ETHIOPIA TODAY. Newsletter of the Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in Canada

Transcription

1 ETHIOPIA TODAY Newsletter of the Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in Canada Vol. IV No.2 May 2017 Dr. Tedros Adhanom of Ethiopia Becomes First African to Lead the World Health Organization The demand for realistic representation, and consciousness of its lack of it, has been a central element in all the struggles of Africans and the black people of the world from the time of Marcus Garvey to Frantz Fanon and subsequently. From now on, with Africa providing an unanimous call for a genuine place at the highest levels of at least one international organization, the World Health Organization, there was every reason to hope for the practical choice to be made. In January last year, the Twenty-Sixth Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the African Union unanimously endorsed Dr. Tedros Adhanom's candidature for the next election of the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO). The AU's choice as the sole African candidate played pivotal role in his historic victory becoming the first African to lead the top UN health post, and putting the names of Ethiopia and Africa at the top of hundreds of digital and print media outlets. President Dr. Mulatu Teshome and Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn congratulated Dr. Tedros Adhanom on his election and all Ethiopians at home and abroad and all Africans as well as friends of Ethiopia, on the victory. Prime Minister Hailemariam referred to Dr. Tedros' victory as one more proof of Ethiopia's notable and growing role in socio-economic and political issues on the international stage. Foreign Minister, Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu, recalling Dr. Tedros' achievements in his tenure as his predecessor as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, dubbed the victory a part of Ethiopia's diplomatic success in the Global arena. He also underlined that his success was "an African Victory." Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the AU Commission, who wished Dr Tedros a successful tenure at WHO, robustly working towards a better, healthier future for all people around the globe, said, "The world has chosen a consummate global health statesman with a strong track record of embedding global public health and health security as a vital cornerstone of human development." The AU Commission affirmed its support for Dr. Tedros' priorities and The Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in Ottawa is located at Slater Street, Ottawa, ON, Canada K1P 5H9. Tel: Fax: info@ethioembassycanada.org, Website: 1

2 thanked African Ministers of health for united and steadfast support for Dr. Tedros during the campaign. The Executive Secretary of IGAD, Ambassador Maalim, sent his warm congratulations to Dr. Tedros and said his victory was "a symbol of an ever African rising unity in the international arena". Prior to his election as WHO's next Director- General, Dr Tedros served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia from 2012 to 2016 and previously as Minister of Health of Ethiopia from 2005 to As Minister of Health, Dr Tedros led the comprehensive reform efforts of Ethiopia's health system, including the expansion of the country's health infrastructure. He was responsible for creating 3,500 health centers and 16,000 health posts; for expanding the health workforce by 38,000 health extension workers; and by initiating finance mechanisms to expand health insurance coverage. As Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Tedros also led the effort to negotiate the Addis Ababa Action Agenda, under which 193 countries have committed to the financing necessary to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. At various times during these years, he has also served as Chair of the Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; Chair of the Roll Back Malaria (RBM) Partnership Board; and as Co-chair of the Board of the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health. Dr Tedros secured record funding for the two organizations and created the Global Malaria Action Plan, which expanded RBM's reach beyond Africa to Asia and Latin America. The campaign for the Director-Generalship has been going on for eighteen months or so. This election was more open and transparent than any previous one. Traditionally, WHO's Executive Board (34 individuals, nominated by member states on a 3 year tenure) decided on the position of Director-General. This time, after the Board had reduced the candidates to a short list of three, Health Ministers and representatives of 186 WHO's member states voted. The three finalists were Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus (Ethiopia), Dr. Sania Nishtar (Pakistan), and Dr. David Nabarro (UK), and the three each set out their vision for WHO in the future. In the first round of voting Dr. Sania Nishtar, a cardiologist and expert in non-communicable diseases, was eliminated after getting 38 votes. In the third round of voting, Dr. Tedros obtained 133 votes, sufficient to easily defeat Dr. David Nabarro's 50, with three abstentions. Dr. Tedros replaces Dr. Margaret Chan (China) who had been Director- General of WHO since Dr.Tedros said that the challenges WHO now faced, "including achieving universal health coverage, managing the triple burden of communicable and non-communicable disease, combined with health emergencies, and addressing the health effects of climate change", required bold action. It would not be easy, and WHO would not be able to do this alone. It would also require strong country ownership, smart, strategic partnerships among member states, civil society, the private sector, academia, and the media and a commitment to engaging communities in their own health. With the Sustainable Development Goals offering the mandate to aim for universal health coverage, this was "the opportunity to make progress on health equity the likes of which we could have only dreamt of 20 or 30 years ago." The President of Poland Makes an Official Visit to Ethiopia Polish President H.E Andrzej Duda arrived in Addis Ababa on May 7/2017 for a two-day official visit as part of his country's commitment to strengthen the Ethio-Polish trade and investment ties. The President was accompanied by First Lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda, and other high-level Polish officials. The President's trip 2

