Capital

Flood of complaints
180mln birr Harar water tender upsets local firms

By Groum Abate

Adama administration sacked

By Groum Abate

Adama town administration has been mostly replaced by newly appointed staff at the ongoing Adama devaluation or self-assessment meeting chaired by the Chief Administrator of the Oromia Regional State, Abadula Gemeda.
Sources told Capital that Jemal Abasso, Head Administrator of Nazareth town, was replaced by Sisay Negash who was Illubabur administration head. Deputy Administrator Debo was also replaced by Mesfin who comes from Hararghe.

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Ethiopia to assemble Ladas

By Andualem Sisay

Broadcast law faces opposition in parliament

By Eskinder Michael

Addis to host biggest park

By Andualem Sisay

Greening Flowers
Reducing dependency on agrochemicals in flori-culture

By Andualem Sisay

Airports Enterprise to valuate assets

By Eskinder Michael

Ethio-Italian customs cooperation in the works

By Eskinder Michael

Ethiopia begins telemedicine

By Andualem Sisay

MP released on bail after alleged rape case

By Groum Abate

Oil exploration continues

By Eskinder Michael

OPEC’s refinancing forwards more loans to Ethiopia

By Eskinder Michael

Meles: Economy continues to grow

By our staff reporter

No word on abducted Ethiopians
Government demands unconditional and safe release

By Eskinder Michael

Parliament looks to make friends

By Eskinder Michael

Zenebech, Gorfineh
depart this life

By Andualem Sisay

UNIDO and Microsoft to
support FDI in Africa

By Andualem Sisay

United hooks up Addis branches

By Andualem Sisay

Flood of complaints
180mln birr Harar water tender upsets local firms

By Groum Abate

Four local companies have filed complaints to the Ministry of Water Resources over the recent tender for the distribution and installation works of the Harar Water and Sanitation Project.
Sources told Capital that the local water construction companies appealed to the minister this week to revise the tender qualification that states only companies that have over 25 million dollars in annual turnover could participate in the tender.
One of the complainants on condition of anonymity told Capital that companies involved in the water construction sector raised their concerns for reasons that the element that specifically points to annual turnover would bar local companies from the tender, which local water contractors were eagerly awaiting for many years.
The project is estimated to be worth about 180 million birr.
The first phase of the project being carried out in Harar town with a total outlay of 293 million birr has been finalized.
Installation of main water pipes, generators, as well as construction of a water reservoir and residential units for technical staff was the first phase of the project. The Ethiopian government has received a grant under the Technical Assistance Fund of 27.7 million dollars to finance the Harar Water Supply and Sanitation Project.
The project is to provide better access to water supply and sanitation services to the populations of Harar, Alemaya, Awudai, Adele and Dengego through improved water production, distribution and sanitation. It will also entail the improvement of solid waste management as well as institutional capacity building for management of water supply and sewerage services.
In 2004, the town’s Water Supply and Sewerage Service office disclosed that the supply of potable water from Lake Alemaya had been interrupted. According to the office, the amount of water in the lake decreased to such an extent that it is no longer able to draw water and supply the town. The reason for the rapid decrease in lake levels is mainly due to silting and the increased usage of the water for irrigation.
Shortage of water in the town has been severe in the last two years before the city got emergency water wells.
Water used to be transported from the surrounding localities and nearby towns like Dire Dawa, Aweday, and Babile by using available means of transport. It is also common to see people with water containers throughout the day looking for water. Except for a few cases, every vehicle heading to the town is seen loaded with water containers.

Adama administration sacked

By Groum Abate

The staffs removed now are reported to be assigned in other posts of the administration.
Adama is situated within the Wonjii Fault Belt, in the main structural systems of the Ethiopian Rift Valley and lies at an average altitude ranging between 1600 and 1800 meters above sea level.
It is to be recalled that the Oromia Regional council members had agreed that they would return land plots they took from the region.
Based on the political map (1994 Population and Housing Census Commission, CSA), the estimated area of the Regional State of Oromia is about 353,690 Km2, and accounts for almost 32% of the nation’s area.
The total population stood at 18,732,525. With rural residents accounting for 89.5% of the total.

