The federal government has allocated more than four billion birr to an initiative that would see the renovation or construction of several palaces, popular tourist attractions, and government buildings in the coming fiscal year. Next year will also see a 200 million birr tourist development project for the Sof Omar caves, another 250 million birr spent on the protection and development of Awash Park, and 31 million birr allocated to construction works at Wondo Genet Resort. - Advertisement -A separate 286 million birr is to go towards the design and study of palaces. The government has earmarked 200 million birr for maintenance works for the House of Federation in Addis Ababa, while the House of People’s Representatives will see a 500 million birr recurrent budget and a 100 million birr capital budget. The Office of the Prime Minister will take up 200 million birr in capital budget in addition to half a billion birr in recurrent expenditures.

The man bringing Ethiopian coffee culture to London6 hours ago By Lydia Wilson , BBC News ShareBBC Yared Markos moved from Ethiopia to England in 2000How often do you think about where your coffee actually comes from? Yared Markos, known locally as 'Markos', opened Kaffa Coffee in Dalston after he could not find authentic Ethiopian coffee in London, despite his home country being the birthplace of the bean. Markos runs Kaffa Coffee with his wife Almaz HaileMarkos set up Kaffa Coffee in 2004, despite having no support and living in temporary accommodation at the time. Twenty years and a lot of lattes later, Kaffa Coffee is a bustling spot amongst locals. The shop serves traditional Ethiopian food alongside coffeeHe regularly hosts community events like traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremonies, live music and parties, and holds a special reservation every Sunday for those in need of food.

In the bustling heart of the city, Meskel Square stands as a beacon of musical celebration. Since its renovation, Meskel Square has become a focal point for diverse services and recreational activities. Capitalizing on this vibrant venue, Selamta Entertainment secured the coveted rights to host weekly concerts, outshining numerous competitors. Over the past two years, they have ambitiously expanded their vision, culminating in the “Come and Jam” series at Meskel Square. Under the canopy of Addis Ababa’s starry nights, the voices and rhythms of Selamta Entertainment reverberate through Meskel Square, transforming it into a nexus of creativity and culture.

Violent conflicts, particularly in the Amhara and Oromia regions, led to serious human rights violations and abuses in 2023, the update said. - Advertisement -“In the northern Tigray region, there was a significant improvement in the human rights situation following the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement in November 2022,” said Throssell. Overall, the update recorded 594 human rights violations and abuse incidents, affecting 8,253 victims – a 56% increase compared with 2022. The African Development Fund (ADF), the concessional arm of the African Development Bank Group, is providing a grant of USD 54 million. He welcomed the project, which he said has great potential for irrigated wheat development in his state.

This call follows an update from OHCHR which analysed the human rights situation in Ethiopia between January 2023 and January 2024. A bloody civil war between Government forces and northern rebels erupted in late 2020 leading to major rights violations on all sides, including likely war crimes. In a post on X, Mr. Griffiths said he hoped Thursday's Security Council resolution would help ease the suffering of civilians in Sudan. The resolution calls for the paramilitary Rapid Security Forces (RSF) in Sudan to end their siege on Al Fasher. They held talks with Prime Minister Lamine Zeine and other members of the Government, including Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangaré.

This call follows an update from OHCHR which analysed the human rights situation in Ethiopia between January 2023 and January 2024. A bloody civil war between Government forces and northern rebels erupted in late 2020 leading to major rights violations on all sides, including likely war crimes. The update revealed that 1,351 civilians were killed in attacks in 2023 reportedly involving Government forces, Eritrean troops, anti-Government militias, and other unidentified parties. The resolution calls for the paramilitary Rapid Security Forces (RSF) in Sudan to end their siege on Al Fasher. They held talks with Prime Minister Lamine Zeine and other members of the Government, including Foreign Minister Bakary Yaou Sangaré.

United Nations human rights chief Volker Türk is calling on warring parties in northern Ethiopia to lay down their arms, warning that human rights violations and abuses amid hostilities continue to endanger reconciliation efforts. The report finds the human rights situation in the northern Tigray region has improved significantly following a November 2022 Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, while violent conflict has led to a serious deterioration of human rights in the regions of Amhara and Oromia. The report cites a litany of human rights violations and abuses committed by government security forces and armed groups, including arbitrary arrests and detentions, followed by killings of civilians, torture, enforced disappearances, and attacks on civilian property. The report documents 594 incidents of human rights violations and abuses affecting 8,253 victims, “a 56 percent increase compared with 2022.” It adds that, “State actors were reportedly responsible for some 70 percent of the violations, while non-state actors accounted for some 22 percent.”Declining violations in TigrayIn Ethiopia’s most-northern region, Tigray, the report describes a general decrease in human rights violations and abuses. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, or OHCHR, recorded 44 civilian deaths in 2023 compared to 303 in 2022 in the context of the Tigray conflict.

