Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation - EBC

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Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation​

 

[Naio90]

	NEWS BULLETIN​
ISSUE #001​	10/2000​

The dawn of a new era has started in ethiopian politics after the last elections in the east african nation. The "Prosperity Party" emerged triumphant in the ballots and swiftly put forward their candidate for the position of Prime Minister of the Federal republic of Ethiopia in the figure of Abiy Ahmed.​ With a military career background, Ahmed also dedicated his time to studies in other fields such as computer engineering and a special interest in social and development policies, for which he has studied in different prestigious institutions both in Ethiopia as well as abroad. The "Prosperity Party", lead by the figure of Ahmed focused during their campaign in the necessity of battling the rampant corruption embedded in local, regional and national politics as well as the lack of stability and long term planning after decades of unrest in the country.​ Scenes of a Prosperity Part rally before the elections​ With a territory rich in mineral and natural resources, the new PM emphasized the fact that Ethiopia is not developing as quick and solid as it should because of the "weight of antiquated and anachronic institutions, systems and customs". The young leader (42) had a specially strong support from younger voters who find it difficult to relate to older political figures and witnessed the disillusion of their parents.​ The new Council of Ministries that will accompany the new PM is also set to have a more "agile" and "fresh" approach, with the new members being in almost all cases experts in their respective areas with years of background in said fields.​ With a modern, secular and dialogist approach, appointed Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed will draw a lot of attention from with and outside of the african country.​ More will be known about the new government policies and goals in next week's Prime Minister Inauguration and the Opening Speech to the nation.​

 

[Naio90]

	NEWS BULLETIN​
ISSUE #002​	12/2000​

Addis Ababa - EBC had the privilege of assisting today to a private meeting and interview with Minister of Defense Abraham Belay to discuss the current state of the Ethiopian Defense Forces and the plans for its future.​ ​ Minister Belay is the designated civilian to oversee the military forces and direct representative of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Commander in Chief for defense related affairs. Belay assisted to law school, followed by doctoral studies in international relations with specialization in geopolitics and defense.​ ​ The meeting started with a brief discussion on the current state of the military forces, on which Belay indicated that their government inherited a rather disorganized structure with several shortcomings, product of the multiple decades of border conflicts and political instability, which prevented the former decision makers to have a clear long term plan for acquisition and doctrine, being rather forced to improvise and think on the short term to overcome military and political challenges that might have put the nations sovereignty at risk.​ ​ With this period of instability apparently being something of the past, Belay has the herculean task of assisting in building up a modern force, capable to safeguard the land, people and resources of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia.​ ​ In line with the Prime Minister's inauguration speech, Belay indicated that the current focus of the Government is on providing political stability, social cohesion and economic development, relegating military investment, at least in this first stage, to a secondary role. At the moment no primary foreign weapons and equipment provider has been announced.​ ​ "You cannot build a modern, efficient and well trained military overnight. There is so much to study and analyze, both in terms of necessities as well as on foreign providers. There is also the challenge of creating our own basic defense industry. At this stage, it is better to start with the theoretical plan, and in the near future, when funds become consistently available, go out to the international market and get the best tools for our personnel."​ ​ Minister Belay also referred to the territorial dispute with neighboring Eritrea, a former territory of Ethiopia who fought violently for secession from the Federal republic of Ethiopia during the second half of the 20th Century, only achieving peace in 1994. However, the borders where never defined.​ ​ "Like Prime Minister Ahmed said, it is one of our primary foreign affairs goals to settle the issue with Eritrea. While now we recognize their independence, we currently do not have defined borders. From my area of responsibility I will do my best to contribute to the bilateral talks to settle this dispute and be afterwards able to start positive bilateral relations. In today’s economy, Ethiopia cannot afford to be a landlocked country. Actually, if that would be the case, the over 100 million ethiopians would make up the biggest landlocked market of the world. This would obviously be negative for our own economy as well as for the international market, increasing our export prices and blocking several trade routes. Ethiopia and Eritrea need to sit down and solve this issue once and for all."​

 

[Naio90]