Ethiopia to assemble Ladas

By Andualem Sisay

Holland Car plc, which is currently assembling DOCC, is to start building Ladas , which is the car of choice for Addis Ababa cabbies.
Engineer Tadesse Tessema, who owns half of Holland Car plc, told Capital that the company has signed a contract agreement with Lada Egypt on March 6, 2007 to assemble Lada 2107 in Ethiopia.
“I used to import used 1200 cc Ladas to Ethiopia from Europe,” says Tadesse. “But the company stopped manufacturing this model in 1987 so my first plan of assembling the same Lada in Ethiopia didn’t work. As a result, we decided to assemble Lada 2107, which has a 1600 cc engine.
With customized paintwork included , the company is planning to offer the Lada at a price of 98,000 birr. The current price of one imported 1200cc Lada, which has most likely been used for at least for 20 years, ranges from 70,000 to 75,000, according to Tadesse.
It is believed that some 5,000 Lada 1200s are currently operating as taxis in Ethiopia.
Lada is a trademark of AutoVAZ, a Russian manufacturer with headquarters in Togliatti. It was chosen for exports over the domestic Zhiguli brand, but since the 1980s, the name has been used in Soviet and later the Russian market as well. Lada made its name in Western Europe by selling the Lada Riva in large quantities during the 1980s, but subsequent models have not enjoyed the same success.
Rear-wheel-drive Classic Lada's- 2101 up to 2107, Lada 110 up to115, Lada Kalina (2004-present), Lada Niva, Lada Samara (1984-2004), Lada Riva and Lada Oka are the seven Lada brands with various versions in each catagory.
Lada's first attempt at a modern car came with the Samara hatchback in 1984, which made use of a completely new design. But many budget-conscious buyers simply stuck with the old Riva, which many would argue was actually a better car (despite its ancient design) and also sold for significantly less.
In 1997, the Lada range was withdrawn from Britain and most other European markets, but it continued to be an enormous success in Russia. Another attempt at a modern car came in 1996 with the 2110, which is similar in size to a Ford Mondeo or Opel Vectra. This model was never sold in the UK. It looked and was far more modern than the rest of the Lada range, but proved disastrously unreliable in its early years, causing the company already in financial difficulty to spend millions ironing out the many faults which had been reported.
After Lada (UK) ceased operations in 1997, the remains of the British network of Lada dealers were serviced by Lada (France). Ladas rapidly disappeared from British roads. They had minimal second-hand value in the UK and a re-export market for Russia developed. Many UK and Irish-registered Ladas were sold back to Russia to be stripped for spare parts or to be sold to Russian buyers who appreciated the superior export-specification cars.
There have been several attempts to reintroduce Ladas to the UK market, but these have not produced a result as yet. In addition to Lada 2107, Holland Car Company has also ordered the necessary tools to assemble a luxury model, DOCC Delux-2110 and after it to the market for around 150,000 birr. The company is planning to make both cars available within four months at most.

Broadcast law faces opposition in parliament

By Eskinder Michael

The revised broadcast law put forth by the Ethiopian government in hopes that it would be approved by the parliament was met with heavy criticism from opposition party members.
Bulcha Demeksa, Chairman of the OFDM, was clear in his opposition to the revised law. “The revised law doesn’t promote democracy, as a matter of fact, it tightens the reins. We shouldn’t allow this law to be passed to the standing committee because if we do so, I am afraid that the changes made to the law will be insignificant. That will kill democracy,” he said.
Though Bulcha tried to persuade the house to return the revised law to the government and get it amended, his opposition was in vain as the house refered the bill to the standing committee with 292 for, 90 against and 10 abstension.
Though a broadcast law was put in place under Proclamation 178/91, the government had later on decided that it had holes in it and so it came up with a revised version.
According to the existing law, a government body or any individual broadcasting body can get a license from the agency, but the government says that there is nothing specific about the different broadcast systems, making the issuing of licenses and monitoring broadcasting bodies very difficult.
The other law that the government has complained about is the issuing of licenses. It believes that the existing license law wasn’t designed in a way that goes parallel with the very essence of the law itself.
“According to the existing law, anyone who fulfils the pre-requisites needed for opening a broadcast body will be given a license in 30 days time, and this way of working makes one think of the ‘First Come, First Served’ notion.”
The revised law however, was designed under the supervision of broadcast experts from foreign countries including England and this new law, according to the government, will allow the agency to bring together applicants and issue licenses based on their ability to start a broadcast body.
The existing law clearly states that non Ethiopians, political parties and religious bodies can’t be allowed to start broadcast services, but it doesn’t clearly deny the issuing of licenses to political parties when they apply via third parties. The law also doesn’t deny convicted criminals, other media outlet owners, and others from starting broadcast services. The revised law supposedly has corrected these flaws.
Broadcast laws of other countries classify broadcast into three, catagoris of Pubic Broadcasting, Commercial Broadcasting and Community Broadcasting Services, and as such, the revised law will have these definitions in it.
According to the government, after studying the broadcast laws of countries like England, Australia, India, South Africa and Tanzania, it has tried to come up with a new law that would in time replace the existing one. It said that the revised law had been prepared by studying the laws of other countries and adapting them with existing Ethiopian laws.
The government believes that since new articles were added to the existing law and the changes made were significant, it was a must to prepare a revised document.
Temesgen Ayele, Chairman of the CUDP, believes that since the agency was formed with taxpayers money the public deserve to hear what the opposition party members have to say.
“I don’t understand why a foreigner can’t start a broadcast service in Ethiopia. On one hand, we want to promote investment so that foreigners could come here and invest and on the other hand, we have restrictions. I also don’t understand why the owner of one media can’t start a broadcast service,” he said.
Temesgen also wanted to know why a political leader can’t have shares in broadcast services. “Just because a person is involved in politics, does that mean that his constitutional rights are automatically stripped?” he asked.

