which was known to have existed before and not discovered as a new species."

The confusion started here. Some media outlets reported stated that the new species of lion named Panthera Leo was discovered in Ethiopia for the first time. Media outlets reported the news with a headline “Lions rediscovered in Ethiopia Altash.” In one news report, Dr. Hans Bauer, a lion conservationist from Oxford University, was quoted as saying that “this was the first time that the presence of lions had been confirmed in this

16 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

“Based on these results it was concluded that the lion species Pantrhera Leo does exist in Ethiopia.”

The International World Conservation Union (IUCN) conducted a workshop regarding mapping the range of the species Panthera Leo. Representatives of all Sub-Sahara Africa countries where the range was mapped took part in the 2006 workshop. The finding was published in Lion Conservation Strategies (IUCN, 2006). These lion range maps were subsequently updated in the National Lion Action Plans and the Ethiopian Lion Range Map contained substantial”possible range,” where the lion’s presence was suspected but was not confirmed (EWCA, 2012). The Ethiopian Wolf Conservation Program, Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority, University of Oxford’s Wildlife Conservation Research unit, and Born Free USA joined together on the mission of ascertaining the occurrence of the lion species by the name of Panthera Leo in the Trans-boundary Ecosystem of Altash and Dinder areas in order to update and refine the lion distribution map of Africa. Altash and Dinder are areas located in


Altash is situated on the boundary with Sudan. It has an altitude of 500 meters above sea level. The size of the park is 2,666 km2. It was named after the daughter of Emperor Tewdros “Altash” means “be always with me”. The Dinder National Park in Sudan means “desert without water” was established 10 years ago primarily to protect the habitats from desertification. The lion species Panthera Leo is a charismatic species, and the international community is interested in its status. Recently, according to a study conducted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), the number of lions has declined across Africa since 1990. This is especially true in West, Central, and East Africa. This specific lion species is listed as vulnerable on IUCN’s red list of endangered species. The team that consists of eight scouts and seven professionals from EWCA went to the area and conducted the ascertaining mission by using various techniques. Camera traps that can detect movement, surveying the track signs, using megaphones to play buffalo and pig sounds to attract the lions, and other related methods were used to investigate the existence of the Panthera Leo. Even though the team could not get to the area of Dinder National Park in Sudan due to logistical constraints it came up with the number of lions that were observed in the Altash National Park. The existence of the Panthera Leo lion species in the park was confirmed. The first person to prove the existence was the chief warden of the park but he said that "no one has ever been able to take a picture," but as evidence the park warden was able to show a piece of a lion skin confiscated from poachers. Further, in the follow up searches the team found paw prints in the dry river bed. In addition to this, they were able to take a picture using the trap camera they put in the trees, and they heard lion roars late into the night as well.

Based on these results it was concluded that the lion species Pantrhera Leo does exist in Ethiopia. Lion presence in Atlash National Park had not previously been confirmed in meetings at national or international level. The knowledge was not reflected in EWCA reports and websites and thus, was not available to the international community. However, lions have been present in Atlash National Park since historical times, and their presence was locally known.

our country will give us the opportunity to strengthen the trans-boundary collaboration between both countries. It will also increase collaboration of partners towards creating sound conservation of protected areas and increase the number of tourists flowing to protected areas and thus creating a marriage between tourism and conservation.''

www.nationalparks-worldwide.info

the Altash National Park in Ethiopia and Dinder National Park in Sudan. The National Park area in Ethiopia was marked as a possible range by IUCN that connected the lion range, whereas the area in Sudan was not considered as part of the lion range by IUCN.

Graceful Ethiopian Lion (Panthera Leo Species)

Based on these findings the team speculated on the abundance of lions in this region. Considering the relative ease with which lion signs were observed the team reached on the possibility that the species is residing throughout Àtlash National Park and Dinder National Park. Due to limited surface water and low prey densities, the lion densities are likely to be low. The team conservatively assumes a density in the range of 1 to 2 lions per 100 km2. On a total surface area of about 10,000 km2, this would mean a population of 100 to 200 lions for the entire ecosystem of which 27 to 54 would be in Atlash National Park. When the Eminence asked the Director of Research at EWCA Kahsaye Gebretensae what this discovery would bring to Ethiopia's tourism sector, he stated that ''ascertaining this new species of lion in

Ethiopia generated 4.4 Million USD in the current half year of 2008 E.C from tourist visits, filming of parks and hunting. From the general revenue of the tourism industry, more than one fourth of it is generated from wildlife and parks visits. And except for two parks, lions live in all parks in Ethiopia. Furthermore the authority is planning to do demarcation work and take appropriate conservation steps in order to make the area suitable for tourists and visiting purpose. Doing this will increase the revenue the nation gets from parks tourism, hunting and related activities at the parks. It is expected that this discovery will be good news for wildlife conservationists in Africa as well, where it is said the number of lion populations is expected to disappear in the next few decades

Issue 17 --March March 2016 2016 -- The The Eminence Eminence || 17


HOSPITALITY 3600: FACILITIES AND ACCOMMODATION

A place for foodies Taste of Addis is a tri-quarterly event that focuses on creating an outdoor event where people can enjoy themselves while eating and drinking from the town’s variety of local restaurants and cafes in one place. By Henok Solomon Staff Writer The event is organized by Blue Media, a company that works on various media, event and communication works. The company was founded by two individuals Henok Samuel and Amanuel Wubeshet. Since its establishment in December 2011 it has been produced multiple events and media and communication works, and Taste of Addis is one of their projects. The first Taste of Addis was conducted in 2012 in Tropical Garden. It included 20 restaurants from all over Addis Ababa along with music shows and other outdoor activities. The idea for this outdoor festivity was generated by Amanuel, a partner of Blue Media, after realizing the scarcity of outdoor events where people can enjoy themselves for a minimal cost. His first vision was teaming up with restaurants and cafes in the city and creating a platform where they could promote their businesses while selling their food and beverages at affordable prices. The first festival was a two day event. , They attracted about 1,200 spectators. As Nahom Belayneh, General Manager to Blue Media said ‘’We saw potential in the event back then and people’s feedback

18 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

the event must bring an ID to attend.

Photo by:Blue Media

Pre-event activities: setting up the tents and arranging other materials at tropical garden

was promising so we decided to make it a biannual event. After that the audience and number of participant restaurants grew in numbers year after year.” Taste of Addis is different in that it provides something for everyone regardless of age. The festival includes kids’ corner; circus shows, outdoor games for adults, music and DJ shows and other attractions. Children must be accompanied by a parent, so parents cannot send their kids alone;. Anyone who is planning to attend

After the fifth edition of the event Blue Media decided to make it a tri-quarterly show. The demand from sponsors and the request from its audience made the organizers realize they needed to change the schedule of the event. The target festival audience of the event is people who would like to dine out and try different foods at the same place. They also want to reach other so entertainment has been added to the festival. In terms of the FESTIVAL’S success


Photo by:Blue Media

Photo by:Blue Media

Photo by:Blue Media

Locals and expats enjoying the food and the beer along with the DJ music

Nahom said, “It was really progressive after the second show. I say the reason behind repeating the show. People who attended the show told others about it and there was a time when we were obligated to close our doors at 5 o’clock in the afternoon because it was so crowded.”

The eleventh taste of Addis took place this year from February 20th – 21st, 2016 which is Saturday and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. The cover price was 150 ETB which will help cover the costs of equipment and facilities like tents, power supply and so on.

Photo by:Blue Media

A crowed dancing and enjoying with music from the DJ

The new thing the festival brings this year will be a picnic style. Blue Media, in collaboration with the official sponsor Walia Beer, has prepared pillows, blankets and umbrellas so that people can sit in the garden and enjoy the food and the show. In addition to that there will be a brunch on Sunday so guests can come early and enjoy the event all day. The number of people will be limited so it will be easier for guests to In order to make mobility easy for people see every restaurant. In the future Blue Media is planning to broaden the festival to a larger venue that can hold more people and add more variety to it. The organizers want restaurant owners to know this event will help restaurant owners to promote their work, generate greater revenues and also check out their competition. Outdoor events such as Taste of Addis

Photo by:Blue Media

The media team said the other secret to their success in the show is changing their promotion scheme to use social media, a very effective way of promoting the festival. By giving the viewer audio, video and text access at the same time they were able to interest more people.

There were 33 varieties of restaurants and cafes participating in this year’s event. The maximum food price will be 50 ETB. If a restaurant sells their food for a higher price violating the rules of the festival the restaurant will be banned from Taste of Addis for one year which includes all three events.

