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Ambassador Giuseppe Mistretta, Director for Africa at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation IS well known in Ethiopia and Africa. He served as an ambassador in Ethiopia, as well as to the African Union, United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) as well as Djibouti and South Sudan during his tenure until few months back. After departing Ethiopia he is now serving as to connect his country to the whole of Africa. Capital met him at Bari, Italy during the Agrilevante 2017 fair. The fair is dedicated to machines, plants and technologies for agriculture, and is an important event in the field of agriculture, not only for the central and southern Italy, but for the entire Mediterranean basin, Europe and Africa. The fifth edition of the Agrilevante biennial exposition ended on October 15, 2017, with the registration of an ongoing increase shown in the exhibiting manufacturers, in the internationalization of the event and the number of initiatives on cultural points and the dissemination of knowledge on technical issues. He talks about how African countries could benefit from the event. Excerpts;

Capital: What is the significance of this fair?

Ambassador Giuseppe Mistretta: This is a very important fair for agricultural machines, not only in Italy of course but also for export. We in the congress are talking about the possibility of exporting our technology and our products such as our fertilizers and our machines to countries in Africa.

Of course this must be seen as a plan or program in which the government, the trade offices, the associations are all together in order to try to tackle the challenge of creating jobs in Africa, the re-launching of agriculture in Africa and this is the main interest of the Italian firms and Italian associations in the sector.

Capital: How are you coping with funds?

Ambassador Mistretta: Funds have always been difficult; the financing has been the most difficult. You know there is big financing from the European Union; Italy is part of the European Union so 13 percent of the contribution to the European Union comes from our country and this is huge in terms of financing. Then there are the national contributions; Italy has a very strong cooperation for development in Ethiopia. Ethiopia is the second beneficiary of our cooperation after Afghanistan.

Recently when I was Ambassador to Ethiopia, I signed an agreement for three years of cooperation. From 2017 to 2019, for 125 million Euros which is a big amount of money. And then there is the private sector which is very interested, through the banks, financial institutions, to contribute to the development of Agriculture in Africa, not only agriculture, but this congress was about agriculture.

Capital: Are you planning to set up private entities and companies to work together in Ethiopia?

Ambassador Mistretta: Yes, we have a trade office in Addis Ababa which is part of our embassy which is very active in organizing fairs in Italy for Ethiopians to come and visit events like this. For Italians there are the Ethiopian general fairs so our trade office is very busy in different sectors such as agriculture, machines and in constriction. I am confident that we, after spending 40 years in Africa and especially in Ethiopia, that we did a good job.

Capital: How was the trade relationship between Ethiopia and Italy during your time there?

Ambassador Mistretta: Well, it had increased, now it is about 360 million Euros. Comparing with other countries in Africa it is the fourth or fifth best trade relationship. Of course we would like to increase it, I know the attention of the Ethiopian authorities is not to really that much on trade but on investment.

They want our investment in Ethiopia, there are good companies from Italy in Ethiopia like Salini, Italfair which is a railway company and so on. We invest good money in the country. It seems now, according to statistics Italy is the third biggest investor in Africa after China and another country. In any case it seems we are really growing our investment on the continent.

