FEACC Charges Gold Scam Masterminds

Masterminds of a gold scam escaped from the country before the police could catch them. The two suspects, Kefyalew Umetan a.k.a. Samson and Asmare Ayalew, skipped the country in September 2007. Asmare now reside in US whereas Kefyalew is in Australia. On Monday April 7, 2008, a prosecutor for The Federal Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (FEACC) filed a charge against 26 suspects, including Kefyalew and Asmare, who are in custody on allegations of involvement in the gold scam.

Massive Hydro-power Projects Launch

EEPCO will launch massive hydro-power projects in Tekeza (300mw), Gibe II (1870mw), Belese (460mw), Gibe III (1870mw) and Finch Amenti Neshe (1000mw). Additionally, EEPCO will also construct a wind turbine farm which will generate 120mw near Mekalle Town and build geothermal plants for the new projects. EEPCO revealed that 124 billion Br is required for the facilitation of the projects. Currently, a combination of a significant growth of the economy and the failure of Belg rain in the country are the causes of the existing power shortage in the country.

400pc Increase in AAU Post-graduate Tuition Fees

Addis Ababa University (AAU) has approved an increment in the tuition fees for its post-graduate studies.  Mesfin Bogale, the Public Relations Officer of AAU told Fortune that the university has had to adjust the fees in order to counter the higher costs of running the program, as well as to cater for the teaching staff required for new public universities. The fees have shot up to 400 Br per credit hour, a 400pc increase from the current fees of 100 Br per credit hour. This increment applies to all students, that is, government-sponsored and self-sponsored students. The new fees become effective in September 2008.

Mobile Service Expansion to 5.6m Lines

The Corporate Communication Manager of The Ethiopian Telecommunication Corporation (ETC), Abdurahim Ahmed, has stated that ETC has embarked on the second phase of its mobile service expansion. This phase of the project is anticipated to cover the demands in 22 highways and 766 towns. This effectively means that ETC will be able to increase mobile telephone service to about 5.6 million lines in 18 towns, including Addis Ababa. The first phase of this expansion was completed in September 2007 when the capacity of connection was increased to 2.2 million.

Climate Change Hampers Achievement of MDGs

Climate change has become a major challenge for Africa as it hinders its achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). In the 10th senior policy seminar of the  UN-ECA, organized under the theme ”Climate Change and Economic Development in Sub- Sahara Africa,” Lalla Ben Barka, the deputy executive secretary of  UN-ECA said Africa contributes only 3.8pc of green house emission. Executive Director of the Africa Economic Consortium (AERC) Professor William Lyakuewa also added that  as Africa  is dependant on a rain-fed economy, climate is a matter of survival so African nations should address the problem of climate change in their own policies. Africa is a high risk continent because of the region’s physical sensitivity to climate change which seriously compounds the challenge of meeting its MDG’s and achieving sustainable development.

South Korea- Ethiopia Annual Trade Exchange Hits 80m Dollars

South Korean Ambassador, Byung Jhung said that annual trade exchange between Ethiopia and South Korea is up to 80 million dollars. He stressed that the trade relationship between the two countries is continually growing. The trade exchange, which was 17.7 million dollars five years ago, now has an estimated growth of 450pc. Ethiopia exports coffee, oil seeds and leather to South Korea and import medicines, vehicles and electronic devices, among other things.
 

12 Hour Power Cuts

A Public Relations official at EEPCO has stated that there will be power interruptions in two days of the week. EEPCO added that the power interruptions would last for 12 hours of each day. These power interruptions are a result of the current shortage of power. Therefore, starting from April 7, 2008, there will be power cuts from 8am - 8 pm during the affected days.

India to Invest 1.1b dollars in Africa

India will invest heavily in development projects in Africa in order to strengthen economic ties between India and its African counterparts, stated the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh. The Prime Minister was addressing a summit an indicated that India would provide more than 500 million dollars for projects in Africa. By the end of December 2008, India will have invested a total capital of 1.1 billion dollars in Africa.  There will also be 295 Indian companies participating in agriculture, construction, education, health, hotel and restaurant, manufacturing, mining, real estate, wholesale and retail trade in Oromia, Dire Dawa, the SNNPR, Tigray, the Amhara Regional States and Addis Ababa.