Waiting for the music show to start while resting on the grass ground

help people to socialize and to develop the culture of festivals. It’s also a good revenuegenerating platform for the organizers as well. It is also show our variety of food to tourists and expats who are in Addis Ababa during the event. Taste of Addis provides a positive impact towards the society as well as supporting our local the businesses

Issue1717- -March 2016--The TheEminence Eminence|| 19 Issue March 2016


HOSPITALITY 3600: E-DEPTH

The Growing Revenue of Ethiopia’s Tourism Sector

Photo by: Aziz Ahmed

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MoCT) announced that Ethiopia has earned some $800 million USD from the tourism sector in the first quarter of the year of 2008 E.C. According to the Ministry the report is based on the survey MoCT conducted together with the Main Department for Immigration and Nationality Affairs and other service providers, including Ethiopian Airlines and tourist attraction sites. By Henok Solomon Staff Writer

Photo by: Troy Zaushny

Gezahegn Abate, public relations officer at the Ministry told The Eminence that this report is a tally of every fee tourists paid at hotels, tourist attraction sites, transportation and other related services fees collected regionally as well as in Addis Ababa. In addition to this the Ministry collaborates with the Main Department for Immigration and Nationality Affairs to get the accurate number of tourists coming in and out of the country, their purpose for visiting and other relevant information.

Tourists love to see the wildlife in Ethiopia, a monkey climbing a tree

The report reveals that the average amount of money a tourist spends a day in Ethiopia is around $234 USD. But this is just an average; some tourists spend more and some spend less. In terms of numbers in the last quarter of the year, 235,011 tourists visited the country and the average length of stay was 16 days. The Ministry reached the $800 million USD figure by multiplying the

20 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

amount of money tourists spent with the number of tourists who visited Ethiopia in the last quarter of the year and multiplying the sum with the average days they stayed. Last year the number of tourists who visited Ethiopia was 232,000 and the income generated from that number was $500 million USD, raising this year’s earnings up by $300 million USD. The rise in earnings has been attributed to the image building works done by the government, the increasing number of service providers all over the country, Ethiopian Airlines increasing flight destinations, and the peace and stability of the country as major factors. Having presidents of different countries, including President Barack Obama of the United States, and hosting many international conferences, including the 26th AU summit, has also contributed to increased revenues in the tourism industry.


Major type of tourists who come to Ethiopia included about 30,000 per month recreational tourists in the first quarter of the year. Business tourists, transit travelers and other tourists make up the other share. Additionally seasonal conference tourism is a type of tourism that is growing from year to year. In the coming quarter of this year the Ministry is expecting to generate even more income from the conference tourism.

Even though there is a visible progress in the tourism sector the Ministry still believes there are gaps to be filled. The first gap pertains to the quality of service especially in regards to the hospitality sector. The Eminence asked Gezahegn about the issue and he stated “we haven’t received major complaints about quality issues and services that are being provided but still we believe there are gaps.” Currently the Ministry believes that the healthy competition between the hospitality businesses is good for better quality accommodations and services. Additionally the Ministry’s new hotel grading program has brought about improvements regarding service facilities as well.

“The average amount of money a tourist spends a day in Ethiopia is around

$234 USD.”

Photo by: Aziz Ahmed

Most tourists who are coming to Ethiopia and who are 30 years or older prefer to visit the cultural and historical attractions. We are seeing a trend of tourists stopping at other attractions while they are on route to their main destination which often includes the historical northern route or the southern cultural route packages. According to data from MOCT the south and north and some of the Oromia regions are the most popular destinations among tourists.

Many tourists enjoy looking at the sunset by the lakes in Ethiopia Another big gap in the tourism and Hunting is another income generating hospitality industry is the development of tourism segment. The Ministry reports the human capital. There are 100 tourism that the country follows international and hotel schools including 17 private regulations for hunting and it is colleges, seven universities and the rest are implemented in every park of the country. training centers throughout the country Tourists cannot kill without acquiring that different levels of training. Only 22 permits. The most hunted animals in percent are trained working professionals Ethiopia are Bongo or Markhor, Mountain from the entire hospitality business with Nyala, Blacked Back Jackal and etc. 40 percent of the professionals being Around S20 million USD was generated graduates from other disciplines who only from hunting. attended short term trainings, and the rest Expatriates and foreigners living, visiting have no training at all. This number shows or working in Ethiopia are periodically there is a lot of work to be done in this area. instructed in about the rules and regulations To narrow the gap the Ministry is working regarding hunting and its consequences with vocational schools to professionally if it is done illegally. For instance in the certify the human capital and to grade past year awareness creating program was them based on Certificate of Competency conducted at the Hilton Hotel for Chinese (COC) exams. The same goes with tour expatriates because of their huge number operating companies; obligatory rules in the country which is estimated to be are being formulated to hire skilled 20,000. professionals who have certified papers. The tourism office is implementing new Based on this another project is being strategies to promote the country’s tourist crafted that will focus on creating destination sites to the world. In addition, awareness in hotels and tour companies to ambassadors in different parts of the world hire professionals in the hospitality sector. are doing their own share to promote the Even though it is not independently Ethiopia’s tourism treasures. included in this quarterly report, there is no data that is collected concerning In the coming quarter of the year the the cultural sector; it has its own income Ministry is optimistically expecting better generation means from the sale of results than the current quarter, especially souvenirs, cultural and traditional clothes in the investment sector where promotions and various crafts. The Ministry told The are done. For instance in hotel investment Eminence that networking is being done to there are regulation improvements, tax get all the data from regional states as well free import incentives, loan services are as foreign sales and status. A challenge is all being facilitated. This will help the the issue of transparency especially with country’s tourism sector as well as allowing the shops and company owners. investors to grow simultaneously

Issue 1716 - March 2016 --The Issue - 17 -March TheEminence Eminence|| 21


Tranquility: Me, myself and I

22 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016


Photo By: Eyerusalem Adugna

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 23


CULTURAL PANORAMA: HISTORY AND DIPLOMACY

ethioexplorer.com

Ethiopian’s Candidacy for UN Security Council

Ethiopia has been actively participating in the United Nations and African Union-led peace operations since their establishments. With over 12,000 Ethiopian peacekeepers deployed in some of the most turbulent situations, including Abyei, Darfur, South Sudan and Somalia to advance the cause of peace. According to the United Nations data of 31 January 2016, Ethiopia ranks first in the word in its contribution of peacekeepers. Although a founding member of the UN, Ethiopia has only served in the Council on two occasions’ during1967-1970 and 1989-1990. By Helina Abraham Staff Writer Ethiopia’s involvement in multilateral institutions started in 1923, when the country become the first and the only African country to join the League of Nations. When fascist Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935, Ethiopia looked for the support of the League of Nations. Unfortunately, Ethiopia’s membership of the League of Nations, did not count for the help that it was seeking and the country was left in the lurch. After five years of indomitable struggle, Ethiopia was able to defeat the Fascist invaders and to achieve its independence with heroic sacrifices by its gallant citizens. However, the injustice that befallen upon it, did not make Ethiopia lose its confidence in collective security. Instead it helped Ethiopia to remain a staunch supporter of the principle of collective security embodied in the United Nations Charter. When the United Nations was established after the Second World War, Ethiopia contributed significantly in the development of its charter.

24 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

Ethiopia, Egypt and Liberia were the only African founding members of the UN. Currently, Ethiopia plays a vital role in the peace and security of Africa and around the world. Under various mandates, Ethiopia follows lead and cooperates with UN taking part in UN-led operations. The Korean War is a case in point her. It was in the early 1950 that Ethiopian troops under the ‘Kagnew battalion’that Ethiopia distinguished itself in Korea. Daniel Yilma, Director for Peace Security Matters in the Ethiopian Permanent Mission to the African Union stresses this idea by says: “Ethiopia has a very long tradition of Multilateralism. This has started when Ethiopia joined the League of Nations on September 28, 1923. “Ethiopia made great contributions to the concept of multilateralism and collective security. This is why

Ethiopia considers multilateralism as an important mechanism, to maintain collective security and to promote international peace” After most African countries gained their independence, Ethiopia stressed the importance of African integration and unity. In his address to the Summit of Heads of State and Government that established the Organization of African Unity (OAU), H.I.M. Emperor Haile Selassie I said “We are meeting here today to lay the basis for African unity. Let us, here and now, agree upon the basic instrument which will constitute the foundation for the future growth in peace and harmony and oneness of this continent. Let our meetings henceforth proceed from solid accomplishments. Let us not put off, to later consideration and study, the single act, the one decision, which must emerge from this gathering if it is to have real meaning.” Since 1963, Ethiopia has been honoured to host the headquarters of the OAU/AU.


