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Ambasciata d’Italia ad Addis Abeba

SERVIZIO NEWS

24.02.2015

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ETHIOPIA

Scheda informativa fiera dell'Ospitalita' e Turismo…………......................................………..3

State Minister Dewano Kedir Meets Egyptian Investors…………………………………………….4

Tapping spice resources for export market vital: Ministry…………………………………………5

Ethiopia renews support for Yemen's unity……………………………………………………………6

Ethiopia steams ahead with vision for a modern national rail network………………………..7

Ethiopia: ERA Awarded Mojo – Hawassa Expressway for Keangnam……………………………9

Ethiopia: World Bank - Address Ethiopia Findings - Response to Inquiry Dismissive of Abuses………………………………………………………………………………………………………….11

SOUTH-SUDAN

IGAD urges South Sudan warring parties to conclude peace agreement…………………….13

S. Sudan at "negotiation level" of joining regional body………………………………………….16

DJIBOUTI

Les 40 ans de la transcription de la langue afar : Quarante années d’efforts pour la promotion de la langue afar……………………………………………………………………………...17

AFRICA

Italia conferma impegno in Africa, dall’ambasciata in Somalia alle missioni internazionali......................................................................................................................20

EVENT

Opera & Cocktail with Murielle Tomao at the piano Ludovic Amadeus Selni……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..21

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SCHEDA INFORMATIVA PER LA PROSSIMA FIERA DELL’OSPITALITA’ E DEL TURISMO CHE SI TERRA’ AD ADDIS ABEBA (11-14 GIUGNO 2015)

Per maggiori informazioni contattare - Nove Consulting: fabiosantoni.noveconsulting@gmail.com

Ambasciata d’Italia: italcom.addisabeba@esteri.it

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ETHIOPIA

State Minister Dewano Kedir Meets Egyptian Investors

Foreign Affairs State

Minister Dewano Kedir met

Egyptian investors who

have an interest in the

trade and transport sector

on Thursday (February 19).

(23.02.2015 - WIC)

The State Minister welcomed

the group, noting that Egypt

and Ethiopia had a long and

historic relationship over many

centuries, and that relations

are not restricted to the Nile

River but cover many fields

including religious and cultural

connections.

He briefed the investors about

Ethiopia's investment

opportunities, its peace and

stability, the untapped land

and the large trainable labor

force.

The State Minister noted

Egypt's experience and

capacity in different business

sectors. He stressed that

Ethiopia as an agricultural-

oriented state needed investors

who had an interest in

manufacturing, agro-

processing and food-processing

sectors.

The Egyptian delegation

underlined their strong interest

to engage in transport, aiming

to create strong commercial

links between Egypt, Sudan

and Ethiopia, and in trade in

which they said the current

relationship between Ethiopia

and Egypt offered good

prospects for investment

cooperation.

They also noted they had

substantial experience in

trading especially in

construction materials. The

State Minister appreciated the

interest to invest in Ethiopia,

and expressed Ethiopia's

readiness to provide full

support. (Allafrica)

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Tapping spice resources for export market vital: Ministry

The Ministry of Industry

said exploiting the

untapped spices resources

for export market is

essential for earning

foreign currency which

supports other economic

sectors.

(23.02.2015 – WIC)

At the opening ceremony of

the workshop which reveals

the strategic development

study on spices industry

prepared by the Ministry of

Industry in collaboration with

the Addis Ababa Science and

Technology University,

Industry State Minister Dr.

Mebrahtu Melese said that

though Ethiopia has various

agro ecological zones which

could grow more than 100

species of spices, the utilization

of the sub sector is negligible.

As a result, the nation has not

been able to benefit from the

sector as it deserves.

According to Mebrahtu,

traditional production system,

lack of value chain and market

integration, among others, are

various constraints to tap the

resources. As to him, the

strategic study revealed at the

workshop could be a v ital input

to tackle the inherent problems

of the sector.

He further said that the

government has already

employed multidimensional

approach to modernize the sub

sector gradually and to that

end capacity building to the

actors in the sector, provision

of technology and credit

facilities have been provided.

In addition, investors involved

in the production, processing

and marketing have been

provided support to become

competent in their endeavors

and some of them have been

able to take part in experience

sharing journey abroad.

