Clashes After the War & more –15th June 2023

Salaam salaam from BA! This is the Rorshok Ethiopia Update from the 15th of June twenty twenty-three A quick summary of what's going down in Ethiopia.

The federal government had been in a devastating civil war from November twenty twenty until November twenty twenty-two against the Tigray’s People Liberation Front. During this time there were also other sporadic clashes in several regions, like clashes with the Oromo liberation army in Oromia, the Gamella liberation army in Garmbella, among others. For the past few months, however, even though the war was over, the government has been working on resolving these conflicts and it seems like sustainable peace is on the horizon. In the inauguration of the five-year rehabilitation program for war-struck areas, according to the World Bank and other international organizations’ research, these conflicts in the Oromia, Tigray, Amhara, Afar and Benshangul Gumuz regions caused damages valued at more than twenty two billion US dollars.

The Minister of Finance Ahmed Shide said that, in order to implement the rehabilitation plan, they need twenty billion US dollars. Getachew Reda, President of Tigray’s interim administration, said that the damage Tigray has sustained is so immense that talking about rehabilitation would be a longshot adding that the region hasn’t recovered from the effects of the war yet. He also said that government institutions have been completely destroyed and there are a shocking number of displaced Tigrayans. Heads of Amhara and Oromia regions also talked about the situation in their respective regions.

On Sunday the 11th, Addis’ Mayor Adanech Abebe and other Addis officials were in Tigray’s capital Mekelle to help restore the region. The Mayor delivered a donation worth more than five hundred million birr or almost ten million US dollars. About half the amount was donated in cash and the remaining in kind. Adanech said in a speech that everyone was injured because of the war and that everyone must participate in the rebuild.

Speaking of rehabilitation and recovery, the Ministry of Education revealed on Wednesday the 14th that all four universities in Tigray will open their doors in the coming academic year. The Ministry’s administration and development executive told the Ethiopian Press Agency that preparations are underway to reopen these universities. One of the universities - Raya University has even begun registering students and will welcome them soon. Axum University, on the other hand, has sustained the most damage and will open a bit later than the others.

As you may know, Ethiopia’s economy is not very robust to say the least. Since many people are living below the poverty line, many are displaced and hungry, and the basic necessities of most citizens aren't fulfilled, the international community donates a large amount of aid to the country. Recently, however, shocking revelations have come to light. Various reports allege that aid is being diverted from its destination. News also came out that this diversion is part of a coordinated and criminal scheme throughout seven regions in Ethiopia and involves both federal and regional governments. These shocking reports came after the US Agency for International Development (or USAID) conducted a two-month long monitoring operation to see where the donated food is heading. The USAID announced that it is halting food assistance everywhere in Ethiopia until further notice, and said it will revise its decision when reforms are in place.

Immediately after the agency’s decision was made public, Anthony Blinken, US Secretary of State, and Ethiopia’s Deputy PM and Minister of Foreign Affairs held a discussion on the matter. Their respective offices issued a joint statement saying that they are going to launch an investigation.

On Friday the 9th, the World Food Programme followed suit in suspending food donations in the country. Jim Risch, the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee member Senator, made a statement expressing his doubts that the Ethiopian government will go about the investigation in good faith. The Ministry of Defense, however, was not happy with the allegations. It issued a statement denying any involvement of the national defense forces and other government organs in the aid diversion scheme. Nevertheless, this statement was inconsistent with the Tigray region’s preliminary findings published on Thursday the 15th. The published finding said the federal government has diverted more than four thousand metric tons of wheat, over a hundred thousand liters of cooking and more. Tigray’s investigation also found that Eritrean and Tigrayan forces were also involved.

A few months back, there was a schism between the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church and numerous breakaway bishops who wanted to establish a separate church for the Oromia region. That disagreement was solved quickly but another problem has cropped up. A similar movement has begun in Tigray in the past few months. The Church has been hard at work to resolve the issue and it has established a peace and agreement committee which announced on Tuesday the 13th that it is working towards resolving the matter ‘once and for all’. The Committee called on the bishops in Tigray to get ready to discuss and come to an agreement soon. The Committee has already put together a peace delegate which will leave for Mekelle. The Church urged the federal government and the interim Tigray administration for help.

On Thursday the 8th, Minister of Finance Ahmed Shide appeared before the House of People’s Representatives to present a report. He mentioned the budget for the next fiscal year, taking into account that the government will not employ new workers and will not launch new projects. Members of the House contended this report and said that the government is an important source of jobs and explained how this will affect the employment rate. However, the Minister replied that the government is not the main entity in charge of creating jobs, but the public sector.

Members of the Muslim community won’t forget what happened these past few weeks. Protests ensued after the government proceeded with its plan to demolish mosques in the newly established Sheger City. For two consecutive Friday prayers at the Anwar Mosque, followers and law enforcement officers had been in an altercation which took the lives of innocent civilians. The Islamic Affairs Council and the Oromia regional government sat down in an emergency meeting and it seems like they have reached an amicable settlement. Last week’s Friday prayers concluded peacefully. A day before that, on Thursday the 8th, Ustaz Abubakar Ahmed, the Islamic Affairs Council advisor announced that the Council has also struck a deal with the Police to release all Muslims detained in relation to the protests.

It’s been months since the first and only private telecom services provider Safaricom began operations in Ethiopia. Recently, information has been circulating on social media that this company is going to hire twenty thousand new employees. The company told media outlets on Monday the 12th that these claims are false and that it has not called for prospects to apply.

Ethiopian Airlines is the biggest aviation company in Africa. Various reports have come out claiming Yilma Merdassa, the commander of the air force Lieutenant General, had replaced the company's board chairman, Girma Wake. The company confirmed these allegations on Monday the 12th. Media outlets speculate that the decision was made after the former chairman, Girma, decided to leave his post. Girma had worked for the company for many years in various positions including as CEO. The company thanked him for his service and wished him all the best.

The Airline also revealed its earnings for the twenty twenty-two twenty twenty-three fiscal year. It raked in more than six billion US dollars. The Company’s CEO said that more than thirteen million passengers have been served. Two planes were converted from passenger to cargo planes and twelve more passenger planes began operating.

And that's it for this week. Another quick question. How are we doing on bias? Ax grinding? We try to be independent and stick to the facts and context with favor and fear of none. How are we doing? So do we seem even a teensy bit biased? Tell us at ethiopia@rorshok.com

Ciao!