Since 1960s Ethiopia deployed its peacekeepers in Congo, Rwanda, Burundi, Liberia, Sudan, Cote D’ivoire, South Sudan and Somalia. Currently, as a chair of IGAD, Ethiopia is actively engaged in mediating between the South Sudanese parties. The country has also been exerting tremendous efforts to restore peace and promote national reconciliation in Somalia both within the framework of IGAD and of the AU. Philip Karenzi, First Councillor and Deputy Head of Mission of Republic of Rwanda noted:”Ethiopia was one of the countries that quickly intervened and sent UN Peacekeepers during the genocide in Rwanda. They have been active players in the peacekeeping and Ethiopia has the right idea in terms of peace support cooperation. Thus, Ethiopia will remain a reliable member in UNSC for the continent and Rwanda in particular.” For the above mentioned reasons the African Heads of State and Government endorsed Ethiopia to be a candidate for a seat in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) representing Africa for two years (2017-18). According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ethiopia has been campaigning to secure the sea. The Foreign Ministry has also confirmed that, in light of its track record, countries from various regions of the world have already expressed their full support to Ethiopia’s candidature. “. The history of UN Security Council shows that the membership was 11 until 1965. Being one of the marginalized continents, Africa was not well represented in the Council. In 1965 the UN Security Council expanded the number of its members from 11 to 15. This reform gave Africa three rotational seats. Ethiopia served in

the UN Security Council for two terms1967-68 and 1989-90”, said Daniel. The Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs underlined that the priorities for Ethiopia’s membership in the Council will be promoting global peace and security through dialogue and peaceful settlement of disputes; advocating the prevention of conflicts; and the strengthening all available tools of the UN in this regards, enhancing the role of regional and sub-regional arrangements in improving collective security. “Even without being the member of the Council, Ethiopia has been active in terms of advancing the peace and security agenda of the continent and in terms of promoting the interests of Africa. The non-permanent Seat in the Council will give us greater opportunity to continue to be the strong voice of the continent, which we have been doing throughout our history.” Said Daniel. For the year 2017, Egypt and Senegal along with Ethiopia will serve the Council as representatives of Africa. The earlier two have joined the Council this year and their mandate will end in December 2017. African countries that serve in UNSC are commonly called the African 3 (A3). These members have special responsibility to ensure that the decisions of the African Union Peace and Security Council are well reflected in the decision making process of the UNSC on peace and security issues of concern to Africa. Currently, the Ethiopian Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York is headed by Ambassador Tekeda Alemu. The former State Minister for Foreign Affairs, Dr. Tekeda is very well known for his in-depth knowledge of international relations and his ability to present the country’s position in many international foras in a well articulated manner. To strengthen the team Ambassador Mahlet Hailu and Ambassador Gebeyhu Ganga were assigned as Deputy Permanent Representatives. The United Nations General Assembly will elect the new members of the UN Security Council in June 2016.

Over the last four decades Africa has been requesting for the reform of the Security Council. In this regard, in 2005, the African Union (AU) adopted the Ezulwini Consensus, including a common African position on Security Council reform that demanded at least two permanent seats and five non-permanent seats – to be allocated by the AU itself. Significantly, the AU also demanded the permanent seats to have the same prerogatives and privileges of the current permanent members including the right of veto Phillip also added “We don’t have the same powers as the Permanent 5 they have been more influential in directing issues at UNSC than the rest of us but the voice of Africa continues to be advanced at the UNSC. We are also talking about reform of the Council so that we become equal members as of those with veto power. Because some should not be strong members and the rest should not be less important members. If UNSC is reformed and if the Veto power still exists then we Africans want to have equal power.”

ethioexplorer.com

In line with its foreign policy, Ethiopia has always been ready to play its role to advance the peace and security in Africa. During the 1960s, 70s and 80s. Ethiopia rendered political, military and material support to anti-colonial struggles throughout the continent. Ethiopia’s strong support to the independence of Kenya, Zimbabwe, Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, Namibia and many others is very well acknowledged.

“In 1960s and 1970s the main focus of the continent and the Organization of African Unity (OAU)was achieving political independence. Now, AU’s priorities are achieving economic integration, securing better living standards to the peoples of Africa through fast and sustainable economic development, having more opportunities for the youth in a peaceful and prosperous Africa. Sustainable peace is indispensable to achieve this transformational objective. I believe these are the aspiration shared by all the counties of the continent and even more so by those of us who will be serving in the Council,” said Daniel. Today, Ethiopia is making meaningful and constructive contribution within the framework of the UN on issues of Peace and Security and other issues of global interest and concern. The country strongly believes that in this globalized world, the peace and prosperity of the international community is closely intertwined. The future of the humanity as a whole will be determined by addressing these challenges

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 25


CULTURAL PANORAMA: TRAVELING ETHIOPIA

Closure of Yohannes Palace

could impact tourism to Mekelle

By Lucy Kassa Eminence Contributor

Photo by: Tigray Culture and Tourism Bureau

The magnificent Yohannes Palace before and after the restoration Once in a time there was a priest whose students were troubled to find sufficient food, as they tended to search for it in the same neighborhoods. The priest divided them up into groups and sent them off to different neighborhoods so that they could find more food. He used the word ‘Mekelle’ to express his act. The word literally mean “he divided.” This is one of the two controversial legends as how the northern city of “Mekelle” got its name. The other legend tells that the city’s name was given to it by Emperor Yohannes IV after he divided the city among his noblemen. The Eminence visited the 144 year old capital city of the Tigray region located in Northern Ethiopia. Mekelle is a bustling city at almost 2,200 meters above sea level. Thus, it has a moderate climate throughout the year; the temperature can go up between 22◦C and 25◦C in the afternoon and often drops to less than 14◦C at night time. Moreover its surrounding mountains are highly deforested, though that was not the case 50 years ago. Mekelle was once covered by dense forestry and watered from 12 rivers which had prompted the Emperor to select it as the seat of his empire. These days in Mekelle, exterior restoration of older buildings is commonly seen in the

construction sector, and this includes the historical sites. Just like other historical sites, the Emperor‘s palace, which is a prime tourist attraction site of the city is currently under renovation. Locked away from visitors, local construction company Barnero Construction plc has undertaken the project, using funds provided by the Austrian government. The Ethiopian Palace Administration is tasked with renovating the palace which had been serving as a museum. Due to the restoration process, the treasures, manuscripts and tools inside the museum have been divided up between the Tigray Culture and Tourism Agency and the Ethiopian Palace Administration. The agency is housing the treasures from the museum in a temporary storage facility. Many of the treasures which include parchments, icons painted on wood, one icon painted on copper, several bronze and silver crosses and other religious tools had previously been looted and then returned to the agency by various European countries. Among the treasures include a Geez parchment, Gedel Giorgis, which narrates the Acts of St. George. Painted using plant pigments it has 94 religious portraits inside

26 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

its scrolls. Other artifacts that were returned include 15th century portraits of St. Mary and Christ. They are kept under lock and key for conservation The Eminence observed. Unfortunately, the concerned officials at the agency do not know how long it will take for the treasures to be restored to their original conditions. All treasures related to the Emperor, including his royal costumes, household tools, furniture and weapons have been taken by the Palace Administration. The Eminence attempted to talk with the Administration concerning the separation of the treasures and restoration of the palace. Both declined to comment. There is no consensus on the impact of the restoration. Some tourism experts, including a history lecturer at Mekelle University, who did not want to be named, are fearful that the palace may lose its originality. But according to Yonas Tadele, marketing expert at Tigray Culture & Tourism Agency, these are mere fears. “Inhabitants of the city are consulted on the originality of the palace, and a longterm study had been conducted before the restoration started. This was done to maintain its originality because it is the rule


Photo by: Tigray Culture and Tourism Bureau

Among the many things that are inside the palace, the king’s chair catches the eyes of visitors of conservation to bring back artifacts to their original condition,” Yonas stressed. According to Yonas, the current restoration would bring back the original look of the palace. Prior to its renewal by Ras Mengesha Seyoum, grandson of the emperor, had the exterior walls of the palace decorated with traditional gypsum just like what is done now, he argued. Yet his argument is not accepted by some residents of the city including Tesfaye Mehrete, a 60 year old man. The original palace was built with a stone base, using small stones just like the so called “Hidmo,” traditional houses of Tigray. In fact this is not the first restoration of the palace. Previously another type of renewal was done, and the exterior walls of the castles were covered with cement. But the cement was removed to maintain the castle’s antique look. While constructed from 1872 to 1875 by French and Moroccan architects, Mussie Nartin and Yossef Nartin, the medieval period type palace was built just using stone, wood and soil. Instead of cement, barley, teff, and wheat were used as mortar to fix the walls. These stones are now decorated with gypsum and painted light pink. Situated on a 86,000 square meter hilltop, the

Emperor’s palace has a guest dining room and royal family dining rooms. On the ground floor of the guests’ dining room a throne, documentation center and ark rooms are located. Noblemen, clergy, princes, and war leaders used to enjoy holidays in this room. It has elephant tusks in front and different art pieces on display. London Sword, a gift from Britain’s Queen Victoria was presented to Emperor Yohannes IV, and the emperor’s long sword are also located in this room. In the royal family dining room, there are French-made Napoleonic-era chairs and a table. Ceremonial and military regalia of the Emperor, a saddle for a mule used in peace and a saddle of a horse used during wartime are also on exhibit in this room. The throne whose arms are fashioned after the paws of lion is located in the room upstairs. On its right and left side there are statues of birds to imply peace. This palace, the city’s principal tourist attraction site is not yet open for visitors even though its restoration has been completed. The number of tourists visiting Mekelle has not diminished. In the previous six months of the current fiscal year, around 6,426 tourists have flowed through the city. In the fiscal year of 2014-2015 around 9,778 tourists visited Mekelle. This is in comparison to the previous two years when just 7, 930 and 2,073 tourists visited each year, respectively.