Spice Sub Sector Industry

Strategy Plan Preparation

Team Leader Dr. Atsede Asefa

on her part said that the

Ethiopian spice industry is

hindered constraints faced in

the process of production,

processing, lack of post harvest

handling technologies and

value chain.

To combat these problems and

make the country competitive

at the international market all

the stakeholders in the sub

sector industry, growers,

handlers, brokers, processors

and exporters need to

participate in promoting the

proper practices at each stage

of the value chain and thrive

for satisfy ing local and

international customer

requirements in a coordinated

approach to tap the market at

optimal level.

According to a recent report, in

the country 73.3 million

hectares of land is suitable for

agriculture out of which 3.7

million hectares of land already

enclosed for local and foreign

investors for the production of

spices with better technology

and the necessary inputs, she

added. (EH)

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Ethiopia renews support for Yemen's unity

Ethiopia reaffirmed on

Sunday its support for the

unity, security and stability

of Yemen, stressing that

the dialogue is the way to

resolve all issues.

(23.02.2015 – WIC)

In a statement to Saba, the

Ethiopian Ambassador to

Yemen Hassan Abdullah Ali

said the dialogue is the only

way that will lead to stability,

confirming that his country 's

embassy in Sana'a will continue

to exercise its diplomatic

tasks.

Deputy Minister of Culture

Hoda Ablan and the Ethiopian

ambassador discussed during

their meeting today a number

of topics relating to the

bilateral cultural cooperation.

In the meeting, the two sides

reviewed the possibility of

enhancing cultural cooperation,

especially at the level of

manuscripts and the cultural

heritage associated with the

historical relations between the

two civ ilizations in the two

countries. (Saba)

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Ethiopia steams ahead with vision for a modern national rail network

Ethiopia is in the race to

become the first sub-

Saharan country after

South Africa to lay down an

electrified rail network that

will link 49 towns and

cities.

(23.02.2015 – WIC)

It has already completed one

of sub-Saharan Africa’s first

light rail mass transit systems,

in the capital, Addis Ababa.

The country-wide scheme is

part of a grand experiment in

nation building through

infrastructure that was

launched by the regime of the

late Meles Zenawi and is being

continued by his Ethiopian

People’s Revolutionary

Democratic Front party under

the leadership of the Prime

Minister, Hailemariam

Desalegn.

The blueprint for Ethiopia’s

modernization is contained in

its five-year Growth and

Development Plan. The two

main elements are an increase

in agricultural output to earn

export revenue and to prevent

a recurrence of the famines of

the 1980s, and the

construction of modern power

and transport systems.

The goals of the infrastructure

programme are to increase

generating capacity fourfold to

10GW, to construct 16,000km

of paved roads and to lay

2,500km of standard gauge

electrified rail track – a target

that was later increased to

about 5,000km.

There is a good deal of

interdependence among these

aims: for instance, the plan to

build an electrified network

depends on schemes such as

the Grand Ethiopian

Renaissance Dam to supply the

necessary power.

In 2010, when the present

five-year plan was launched,

the stated aim was to increase

freight capacity by at least five

million tons. The cost of

constructing the network was

put at about $2.5bn over seven

years. Both of the productiv ity

and the cost have since risen

dramatically.

Growing ambition

For nearly a century Ethiopia

has had only one railway: a

1,000mm narrow-gauge link

between Addis Ababa and the

port of Djibouti that was

constructed by the French in

the 1920s. Ethiopia is a

landlocked country, so this link

is the principal route by which

goods come and go. However,

that line relies on diesel

locomotives and partly owing

to its poor load bearing

capacity it transports only

240,000 tons of freight a year.

In the first decade of the 20th

century, the principal aim of

the Ethiopian government was

simply to rehabilitate this line.

Although aid was forthcoming

from the European Union, and

operators from as far afield as

Turkey, South Africa, Italy and

Kuwait were hired to build the

upgraded line, there was never

enough money or enough

commitment to make a

difference.

The catalyst that allowed the

expansion in v ision from the

upgrading of a single line to

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the construction of a modern

national network was,

inevitably, the intervention of

Chinese contractors backed by

Chinese money.

Back in 2010, when the plan

for a national system was laid,

the Ethiopian government

looked for a foreign company

to supply the engineering

expertise to build it, holding

talks with companies from

India, Russia and China.