Commissioner Harka Haroye and Neway Gebreab, member of the Trade Practice Investigation Commission, were at the hearing where Meta Abo S.C filed a 1.7 million birr lawsuit against BGI, alleging that it has lost its position in the market due to unfair competition from BGI.
At the hearing held on Friday March 16, BGI lined up witnesses for defending the charges of alleged unfair competition.
BGI brought 16 witnesses but only twelve have been heard due to time constraints.
One of the three state owned breweries, Meta Abo S.C., filed the lawsuit against BGI on January 12, 2007.
The largest market share lately is believed to have been enjoyed by BGI Ethiopia, a French interest with breweries in Addis Abeba (St. George) and Kombolcha (Castle), after its upgrading and expansion in the past three years, at a cost of 600 million Br. It now produces an average of 10 million litres a month, and registered 380 million birr in sales in 2005/06.
According to Meta’s lawsuit, BGI not only provides free medications and pays 30 birr a month to bar waitresses in Awassa and Mekelle, but also denies them this privilege if they were found drinking other brands. However, BGI refutes the allegation as baseless.

Addis to host biggest park

By Andualem Sisay

The Addis Ababa Millennium Festival Secretariat is undertaking the construction of the biggest park in the country-Millennium Park, on 158 hectares in Yeka sub city and costing 100mln birr.
A clock that will be installed on a tower that will be built on one of the three hills of Yeka is one of the characteristics that make Millennium Park unique among others. The clock will be visible to the inhabitants Addis from all the four directions.
In addition, the park has five wings named Youth, Elderly, Disabled, Women & Children, and Central Park. Every wing will have recreational and informational centers including libraries, statues, fountains, theatres, conference halls and space for animals.
“Some people might think that we are marginalizing certain segments of the society, but we did this to symbolize our country, which has a place for every one of us within the Millennium Park,” says Kiros HaileSelassie, Director of Addis Ababa Millennium Secretariat.
“The project for the Millennium Park seems ambitious. However, let’s contribute what we can and empower the next generation to finish it, since after all, development is a process. That is why we chose this mountainous site for the park, which can be symbolized as the success one can achieve after passing through challenges,” he says.
The Secretariat hopes to accomplish 30 per cent of the construction of the park by the closing stage the Ethiopian Millennium celebration, which will last for fifteen months as of the coming June 2007.
Securing a budget from the city administration and other sister-cities holding lottery and bazaars and donations from investors are among the strategies that the Secretariat is planning to raise money for the construction of the park
Replying to Capital about the significance of celebrating a 15 month-long Millennium for Ethiopia, “Ethiopian Millennium celebration is not only about festivals and holidays,” says Kiros. “This is the moment for all Ethiopians to look to the light inside of them and step forward to change once and for all the image of poverty and famine that has been our identity. It is also a show time at which we can demonstrate our best face for the rest of the world.”
Including the ever-increasing number of tourists that had reached some 239,000 by the year 2005, Ethiopia is expecting triple that number for the 15 month-long Millennium celebration.