“Expansion of tourist facilities and infrastructural development is the drive behind the increase in the number of visitors. Moreover Mekelle is now serving as a bridge to other tourist attractions, including Lalibela, Afar, and Gheralta”, noted Fissha Zerabruk, Historical Attraction Sites expert at Mekelle Culture and Tourism Agency. Around the city there are 20 hotels that comply with the tourist standards of the agency. The total number of bedrooms in these hotels is around 635. The two largest hotels: Axum Hotel and Planet Hotel have 180 and 108 bedrooms, respectively. In terms of tour operation, the city has six licensed tour operators. Once a tourist enters the city his/her average length of stay is two and half days, according to the latest study conducted by Mekelle Culture and Tourism Agency. Hence, people like Fissha may conclude it is the presence of these facilities in line with the Emperor’s Palace that has enabled Mekelle to collect 24 million birr in revenues within the last six months of this fiscal year. In the last fiscal year the city earned 36.6 million birr from its tourist sites principally from the Palace, according to the data of the agency. But will Mekelle continue to score similar high levels of revenues in the existing scenario where the fate of the Emperor’s palace and its other historical treasures are in limbo?

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 27


Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

MADE IN ETHIOPIA: FASHION

A set of Ethiopian gold jewelry that is chosen by elegant Ethiopian women for special occasions

28 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016


i01.i.aliimg.com

Finding Value in Traditional Jewelry By Helina Abraham Staff Writer Among the major changes the Italians brought when they occupied Ethiopia from 1935to 1941the construction of roads and buildings can be mentioned. Many places got their names from Italians and many of them are still called by those names. Piassa can be taken as an example. The traditional Italian architecture remains an integral part of the city’s architectural heritage. Back in the days Piassa, was the center of the capital, Addis Ababa. Retaining its unique architectural styles from Armenia, Ethiopia, India, and Italy it was where the then youth would gather to take a break and have fun at the cafés, bistros, cinemas and nightclubs. Besides entertainment, with its remaining old and antique houses, Piassa still remains one of the places in Addis that many tourists would love to visit before leaving Addis for shopping or window shopping the attractions also encloses many jewellery shops as Piassa is indeed the old commercial center of Addis Ababa.

29 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

The Eminence went to Piassa to see the traditional silver and gold jewelry shops. The owner of Gonder Silver Jewelry who doesn’t want to give out his name runs a family business. He stated the jewelry shop was owned by his great grandfather, transferred to his grandfather and later to his father and currently the shop is run by him. The shop was opened50 years ago. Talking about the customers of traditional jewelry he says, “The young generation prefer modern designs of jewellery than traditional ones. Thus most of our clients are tourists, Diasporas and the elderly.” He claims that he spent his entire life in the shop. The number of customers increases during college graduation season since Ethiopians offer traditional jewelry as presents for graduation. Here one gram of local silver costs 40 ETB. Most of the traditional jewels are Orthodox Christianity based designs. According to the study ‘Gold and Silver

at the Crossroads in Highland Ethiopia’ by Raymond A. Silverman and Neal W. Sobaniain the International Journal of Ethiopian Studies the most primitive evidence of work in precious metals are found in two archaeological sites even before the founding of the state of Aksum. The preAksumite sites of Yeha and Hawelti have produced a few finger rings, earrings, and beads. These sites as well as sites associated with the ancient state of Aksum have produced abundant evidence that trace back to the southern Arabia. And evidence shows that gold originated to specific regions, like Gojjam and Damot. Whereas silver was essentially an import that arrived in the form of silver coins. Literature on travels to Ethiopia mentions that most Ethiopian silver jewelry and silver crosses were made from melted down Austrian Maria Theresa thalers. Raymond and Neal explain, ‘Earliest extant examples of metalwork from the second millennium A.D. are liturgical artefact,

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 29


g03.a.alicdn.com

“Besides adorning them Ethiopians use gold as a means of gaining foreign currency as well.”

A beautiful ear-ring made out of Ethiopian gold

specifically processional crosses. Indeed, the best studied objects made from gold and silver are associated with the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and include items such as processional crosses, hand crosses, pendant crosses, sistrums, the finials of prayer sticks, chalices, and crowns. Among these, crosses have received the most attention’. “The crosses are often worn by Christian women as necklaces” suggested Girma Minaye, a goldsmithwho works with both gold and silver at TekluDestaJewelry Shop. He reinforces this idea saying, “I have worked as a goldsmith for 55 years. And most of the basic design is adapted from the Christian highlands of Ethiopia and other Northern parts of Ethiopia.”

Teklu Desta Jewelry shop co-owner and Marketing Manager Esayas Teklu Desta stated that Teklu Desta was established 60 years ago by his father Teklu Desta. And most of the customers are Diasporas and older generation. He stated that they sell five or six items a day. Esayas sees jewelry as an asset that can be changed into cash whenever necessary. The value for gold is increasing from time to time in Ethiopia. It’s counted as a fancy jewelry and many people wear gold during special occasions unless for a wedding ring. Yelfalem Tesfaye, a director in an orphanage, is a frequent traditional gold buyer. She thinks gold is a way of securing livelihood in case of emergency plus it will be used as antique; transferred to generations. She told The Eminence that Ethiopians use gold for several reasons and says, “After I gave birth to my child my husband bought me 50,000 ETB worth gold to show his appreciation. “In Ethiopia gold has enormous cultural values, for example, if you wear a traditional jewel in a wedding, it will be considered as sign of respect”, she noted.

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

In most of the shops around Piassa one will find different kinds of ornaments that can be used as accessories: necklace, bracelet, hair-hang-lets, ankle bracelets and beautified hairpins.

Different designs of silver rings, earrings and necklace displayed in one of the jewelry shops around Piassa

In terms of quality, local silver and gold are pure. However, unfortunately because of the lack of sophisticated machines, you don’t see creativity regarding the designs. Most of the imported silver and gold which many people prefer are from Italy, Bangkok and Dubai. MikiasBekalu, runs a family business in Fasika Jewelry shop in Piassa. Faska was

30 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

established 28 years ago with 100,000 ETB start-up capital which over the years has grown to around one million ETB. “Our customers are mixed; foreigners as well as Ethiopians”, says Mikias. He also added that their customer base increases during weddings and Ashenda, a holiday celebrating women in Northern Ethiopia mostly in the Tigray region. In Faska Jewelry Shop one gram of gold is sold with 1000 ETB and the silver costs between 35 to 40 ETB per gram. “Most youth are not users of the traditional jewels they prefer modern ones. However, we always try to adapt new designs to attract the new generation, which made the young generation to come and buy more”, notes Mikias. Besides adorning them Ethiopians use gold as a means of gaining foreign currency as well. Ethiopia Bedecha, Public Relation Deputy Director in Ministry of Mines for Petroleum and Natural Gas (MOMPNG) says, “Ethiopia is endowed with different minerals. But gold transaction plays a great role (95.9 pct) in bringing foreign currency to the country compared to other minerals.” “In the 2014/15 fiscal year, 146.647 kilograms of gold has been sold to the Ethiopian National Bank and we acquired 4.885 Million USD in return”, noted Ethiopia. Much of Ethiopian gold is mined through traditional mining artisans and cooperatives providing a steady supply of gold and silver for shops like that of Esayas. In addition to the traditional mining modern gold mining is gaining traction. “MIDROC Ethiopia Private Limited Company provided 2416.84 kilograms within six months and the income generated was 70.27 Million USD during the year 2014/15”, said Ethiopia.