In the end, only the Chinese

persisted, and the initial

contract for the Addis Ababa

light rail system and a new

standard gauge link to Djibouti

went to the China Railway

Engineering Corporation

(CREC), backed with capital

from the Export and Import

Bank of China. The work was

later shared with China Civ il

Engineering Construction

Corporation.

The two projects combined are

expected to cost close to $2.8

billion, a sum that will be

covered by the Ethiopian

government and a loan from

the Export-Import Bank of

China.

The 780km standard gauge

electrified link to Djibouti is

now due to be completed in

October this year. When it is,

the line is expected to haul

11.2 million tons of freight in

its first year of operation, rising

to 24.9 million tonnes by 2025

– considerably more than the

entire national capacity

envisaged in 2010.

The Ethiopian government is

presently bringing other

sections of the network to

market. For example, the

Turkish contractor Yapi Merkezi

was awarded a $1.7bn contract

to build the section from the

town of Awash to the northern

city of Weldiya, with a total

length of 389km.

If the country does succeed in

becoming a middle income

economy with a unified

national market, it will be a

powerful example to other

countries in the region of what

infrastructure-led development

can achieve. (GCR)

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Ethiopia: ERA Awarded Mojo – Hawassa Expressway for Keangnam

The first lot for Mojo –

Hawassa Expressway

project, which stretches for

93 kilometers, is awarded

to a South Korean

construction company,

Keangnam Enterprises

Limited, by Ethiopian

Roads Authority (ERA).

Workeneh, Gebehu,

Ethiopia’s Minister for

Transport, explained the

firm won the bid for the

first lot of the entire 209

kilometers.

(23.02.2015 – 2merkato)

Even if Keangnam has won the

bid the agreement between

ERA and the company is not

yet concluded.

The project is going to be

financed partially from a loan

that will be secured from the

South Korean Government. The

difference will be covered by a

state funding and the project is

expected to commence in the

current fiscal year.

Upon completion a toll road is

expected to connect the capital

city of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa,

with the capital of the State of

Southern, Nations, Nationalities

and Peoples.

Samsun Wondimu, Public

Relations Head at the

Authority, explained Keangnam

is going to handle the first

phase of the project that

stretches from Meki to Batu

(Zeway).

For the first segment of the

entire project that is 56

k ilometers, Mojo – Meki road

section, African Development

Bank (AfDB) approved a USD

126 million loan. The federal

government on the other hand

is going to contribute USD 99.1

million to fund costs, local

taxes, resettlement

compensation and other

expenses.

In addition to this AfDB is also

going to provide USD 2.44

million for the purpose of

helping ERA build its capacity.

Tender is also floating for a toll

road project that stretches

from Mojo to Meki, Samson

noted.

The entire Mojo – Hawassa

Highway project is going to be

209 kilometers and the first

phase stretches for 93

kilometers. The first phase is

going to be new asphalt road.

The remaining 116 kilometers

is expected to be financed by a

loan from the World Bank, for

the bank has promised to

finance the project. The project

s going to stretch from Batu

(Zeway) to Hawasssa. This

phase of the project is also

div ided into two segments;

Zeway-Arisi Negele and Arisi

Negele-Hawassa.

The entire project is said to be

part of the Mombasa – Nairobi

– Addis Ababa highway project.

The later project is said to

boost Ethiopia’s agri – business

and regional trade among the

countries it crosses through.

Workneh also explained the

government is working on the

process of implementing the

Adama – Awash toll road which

is an extension of Addis –

Adama toll road in the Addis –

Djibouti corridor.

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He furthered the Addis –

Awash project will be

commenced in the next fiscal

year. The government is

looking for financers or the

realization of the project, he

added.

The Ministry of Transport is

also exploring for possibilities

to include the Addis-Adama toll

way and the Lebu-Akaki-IT

Park (Goro) outer ring roads in

the toll roads system.

According to Capital, Akaki – IT

park road project will connect

the express way to the

Northern and North eastern

parts of the city. This project is

going to be 14.5 k ilometers.

On the other hand Akaki –

Lebu project, which is 13.6

k ilometers, will connect Addis –

Adama toll road with the

Western and South – Western

parts of the capital city.