Greening Flowers
Reducing dependency on agrochemicals in flori-culture

By Andualem Sisay

The Netherlands government is working closely with the Ethiopian Horticulture Producers and Exporters Association (EHPEA), towards the minimization and avoidance of agrochemicals usage on Ethiopian flower farms by implementing a new approach-Integrated Pesticide Control (IPC).
This was indicated by Ambassador of the Netherlands in Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union, Alphons J.A.M.G. Hennekens and Chairman of EHPEA, Tsegaye Abebe at a briefing on the upcoming ‘Hortiflora 2007’ International Trade fair, which will take place in Addis Ababa, from 21-23, 2007. The conference is expected to gather some 184 companies from more than twenty countries.
As horticulture exports from Ethiopia are growing rapidly, attracting numerous foreign and local flower growers, at the same time, opposition from environmentalists is also on the rise. Opponents claim that flower growers are using agrochemicals which will damage the soil and environment in general.
Some Ethiopians with strong nationalistic feeling consider their country’s strategy of attracting so many flower producers in such a short time as an unwise move. They claim that Ethiopia is opening her doors while other African countries are expelling flower growers from their country due to the damage they cause the environment. According to critics, the success of the country in the flower sector is obtained as a result of ignorance over environment.
Responding to one of the frequently heard allegations that the soil on which flower growers use agrochemicals will no longer be used to grow anythingelse, Ambassador Alphons says: “There is no investor who will invest in Ethiopia to destroy the environment or just because he/she loves the country. It is the investment and natural atmosphere that attracted investors.”
Tsegaye says, “Green - houses don’t change the soil they use every time. What they change once in about four to six years is the seedling and the plastic they use for covering the house. The environmentalists want us to sit tight under poverty and do nothing to change it.”
Regarding the accusation of using banned agrochemicals, “Even if we want to use these chemicals, the buyers wouldn’t allow us, since they test our products before they pay us. If we do that we will be banned. Therefore, we are dictated by the market,” he says.
“In fact, we are lucky because we are using tested agrochemicals in countries like Kenya. We are doing research at the same time that reduces the use of pesticides on flower farms. Recognizant of this, we are now preparing a code of practice for all those who are engaged in the sector based on the principle of sustainable development through sustainable environment. ”
Dutch researchers and experts are working in partnership with their Ethiopian counterparts to minimize the harm of the agrochemicals that the booming Ethiopian flower farms are currently using.
Under the Ethiopian Netherlands Horticulture Partnership, at the end of 2006, a taskforce formulated a strategic plan for the period 2007-2012 to establish sustainable, industry-led and practically oriented capacity building programs which facilitate the floriculture sector development in Ethiopia.
“Whatever we do always has certain impacts on the environment. We cannot deny the harm that agrochemicals cause to our environment, but it can be reduced and ultimately avoided by applying various technologies through time,” says Geert Westenbrink, a counselor from the Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality.
“Environment is the concern of everybody, including super markets that sell the flowers. The technology which makes horticulture more environment-friendly is out there and we are currently adopting some of the technologies.”
The researchers have now finalized their preparations to introduce Integrated Pest Management (IPM), to Ethiopian rose production. They believe that IPM will make rose production more environmentally friendly by reducing dependency on pesticides, and at the same time, reduce the costs of production.
To enable this, a comprehensive research and development plan has been developed in close cooperation between the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Ethiopian Agricultural Research Institute, EHPEA and Wageningen University and Research Center of the Netherlands.
With controlling two-spotted spider mites through the use of biological control agents, trials on the selected four rose farms at Lafto Roses in Alem Gena will be launched March 23, 2007. On the experience gained, scaling up and widening of the research and development activities are planned.
Ethiopia’s foreign currency earnings from flower exports have now reached 21.9 USD in 2006 from just 12.7mln USD the previous year. The growth in the sector is expected to continue as recently, the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture allocated 400,000 hectares for vegetable, fruit and horticulture producers in the Rift Valley, Dire Dawa, Dedesa Valley and Tana Beles corridors.
In addition, as one of its major activities, Ethiopian Netherlands Horticulture Partnership is also working towards getting additional markets. The Netherlands is the destination for most Ethiopian flower exports by taking around 60 per cent share of total production.

Airports Enterprise to valuate assets

By Eskinder Michael

The Ethiopian Airports Enterprise is looking to assess its holdings and has floated a tender seeking for an external firm to do the work.
The Ethiopian Airport Enterprise administers all airports in Ethiopia and is under the Ministry of Transport and Communication. It ended last fiscal year by undertaking projects worth over 203 million birr at various airports across the country.
The assessment of the assets of the enterprise is expected to reach new heights, as aircraft, other equipment and every asset in every airport will be recorded.
The enterprise completed 17 projects it had started in the past fiscal year and also announced that it undertook these projects so that the services provided by the airports would meet international standards.
The projects include construction of runways, roads, terminals, various buildings, installation of field lighting and electro-mechanical maintenance work, among others.
The construction of the runway and taxiway of the Bahirdar Airport and maintenance of terminal buildings of the Diredawa and Addis Ababa international airports have been completed.
Upgrading runways of eight airports is being undertaken, while agreement has been reached with the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation to upgrade the power supply at Dire Dawa, Mekele, Jimma and BahirDar airports. Design work has been finalized for Gambella and Gode . The enterprise is also constructing airports in Humera and Jijiga. The Jijiga airport is located about 13 km out of the city and should be completed by the middle of next fiscal year.
The Humera airport is being constructed so that it can promote agro industry investment activities in the area.Out of the budget for the construction of the two airports, more than 75% will be utilized before the end of this Ethiopian year.

Ethio-Italian customs cooperation in the works

By Eskinder Michael

The agreement that Ethiopia and Italy signed on mutual administrative assistance for the prevention, investigation, and repression of customs offences, was this week discussed upon by the House of People’s Representatives and passed to the concerned standing committee in the parliament.
The agreement was first drafted in June 1977 in Nairobi, where the customs offices of countries around the world convened and set the standard for customs agreements between any two nations. According to the convention , the terms of the agreements shall be effective upon signing by any two nations.
Once the agreement is ratified, then situations will allow Italian investors to come and invest in Ethiopia and on the same note, Ethiopia customs offices may be able to receive technical assistance from their counterparts.
The agreement was signed so that Ethiopian customs practiced could build its capacity and change the image of the Ethiopian Customs Authority (ECA), though the last was not well received by Temesgen Ayele, Chairman of the CUDP in parliament. “Though it is good that the customs authority should build its capacity, I was under the impression that our customs authority had a good image and didn’t need to change ,” he said.
The agreement gives the ECA power to implement the agreement between the two countries.
The two countries, the agreement says, signed this agreement considering that offences against customs law are prejudicial to economic, commercial, fiscal, social, industrial and agricultural interests of their respective countries as well as to legitimate trade.
Customs law according to both countries, refers to the importation, exportation, transit and storage of goods and capitals, including means of payment, the collection, guarantee and refund of duties and taxes concerning the importation and exportation of goods and commodities.
The laws also concern probation, restriction and control measures, including measures on control of currencies, the fight against illegal trafficking in narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances and the fight against counterfeiting.
The customs agencies of both countries will also under the agreement, exchange information in and maintain special surveillance over people known to have committed or suspected of having committed a customs offence. Information will also be exchanged on goods either in transit or in storage suspected of giving rise to illicit traffic to or from the customs territory of either country.
Temesgen still had something to say about this. “The only body that can authorize a special surveillance is the court and the customs authority can’t do that. A person is innocent until proven guilty and that is a right given to him by the constitution and can’t trespass that right by exchanging information with foreign countries,” he said.
Though the agreement was met with some opposition in the house, it was finally passed with 339 for, 9 against and 42 abstentions.