Issue 17 -March 2016 - The Eminence | 30


Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 31


MADE IN ETHIOPIA: LIFESTYLE

Coffee Under Evolution: Changing Traditional Coffee Ceremony

“In the future I think the ceremony will just be used as a decor and will not be taken seriously” www.coffeearea.org

By Lucy Kassa Eminence Contributor

Coffee ceremony, traditional Ethiopian way

Ethiopians, who are estimated to consume above 50 percent of the country’s total coffee production which was 18.3 million quintal in 2,650,458 hectare of land in the last five years, would love to make coffee accompanied by snacks and Ketema, a green grass decoration. It is their custom to brew coffee beans in the attendance of neighbors or family members and to taste them accompanied with the scintillating aroma of the roasted beans. With the makers usually women the roasted beans are pound and then brewed in the Jebena, a traditional clay pot. Once the coffee is brewed the attendant should stay for at least one hour, until the coffee is distilled in three rounds Abol (the first round), Tona (second round) and

Baraka (third round). But have you ever supposed this long standing traditional ceremony could risk being lost? You may not be mistaken. With the change in city life style, these days Ethiopians mainly those who live around the capital are being forced to withdraw this time honored traditional ceremony and replace with it by powdered coffee products just like Meaza Tegene. The 50 year old private employee and her friend were looking for a quality powder coffee while The Eminence was inside Shoa Supermarket on Africa Avenue. In the shelves staring at multiple packed powderedand roasted coffee products

32 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

Coffee drinking is not an exclusive habit of Ethiopians. Worldwide around 500 billion java cups of coffee are consumed every year according to Business Insider’s 2011 report. But the thing is Ethiopians have an exclusive ceremony of serving coffee.

Roasted and packed coffee beans

Meaza was a kind of confused which local brand to select after she had shifted her consumption from the imported ones. “I shifted my consumption from the imported items for price matters and I want to test the local ones because I heard my friends saying that their quality was improving”, she reasoned. As a professional woman with much oftime to spend at work, Meaza is not in a comfort zone to make and attend the traditional coffee ceremony. She rather prefers to use powder coffee every day and make the traditional ceremony on special occasions like holidays.


Compared to Meaza, Senayit Teffera another powder coffee buyer at Shoa Supermarket, does not spend a busy week. But she uses powder coffee because she lives on the fourth floor of a condominium complex and cannot use the traditional mortar or pestle as it would disturb the neighbors.

is making her living by serving traditional coffee at Arat kilo, believes Ethiopians have strong social and spiritual ties with the tradition.

“I sometimes roast the green beans just for the aroma. But I brew the coffee powder,” Senayit noted.

Cross legged sitting beside her was Daniel Sahele, a shoe maker who consumes two cups of coffee a day. Unlike many other customers Danieldoes not only love the traditional ceremony.But he is also a suspicious customerand he wants to see the green coffee beans while they are being roasted.

While this kind of change in life style requires a much easier and speeding coffee serving in one hand, on the other hand it has created a new thriving business for those engaged in coffee shops. That is why various new brands are joining the coffee powder market. A couple of years ago a few brands, such as Tommoca and Kaldi’s had dominated the coffee making business with limited rivals. But this time more than 100 shops are operating alone in the capital, Coffee Roasters Association counted. One of these new entrants to the business, Lidya Coffee, a rising brand known for Siddamo coffee distributes around 1,000 kilograms of green bean, roasted and powder coffee each month to its 80 clients which are all super markets. “Powder coffee consist 75 percent of the total products I distribute followed by the roasted ones.” stated Hirut Legesse, owner of Lidya Coffee. According to her the demand for powder coffee is growing fast and people do not need further process in making coffee due to the change in their living. But the battle between the brands is stiff. In effect joining the business of packed coffee business does not require a bigger investment. It is just a simple industry that can operate by 300,000 birr worth roasting and pounding machine that have a capacity of processing between 50 to 60 kilograms of coffee at once. Moreover it may require more than eight workers. But beyond this the other barrier isthe fierce brand battle that poses challenges in market penetration with a lot of new brands coming to the battle forcing Lidya coffee to change its packaging. Will processed coffee end the traditional coffee ceremony? For a coffee maker like Serkalem Ayele this is not going to happen. The Small and Micro Enterprise organized member, who

“I have many customers and all of them want to attend the traditional ceremony”, Serkalem opined reassuringly.

“Some coffee makers mix barley to the coffee beans”, he explained. He would have wanted to attend such ceremony in his home but he is short of hiring a domestic servant that can make the ceremony for him twice a day. But his suspicion is also the drive for some customers at Shoa Supermarket to pick roasted coffee packs than the powdered ones.

“Coffee should be for an immediate consumption and packaging is not recommended.” “Those of our customers with suspicion and a relatively better freedom of time purchases the roasted beans because it is much easier for them to identify the quality of the coffee in such manner than being powdered,” Eskinder Alebachew Shoa Supermarket manager of Bole branch toldThe Eminence. But despite such suspicions and lack of time some people also seem to prefer abandoning the tradition. In Koffee Days, a café in the heart of Kazanchis, there is the ceremonial method of serving coffee. Yet as The Eminence observed most of the customers order the cup of coffee made throughthe espresso machine. This is also the case in Chocho Bunna, a well-known Jimma Coffee shop at Le Gare Station. Established since six years ago, the shop’s consumers are mainly tourists and Diasporas but the shop rarely receives an order to make the traditional ceremony.

“Most of the time Diaspora want the ceremony. In the future I think the ceremony will just be used as a décor and will not be taken seriously”, Hanna Yohannis, manager of the coffee shop said. Alem Bunna’s Supervisor at Kazanchis, Tamrat Denkesa also agrees with Hanna’s comment. “Powder coffee making is beating the traditional way of serving coffee”, he said. But for a coffee quality expert at Ministry of Agriculture like Birhanu Tesagay coffee should be for animmediate consumption and packaging is not recommended. His argument somehow is related to the 1,000 bio chemical composition of coffee as coffee can be exposed to many chemicals by its nature. “By naturecoffee has an espionage nature and is highly exposed. The long it is packed its flavor quality as well as its caffeine content decreases”, he argued. This is just in relation to the tradition. But the boom in the local coffee powder consumption raises also another question. Will this trend threaten the business of coffee cafes? Aklilu Mulatu, 60 is a supervisor at Piazza of the prominent coffee shop in the country, Tomoca. Established since 1953 the coffee shop now prepares different level roasted powder coffee to its customers. “Even if we sell ground coffee, our customers want to come to our café because they may not get the taste when they make the powder at their home“, Aklilu said. According to him roasting, grinding and boiling a tasty coffee is not an easy task.It needs expertise knowledge on the amount of water and temperature and also the degree of pounding matters. Kaldi’s Coffee, another big brand also supplies powder coffee to its customer’s. But this does not slow down its market. As usual the Lancha branch of Kaldi’s is serving a minimum of 70 peopleper half day according to its branch supervisor Yordanos Gedam. “Our customers love to come here despite the availability of Kaldi’s powder coffee,” she stated. These giant coffee shops as well as other coffee producers are expecting to promote their products in the forthcoming International Coffee Conferencewhich the country is hosting in the capital

Issue Issue1717- March -March2016 2016- -The TheEminence Eminence| | 33


REFLECTION: COMMENTARY

Observing Black History

Month as an Ethiopian /irieup.com

old.seattletimes.com

Marthin Luter King, an American Baptist minister, activist, humanitarian, and leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement

By Tseday Mekbib Special to Eminence

41.media.tumblr.com

Emperor Haileselasie of Ethiopia visiting Washington DC At the beginning, I did not understand why the month of February was observed as” Black History Month” in North America. After living for over a decade in Toronto as an Ethiopian-Canadian, I came to realize and appreciate the importance of participating in Black History Month. BHM became a valuable platform that allowed me to learn and respect my identity as an African in a land that did not know much about Africa.