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Ethiopia: World Bank - Address Ethiopia Findings - Response to Inquiry

Dismissive of Abuses

Washington — The World

Bank should fully address

serious human rights issues

raised by the bank's

internal investigation into a

project in Ethiopia, Human

Rights Watch said in a

letter to the bank's vice

president for Africa. The

bank's response to the

investigation findings

attempts to distance the

bank from the many

problems confirmed by the

investigation and should be

revised. The World Bank

board of directors is to

consider the investigation

report and management's

response, which includes

an Action Plan, on February

26, 2015.

(23.02.2015 – AllAfrica)

The Inspection Panel, the

World Bank's independent

accountability mechanism,

found that the bank violated its

own policies in Ethiopia. The

investigation was prompted by

a formal complaint brought by

refugees from Ethiopia's

Gambella region concerning

the Promoting Basic Services

(PBS) projects funded by the

World Bank, the United

Kingdom's Department for

International Development

(DFID), the African

Development Bank, and several

other donors.

"The Inspection Panel's report

shows that the World Bank has

largely ignored human rights

risks evident in its projects in

Ethiopia," said Jessica Evans,

senior international financial

institutions researcher at

Human Rights Watch. "The

bank has the opportunity and

responsibility to adjust course

on its Ethiopia programming

and provide redress to those

who were harmed. But

management's Action Plan

achieves neither of these

goals."

The report, leaked to the

media in January, determined

that "there is an operational

link" between the World Bank

projects in Ethiopia and a

government relocation program

known as "v illagization." It

concluded that the bank had

violated its policy that is

intended to protect indigenous

peoples' rights. It also found

that the bank "did not carry

out the required full risk

analysis, nor were its

mitigation measures adequate

to manage the concurrent

rollout of the v illagisation

programme." These findings

should prompt the World Bank

and other donors to take all

necessary measures to prevent

and address links between its

programs and abusive

government initiatives, Human

Rights Watch said.

Rather than taking on these

important findings and

apply ing lessons learned,

World Bank management has

drafted an Action Plan that

merely reinforces its

problematic current course,

Human Rights Watch said. The

Action Plan emphasizes the

role of programs designed to

mobilize communities to

engage in local government's

decisions without addressing

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the significant risks people take

in speaking critically.

The Inspection Panel also

found that the bank did not

take the necessary steps to

mitigate the risk presented by

Ethiopia's 2009 law on civ il

society organizations. The law

prohibits human rights

organizations in Ethiopia from

receiv ing more than 10 percent

of their funding from foreign

sources. As a result of the law,

most independent Ethiopian

civ il society organizations

working on human rights

issues have had to discontinue

their work.

The plan also pledges to

enhance the capacity of local

government staff to comply

with the bank's policies and to

provide complaint resolution

mechanisms without

addressing the role of the local

government in human rights

abuses. This continues an

approach of seeing the officials

implicated in human rights

abuses as a source of potential

resolution, Human Rights

Watch said. Management has

also concluded, contrary to the

Inspection Panel, that the

World Bank is adequately

complying with the bank's

policy to protect the rights of

indigenous peoples.

Human Rights Watch research

into the first year of the

v illagization program in the

western Gambella region found

that people were forced to

move into the government's

new villages. Human Rights

Watch found that the

relocation was accompanied by

serious abuses, including

intimidation, assaults, and

arbitrary arrests by security

officials, and contributed to the

loss of livelihoods for the

people forced to move. While

the Ethiopian government has

officially finished its

v illagization program in

Gambella, it is forcibly evicting

communities in other regions,

including indigenous people,

ostensibly for development

projects such as large-scale

agriculture projects.

Donors to the Ethiopia

Promoting Basic Services

Program, including the World

Bank and the UK, have

repeatedly denied any link

between their programs and

problematic government

programs like v illagization.

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SOUTH-SUDAN

IGAD urges South Sudan warring parties to conclude peace agreement

As peace talks between

warring parties in South

Sudan resumed on Monday

in what was duped to be

the last round to sign a

final peace agreement,

officials of the

Intergovernmental

Authority on Development

(IGAD) urged the two

warring parties to adhere

to their promises and

commitments.

(23.02.2015 – Sudan

Tribune)

In his opening remarks in Addis

Ababa on Monday before the

delegates of the warring

parties and observers, the

chairman of the IGAD special

envoys for South Sudan and

chief mediator, Seyoum Mesfin,

urged negotiators for president

Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek

Machar to seize the “final”

IGAD provided opportunity to

end the war.