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Ethiopia will allow foreign banks to set up local subsidiaries and foreigners to acquire shares in domestic lenders, according to a bill approved by the cabinet on Friday, as part of the government's broader plan to liberalise the economy. The country of more than 100 million people is one of the biggest economies in Sub-Saharan Africa and has market long eyed by foreign investors after being closed off for decades. "A foreign bank which is well established, reputable and financially sound may be allowed to establish (a) partially or fully owned foreign bank subsidiary, or open a foreign bankbranch, or a representative office, or acquire shares of a bank," the bill states. The draft law, which lawmakers must first pass, says that foreign bank subsidiaries include local resident non-shareholder Ethiopians on the board of directors. In May last year the central bank announced it would offer five banking licences to foreign investors within five years.

Boeing has been under a red-hot spotlight of scrutiny since a panel blew off a Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliner Jan. 5 above Oregon. The Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 Max aircraft a wavy, side-to-side motion, that might have been caused by a damaged backup power-control unit, according to The Associated Press. The Jan. 5 incident wasn’t the first or even the most-serious incident involving a Boeing Max aircraft. A Boeing Max crash in 2018 in Indonesia killed 189 people. Less than five months later, a Boeing Max aircraft crash operated by Ethiopian Airlines claimed 157 lives.

Weather Alert...CODE ORANGE AIR QUALITY ALERT IS IN EFFECT FOR ATLANTA FOR Saturday June 15... The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection Division has issued a Code Orange (Unhealthy for sensitive groups) Air Quality Alert for Atlanta for Saturday June 15. Under Code Orange conditions, the outdoor air quality is likely to be unhealthy for some people. Children, people who are sensitive to ozone, and people with heart or lung disease should limit prolonged outdoor exertion during the late afternoon or early evening when ozone concentrations are highest. For additional information on the Air Quality Index, please visit http://airnow.gov.

Ethiopia plans to change its status from wheat importer to self-sufficient producer and exporterScientists from India and Ethiopia have teamed up to develop a dry-climate wheat system, and in May, the African Development Bank Group (AfDB) and the Ethiopian government initiated an ambitious $94 million Climate Resilient Wheat Value Chain Development (CREW) project. They also toured a sodic and saline micro-seeding facility used for screening genotypes under desirable salinity and salinity stress. The Climate Resilient Wheat Value Chain Development (CREW) project has a total budget of US$94 million. The African Development Fund, part of the African Development Bank Group, is providing a grant of US$54 million. Tags: wheat, Ethiopia, food security

New York Times international editor Phil Pan sent out the following:She broke the news that the European Union had agreed to ban Russian oil. She got the global exclusive on how the European Union struck a deal with Pfizer for billions of Covid-19 vaccines. Throughout her time as Brussels bureau chief, Matina Stevis-Gridneff has churned out scoop after scoop. Now, we are thrilled to announce that she is bringing her investigative chops and beat reporting prowess to a new continent: She is our new Canada bureau chief. She broke news that the European Union was preparing to let vaccinated Americans enter the continent, at a time when travel was still banned because of the pandemic.

State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico US Virgin Islands Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Armed Forces Europe Northern Mariana Islands Marshall Islands American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Palau Alberta, Canada British Columbia, Canada Manitoba, Canada New Brunswick, Canada Newfoundland, Canada Nova Scotia, Canada Northwest Territories, Canada Nunavut, Canada Ontario, Canada Prince Edward Island, Canada Quebec, Canada Saskatchewan, Canada Yukon Territory, CanadaZip Code

“My country, Eritrea, has been a victim of illegal and unjust sanctions and it continues to endure unilateral coercive measures targeting its most critical sectors, including the economic and national security ones. The country is further sustaining illegal unilateral sanctions imposed by the US Administration. The crippling socio-economic effects of these illegal sanctions to the country’s developmental programs are indeed colossal. Mr. President,All forms of unilateral coercive measures must be immediately lifted and the injustices and damages endured by the affected nations need to be rectified. Against the globally agreed development goals underpinned by the motto of “leaving no one behind”, unilateral coercive measures attest to the contrary as they are impoverishing those in the Global South and widening the development gap.

Pics of the day: June 13, 2024Africanews focuses on the most striking images of the day's news.