Discussions on how media can bring forth cases of abuse and violence against women and girls and increase the rate of conviction of perpetuators were held at a meeting organized by UN Women and the Australian Embassy. The event brought together journalists, editors, activists and those who work in the area of protection of women and girls.
“Every girl and woman has the right to live a life free of violence and discrimination. However, and unfortunately one in every three women has experienced physical or sexual violence at some point in their lifetime. Violence does not only have negative consequences on survivors, it also has negative consequences on their families, communities, on society and nations,” stated Letty Chiwara, UN Women Representative to Ethiopia, AU and ECA.
Chiwara cited a study by UN Women and the Economic Commission for Africa, which said that violence against women and girls, especially domestic violence costs countries like Ethiopia three percent of their GDP.
“Another recent study done by the World Bank also revealed that Nigeria, looses 90 million USD per year because of violence against women and girls. If we can address this issue in Ethiopia, we will not just be addressing the consequences of women and girls, but also will improve the economic status of the country,” Chiwara said.
One speaker said violence against women does not have boundaries, it transcends generations, nationalities and spheres of society. It is also irrespective of age; recent trends show older women, grandmothers, being sexually assaulted by younger men.
The theme of this year’s ‘16 Days of Activism’, an annual campaign that advocates stopping violence, is: ‘leaving no one behind’ and ‘ending violence against women and girls’.
“As UN Women we believe that the media can play a critical role in bringing the voices of those women who haven’t been able to speak. There are many times that violence against women goes unreported for various reasons. It goes unreported because sometimes it happens within a situation where you are in a work environment and it is perpetuated on you by your boss and you are threatened that if you say anything, you lose your job,”
“I can tell you myself, I am part of the ‘me too’ campaign, I have suffered in that way, I have been violated at work, at home but it hasn’t stopped me from moving on and surviving. I wish when it happened to me, it happened to me at a time where there was a media dialogue like this with media representatives; because maybe I could have come to you and told you my story, and maybe you could have shared my story. I kept quiet because I wanted to save my family, I wanted to save my job and I wanted to save my humility,” Chiwara said.
In Ethiopia, one in three women have experienced domestic violence. Two out of every three women and one out of every two men believe that wife beating is justified under some circumstances.
One out of every two girls aged 15 to 19 have undergone female genital mutilation. One out of every four women experience their first sexual experiences under coercion. In the country, there are only an estimated 12 shelters for female survivors of violence throughout the country.
Adding to the problem, poor data collection and under-reporting continues to be a challenge, there is also a weak enforcement of laws and policies that protect women’s rights.
UN, Australian Embassy discuss role of media in fighting GBV
Huawei joins AU to drive Africa’s digital transformation
Huawei announce that it has joined the African Union in the Second Ordinary Session of the African Union (AU) Specialized Technical Committee (STC) on Communication and ICT (CCICT-2) that kicked-off on Monday, November 20th at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The second ordinary session of the CCICT2 that wrapped up its activities on November 24th has the main objective is to review implementation of projects, adopt strategies and action plans for the implementation of projects and programs at the continental and regional levels for the communication and ICT sectors. The partnership with AU is one of Huawei’s efforts to drive digital transformation in Africa.
The AU vision is to establish a body that could accelerate the process of integration in Africa, support the empowerment of African states in the global economy and address the multifaceted social, economic and political problems facing the continent.
Ms. Leslie Richer, Director of Information and Communication delivered the AU Commission’s statement, in which she congratulated the AU member states on their endeavors to develop the communication and ICT sectors of Africa. “Our strategic framework Agenda 2063 recognizes that for Africa to achieve its full potential, the investment in any sector, including communication and ICT, must be inclusive, ensuring access by all members of society to technology and the knowledge economy,” noted Ms. Richer.
The second ordinary session of the STC on CCICT elected Ethiopia as the chair of the bureau. At a dinner organized by Huawei at the African union headquarter, newly elected chairman of the bureau state minister of information and technology GetachewNegash expressed his gratitude for Ethiopia’s selection as the chair and stressed that endeavors in the ICT sector should not be left only for governments, commending Huawei’s efforts in the sector. “Huawei has contributed a lot in ICT sector solutions regionally. I expect more, I appreciate their efforts in this regard” said Getachew.
ARTS appoints Ermias Eshetu as CEO
ARTS Media Production Share Company announced the hiring of Ermias Eshetu, former VP of Zemen Bank and CEO of Ethiopia Commodity Exchange, as the new CEO of ARTS.
Ermias, received his Masters degree in International Business from Manchester School of Management, and continued to work at several multinational Fortune 500 companies developing and implementing successful business strategies. Having founded many businesses of his own, Ermias is no stranger to startups. He brings his global experience, proven leadership, and local perspective which we believe are necessary for the successful launch of this revolutionary media company.
Ermias joins an impressive cast at ARTS, whose shareholders include a variety of successful individuals, ranging from Olympic gold-medalists to experienced authorities in media, education, finance, law, medicine as well as many other professional backgrounds. They share one vision: to provide a modern, high quality and engaging content to its audiences across Africa particularly focusing on business, policy and culture.
ARTS Media Share Company is an Ethiopian-based media start-up, intent on providing African entertainment, news, and high-quality content near and far from the perspective of Africans. ARTS shall attempt to especially capture the increasingly young population of Africa, and of African descent, by providing high quality content and a platform for active engagement in the ongoing transformation of the continent. ARTS hopes to start full operation in the first quarter of 2018, with content already scheduled to be rolled out in Washington DC, Chicago, San Francisco, and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
Ethiopian Investment Commission signs final investment agreement with Boortmalt Malting Company
The Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC) signed a final investment agreement on 24 November 2017 with Boortmalt, a leading global malting company that aims to build an environmentally sustainable multi-million dollar malting plant in DebreBerhan Industrial Park (DBIP). EIC signed the agreement on behalf of the Industrial Parks Development Corporation (IPDC) for the construction of a 15 hectare plant that will be the first anchor investment in the DBIP.
Signed at the EIC office by FitsumArega, Commissioner of EIC, and YvanSchaepman, CEO of Boortmalt, the agreement is a result of a collaboration between the EIC, Agricultural Transformation Agency (ATA), and Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources (MoANR). The ATA and EIC have previously developed several business cases on agro-processing opportunities, such as this greenfield investment in barley malting. Boortmalt is expected to source malt barley through contract farming agreements with 40,000 – 60,000 smallholder farmers throughout Ethiopia.
“This signing marks an important milestone for all parties, and particularly the ATA as our first conversion of a major international investment. Such ventures contribute to the commercialization of smallholder farmers, which is instrumental to Ethiopia’s aim of eradicating poverty and achieving middle income status by 2025,” stated MirafeGebriel Marcos, Senior Director of Agri-business & Markets at the ATA, “Boortmalt’s malting plant will be a major market for smallholder farmers who stand to supply over 96,000 metric tons of raw malting barley annually”.
Currently, the national malt barley demand far exceeds supply, with Assela and Gondar Malt Factories being the primary suppliers of malt. With the advent of numerous breweries in recent years, Ethiopia has been forced to fulfil nearly 70% of breweries’ needs with imported malt. Moreover to boosting malt supply, Boortmalt’s presence in Ethiopia will play a role in import substitution, enable the country to save hard currency, and limit local beer producers’ dependency on imports.