Ethiopian born international model Liya Kebede representing Queen Nefertiti of Egypt

Growing up in Addis in the 90’s, I attended a French school that taught me about world history from a Eurocentric perspective. For example, we were taught that World War II started when Germany invaded Poland in 1939. Only later, did I learn that WWII actually started when Italy invaded Ethiopia in 1935. You may not think this is a relevant point but actually it is. You see, by not starting in 1935, we skip learning about the failure of the League of Nations vis-à-vis Ethiopia and we also skip learning about the war crimes that were committed by Fascist Italy in Ethiopia. As a freshman student, I realized that African History was also being taught in Western universities from a European perspective. I remember taking a first year pre-requisite course entitled “World Civilization 101.” I

34 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016


anticipated that the African continent would be covered at one point in the semester. To my surprise, the professor covered all world civilizations except those from the African continent. I was shocked that my university peers were being educated without knowing that I came from a continent rooted in ancient civilizations. I was so upset that I set up an appointment with the professor in question and asked him the reasons why he did not teach our class about Egyptian civilization, let alone Axum or Timbuktu. The professor gave me the excuse that not enough scholarly books were written about African civilizations, hence, why they were not included in the class curriculum. That day, I realized how Western academia was doing an injustice to Africa. The African narrative was dominated by lessons that taught students how poor and uncivilized the African continent was. Imagine the effects of such lessons on society. The universities that produce future leaders, journalists, humanitarians, etc… are sending their students into the professional world with pre-conceived bias. That is why I consider Black History Month to be an important observance on university campuses. Thanks to Black History Month, I learned about heroic African figures such as: Patrice Lumumba, Thomas Sankara, Harriet Tubman, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, etc… Black History Month made me a Pan-African and also made me a re-born Ethiopian. I started digging further to understand and uncover my own roots. Ethiopia has a unique history that not much of the world knows about. Whenever I mentioned to people in Canada that I was from Ethiopia, they imagined that I was a lucky survivor of famine and war. Few of the people that I encountered knew that Ethiopia was mentioned over 30 times in the Bible. Few knew about the significance of the history of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon. Few knew that Judaism, Christianity and Islam had ancient roots in Ethiopia. The more I researched on Black History, the more I discovered that Black historians had tried to teach the world about African history. I recommend two of my favorite PanAfrican historians: Cheikh Anta Diop and John G. Jackson. Cheikh Anta Diop wrote his doctoral dissertation in 1951 on how Egypt of the pharaohs was an African civilization. His initial submission was rejected by the University of Paris, Sorbonne. His doctorate

malcolmx.com

was only granted to him after a decade of defending his argument backed by an array of sociologists, anthropologists, and historians. His struggle to write the correct African narrative is an ongoing struggle to this day; Ancient Egypt is not being portrayed as an African Civilization. John G. Jackson wrote a book published in 1938 entitled “Ethiopia and the Origin of Civilization.” Below is an excerpt from his book that I found very interesting and worth sharing. It discusses the role of ancient Ethiopians in mapping out the signs of the Zodiac. A book on astrology attributed to Lucian declares that: “The Ethiopians were the first who invented the science of stars, and gave names to the planets, not at random and without meaning, but descriptive of the qualities which they conceived them to possess; and it was from them that this art passed, still in an imperfect state, to the Egyptians.” The Ethiopian origin of astronomy is beautifully explained by Count Volney in a passage in his Ruins of Empires, which is one of the glories of modern literature, and his argument is not based on guesses. […] In discussing star worship and idolatry, Volney gives the following glowing description of the scientific achievements of the ancient Ethiopians, and of how they mapped out the signs of the zodiac on the star-spangled dome of the heavens: “It was, then, on the borders of the upper Nile, among a black race of men, that was organized the complicated system of the worship of the stars, considered in relation to the productions of the earth and the labors of agriculture. Thus the Ethiopian of Thebes named stars of inundation, or Aquarius, those stars under which the Nile began to overflow; stars of the ox or bull, those under which they began to plow, stars of the lion, those under which that animal, driven from the desert by thirst, appeared

on the banks of the Nile; stars of the sheaf, or of the harvest virgin, those of the reaping season; stars of the lamb, stars of the two kids, those under which these precious animals were brought forth. Thus the same Ethiopian having observed that the return of the inundation always corresponded with the rising of a beautiful star which appeared towards the source of the Nile, and seemed to warn the husbandman against the coming waters, he compared this action to that of the animal who, by his barking, gives notice of danger, and he called this star the dog, the barker (Sirius). In the same manner he named the stars of the crab, those where the sun, having arrived at the tropic, retreated by a slow retrograde motion like the crab of Cancer. He named stars of the wild goat, or Capricorn, those where the sun, having reached the highest point in his annuary tract, imitates the goat, who delights to climb to the summit of the rocks. He named stars of the balance, or Libra, those where the days and nights being equal, seemed in equilibrium, like that instrument; and stars of the scorpion, those where certain periodical winds bring vapors, burning like the venom of the scorpion.” We should always remember that Africa is the cradle of civilization. Black History invites us to re-visit our roots and learn about our rich heritage, not just as Ethiopians but as Africans as a whole. We have an obligation to our children to make sure that the history that defines us is correctly taught around the world. Those who came before us did their share of spreading awareness. What are we doing now to correct the African narrative?

“Until lions have their historians, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunters”

Issue Issue1717- March -March2016 2016- -The TheEminence Eminence| | 35


REFLECTION: LEGAL CORNER

+ Photo by: Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

+

+ Photo by: Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

A NTIQUES

Some examples of movable cultural heritages which you are not allowed taking out of the country

Antiques and collectibles: What to know before buying them By Tsewaye Muluneh Staff Writer At the end of your visit to this historical and cultural country, Ethiopia, you may think of buying some souvenirs for your friends, family and even yourself. That is quite easy as there are so many souvenir shops in the capital city as well as tourist sites here. Though there is no specific study that has been done and included in the quarterly tourism income report of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, it’s obvious that there is some amount of revenue generated

36 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

from the selling of souvenirs. So going around the shops, you may see a variety of antiques and souvenirs to your heart’s content. Starting from beads, crosses, carvings, wall hangings, scarves, t-shirts and jebena (Ethiopian coffee clay pot) - the list goes on. Having so many choices then you would start to think which ones to give away and which ones to keep for yourself. You may choose to have

some antiques that show the culture and history of Ethiopia. It’s a treasure to have ancient parchment scriptures and coins as they are unique and show the different alphabets and numbers of Ethiopia. But has it ever crossed your mind that you are not allowed to take everything back home with you? Yes, some souvenirs are considered as movable cultural heritages and it is not allowed to take them out of


+

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

+

+ www.women-on-the-road.com

Photo by: Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage

COLLECTIBLES

Selected souvenirs, which you can buy and take it with you as a remembrance of Ethiopia

Ethiopia. These heritages are considered to be handed down from the past generations to the present to keep its identity. In Ethiopia the government body that protects and preserves these cultural heritages is known as the Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritage (ARCCH). According to Proclamation 209/2000 article 8 parchments; manuscripts; stone paintings and implements; statutes and sculptures made of gold, silver, bronze, iron, copper; or of any other material of significant paleontological artifacts written or in graphic documents coins; ethnographic implements; ornaments; or any other cultural object of nations ,nationalities and peoples cannot go out of the country.

According to Ephrem Amare the Authority’s inventory and inspection standardization directorate director, if it is needed to take one or more of the above mentioned heritages for scientific research or other purposes it has to be only through permission from the above cited government body. Antiques and movable cultural heritages can be differentiated from souvenirs by seeing their historical and cultural significance, artistic value, age, rarity and expensiveness of the material. So your choice may not be right. Accordingly it is completely prohibited to take parchment manuscripts and old coins out of the country. If you are in the country and in doubt about what you have bought the above mentioned government office can classify and tell you about what you have on hand. The office is located around Amist

kilo, behind the residence of the Ethiopia Orthodox Church Patriarch. According to the directorate director most of the time parchment manuscripts, old and used processional and hand crosses, old paintings of churches and old coins are usually confiscated at the point of departures. To protect the sale of the movable cultural heritage awareness creation training for souvenir shops, religious entities and museums is being given by the Authority for the past three years. For visitors and tourists the Authority is preparing informative brochures that could be given out at airport terminals. So be sure to buy the right souvenirs’ to take back home. Have a nice time. Enjoy Ethiopia

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 37


REFLECTION: DEAR ETHIOPIA BIO Caroline Kurtz, from Portland, Oregon, USA, grew up in Ethiopia because her parents were missionaries. She returned and taught school for 6 years while her own family was very young. Now a widow, she comes one or two times a year to Ethiopia to coordinate communication between donors in the United States and projects in the SNNP for Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus. Caroline Kurtz ckurtz317@gmail.com

