The African Development Bank has withdrawn its international staff from Ethiopia over what it described as a breach of diplomatic protocol and an assault on two of its workers. In a Wednesday statement, AfDB said measures would not affect nationally recruited staff from Ethiopia who would continue their work and remain in full employment of the Bank. These decisions follow the recent breach of diplomatic protocol and assault by Ethiopian security forces on two of the African Development Bank’s international members of staff. “Specifically, on October 31, 2023, two Addis Ababa-based staff members were unlawfully arrested, physically assaulted, and detained for hours without charge or any official explanation. It added that on learning of the incident, AfDB President, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, immediately contacted the highest levels of authority in the Ethiopian government, following which the Bank’s two staff members were released.

If you'd like to leave a comment (or a tip or a question) about this story with the editors, please email usWe also welcome letters to the editor for publication; you can do that by filling out our letters form and submitting it to the newsroom.

The population policy document will not be ready at the planned timeEthiopian Policy Studies Institute (Photo : Social Media)By Staff ReporterADDIS ABABA – (BORKENA)- The Policy Studies Institute (PSI) disclosed here that it was unable to conduct a national study due to the conflicts and security problems being witnessed in different parts of the country, sources said. The Director General said that due to the security problem, his Institute has been forced to focus only on Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa Cities. Apart from the security problem, the regional states are not reportedly willing to cooperate with the institute. Fitsum announced that the reason for the low achievement was the security problem in the mining sector and the spread of illegal trade in agricultural products. __Join our Telegram Channel : t.me/borkenaLike borkena on FacebookAdd your business to Ethiopian Business Listing / Ethiopian Business DirectoryJoin the conversation.

Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs links failure of fourth round of GERD negotiation to Egypt’s colonial era stanceborkenaEthiopia on Tuesday issued a statement regarding the fourth round of GERD negotiation with Egypt and Sudan which was taking place in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa between December 17-19. The negotiations have helped the three countries to have an in-depth discussion on the major issues of difference. It is not meant to foreclose Ethiopia`s rights on the utilization of the waters of the Nile. The Agreement on the Declaration of Principles of 2015 signed by the three countries provides the basis for this negotiation. After the conclusion of the fourth round of the negotiation, Egypt has issued a statement that violates the UN Charter and the Constitutive Act of the African Union.

Adanech Abiebie, Mayor (Photo : SM/File)By Staff ReporterADDIS ABABA – (BORKENA) – Institutions of Addis Ababa City Administration that have their focus on organizational research do not take knowledge or work experience as priority for new entrants who apply for approved positions. Indicating the ethnicity of the applicant is very important for the result, it is stated in the form. Also, a clear instruction has been given in writing that ethnicity is mandatory on the human resources data collection form for the assignment. The Addis Ababa City Administration is reportedly ready to fire the existing employees and replace them with OPDO cadres under the pretext of a placement test. __Join our Telegram Channel : t.me/borkenaLike borkena on FacebookAdd your business to Ethiopian Business Listing / Ethiopian Business DirectoryJoin the conversation.

ADDIS ABABA - Ethiopia and Egypt have traded blame for the failure of a fourth round of negotiations aimed at resolving a long-running dispute over a controversial mega-dam built by Addis Ababa on the Nile. Negotiations between Ethiopia and downstream neighbours Egypt and Sudan have yet to produce an agreement since construction of the $4.2 billion project began in 2011. A fourth round of talks was held between Sunday and Tuesday in the Ethiopian capital. The dam is central to Ethiopia's development plans, and in February 2022 Addis Ababa announced that it had begun generating electricity for the first time. At full capacity, the huge dam -- 1.8 kilometres long and 145 metres high -- could generate more than 5,000 megawatts.

Five years of work by a primarily Ethiopian team of researchers and translators, as well as Princeton undergraduate students, has culminated in the Princeton Ethiopian, Eritrean and Egyptian Miracles of Mary (PEMM) website, a project in the digital humanities. "But few have studied the African representations of the Virgin Mary, which span from the 200s into the present," Belcher said. Although Worku grew up listening to the Marian stories, working on the PEMM project revealed new insights and discoveries. Belcher's scholarship focuses on medieval and early modern British and African literature. Her research for the PEMM project formally began in 2018, with project managers Evgeniia Lambrinaki and then Blaine Kebede.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) is withdrawing all its international staff from Ethiopia immediately, following a “gross violation” of diplomatic protocol and assault on two staff members by Ethiopian security forces. On October 31st, 2023, two Addis Ababa-based AfDB staff were unlawfully arrested, physically assaulted, and detained for hours without charge or explanation. This constituted a severe breach of their diplomatic immunities, rights, and privileges under the AfDB’s Host Country Agreement with Ethiopia. To prioritize staff safety, the AfDB will temporarily relocate all international staff from Ethiopia. The Bank reiterates its commitment to Ethiopia’s development, with $1.24bn invested in 22 ongoing projects as of September 30th, 2023.