3 also aimed to get support from members of the African Union for his country's bid to take the Eastern Europe non-permanent seat in the United Nations Security Council for produced in Ethiopia." President Duda said he would like Polish business and the Polish state "to contribute to the development of Ethiopia, while making a profit at the same time." He hoped Polish brands will become recognizable in Ethiopia." President Duda(on the left side) and President Mulatu (on the right side) Ahead of the trip, President Duda revealed that his visit was mainly intended to drum up business in Africa at large and Ethiopia in particular. A top presidential aide said, "Poland and Polish businesses are looking for investment areas in Africa." He noted that two major Polish investments and a number of large companies were already operating in Ethiopia. President Duda met with President Dr. Mulatu Teshome on May 8/2017 at the National Palace. During the meeting the two Heads of State shared views on various issues, including ways to improve trade which currently stands only at US$36 million. They agreed that the two countries needed to boost their trade ties. President Duda voiced his hope that trade between the two countries would increase to a level of hundreds of millions of dollars. Poland is a big market in Europe, as is Ethiopia in Africa. He said, "I would like Polish companies to invest in Ethiopia - to invest literally but also to invest in Ethiopians." Referring to Polish agricultural products being processed in Ethiopia, he said "I would like Polish goods to appear in Ethiopian stores, but to be President Duda visited a plant operated by Polish tractor manufacturer Ursus in Ethiopia. He noted the Ursus venture in Adama was possible thanks to an agreement concluded in This had led Poland to agree special credit lines to implement production and cooperation tasks between Poland and Ethiopia. It was part of the GoAfrica business program set up by the Polish government. President Duda said he would like as many Polish entrepreneurs and Polish companies as possible to make use of the program, to become interested in the African market, and he encouraged more companies to invest in Africa. Ursus estimates that the value of contracts at its Ethiopia arm over the last four years have amounted to some US$110 million. On May 7/2017, the Polish President met with Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn. The two leaders agreed to take practical steps to further strengthen cooperation between the two countries and discussed ways of enhancing economic and people-to-people ties between Ethiopia and Poland. According to Krzystof Szczerski, Polish Secretary of State, they agreed to improve cooperation in agriculture, infrastructure, information technology and education. They also considered ways of strengthening relations in the political arena with particular reference to peace and security. President Duda emphasized that Poland recognized Ethiopia's diplomatic importance in Africa, and expressed his country's desire to use Ethiopia as a gateway to its relations with the rest of Africa. President Duda also visited the Headquarters of the African Union and speaking at an African 3

4 Union Forum, said: "We are open to friendly cooperation as partners, offering our extensive experience, among other things in economic transformation. We want to invest in Africa." He noted that Poland conducted joint business projects and finance development projects through its GoAfrica program, stressing that half of the priority partners in its development cooperation program were African countries. The President also made it clear Poland would like to have African backing for Poland's bid for a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for Voting takes place next month. Ethiopia as a Non-Permanent Member of the UN Security Council The Security Council rotates the ten nonpermanent seats on the Council among the various regional blocks into which UN Member States divide themselves for voting and representation purposes. On January 1, this year, Ethiopia took its place as one of the three non-permanent representatives for Africa. It is, of course, one of the founding members of the United Nations and a member of the League of Nations; and has twice sat on the Security Council as a non-permanent member, in and Ethiopia has made it clear it is keen to play a key role in the ongoing reform of the UN's Peace and Security architecture and it has strongly underlined the necessity for further cooperation between the African Union Peace and Security Council and the UN Security Council. As Ethiopia has always responded to UN calls for collective action on international peace and security, and membership of the Security Council gives Ethiopia a well placed position to discharge any mandated responsibilities, properly and transparently. It has the commitment, the strength and the ability to offer real and valuable support to multilateralism and pan-africanism. Dr. Tekeda Alemu, Permanent Representative of Ethiopia to the United Nations, in a recent interview with Ethiopian Business Review magazine, detailed the objectives Ethiopia tries to advance. He said this could be seen at three levels; national, continental and global. One priority, obviously, was to promote the interest of one's own country, to be done without underlining the interests of others. This was because Ethiopian foreign policy was anchored in commitment to mutual accommodation and win-win outcomes. As a member of the AU, and fully committed to Africa's agendas, Ethiopia, he said, had a responsibility to advance the interests of the continent in accordance with the decisions of the AU and AUPSC. It, therefore, acts along with the other current African members of the Security Council Egypt and Senegal, to promote African agendas. Equally, as a member of the world community, Ethiopia stands for global peace and security. Dr. Tekeda made it clear that Ethiopia shared a number of problems and issues with Egypt and Senegal including the necessary response to terrorism. By and large, he stressed, Ethiopia expected to have a common consensus with the other African non-permanent members on continental and global issues. He noted that there was a working group on "Prevention and Resolution of Conflict in Africa", chaired by Ethiopia. Ethiopia had solicited the advice of Egypt on how to make the group more effective. It had also taken the unprecedented initiative of conducting a joint meeting with another committee chaired by Senegal. Dr Tekeda concluded by noting that the most important thing for Ethiopia now was to perfect what it had started to build with wisdom and patience. This was critically needed at this juncture in its history. If it managed to do this, he said, Ethiopia could continue to achieve a greater success and be one of the African countries that are a source of pride not just for Africans but for the black people throughout the world. 4