“Today, we begin the final

session of negotiations for the

IGAD-mediated South Sudan

peace talks. This is the final

opportunity to make progress,

and usher in a new era of

peace in South Sudan. We

must not fail,” he said.

He further called on the parties

to make genuine compromises

and conclude a final peace

agreement by 5 March deadline

so that a pre-transitional period

can begin on 1 April and

transitional government of

national unity can be formed

no later than 9 July this year.

The chief mediator further

announced that thematic

committees on transitional

security arrangements,

governance, economy, justice

and humanitarian affairs and

leadership structure would

immediately resume

negotiations on Tuesday.

He stressed the importance

that the parties would

complete their tasks by closing

the gap between their positions

and finalize harmonization of

all of the thematic areas in

time.

Mesfin however decried

ongoing violations of the

cessation of hostilities

agreement which the two

parties signed since 23 January

2014 and were recommitted to

on many other occasions.

The ceasefire deal called on all

foreign allied troops and rebel

groups to withdraw from South

Sudan, but this has not

happened as Ugandan troops

notably continue to participate

in the war on the side of

president Kiir’s government.

PRINCIPALS MUST MEET

The IGAD chief mediator also

called on the two principals in

the conflict, president Kiir and

opposition leader Machar to

keep their 1 February promise

on face-to-face meeting in

order to thrash out outstanding

issues beyond agreement by

their delegations.

Earlier, president Kiir’s official

spokesman of the government,

Michael Makuei Lueth, said his

boss would no longer take part

in the peace talks this time,

saying he would only show up

in case of a signing of an

agreement.

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But Mesfin rejected the new

position of the government and

reminded the two leaders to

abide by the previous

agreement.

“We, the IGAD special envoys,

call on the warring parties to

ensure that the meeting of the

two principals, as agreed on

February 1, occurs without

further delay. This is the

commitment that was made by

the two principals on February

1, and it is the expectation of

the people of South Sudan, the

IGAD region, Africa and the

international community at

large that this commitment will

be fully honoured,” he said.

From London, United

Kingdom’s (UK) foreign office

minister Baroness Joyce Anelay

also expressed concern about

the recent change of mind by

president Kiir, further urging

him to adhere to his

commitment.

“I am concerned that it has

been announced that President

Kiir will not travel to Addis

Ababa for this final round of

talks, reversing a previous

commitment to regional

leaders,” Anelay said in a

statement.

She called on the South

Sudanese leaders to use this

final round of talks to honour

their commitments and make

the necessary compromises

and secure peace for the

people of South Sudan.

Anelay also expressed concern

that the recent proposal by

Juba to modify the transitional

constitution to extend the

mandate of president Kiir and

the national legislature by two

years “must not be used as a

reason to delay concluding a

peace agreement by 5 March.”

The principals of the warring

parties have two weeks within

which to agree on all the

outstanding issues and

conclude a final peace

agreement.

OUTSTANDING ISSUES

On governance the parties will

have to agree on system of

governance, restructuring of

the state or reforms in various

sectors.

The rebel group demanded

adoption of a federal system of

governance on the basis of

which to restructure the state

and implement reforms from

the transitional period.

Government is reluctant and

prefers to defer the issue of

federalism to permanent

constitutional making process

for consideration.

The parties are yet to tackle

interim security arrangements

on the status of their forces,

reforms and transformation of

the security sector.

Rebels wanted separate forces

during pre-transitional period

with gradual amalgamation of

the two armies during the

transitional period. Government

wanted immediate

reintegration after pre-

transitional period and added

that it would only accept back

into the army those who

defected from the regular

forces, rejecting the White

Army and other new recruits.

Wealth-sharing and economic

reforms will also dominate

discussions by thematic

committee on economy.

Wealth-sharing percentages

from natural resources and

other sources of revenues have

not yet been agreed.

While the government is

comfortable with the status

quo, the opposition group

wanted higher percentages

given to the states that

produce resources, among

others.

Leadership structure is yet to

be further negotiated as well

as how to tackle accountability,

justice, reconciliation as well as

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compensation and reparation

for the v ictims of the 15

December v iolence.

The 14-month long civ il war

erupted in mid-December 2013

when political debates on

reforms within the ruling SPLM

party turned violent.