Talks between Ethiopia and Egypt over the controversial Great Renaissance Dam have broken down, with Cairo accusing Addis Ababa of refusing to compromise. Ethiopia and Egypt have traded blame for the failure of a fourth round of negotiations aimed at resolving a long-running dispute over a controversial mega-dam built by Addis Ababa on the Nile. Negotiations between Ethiopia and downstream neighbours Egypt and Sudan have yet to produce an agreement since construction of the $4.2 billion project began in 2011. The dam is central to Ethiopia's development plans, and in February 2022 Addis Ababa announced that it had begun generating electricity for the first time. At full capacity, the huge dam - 1.8 kilometres long and 145 metres high - could generate more than 5,000 megawatts.

Ethiopia and Egypt said the latest round of talks over a huge, highly contentious hydroelectric dam Ethiopia has built on the Nile's main tributary again ended with no deal. Egypt's Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation said the talks were unsuccessful due to Ethiopia's “persistent refusal” to accept any compromise. The countries have been trying to find an agreement for years over the $4 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which Ethiopia began building in 2011. The Blue Nile meets the White Nile in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum, and then flows onwards through Egypt. Egypt is deeply concerned over how much water Ethiopia will release downstream from the dam and wants a deal to regulate that.

Bloomberg BusinessweekCarol Massar and Tim Stenovec bring together the latest news from the world of business and finance and the interesting stories of global technology, politics, economics and more by harnessing the power of Bloomberg Businessweek reporters and editors.

The African Development Bank has announced its decision to withdraw all its international staff from Ethiopia with immediate effect. This was disclosed in a statement sent to The PUNCH on Wednesday. It also said that the bank’s international staff in Ethiopia will work remotely outside the country until the findings of the government investigations into the incident are transparently shared with the bank. It continued, “The African Development Bank formally communicated with the government of Ethiopia through an official note verbale on 6 November requesting a full and transparent investigation into the incident. The Bank President said, “The assessment from the Bank’s delegation indicates that the situation is still not yet resolved in a satisfactory manner.

Ethiopia has accused Egypt of bringing a “colonial mindset” to negotiations on the operation of a megadam that Addis Ababa is building on the Blue Nile. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is seen by its downstream neighbours Egypt and Sudan as an existential threat to their share of water from the Nile. Cairo has repeatedly tried to get Addis Ababa to sign a legally binding agreement on the operation of the dam. Addis Ababa, it continued, is negotiating only to win an endorsement from Egypt and Sudan to exert its absolute control over the Blue Nile. Though earlier on in the dispute with Ethiopia, Egypt hinted at intervening militarily to end the dispute, a stronger emphasis has been placed on diplomacy in recent years.

Ethiopian Airlines has secured a USD 450 million loan agreement to finance the acquisition of five new Boeing aircraft—three Boeing 737-8 and two Boeing 777F (Cargo). Citi, a long-standing partner of Ethiopian Airlines, has provided its largest aircraft financing in Ethiopia in the last decade. The loan marks Citi's 70th year working with Ethiopian clients, and the bank continues to support Ethiopian Airlines' growth across the globe. Ethiopian Airlines Group has already achieved its vision 2025. The vision also aims to almost double the Ethiopian Airline’s fleet by increasing the airline’s number of aircraft to 271.

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — More than 300 firefighters battled a blaze on the slopes of a mountain near Cape Town in South Africa for a second day on Wednesday and residents were evacuated from at least one neighborhood overnight, emergency services said. Five firefighters were injured and two were taken to the hospital, Cape Town Emergency Services spokesperson Jermaine Carelse said. The wildfire on the slopes near the seaside town of Simon’s Town, around 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of Cape Town, threatened houses in the pre-dawn hours after it started on Tuesday. Wildfires are a regular threat on the mountain slopes around Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula to its south in the hot, dry months from November to April. A huge wildfire burned across the slopes of Cape Town’s world-famous Table Mountain for days in 2021, destroying nearly a dozen buildings, including some historic structures at the University of Cape Town.