“Digitalization of logistics will be critical to match the demand and supply of transport services, thereby reducing the time and cost of delivering goods,” said Robert Lisinge, Chief of the Energy, Infrastructure and Services Section at the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).
He was speaking on 15 June 2021 during a meeting with representatives of Ethiopia’s ministry of transport and other stakeholders to review and validate a study on the gaps that exist in the digitization of Ethiopia’s logistics sector.
The study, titled “Gap Assessment of Logistics Digitalization in Ethiopia,” was supported by ECA through technical assistance and advisory services to the Ministry of Transport of Ethiopia.
Ethiopia’s State Minister for Transport, Yeshualashet Jemere, who presided over the meeting, expressed appreciation for ECA’s support, stating “ECA has stood steadfastly beside Ethiopia in the country’s drive to modernize its transport and logistics sector. ECA’s commissioning of the study to assess the gap in the digitalization of logistics in Ethiopia was eloquent testimony in that regard”
ECA commends Ethiopia’s strides in digitizing logistics sector
Stop TB Partnership, Bamboo Capital Partners to re-imagine TB care
The Stop TB Partnership and Bamboo Capital Partners, an impact investing platform, signed a partnership agreement to support small- and medium-enterprises and start-ups, particularly from TB affected countries, developing impactful health technologies for TB, COVID-19, and TB co-morbidities.
The HEAL fund, a US$ 75 million blended finance investment vehicle, will leverage US$ 15 million in catalytic funding to incentivize and unlock US$ 60 million of private institutional investment capital. This fund will focus on providing early-stage financing for innovations that will transform health systems by catalyzing community- and home-based care for all people, including the most marginalized communities.
As part of this partnership, in addition to providing capital to innovators to further commercialize their solutions and unlike other impact investment funds, the Stop TB Partnership’s Accelerator for Impact (a4i) platform, with support from the Country & Community Support for Impact team and TB REACH initiative, will provide fit-for-purpose product launch/technical support for critical downstream activities to optimize and accelerate the roll-out of these impactful health technologies.
Reconstruction and rehabilitation of post conflict areas should be child-centred
To mark the Day of the African Child, held this year under the theme “30 years after the adoption of the Charter (ACRWR): Accelerate the implementation of Agenda 2040 for an Africa fit for children”, the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) calls for nationwide policies and efforts of recovery and rehabilitation of post-conflict areas to be child-centred. As noted in the document, the main objective of the Agenda “is to restore the dignity of the African child through assessments of the achievements and challenges faced towards the effective implementation of the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child”, which Ethiopia ratified in 1990. Among the goals detailed in the Agenda, figures Aspiration 9 which provides that “every child is free from the impact of armed conflicts and other disasters or emergency situations.”
At national level, United Nations (UN) studies estimate that among 23.2 million people in Ethiopia in need of humanitarian assistance, 12.5 million are children. Of the 1.82 million persons who are internally displaced (IDPs) primarily due to conflict, around 58% are less than 18 years old, of whom 21,659 are unaccompanied. EHRC monitoring of IDP shelters also indicates that the majority of people living in these shelters are women and children.
“A country cannot develop without empowering women,” says WB Regional Vice President
The World Bank Regional Vice President (RVP) for Eastern and Southern Africa, Hafez Ghanem, visited Buluk Quarter Council in Juba Municipality on his first official mission to South Sudan, where he heard first-hand testimonies from beneficiaries and community committees on the impact of the World Bank-funded South Sudan Safety Net Project (SSSNP) on people’s lives.
Implemented by the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), in partnership with the Government of the Republic of South Sudan, the SSSNP provides low-income and vulnerable households across 10 counties in South Sudan with cash assistance to meet their urgent needs and invest in their household welfare.
Speaking at the event, the World Bank Regional Vice President Hafez Ghanem, expressed his appreciation for the partnership between the World Bank, UNOPS and the South Sudan Government towards addressing economic vulnerabilities in the country. “I am happy to hear that you have used the money to buy food for your families, pay school fees for your children and invest some of it in sustainable businesses. You are responsible citizens, mothers and leaders of your community. A country cannot develop without empowering women,” he said.