5 Business and Economy The 6th World Hydropower Congress Held in Addis Ababa The 6th World Hydropower Congress (WHC), a biennial multi-stakeholder forum bringing together leaders and specialists with hydropowerrelated responsibilities from government, industry, finance, United Nations agencies, academia and civil society, took place in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from May 9-11, The Congress, organized by the International Hydropower Association with the support of the Economic Commission for Africa, the African Union Commission and other partners, was the first high-level event of its kind to be held in Africa. The event aimed to build on the previous meeting held in 2015 in Beijing by bringing together leaders and specialists to examine how initiatives of governments, businesses, finances, civil society and academia can advance sustainable development. Hydropower's role as a global energy source cannot be overstated, with hydro supplying 70% of the world's renewable energy to more than a billion people in 152 countries. Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn officially opened the congress, telling delegates that development was unthinkable in the absence of adequate and affordable energy. Despite huge resource potential, he underlined, Africa's energy sector was underdeveloped and left a large part of the population on the continent to a life without access to modern energy sources. This seriously compromised economic growth and development. Sufficient electric power supplies at affordable prices were key, he said, to ensuring the sustainable development of Africa. Sharing Ethiopia's experience in advancing the use of hydropower and renewable energy sources, the Prime Minister said Africa could not achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development without universal access to electricity. Ethiopia, he pointed out, had considerable water resources. The untapped hydropower potential in the country amounted to around 45,000 MW. Cognizant of this untapped resource, the country's Second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP2) had outlined projects that would bring the country's total installed capacity to 17,000 MW by This figure included new hydropower facilities, alongside with some wind, solar PV, biomass and geothermal projects. The country, he said, was set to become a regional leader in the power supply business, exporting electricity to countries throughout the Eastern Africa Power Pool and beyond. Indeed, hydropower, he said, was crucial to providing reliable and sustainable energy development for the transformation of Africa's economies. In this context, the Prime Minister also underlined the need for collective efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change, emphasizing the need for the world "to pull together" on this front. The Acting Executive Secretary for Economic Commission for Africa, Abdalla Hamdok said with more than 600 million people in Africa living without access to electricity and households continuing to rely on traditional biomass for cooking, it was important and pertinent for Africa to tap into its vast renewable energy sources. He said: "With clear vision coupled with strong and coherent policy action to promote faster and more inclusive growth, the continent has the potential to take the lead in innovation, technologies and 5