Suomi Finland 100; celebration of a century long independence

Arts and Culture

Staff Reporter

December 11, 2017

Finland becomes a hundred years old and celebrates this milestone across the world with the color blue lighting up famous landmarks. The 100 year mark was set on Finland’s Independence Day December 6, 2017.
Coincidentally, 2017 is also a landmark year for Ethio-Finnish cooperation, which officially began 50 years ago in 1967. The main sectors of cooperation are in water and sanitation, education, agriculture and land administration.
Many joyful centenary festivities are bringing people together both in Finland and around the world. As the Finns are the biggest coffee drinkers in the world, the whole country will gather to enjoy birthday coffee to honor the 100-year-old Finland. Also, the Finnish flag will fly for two consecutive days, and the whole country will be illuminated with blue and white lights, the colors of Finland.
As part of the celebrations, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland has launched a world-wide campaign during which iconic monuments around the world will be lit up in blue and/or white, the colors of the Finnish flag. As part of the campaign, the Embassy of Finland in Addis Ababa in cooperation with Ethiopian partners have lighted up the statue of the Lion of Judah in front of the National Theater between December 5 to 6, 2017.This is the first time ever that the statue of the Lion of Judah has been lit up.
The statue is an emblem of Ethiopia’s history and heritage, and the lion is also an important national symbol of Finland, as it is depicted on the country’s official coat of arms.
Celebrations in Ethiopia included several music concerts that feature collaborations between leading Finnish and Ethiopian jazz musicians. You can find details about the public performances at the Embassy of Finland in Ethiopia Facebook pages.
Finland became an independent state on 6 December 1917. The newly born state was willed into being by Finns after a long struggle. For a hundred years the Finns have been engaged in the building of their country and making decisions together. The unbroken period of 100 years of democracy is exceptional, and Finland has often reached top positions in different international rankings.

If there is a will there is a way: migration in relation to climate change

Society

Staff Reporter

December 11, 2017

Many people migrate due to economic, social, political, demographic and environmental problems, such as drought, flooding, pollution and climate change.
People are forced out of their country due to natural disasters such as rising sea levels, extreme weather events, drought, flooding, and water scarcity. Migration has social, economic and political impacts on the origin of the country and where people end of living. There is a depletion of the young adult labor force, skilled and entrepreneurial talents, imbalance in the population pyramid, and discrimination among ethnic groups. Climate migration is dramatically increasing across the globe. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) more than 20 million people are forcibly displaced by weather related sudden onset hazards each year and 12 million of them are from Africa.
Africa is most vulnerable due to its environmental degradation, poverty, and population growth, high dependence on rain-fed agriculture, deforestation, and weak governance system. According to an intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC), agriculture accounts for about 75% of the labor force. People in East Africa don’t have adequate access to food. Adverse weather also causes severe flooding and landslides which have far reaching consequences on agricultural production due to declining soil fertility, decreasing rainfall and increasing incidence of drought in east Africa particularly Ethiopia and Kenya.The migration pattern of young people in northern Ethiopia appears to respond directly to patterns of drought. In dry rural areas, once drought becomes particularly severe and other adaptation options are exhausted, entire families and communities migrate internally to where relief is expected to be available.
Somalia is struggling with extreme climate conditions, unreliable rainfall has triggered severe droughts with devastating impacts on communities and their livelihoods, increasing food insecurity, cash shortage and resulting migration and death of livestock. As CNN indicated, on March 2017, more than 100 people died in Somalia in 48hours. The UN assessment estimates that 4.7 million people – nearly 40% of Somali’s population are in need of humanitarian assistance. Therefore many people are displaced to other areas of Ethiopia.
The government is attempting to help Ethiopia adapt to climate change and local communities should follow suit to mitigate its effects.
This can include reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and getting everyone involved in the effort to conserve energy production reduce household energy consumption and modify agricultural production and individual consumption habits. The impacts of climate change are likely to affect all sectors of society and the natural world. The way in which this climate risk is realized depends on how individuals, societal sectors or ecosystems are exposed to hazards and how vulnerable they are.
In conclusion, if we all have the motivation to prevent climate change there is a way to do it. Some of the ways are mitigation, local adaptation, creating awareness in the society, promoting forestation, reforestation and getting into gardening, agro forestry and climate smart agriculture practices (CSA). We must strive to prevent and mitigate climate change so that there will be less flooding, drought, less migration, and also countries that are dependent on agriculture as livelihood could produce crops and increase their income. We all have to be candid and try our very best to help one another and prevent people from suffering and dying.
Reference
Jack Barkenbus. (2016).Implementing Local Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation Actions: The Role of Various Policy Instruments in a Multi-Level Governance Context.
UNDP Community Water Initiative: Fostering Water Security and Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation. (2010).
Vikram Kolmannskog. (December, 2009). Climate change, disaster, displacement and migration: initial evidence from Africa.
Science for environment policy. (2015). Migration in respond to environmental changes thematic issues.
Oli Brown. Migration and climate change. International organization for migration.