Ethiopia begins telemedicine

By Andualem Sisay

With the Memorandum of Understanding signed between Ethiopia and India last January, two government hospitals, the Black Lion and Nekemt hospitals, in collaboration with Ginos University of India, are to begin treating patients using telemedicine.
This was indicated at the Sheraton Addis, March 14, 2007, at a symposium held to create awareness about the upcoming Third World Information Technology Forum (WITFOR 2007), which will be hosted in Ethiopia from August 22-24.
According to Ethiopian Information Communication and Technology Development Agency (EICTDA) Director General, Debretsion Gebre Michael, his agency is covering the expenses of all the necessary links related to telecom such as bandwidth, which is estimated to cost 4,000-5,000 USD per month. Other equipment is supplied and installed with support of the Indian government. The medical specialists of New Delhi University have also agreed to provide free training for the pilot stage of the project, which is three years.
“From what we are currently observing, telemedicine is saving lives and the scarce resources of the country,” said the Director General. “It is a blessing especially for African countries like Ethiopia who lose some 20,000 highly educated health professionals every year due to migration. Recognizing its significance, we are currently broadening the application of this technology for training MBA students of Addis Ababa and Haromaya universities.
Ethiopia has been given the opportunity to host WITFOR 2007, which will be held with the theme, ‘ICT for development and prosperity’, according to the decision made at the second WITFOR 2005 in Botswana.
The purpose of the conference is to help implement information development strategies and projects in developing countries. Significantly, it is expected to take the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) Plan of Action a step forward, by converting policy statements to actual, implemental projects that should help developing countries to achieve the UN Millennium Development Goals.
It is expected to gather up to 1000 delegates from around the world including ICT ministers, senior policy makers, academics, the private ICT sector, as well as heads of state and dignitaries including former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and Prime Minster Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia, among others.
The government of Ethiopia has established EICTDA to be in charge of ICT policy implementation through design and coordination. Ethiopia, represented by EICTDA has already signed an agreement with the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP).
WITFOR 2007 is organized by EICTDA, IFIP, Ethiopian Information technology Professional Association (EITPA) and United Nations Economic Commission for Africa UNECA.

MP released on bail after alleged rape case

By Groum Abate

Yitayew Tiruneh, CUD Member and Member of Parliament who was arrested on February 14, 2007 at the Kirkos Sub-City Police Station after being indicted for an alleged rape, was released on bail on Friday March 16.
Yitayew’s was stripped of his immunity when the House of People’s Representatives convened on February 6, 20007.
The House had received complaints that the MP had allegedly raped a 15-year-old girl. His immunity was revoked so that he could be tried for the rape case only. His immunity against being prosecuted for other cases still stands.

The MP had voiced his concern over the allegation saying that it was some sort of attack on his status. It was stated that the accused entered the house of the victim located in the Kirkos Sub-City Kebele 02 at 8:00 in the morning and allegedly performed the act.
The victim had reportedly presented a letter to the HPR saying that he hadn’t raped the girl, but so far, the letter has not worked in his favor.
Ato Worku, an MP contested the decision by the parliament saying that the victim was actually not 15 years old, but 18 and that she had been married while living in rural Ethiopia. He also said that this was supported by a police report.