Tens of thousands have been

killed so far, 2 million displaced

from their homes and over 3

million more threatened by

hunger and diseases.

IGAD, African Union (AU)

and United Nations (UN)

have threatened to impose

sanctions and other

measures on the belligerent

parties should they continue

with the war.

16

S. Sudan at "negotiation level" of joining regional body

South Sudan’s bid to join

the East African

Community (EAC) has

reached negotiation level, a

stage key for any new

member to be admitted to

the six-member regional

bloc.

(23.02.2015 – Sudan

Tribune)

“South Sudan, for the progress

it has been making for the last

three years, has now been

elevated to the position of

negotiations. It is now

admitted to start technical

negotiations as from March

23rd,” Agrey Tisa Sabuni, a co-

chair of South Sudan’s

Accession Committee to the

EAC, told reporters in Juba on

Monday.

“This is a very serious

development. The political

consideration has been sorted

out particularly South Sudan’s

acceptance to abide by the

terms of the treaty that brings

together member states,” he

added.

South Sudan applied to join the

EAC after its independence

from Sudan in 2011. Its

application was, however,

delayed as issues of

governance, security and

judiciary systems were being

looked into as the young nation

maintained observer status.

Sabuni said South Sudanese

president Salva Kiir attended

the 16th EAC heads of state

meeting held on Friday in the

Kenyan capital, Nairobi as an

“active observer”.

“South Sudan’s accession to

EAC will be properly handled

with due consultations [and]

sharing of the ideas with key

stakeholders,” he said.

The EAC was originally founded

in 1967, collapsed in 1977, and

was officially revived in 2000.

In 2008, after negotiations with

the Southern Africa

Development Community

(SADC) and the Common

Market for Eastern and

Southern Africa (COMESA), the

EAC agreed to an expanded

free trade area including

member states of all three

organisations.

The regional body is also an

integral part of the African

Economic Community.

17

DJIBOUTI

Les 40 ans de la transcription de la langue afar : Quarante années d’efforts pour

la promotion de la langue afar

Placée sous le haut

patronage du président

Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, grand

défenseur des langues

maternelles, la cérémonie

de célébration du

quarantième anniversaire

de la transcription de la

langue afar a été présidée

hier au palais du peuple par

le Premier ministre

Abdoulkader Kamil

Mohamed. Des délégations

venues de Suède, de

Belgique et d’Ethiopie y ont

participé. Cette cérémonie,

organisée par l’UDC, la

doyenne des associations

djiboutiennes, créée en

1975 et l’Afar Pen, a été

haute en couleurs. Elle a

permis de jeter un regard

rétrospectif sur le chemin

parcouru depuis ce jour de

1974 où, dans une forêt du

sud de la Somalie, Dimis et

Reedo décidaient de

transcrire en latin leur

langue maternelle.

(24.02.2015 – La Nation)

Langue orale v ieille comme

l’humanité, l’afar a un jour

changé de statut pour devenir

une langue écrite. L’idée de

transcrire l’afar en lettres

latines est née dans une forêt

somalienne du nom de

Birweene. C’était en 1974.

Deux jeunes intellectuels afars,

Ahmed Abdallah Dimis et

Gamal Abdoulkader Redo, qui y

suivaient alors un entraînement

militaire parmi soixante autres

camarades venus de toutes les

régions afares, en sont à

l’origine.

L’ouvrage, publié en 1975,

s’intitulera Dimis Kee Reedo

comme en a décidé Ahmed

Hassan Laqde qui était alors

une sommité parmi les artistes

djiboutiens d’expression afar.

Quarante ans plus tard, les

deux anciens maquisards se

sont retrouvés hier au palais du

peuple où l’UDC, créée en 1975

et l’Afar Pen, de création plus

récente, célébraient les

quarante ans de la

transcription de la langue afar.

Cette cérémonie grandiose,

placée sous le haut patronage

du président de la République,

M. Ismaïl Omar Guelleh, grand

défenseur des langues

maternelles, a réuni sur place

le Premier ministre

Abdoulkader Kamil Mohamed,

le président de la région afar

d’Ethiopie, M. Ismaïl Ali Siro,

Gamal Abdoulkader Redo, des

délégations venues de Suède,

de Belgique et d’ailleurs ainsi

qu’une palette de ministres et

de parlementaires djiboutiens.