By Yeabsira Kefelegn

RESISTANCE & ALTERNATIVES

Editorial

Staff Reporter

December 11, 2017

What should be resisted and why? And who should resist? Of course, the natural sequel to these is; what should come after the resistance? Understandably, debates on the alternatives have yet to coalesce. But one thing is clear; the alternatives cannot endorse or follow the old ways! Amongst the non-negotiable that should be incorporated in all the various alternatives, we can easily include the two main principles. a) The principle of natural rhythms and limits, particularly as they pertain to the ecosphere/biosphere. b) The primacy of life. Only life is sacrosanct, everything is secondary. c) Anything that goes against the above two principles, directly or indirectly, should not feature in the alternatives. As a corollary to the above, we get the following obvious result: the prevailing stupid notion of non-stop economic growth (on a finite planet) is a definite non-starter!
What should be resisted are all the various derivatives of the prevailing modern world system, as they are diametrically opposed to the above life sustaining principles. The greed system that obtains all over the world today is a result of, amongst other things, fear and lack of awareness about the natural world. The fixation that the world out there is hostile and need to be continuously conquered by humans is passé. This view is certainly outdated in the current geological era of Anthropocene! In the social realm, the existing order, for the most part, perpetuates fear, inequality and conflicts. Consequences are already suffocating humanity. For example, international discourse, almost invariably, revolves around power and domination, under the guise of parochial ‘national interest’. Since modern societies are geared only to the satisfaction of the lunatic (non-sustainable) dogma of non-stop economic growth (which is imposed on all humanity by dominant powers and their institutions, at the service of transnational capital), salvation is only possible by resolutely resisting the prevailing very destructive paradigm!
Besides the obvious problematic associated with seemingly myriad alternatives, there is also the formidable challenge posed by the power that be (TPTB). Not willing to allow any and all reflections to take root across the globe, dominant interests are using all in their power to frustrate the emergence of harmonious coexistence, both within humanity and outside of it! For example, the climate change conferences that take place regularly under the auspices of the UN are mostly to hoodwink the sheeple (human mass) so that serious alternatives will not be forged by the committed! Naturally plenty of the ‘useful idiots’ (educated) do not understand the whole machinations of the ‘deep state’ and have become willing accomplices to the destructive world order. Don’t forget the ‘deep state’, the state behind the formally elected state of the powerful countries do not want to see any development undermining the status quo. Recall our definition of the ‘deep state’. It is the ‘military-intelligence-industrial-banking-media’ complex of the collective empire. The deep state literally sets the agenda for the whole world, insidiously emanating from the institutions of the core countries of the modern world system. The educational institutions, the entertainment industries, including spectator sports, and many other entities/gimmicks that are employed to numb the global sheeple operate under the strict and effective supervision of the ‘deep state’!
Resistance is growing all over the world. See the various articles on page 25 & 44. Resistance should include, amongst other things, civil disobedience. When the power that be is intransigence to logic, reason, ethics, morality, etc., etc., the sheeple has no alternative but to resort to civil disobedience, a la Gandhi! Boycotting goods and services of corporations that are visibly ruining the planet’s life support system becomes justifiable. These creations of greed only understand one thing, profit; ‘they don’t get life’, to use the vernacular of the newer generations! Refusal to bow down to neoliberalism is also growing in the very womb of the beast-the core countries of the prevailing system.
Neoliberalism at the global scale took off during the reign of Margaret Thatcher (UK) and Ronald Reagan (USA) in the late 1970s. Thatcher proclaimed ‘There Is No Alternative’ to the unfettered universe of the market. The TINA syndrome and its consequences, both natural and social, have drastically undermined harmonious collective existence. Unfortunately, neoliberalism still holds sway amongst the global elites and their dying institutions. No matter; we need to discard TINA and replace it with: “TINALT-There Is No Alternative To Life.” Good Day!