Oil exploration continues

By Eskinder Michael

The Ministry of Mines and Energy has intensified the search for oil in Ethiopia, as it continues to allow private enterprises to participate in exploration of the precious natural resource in the Ogaden Basin.
The ministry has floated a tender asking for businesses with experience in the field to explore blocks seven and eight of the Ogaden Basin, which are believed to contain huge amounts of oil reserves.
Lundin East Africa B.V. is the latest company to receive permission by the Council of Ministers to explore and develop natural gas in Ogaden area in Somali State. Lundin East Africa B.V. has already signed an agreement with the Ministry of Mines and Energy.
The government is committed to oil exploration as it extended its contract with Petronas, the Malaysian oil exploration giant. The deal allows Petronas to prospect for oil in the Ogaden, Kelafo, Welwel Werderna and Genale woredas of the Somali region.
Petronas has also pledged to provide further training in the petroleum field to the personnel of the Ministry of Mines.
The oil exploitation project that lies on a 93,000 square kilometer area is estimated to have a minimum working capital of 15 million USD.
K&S Petroleum and Mining Exploration PLC is the first and only Ethiopian private petroleum exploration company that has signed a product share agreement with the Ministry of Mines and Energy for an area covering 170,000 sq.km, the largest oil exploration block in Ethiopia.
The first area of exploration is located in central Ethiopia and encompasses Oromia, Amhara and Afar National Regional States, covering 150,000 sq. km. The second site is found in the western part of Ethiopia bordering Sudan, Oromia and Benshangul Gumuz National Regional States covers 20,000sq.km. It was learnt that K&S had on August 2004 agreed with the Ministry to conduct a study on the prospects of petroleum exploration in the area.
The ministry has also granted a petroleum exploration license to Afar Exploration, an American company. Afar Exploration has requested of the ministry to explore oil reserves in the Afar regional state, northern Ethiopia, and was granted a license for an area covering 18,000 sq.km.
The gas that could be extracted from Calub and Hilala is sourced from Premian Shale and the trap system is structural anticular. The gas resource in place is estimated at 2.7 TCF for Calub and 1.3 TCF for Hilala.
The natural gas reserve in Calub, estimated at 76 billion cubic meters, was first discovered by American company Tenneco, which drilled one well in 1973. Later, the Soviet Petroleum Exploration Expedition (SPEE) drilled nine deep wells from 1982 to 1993. In 1998, the Chinese company Zhonguan Petroleum Exploration Bureau had eight wells ready for production.

OPEC’s refinancing forwards more loans to Ethiopia

By Eskinder Michael

As one of Ethiopia’s various loan providers, the OPEC Fund has devised its own way of helping Ethiopia pay off its debt. This new method means OPEC will provide more loans so Ethiopia can repay previous commitments.
OPEC has introduced the new system, known as refinancing, whereby matured loans will be repaid on time, but the actual amount of loan doesn’t lessen.
With this new method in place, Ethiopia and OPEC had on 29 October 2002 signed an agreement to reduce Ethiopia’s outstanding debt by OPEC providing a new 6.6 million USD loan.
It was stated however that 1.8 million USD of the new loan will be a grant element, and this amount of money will be considered as debt reduction.
“OPEC has agreed to provide Ethiopia a topping up of debt relief on Identified Debt in the amount of 1.8 million USD. To discharge the debt relief obligations, OPEC agreed to extend a 6.6 million USD loan, out of which 1.8 million will be used to pay off debts,” the agreement put forth by OPEC stated.
The Ethiopian government understands that this initiative by OPEC was not designed to cancel Ethiopia’s debts but a way for concessional loans to help it pay loans without any pressure. It was stated that this new loan will be paid in an amortization method with a 0.5% annual interest rate and 1% annual service charge, and is expected to be paid in 20 years.
The decision by OPEC to help Ethiopia reduce the burden of debt comes following the World Bank and International Monetary Fund plan – Enhanced Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative – where by donors and loan providing nations should completely cancel or reduce debts of poor nations.
Ethiopia was one of the foremost beneficiaries of this initiative as over 3.3 billion USD of debt was cancelled. OPEC’s debt cancellation however has another meaning as its plan allows it to eventually collect the money it originally loaned to Ethiopia.
According to the agreement, the OPEC Fund believes that with the support of the donor community, Ethiopia has undertaken macroeconomic, structural and social development policy reforms and that Ethiopia also requested debt relief, under the Enhanced HIPC Initiative, a request that led the OPEC Fund to believe that Ethiopia was eligible for debt relief.
The entire amount of the loan will be provided in one installment to the National Bank of Ethiopia once the agreement is passed by the parliament.

Meles: Economy continues to grow

By our staff reporter

Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said the Ethiopian economy would show a 10.1 per cent growth this year continuing the successive economic growth over the last four years.
In a news conference he gave on Monday to foreign and local journalists, Meles said IMF on its part had confirmed that the country's economy is in a rapid growth.
He said consensus has also been reached by all sides the Ethiopian economic growth registered over the last four consecutive years is more than double compared to that of the average African countries' economic growth.
IMF had confirmed Ethiopia's successive economic growth over the last three years while predicting that it would show a 9.5 per cent growth this year.
The prediction put by the Ethiopian government and IMF does not have difference that much, Meles said, adding that accurate figure regarding this year's economic growth would be announced by next September.
He said an extensive discussion was held between executives of the government and IMF regarding the situation of the economy and added that consensus has been reached on most issues.
Meles said consensus has also been reached between the government and IMF that close follow up and corrective measures should be taken if necessary to further continue the economic growth.
Regarding the inflation, Meles said the government and IMF acknowledges inflation and both sides have also reached consensus on the root causes of the problems related to the rise in the costs of living.
He said failure on the parts of farmers to make available grain as much as possible resulted in the rise in the price of grains.