De nombreux intellectuels

parmi les plus brillants de leur

génération, Cassim Ahmed

Dini, Chehem Watta, Aramis

Soulé, entre autres, et des

personnalités politiques

connues comme M. Abdallah

Kamil ou l’ambassadeur

Mohamed Moussa Chehem, y

ont participé.

La cérémonie a été retransmise

en direct par la RTD. Cette

cérémonie a d’abord marqué

les esprits par la beauté des

spectacles présentés par l’UDC

et l’Afar Pen. Aïcha Mohamed

Robleh, ancienne ministre et

18

ancienne parlementaire, qui est

surtout connue pour ses talents

de dramaturge, a

manifestement le sens du

spectacle et de la mise en

scène.

Les chorégraphies étaient

parfaites, le chant et le

mouvement étaient en

harmonie. Maîtresse de

cérémonie au talent

incontestable, Mme Mariam

Bouha, journaliste à la RTD, a

été, elle aussi, parfaite dans

son rôle.

Elle a eu les mots justes tout

au long de cette cérémonie de

célébration d’une aventure

humaine qui a connu des hauts

et des bas et qui, surtout, a

nécessité de la part de ses

acteurs un réel engagement

basé sur le seul désir de faire

quelque chose pour la langue

maternelle.

Comme toute commémoration,

celle-ci a été riche en discours,

parfois un peu longs. C’est à M.

Mohamed Kamil Ali, président

de l’Afar Pen, qu’échut

l’honneur de prendre la parole

en premier. Ancien secrétaire-

général du MPL, membre-

fondateur de l’UDC et de son

ancêtre, l’Avenir, Mohamed

Kamil, ancien directeur-général

de Djibouti Télécom, consacre

aujourd’hui l’essentiel de son

temps et de son énergie à la

promotion de la langue au sein

de l’Afar Pen.

Il constitue, avec Aïcha

Mohamed Robleh, le tandem

de tête de ce combat. Il a

évoqué dans son discours la

genèse de cette aventure

collective mais aussi et surtout

ce qui a été réalisé. Il a rendu

hommage au président Ismaïl

Omar Guelleh pour son appui à

la promotion des langues

maternelles. I l a également

salué le travail des dirigeants

de la région afar d’Ethiopie qui

ont fait de l’afar une langue

d’administration et

d’enseignement. Succédant à

M. Kamil, Mme Aïcha Mohamed

Robleh, a mis de côté son

discours écrit pour en

improviser un autre, art dans

lequel elle excelle en raison de

son expérience de comédienne.

Son humour, ses saillies et ses

expressions imagées ont égayé

la salle. Elle a rendu hommage

au grand chanteur Abdallalé,

aujourd’hui disparu, qui a su

sortir de l’oubli des œuvres

enregistrées dans les années

soixante en les adaptant aux

goûts de la jeunesse

d’aujourd’hui.

Elle a également rendu

hommage aux membres de la

Rédaction de Yaf Yinti, de

jeunes intellectuels bénévoles

comme M. Gaddaay, M. Saïd

Kamil ou encore M.

Abdoulkader Mohamed Ali, un

fin lettré qui fut au début des

années 2000 le cofondateur

d’Arhotabba, au Canada, avec

son ami Diltourab.

Elle a sans doute oublié

d’évoquer le rôle majeur qui fut

celui de Radio-Djibouti au

service des langues

maternelles depuis soixante

ans. La RTD demeure

aujourd’hui encore le principal

porte-voix des langues et des

cultures.

Puis ce fut au tour de M.

Gamaladdin Abdoulkader

Reedo, de prendre la parole.

Accompagné de son ami de

toujours, Dimis, M. Redo a eu

droit à une longue standing-

ovation. Homme d’engagement

et d’action, Reedo est une

figure des luttes multiformes

menées dans une Corne de

l’Afrique en ébullition à une

époque charnière : les années

70.

« Ce furent, a-t-il dit, des

années exaltantes où toutes les

révolutions ont commencé ;

c’est dans les années 70 qu’a

été créé le mouvement qui

dirige aujourd’hui l’Ethiopie,

c’est au cours de ces années-là

que d’autres mouvements

19

comme le MPL ou le FLCS ont

été créés. » M. Reedo a

rappelé qu’à l’époque déjà,

quelques intellectuels avaient

transcrit l’afar à leur manière.