Addis-Bench Maji-USA,

a trip worth traveling This time I’ve been in Ethiopia for three weeks. My sister said she wouldn’t come without me! Accompanying my sister, Jane Kurtz, an author who co-founded ETHIOPIA READS, and four artists, our goal was to contribute to art and literacy in Ethiopia. With four artists, two from the US and two from Ethiopia (Yakob Bezuneh and Nahusenay Negussie) we traveled to Maji in the beautiful Bench-Maji Zone, 800 Kilometers from Addis Ababa.The artists took photos and sat down to sketch and paint. The authors talked to teachers. While in Maji I interviewed the nurse and midwife in the Health Center. I learned of the real challenges of providing quality care to women when you have no electric power. My vision is to explore off-grid possibilities for electricity for the town until the grid extends that far. Upon returning to Addis Ababa our team worked together on a book-making project, lectures and artist studio tours. I found it much more difficult to make arrangements for them in the city than away from Addis Ababa. Our tour company transported us, housed us (sometimes in tents) and fed us. No one was sick on that trip. Was it because we were tired? What about the guest houses and food in Addis Ababa? And the challenges of crossing the city! After other members of the team left, I studied Amharic with an emphasis on reading and writing. Because I grew up in Ethiopia I heard and understood Amharic as a child. But when I tried to speak, it made people laugh. I wish now that I had not been so shy but it made me stop even trying to

speak. However, that gave me a foundation for learning to speak Amharic when I came back as an adult. While traveling with the team of authors and artists it gave me the ability to make arrangements and to interpret as needed. Mostly my verbal ability allows me to connect with the people, and I love that. I have good conversational skills; everyone who converses with me is surprised and pleased at my command of Amharic. There is an Amharic concept I don’t understand -in Amharic some verbs use the passive form that in English we consider active. For example, in Amharic the same word is used “to answer” and “to return” (to my home country). Both are active forms in English; while “to return” in Amharic is expressed as a passive word.

wot lunch. My favorite Ethiopian cuisine is homemade doro wot. The juice shop behind the fruit stand is also a favorite of mine – very refreshing, friendly and nutritious. So, a glorious trip to the Bench-Maji Zone, participating in important projects to encourage Ethiopian children to read, surviving Addis Ababa’s air and crowding, belatedly learning to read and write Amharic- a very successful trip in Ethiopia. I am exploring possible future roles for myself in Ethiopia and I will return

While here I found dark chocolate difficult to find. Never mind, that is easy to find in my home country. But difficult to find there and easy to find here – enjera! What I like the most about Ethiopia is the warmth and friendliness of the people, the genuine hospitality. Even on the street and in the taxis people are helpful. I cherished this help while in language school this last week – one day I boarded the taxi (minibus) on the wrong side of the road and found myself in Mexico. A phone call to my hostess assured me I could return home from Mexico and that I was standing in the correct place for the Mekanessa taxi. On the last day instead of a blue minibus, I was assured that the aging white bus would drop me where I wanted to go – indeed, I arrived home without incident or detour and in time for my last enjera and

38 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

Photo by: Troy Zaushny

Issue 16 17 -- February March 2016 - The Eminence | |38 38 Issue 2016 - The Eminence


Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 39


40 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016


Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 41


ENTERTAINMENT:

THE EMINENCE

Pick of the Month Book

Writer: Graham Hancock Year of Publication: 1992

The fact of the Lost Ark of the Covenant is one of the grant historical mysteries of all time. To believers, the Ark is the legendary vessel holding the stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. The Bible contains hundreds of references to the Ark’s power to level mountains, destroy armies, and lay waste to cities. The Ark itself, however, mysteriously disappears from recorded history sometime after the building of the Temple of Solomon. Graham Hancock as a journalist has tracked down the true story behind the myths and legends revealing where the Ark is today, how it got there, and why it remains hidden.

the Quest for the Lost Ark of the Covenant Paperback

Movie As civil war rages in Africa a Fierce warlord trains orphans to join his groups of guerilla fighters. It was a highly talked about movie which is expected to have an Oscar nomination and already won awards like Screen Actors Guild for the outstanding performance. Director: Cary Fukunaga Stars: Abrham Attah, Idris Alba, Emmanuel Affadazi Length: 2h 17m

Music Fikir Addis NekaTibeb Misikir Fikir Addis is known to have one of the unique voices in Ethiopia. She releases her uniquely produced album that have a nature of a culture and modern mash up with great lyrics content and very catchy melodies a couple of months ago. The album production and song writing is done by her husband Abebe Melese and the legendary Yilima Gebreab. The Album contains 13 tracks.

16 -March -February 2016 42 | The Eminence - Issue 17 2016


Food Recipe Direction 1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat, swirling occasionally. Stir in garlic and onions and bring to a simmer until the butter is clear. Reduce the heat to low. If the butter is boiling too quickly and burns, it will taste bitter. 2. While the butter is cooking whisk together the berbere (Ethiopian red pepper) and the salt 3. Let it cook for at least for 15 minutes so that the brebere will not have a burning taste.

Ethiopian roasted beef (Zilzil Tibs) Needed ingredients • • • • • • •

Nitir Kibe (spiced butter) Berbere (Ethiopian red pepper ) Braised beef half a kilo ( cut into half inch) Injera for serving 1 clove of garlic 1 small red onion ( finely chopped ) Salt and rosemary

4. Put the half inch cut meat into the mixture. 5. Put a cover on the pan so that the meat will be cooked on the steam of the mixture 6. Put pepper, salt, and rosemary and season it based on your preference. 7. Serve it with injera

Enjoy!

Sudoku

Tourist Corner Name: Said Tokel I’m from: Turkey Age: 48 I’ve been in Ethiopia for: 5 years I’m in Ethiopia because: Energy Investment An Ethiopian concept or way of thinking that you don’t understand: Actually I didn’t expect Ethiopia to be like this. Ethiopia is different than the other African countries in terms of culture, entertainment and other activities. But the funny thing is thieves stole my phone couple of time There is Bizu Leba Around. Something that is hard to find here but easy to find in your home country: Turkish kabab Something that is easy to find here but hard to find in your home country: I couldn’t find good injera in turkey Your least favorite thing about Ethiopia: I don’t want to generalize but I hate the thieves in here.

16 - March February 2016 - The Eminence Issue 17 2016 - The Eminence | |43 43


ENTERTAINMENT: CLASSIFIED Best Halls in Addis Ababa Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) Available Rooms: 12 Accommodates: From 30 - 500 People African Union (AU) Available Rooms: 40 Accommodates: From 35 -2, 500 People Sheraton Addis Hotel Available Rooms: 9 Accommodates: From 40 -450 People Hilton Addis Ababa Available Rooms: 8 Accommodates: From 20 -650 People Radission Blu Addis Ababa Available Rooms: 2 Accommodates: From 12 -120 People

Places for Retreat Kurifitu Resort & Spa Location: Bishoftu (Debrezeit) Things to do: Restaurant & Bar, Swimming, Kayaking, Spa, Rooms Kurifitu Resort & Spa Location: Bahir Dar Things to do: Restaurants, Rooms with Lake Tana View, Fireplace, Swimming, Spa Adulala Resort Location: Bishoftu (Debrezeit) Things to do: Restaurants & bar, Spa & Gym, Bungalows, Horse riding, fishing at Babo Gaya Lake & much more African Vacation Club Location: Langanoo Things to do: Restaurant & bar, Swimming, Kayaking, Spa, Rooms, Horse ridding, Game Zone and Different Beach Games Yaya Village Location: Sululeta Things to do: Restaurant & bar, Horse Riding, Rooms & High Attitude training Liesake Resort and Spa Avanti Blue Nile Hotel Location: Bahir Dar Things to do: Bar and Restaurant, Rooms with overall city view, massage

Immerse yourself in Ethiopian Music and Dance Fendika Location: Kazanchis Time: from 7:00 PM- Mid night 2000 Habesha Location: Bole Time: from 7:00 PM- Mid night

What to see in Addis Ababa?