	NEWS BULLETIN​
ISSUE #003​	06/2001​

Addis Ababa - The National Government announced today the completion of Phase 1 of the National Strategic Infrastructure Development Program. Only the first of multiple stages, this particular one presented the biggest challenge due to being unprecedented in terms of scope and investment. The National State invested a total of over 24,600,000,000.00 USD into this wave of developments, that range from energy production to public health and education and guarantee a complete change in the way the nations economy works and the path it will follow from now on. We give you here a brief description of the projects. Grand Ethiopian Rennaisance Dam and Genale Dawa III Hydroelectric Powerplants With a combined investment of 6,5bn USD these large hydroelectric power plants will give the nation an edge in the region, becoming the main electricity producer, able to provide the own local market with cheat energy for its industry and households as well as being potentially capable of exporting the surplus to neighbouring nations, boosting the regional economy. Particularly the GERD becomes one of the biggest hydroelectric dams in the entire world, located near the border with Sudan on the waters of the Blue Nile River and with a height of 145 meters, a length of 1,780m and a total volume of 10,200,000m3. Mesob Tower, Addis Ababa Part of the Urban Development and Modernization Project of the nations capitl, this new high rise building bocomes the highest building on the entire african continent and holds space for commercial, residential and office areas. it will symbolize the new age in Ethiopia. Bole Airport Expansion Being tourism one of the main target areas to be developed by the new Government, plus the continous growth of the national carrier Ethiopian Airways and its consolidation as a regional hub, the overhaul and expansion of the main airport of Ethiopia was a necessity. With this complete, the new facilities allow for a higher and better flow of passengers and improves the national and regional air connectivity. Addis Ababa-Djibouti Border Railway Connecting the nations main industrial area around the capital and one of the most significant regional economies, Djbiouti, this railway will reduce transportation costs and times for the products elaborated and exported in the nation, while also reducing the need for trucks, making road traffic more secure and enviromentally sustainable. Addis-Adama Motorway Streching 90km between Ethiopia's two biggest urban areas, it has multiple lanes and up to date safety meassures to enure a quick, safe and efficient connection. It also boosts multiple services areas and junctions serving the areas in between both cities. Public Health/Education Modernitazion Programs With a combined investment of 5bn USD, the National Government completed the overhaul and modernization of the two major public services, offering the ethiopian population, all through out the country access to free state of the art education and health services. Addis Ababa Industrial Park A special area was assigned and developed to host new industries in the country. This park not only offers all services required for production (electricity, water, transportation, etc)but also grants the companies estalbished there tax benefits and other special reductions. The Industrial Park is connectd to the newly established motorway and railroads. Eco-Tourism National Park Program Heavily determined in making tourist a major indsutry in the country, the Government assigned a billion USD to the modernization and expansion of the facilities at all National Parks, as well as constructing (through public-private cooperation) new hotels and supporting infrastructure to give the new visitors a better experience. This program is expected to increase tourism nationwide as well as contribute to international nature conservation efforts.

 

[Naio90]

	NEWS BULLETIN​
ISSUE #003​	08/01​

Addis Ababa - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia announced earlier this morning that the preparations for the Ethiopia-Eritrean Peace Summit are reaching their end.​ ​ When Prime Minister Ahmed took office, one of his key promises was to finally settle the decades old border dispute between Ethiopia and Eritrea peacefully and diplomatically. This would allow for both nations to not only be able to turn the pago over and start a new age of cooperation and mutual benefit, but also to exploit new economic possibilities or regain old ones.​ ​ This first stage, always according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was focused in present the plans to the international community, introducing the leading nations around the world into what the ethiopian proposal was and how it would not only benefit the nations directly involved but also bring regional prosperity and positively impact international maritime trade.​ ​ This last issue is attribute to the capacity to provide safer passage through the strategic red Sea and around the horn of Africa, an area that has been plagued by pirate activity for decades.​ ​ It is expected that in the comming weeks a formal invitation will be xtended from Addis Ababa to the Eritrean Presidency to attend a bilateral summit. Likewise, it is also expected that an international observers team will be invited to witness the proceedings to guarantee transparency and good faith from both mediating sides.​ ​ To summarize the ethiopian proposal, Ethiopia and Eritrea would perform a land swap, giving Eritrea access to a economically productive area on the ethiopian side of the current de facto border and Ethiopia access to the sea once again. Ethiopia would also provide financial aid to contribute to the further development of both areas and also construct unfrastructure connecting them.​

 

[Naio90]

	NEWS BULLETIN​
ISSUE #004​	03/03​

Addis Ababa - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia issued today the following statement, concerning the recent public announcement from the Sultanate of Egypt: "The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia reaffirms its sovereignty and complete autonomy and independence to determine its internal and external foreign policy, not being subject to unilateral policies and guidelines by foreign governments. It has come to our Government's attention that the Sultanate of Egypt recently announced a so called "Interdiction zone" against "bad actors & colonialism" (sic), pretending to determine and impose an area of external influence over a large part of the african continent. Such unilateral measure not only goes against the international right of non interference in another sovereign state's internal affairs, but also pretends to aggresively interfere in the regional dinamic of the North and East African region, which has lived through an unheard period of stability and peace during the last decade. While Ethiopia shares Egypt's concerns about preventing a new spread of colonialism and instability, all african nations need to work together through dialogue and iplomacy to establish common goals and guideliens to achieve this."​

Kelly the Mad