Il a cité, entre autres, M.

Chedeville.

« Dimis et moi avons tout

simplement adopté une

transcription qui soit accessible

au plus grand nombre de

peuples afin que notre langue

et notre culture puissent être

ouvertes aux autres ». Il a

rappelé que leur ouvrage a été

intitulé ainsi par Ahmed Hassan

Laqdé, grand auteur-

compositeur auquel il a rendu

hommage, de même qu’à son

alter ego Mohamed Ali Talha,

autre grand créateur.

La cérémonie a été, nous

l’avons dit, riche en discours.

Les deux derniers ont été

prononcés par le président de

la région afar d’Ethiopie, M.

Siro, et par le Premier ministre

djiboutien, Abdoulkader Kamil.

Alors que M. Siro a axé son

discours sur les efforts

déployés par la région II de la

fédération d’Ethiopie pour faire

de l’afar la langue du travail et

de l’enseignement, le Premier

ministre djiboutien a évoqué

pour sa part tous les moyens

mis en œuvre en RdD sous la

houlette du président Guelleh

afin de permettre aux deux

langues nationales du pays,

l’afar et le somali, de s’adapter

au monde moderne, aux

nouvelles technologies, etc. Il

a félicité les responsables du

Pen Afar et du Pen somali pour

leurs efforts conjoints de

promotion des langues

maternelles.

La cérémonie a été clôturée

par une remise de prix aux plus

méritants des défenseurs de la

langue afar. Le Premier

ministre et les autres officiels

présents ont ensuite été

conviés à une visite des stands

où étaient disposés les

ouvrages parus au cours des

quarante dernières années sur

la langue et la culture afar,

aussi bien en français qu’en

afar.

20

AFRICA

Italia conferma impegno in Africa, dall’ambasciata in Somalia alle missioni

internazionali

Un nuovo passo in avanti

per la realizzazione

dell’Ambasciata italiana in

Somalia e una conferma di

tutti gli impegni dell’Italia

in alcuni dei principali

scenari di crisi dell’Africa:

sono gli elementi principali

che emergono dall’analisi

del Decreto Legge n.7 del

18 febbraio 2015 appena

pubblicato sulla Gazzetta

Ufficiale.

(23.02.2015 – Africa e

Affari)

Dal decreto – “Misure urgenti

per il contrasto del terrorismo,

anche di matrice

internazionale, nonche’ proroga

delle missioni internazionali

delle Forze armate e di polizia,

iniziative di cooperazione allo

sviluppo e sostegno ai processi

di ricostruzione e

partecipazione alle iniziative

delle Organizzazioni

internazionali per il

consolidamento dei processi di

pace e di stabilizzazione” –

emerge il proseguimento degli

impegni italiani in Libia e

Somalia, ma anche in Mali,

Repubblica Centrafricana,

Gibuti e Mozambico.

In particolare il comma 8

dell’art 18 del dl 7/2015

evidenzia che “è autorizzata

(…) la spesa di euro 700.000

per la prosecuzione della

realizzazione della nuova sede

dell’Ambasciata d’Italia a

Mogadiscio (…)” grazie alla

quale l’Italia dovrebbe tornare

dopo molti anni a riaprire la

propria rappresentanza

diplomatica in Somalia.

Confermati anche gli impegni

finanziari per le missioni di

assistenza militare e

formazione in Libia, per la

partecipazione italiana alle

Operazioni militare europee di

contrasto alla pirateria

(‘Atalanta’, EUTM Somalia,

EUCAP Nestor), per il

funzionamento della base

militare di Gibuti, ma anche per

le missioni nel Sahel (Mali e

Niger) di Onu e Unione

Europea.

Prorogata anche la

partecipazione italiana alla

missione dell’UE in Repubblica

Centrafricana e quella al

Gruppo militare di Osservatori

Internazionali della cessazione

delle ostilità militari nella

Repubblica del Mozambico

(EMOCHM).

21

Event

Opera & Cocktail with Murielle Tomao at the piano Ludovic Amadeus Selni at

Juventus Club on Thursday 26th February at 7:00 p.m.

Entrance for Members:450 birr

Entrance for non-Members 585 birr

For more information call 011 551 6464 or 011 5517558

Circolo.juventus@gmail.com