No word on abducted Ethiopians
Government demands unconditional and safe release

By Eskinder Michael

The abduction of five Europeans by unidentified gunmen affiliated with Eritrea has cast a dark shadow over already strained Ethio-Eritrean relations. Tension mounted higher as only the expatriates were released unharmed and have been flown home. No word has been heard of the fate of the eight abducted Ethiopians.
British Ambassador Bob Dewar on Wednesday gave a 2 ½ minute statement in which he stated that he was glad about the release of the British citizens. However, he was saddened that there was no such good news on the Ethiopian side. The ambassador refused to answer any questions in regards to what the embassy was doing in helping obtain the release of the Ethiopians.
The ambassador did not forget to end his statement however, without thanking the Eritrean government for its help in securing the abductees freedom.
As a matter of fact, there has been scare news coverage on what the international community (including Britain) was doing to pressure the release of the Ethiopians.
PM Meles Zenawi, in an interview with journalists, has asked for the safe return of the abductees (both Europeans and Ethiopians) and for the safety of everyone involved in the matter.
British residents residing in Addis last Thursday, March 15, 2007, held a candle lit vigil at the St Mathews Anglican Church and prayed for the return of the Ethiopians in Eritrea.
The British nationals asked the international community to exert the same pressure for the release of the Ethiopians as they did for the Europeans.

Parliament looks to make friends

By Eskinder Michael

The House of People’s Representatives, after taking a one month break, resumed sessions again by agreeing to form groups to participate in friendly relationships with parliaments of 18 other countries.
According to Ato Teshome Toga, Speaker of the House, this was something that should have been done when the parliament’s third session started.
“We tried to go into the break by forming friendship groups with the 18 countries, but we haven't. We will definitely do that now,” he stated.
According to the speaker, every group will have nine members with a chairman, a deputy chairman and seven members. The members were selected for each group according to their seats in the house.
“We tried to distribute the members as fairly as possible. One of every three people will have a seat in the group, so maybe not every political group might have a member in every group,” the speaker said.
He also stated that the house wants the groups to be meaningful and that it was mandatory to assign a person who was responsible enough and would take the matter seriously as chairman of each group.
The countries whose parliaments will have friendly relationships with these groups are, England, Italy, Japan, Saudi Arabia, China, Egypt, Germany, Yemen, India, Sudan, Ireland, France, Cuba, Czech Republic, Turkey, Kuwait, Djibouti and Russia.
Though the idea was received well in the parliament, a blast up between Teshome and Temesgen Ayele, Chairman of the CUDP and chief Whip, led the speaker to repeatedly warn the latter, an action that led to several opposition members boycotting the idea.
The house decided that the matter should be studied by the parliament’s standing committee with 309 for, 45 against and 34 abstentions.
In related news, the House of People’s Representatives seemed to have come to an understanding that it should form its own Secretariat, where the Speaker will elect the leader after discussions with the head of the government and of the main opposition party.
This decision was reached after the house agreed that the leader of the secretariat should not be elected from inside the house, believing that the leader should be independent.
Though the idea of electing an independent leader for the secretariat was received well, it elicited a wave of statements from two major opposition parties.
Temesgen Zewdie, Chairman of the CUDP Whip wanted to make his point by saying that the CUDP was the main opposition party as it had 61 members in the house.
“We say that we have 61 members in the house, but the house keeps telling us that we have just 40 members. You haven’t told us which 20 of the 61 members are not CUDP,” he said.
His statement was followed by a UEDF member who countered that the UEDF was the main opposition party in the house.

Zenebech, Gorfineh
depart this life

By Andualem Sisay

Famous Ethiopian stage personality Zenebech Tadesse, widely known by the name ‘Chirakeresh’, coined for her by Emperor Haile Selassie passed away Friday evening.
Just before her death, Chirakeresh fainted at a relatives house after sipping a glass of water. Although she was taken to Hayat Hospital, it was all too late. According to the information obtained from the Ethiopian National Theatre, she was not feeling well lately.
Her funeral is to be held at noon today, at St.Yohanes Church in the presence of mourners. The artist is a mother of five. She served for more than 40 years as a singer, dancer and stage actress.
Zenebech performed at the Hager Fakir Theatre through her career. She retired a few years ago from after working briefly at
the Ethiopian National Theatre.
In related news, Gorfineh Yimer the renowned sport journalist of Ethiopian Radio and later who became co-ordinator of FM 97.1 died on Saturday March 16 at the age of 53. Gorfineh was known for his live transmissions of sport activities.
Gorfineh had been working as a journalist for over 30 years starting on Birate Wongel radio station. He was pronounced dead at Tikur Anbessa Hospital on Saturday after he was referred from Ethio-Higher Clinic where he was admitted on Friday.