Holy Trinity Cathedral Location: Arat Kilo

Beautiful Scenic and Wildlife in Ethiopia

National Museum Location: Amist Kilo

Ethiopian traditional clothes and jewelry market Location: Shiro Meda Panoramic view of Addis from Entoto Location: Entoto

Hangout Spots Edna Mall/ Bob and Bongos Things to do: Watch box office movies, Skating, basket ball, cafés, 7D movies Lafto Mall Things to do: Read your favorite books & enjoy hot drinks Balageru Coffee Things to do: Read your favorite books & enjoy hot drinks Bilos Café Things to do: Some of the best pastries in town

Night Life in Addis Gaslight Night Club Location: Sheraton Addis Club Illusion Location: Next to Ambassador Theater Black Rose Location: On Boston Building Champion Bar Location: On Boston Building Liquid Lounge Location: Next to Intercontinental Addis Hotel Club H2O Location: On Yolly Building, “Chichiniya” Suba Lounge Location: Wollo Sefer on Ethio-China road Gravity Lounge Location: Next to Bole Medihanialem Church Fendika Club Location: Kasanchis

Ethiopian Korean War Veterans Association Location: Afincho Ber The largest open market in Africa Location: Merkato The gold jewelry market Location: Piassa

44 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

Al Mendi Location: Meskel Flower Specialty: Arabian Restaurants

Four Seasons Location: Bisrat Gabriel Specialty: Japanese, Thai and Indian

Ethnological Museum Location: Sidist Kilo Park (Anebesa Gebi) Location: Sidist Kilo

International Cuisines in Addis

Caribo Resturants Location: Mekinisa Specialty: Caribbean and African cuisine Simien Mountains National Park Location: Semien Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region Some of the animals that can be found: Gelada baboon, Simien fox & Walia Ibex Nechisar National Park Location: SNNPR Some of the animals that can be found: Burchell’s Zebra, Grant’s gazelle, Guenther’s Dik-dik, Anubis Baboon & Grey Duiker. Awash National Park Location: Southern part of Afar Region and northeastern of Oromia Region Some of the animals that can be found: Beisa oryx, Hamadryas Swaync’s Hartebeet Omo National Park Location: SNNPR Some of the animals that can be found: Burchell’s Zebra, Gerenuk & Kudu Mago National Park Location: SNNPR Some of the animals that can be found: buffalo, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, hartebeest, leopard, lion and zebra

Bale Mountains National Park Location: Oromia Region Some of the animals that can be found: Topi, Lelwel Hartebeest, Bustards, Hornbills, Weavers & Starlings

Castelli Location: Piassa Specialty: Italian Restaurant Chez Fasil Restaurant and Bar Location: Meskel Flower Specialty: Specialized in Nouvelle & Fusion Cuisine German Restaurant Location: Near Japan Embassy Specialty: German food and beer Kuriftu Diplomat Restaurant Location: On Boston Building Specialty: “The ultimate global cuisine” Hahn Khuh Restaurant Location: Atlas Specialty: Korean Aladdin Location: Near Japan Embassy Specialty: Middle Eastern

Some of the best Coffee house Tomoca Coffee Abissiynia Coffee Alem Bunna

Gambella National Park Location: Gambella Region Some of the animals that can be found: Nile Lechwe,White-Eared Kob, Roan Antelope, and Whaleheaded Stork Abijatta-Shalla Lakes National Park Location: Oromia Region Some of the animals that can be found: Great White Pelicans and Flamingo Yangudi Rassa National Park Location: Afar Region Some of the animals that can be found: Beisa Oryx, Dorcas gazelle, gerenuk and Gravy’s zebra

Your Home Away from Home for Your Extended Stay Beer Garden Inn (Guest House) Total Rooms: 21 Location: Bole Medhanialem Road near Edna mall GT Guest House (Guest House) Total Rooms: 13 Location: Kirkos kifle ketema, 200m in from Dashen Bank on Sierra Leone Street Yeka Guest House (Guest House) Total Rooms: 14 Location: British Embassy across the street from the Bio-Diversity Institute Addis Guest House (Guest House) Total Rooms: 12 Location: Bole road 5 minutes from Bole International Airport

“Please let it be noted neither the editorial team nor the company is liable for any errors or mistakes on the sources of information. The list is in no specific order”.


PHONE SERVICE Toll Free Information Service Federal Police Commission National Operator Fault Report Dial Up Internet Pre Paid Mobile Service/Bill Inquiry/Lost Mobile Registration/ Number Change Information Broad Band Customer Service PSTN Service Voice Mail

PRIVATE HOSPITALS 997 916 998 994 900 994 980 980 908

COURRIER SERVICE DHL EMS(Ethiopia) Federal Express TNT Skypok UPS Trans Express Ethiopia

011 662 16 00 011 515 20 72 011 618 63 83 011 551 41 54 011 662 13 09 011 551 41 54

UN United Nations Development Program United Nations Children Education Fund United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

011 663 35 82 011 518 40 00 011 551 72 00

BANK Abay Bank Addis International Bank Awash International Bank Bank of Abyssina Berhan International Bank Buna International Bank Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) Construction and Business Bank Cooperative Bank of Oromia Dashen Bank Debub Global Bank Development Bank of Ethiopia Enat Bank Lion International Bank Nib International Bank Oromia International Bank United Bank Wegagen Bank Zemen Bank

011 552 88 51 011 557 0502 011 557 00 00 011 551 41 30 011 618 57 32 011 158 08 67 011 122 87 55 011 551 23 00 011 552 27 59 011 467 18 03 011 467 40 87 011 551 11 88 011 550 49 48 011 662 60 00 011 550 32 88 011 557 21 13 011 465 52 22 011 552 38 00 011 550 11 11

AIRLINES British Midland (BMI) Egypt Air Ethiopian Airlines Emirates Kenya Airways K.L.M Royal Dutch Lufthansa Saudi Airline Yemen Airways

011 665 04 94 011 156 44 93 011 665 66 66 011 518 18 18 011 551 42 58 011 552 55 41 011 551 56 66 011 663 81 37 011 551 50 76

FIRE BRIGADE Station Menilik II square Station Addisu Kera Station Mekanisa Station Nifas Silk Station Akaki Station Megenagna Station Bole

011 156 70 40 011 466 34 20 011 276 91 46 011 442 55 63 011 434 00 96 011 663 03 73 011 664 85 80

POLICE STATION Police Information Federal Police Commission AA Police Commission

Addis Cardiac Hospital Addis Hiwot Hospital Bete Zata Hospital Landmark Hospital Hayat Hospital Kadisco Hospital Broad Band Customer Service PSTN Service Voice Mail

011 663 47 20 011 618 04 49 011 551 41 41 011 552 62 29 011 662 44 88 011 629 89 04 980 980 908

COURRIER SERVICE DHL EMS(Ethiopia) Federal Express TNT Skypok UPS Trans Express Ethiopia

011 662 16 00 011 515 20 72 011 618 63 83 011 551 41 54 011 662 13 09 011 551 41 54

PUBLIC Black Lion (Tikur Anbessa) Hospital Black Lion (Tikur Anbessa) Hospital Black Lion (Tikur Anbessa) Hospital

011 551 12 11 011 551 12 11 011 551 12 11

LIBRARY Academy of Ethiopian Languages Addis Ababa Municipality Library Alliance Ethio-Française British Council Economic Commission for Africa library German Cultural Institute Italian Cultural Institute J.F Kennedy (A.A.U) National Libraries & Archives

011 551 59 26 011 155 01 11 011 155 02 13 011 155 00 22 011 551 72 00 011 155 28 88 011 111 34 27 011 111 04 33 011 551 62 47

ART GALLERY Asni Gallery Ersas Art Studio Goshu Art Gallery Gigi’s Afro Asian Design& Fine Interiors Makush Gallery

011 123 32 44 0913 66 02 30 011 661 03 97 0912 20 43 37 011 552 68 48

Sudoku Answer

TOUR AND TRAVEL Eminence Social Entrepreneurs Koreb Tour Operators Kibran Tours Plc Rainbow Car Rental and Tour Services

011 823 71 82 011 662 3179 011 662 62 14 011 371 79 40

PHARMACY Abader Pharmacy Bata Pharmacy Ethio German Pharmacy

011 662 43 97 011 655 21 34 0911 20 94 88

ONLINE CLASSIFIED 2 Merkato Latest Ethiopian Tenders and Bids Buy and Sell ( Ethiopia) Gulit Online Market Mekina Online Car Market Kaymu Whats Out Addis?

www.2merkatos/ tenders buysellethio.com wwww.gulit.com www.mekina.ney et.kaymu.com Whatsoutaddis.com

991 916 011 157 21 21

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 45


RESERVATIONS 0911753809 / 0911507833 CONTACT@EMINENCE-SE.COM WWW.EMINENCE-SE.COM

DAILY Package

WEEKLY Package

MONTHLY Package

Adika BLdg 5th floor

46 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016

(Between Monarch and Saro-Maria hotels)

6 MONTHS Package


Condolence We were shocked and saddened to hear about Christina’s death. Christina had been working with us from2012 - 2014 and was our Media and Communication team member. Christina was a warm kind hearted person who we will miss dearly. It is difficult to know what to do in these hard times. We will never forget the image of her gentle face. We pray that God gives her soul eternal peace and her family and friends the strength to bear the pain. Eminence Social Entrepreneurs PLC

Rest in peace

Issue 17 - March 2016 - The Eminence | 47


Phone : +251 115 158278 / 507074 Fax : +251 115 151338 / 504948 P.O.Box: 18401, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Address: Kirkos sub-city, woreda 8, in front of Yordanos Hotel. Email: info@enatbanksc.com SWIFT Code: ENATETAA

48 | The Eminence - Issue 17 -March 2016


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.