6 business models that utilise hydropower optimally and efficiently."mr. Hamdok said it was important to develop an integrated approach to the management of water for irrigation and energy production, adding the ECA and the AU Commission were working closely with key stakeholders on a number of initiatives to promote low carbon energy development as well as innovative financing regimes for clean energy infrastructure projects to support the implementation of both the global Sustainable Development Goals Agenda and the Africa Union's Agenda An Ethiopian-Brazilian Business Forum in Sao Paulo An Ethio-Brazilian Business and Investment Forum was held on May 16/2017 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Co-organized by WAFA Marketing and Promotion Plc and World Trade Center in partnership with the Afro Brazilian Chamber of Commerce and the Ethiopian Embassy in Brazil, the Forum brought together representatives of more than 130 companies, businesses and government officials from both countries. Eshetu Dessie, the Speaker of the Parliament of Ethiopia's Oromia Regional State and a Board Member of WAFA Marketing and Promotion Plc. led the Ethiopian delegation which included 2 members of the Business Diplomacy Directorate General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and around 20 representatives of business organizations and institutions. In his keynote address Ato Eshetu noted that Ethiopia and Brazil had enjoyed more than half a century of relations, but he emphasized the need to translate these links in order to expand and foster all-round Ethiopian- Brazilian cooperation and enhance economic and business ties between the businesses and governments of both countries. Describing the Forum as an important platform for promoting and strengthening economic cooperation, Ato Eshetu called upon investors from Brazil to take advantage of Ethiopia's emerging market and vast opportunities in a range of areas. Ethiopia's Ambassador to Brazil, Ambassador Sinknesh Ejigu, underlined the historic, political, and commercial ties that defined the long-standing bilateral relations between the two countries and went on to note that Ethiopia was deeply committed to make joint business cooperation as a driving force for the mutual development of both countries and of the overall relations between Brazil and Ethiopia. The Ambassador underlined that the official inauguration of two Ethiopian Honorary Consulates in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo on May 4 and 8, respectively, and the appointment of two experienced businessmen as the Honorary Consuls of Ethiopia would certainly deepen further the ties between the two friendly Nations. Ambassador Sinknesh said Ethiopia offered strong market opportunities to Brazilian investors and businesses. It was the second most populous country in Africa and was one of the fastest growing economies in the world, with doubledigit economic growth the past thirteen years. The opportunities for Brazilian investors were correspondingly substantial. Representing the Brazilian private sector, Ms. Andrea Menzes, CEO of the Standard Bank in Brazil, welcomed the Forum which, she said, underlined the growing relationship between Ethiopia and Brazil. It was a growing partnership and cooperation in development, trade and investment. She reiterated the importance of the role of trade and commerce in boosting relations between the two countries and emphasized the way trade could be an important agent of change in empowering people. The Ethio-Brazilian Business and Investment Forum concluded with a panel discussion on the nature and type of business and investment opportunities currently available for Brazilian investors with an interest to do business in Ethiopia. The Forum, which also provided the 6

7 opportunity for networking for Ethiopian and Brazilian business representatives and investors, not only provided an opportunity for Brazilian companies to see and learn about prospects in Ethiopia but also offered business-to-business opportunities through discussions and company visits. Tourism and Culture Embassy Participates in Ottawa Welcomes the World Event; Celebrates Ginbot 20 The Embassy of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to Canada celebrated the 26th anniversary of Ginbot 20 and the 150th anniversary of Canada by holding different activities open to the public on May 28th, 2017 at the Horticulture building in Ottawa. The Embassy joined in the celebration of the 150th anniversary of Canada by taking part in the Ottawa Welcomes the World in 2017 on May 28/2017. The Embassy showcased Ethiopia s rich cultural heritage, cultural dances, culinary experience, exotic tourist destinations, export products, children s activities and overall country presentation to Ottawa residents. The event was organized around themes of trade, tourism, education, cultural food and beverage tasting, presentation of cultural dance and fashion show. Ethiopia s export products including crafts were displayed. Moreover, Ethiopian restaurants joined the event by bringing and selling traditional Ethiopian food to visitors. Traditional coffee ceremony from the land of coffee origin, roasted, brewed and served on the spot was the highlight of the event. Ethiopia to Canada and the Mayor of Ottawa His Worship Jim Watson made remarks to the diplomatic community on the importance of celebrating Ginbot 20 and on the celebration of the Ottawa Welcomes the World Event respectively. On the occasion, Mr. Vance Mcvoy, A/Director for Eastern and Southern Africa Division at Global Affairs have made remarks on the blossoming Ethio- Canadian relations and have conveyed congratulatory message to the government of Ethiopia on its national day. Attendance of the Ethiopian women athletes who won the Marathon in Tamarack Ottawa Race Weekend at the reception program was highly appreciated by all the attendees. Ethio-Canadian Cultural Academy Inc, a non-profit organization from Winnipeg, have entertained the audience by showing different Ethiopian cultural dances. Here is the Event in Pictures; Over 5,000 visitors have visited the venue during the day-long public event. In the evening, diplomatic reception was held in which representatives from the diplomatic community and distinguished guests have attended. At the reception H.E. Ambassador Birtukan Ayano, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ottawa residents attending the Ethiopia Day Celebration 7

8 Fashion Show Event by Ethiopian Diaspora Youths Ambassador Birtukan Ayano and His Worship Jim Watson at the traditional Coffee Ceremony Ethio-Canadian Cultural Academy Dance Group showing their performance at the stage H.E. Ambassador Birtukan cutting the cake with Mr. Vance Mcvoy and with the Athletes 8