UNIDO and Microsoft to
support FDI in Africa

By Andualem Sisay

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and Microsoft launched on March 12, 2007, the prototype of a new technology solution which will be a key component of the UNIDO African Investment Promotion Agency Network (AfrIPANet) initiative.
The announcement was made at the UNIDO Expert Group Meeting on Investment in Africa, held this week March 12-13 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Expert Group Meeting brought together a mix of senior representatives from government, business and the development community in Africa, all focused on enhancing the inflows and effectiveness of investment as part of the AfrIPANet initiative.
The new investment monitoring platform is designed to enhance communication between governments in Africa and investors. By providing greater information and transparency, it is hoped that the solution will facilitate more informed investment decision-making and deeper partnership between government and business towards sustainable development in Africa.
“We welcome the focus and attention that UNIDO is giving this area, supported by Microsoft,” said Elizabeth Tankeu, Commissioner for Trade and Industries of the African Union.
COMFAR III Expert (Computer Model for Feasibility Analysis and Reporting) is the software which is designed to facilitate financial and economic appraisal of investment projects.
In addition, UNIDO has also provided COMFAR III Business Planner, which enables the user to carry out financial analysis of investment projects and COMFAR III Mini Expert, which is developed for preliminary assessment of investment opportunities from a purely financial point of view.
By integrating UNIDO and non-UNIDO information sources, it is hoped that Investment Promotion Agencies (IPAs), will be able to formulate better strategy, conduct evidences based on policy advocacy and provide more detailed and useful information for potential investors. It also gather direct evidence and data on factors such as behaviors of investors; sectoral growth; investor expectations and the impact of different types of investment on local economies, AfrIPANet addresses the existing investment knowledge gap in Africa.
It will be an invaluable resource for foreign-owned and domestic companies, allowing them to plan local sourcing and supply chain opportunities. It is believed to enable the compilation of indicators such as future oriented indexes and rankings of countries in terms of performance and investor friendliness. Such indicators will contribute to reducing the perceived high risk of doing business in the continent.
This third generation of the software, COMFAR III Expert for Windows, was released in 1995. In order to meet the technical developments as well as requests of users, it has been upgraded yearly.

United hooks up Addis branches

By Andualem Sisay

United Bank Share Company connected its 17 branches in Addis Ababa with I-flex software from Flex-Cube Banking Solution.
The bank is to provide efficient service to customers through one-window-shopping-service. Capital has been informed that unlike some banks in the country who have already begun such services, the bank will not charge its customers.
At the official launching ceremony held at the Hilton Addis yesterday, the President of the bank, Birhanu Getaneh, indicated that along with networking, the bank has also started 24/7 telephone banking service, which is the first of its kind in Ethiopian banking history.
“Although our bank has the potential and willingness to introduce the latest technologies in the banking sector, the absence of a Cyber law in the country wouldn’t allow us to implement Electronic Fund Transfers using the Internet and telephone,” he said. “We hope that the government will soon be able to ratify this law.”
He also indicated that United Bank will finalize networking all its branches in the various regions of the country in three months.
Currently, United Bank has 25 branches across the country. The bank’s paid-up capital has reached 200 mln birr with more than 1,800 share holders.

Flood of complaints 180mln birr Harar water tender upsets local firms

Adama administration sacked

Ethiopia to assemble Ladas

Broadcast law faces opposition in parliament

Addis to host biggest park

Greening Flowers Reducing dependency on agrochemicals in flori-culture

Airports Enterprise to valuate assets

Ethio-Italian customs cooperation in the works

Ethiopia begins telemedicine

MP released on bail after alleged rape case

Oil exploration continues

OPEC’s refinancing forwards more loans to Ethiopia

Meles: Economy continues to grow

No word on abducted Ethiopians Government demands unconditional and safe release

Parliament looks to make friends

Zenebech, Gorfineh depart this life

UNIDO and Microsoft to support FDI in Africa

United hooks up Addis branches

Flood of complaints 180mln birr Harar water tender upsets local firms

Adama administration sacked

Ethiopia to assemble Ladas

Broadcast law faces opposition in parliament

Addis to host biggest park

Greening Flowers Reducing dependency on agrochemicals in flori-culture

Airports Enterprise to valuate assets

Ethio-Italian customs cooperation in the works

Ethiopia begins telemedicine

MP released on bail after alleged rape case

Oil exploration continues

OPEC’s refinancing forwards more loans to Ethiopia

Meles: Economy continues to grow

No word on abducted Ethiopians Government demands unconditional and safe release

Parliament looks to make friends

Zenebech, Gorfineh depart this life

UNIDO and Microsoft to support FDI in Africa

United hooks up Addis branches

Flood of complaints
180mln birr Harar water tender upsets local firms

Greening Flowers
Reducing dependency on agrochemicals in flori-culture

No word on abducted Ethiopians
Government demands unconditional and safe release

Zenebech, Gorfineh
depart this life

UNIDO and Microsoft to
support FDI in Africa

Flood of complaints
180mln birr Harar water tender upsets local firms

Greening Flowers
Reducing dependency on agrochemicals in flori-culture

No word on abducted Ethiopians
Government demands unconditional and safe release

Zenebech, Gorfineh
depart this life

UNIDO and Microsoft to
support FDI in Africa