Ethiopia

92 inmates escape in western Ethiopia prison break

ADDIS ABABA, April 16 (Xinhua) -- At least 92 prisoners have escaped from a prison in Gambella regional state, in western Ethiopia, state media Ethiopia News Agency (ENA) reported on Tuesday.

John Umod, chief police inspector of Gambella city prison, said the prison break occurred on Monday when guards were trying to stop a fight among inmates, ENA reported.

A manhunt for the 92 escapees and an investigation are underway, Umod said, adding that the prison was housing 316 inmates before the prison break.

AU urges concerted efforts against hate speech, xenophobia in Africa

ADDIS ABABA, April 6 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council on Saturday urged African countries to exert more concerted efforts against an increasing trend of hate speech and xenophobic attacks in Africa.

The council made the call in a statement issued on Saturday following decisions made during its recent meeting under the theme "Prevention of the ideology of hate, genocide and hate crimes in Africa."

Ethiopian plane pilots followed required Boeing procedures

ADDIS ABABA, April 4 (Xinhua) -- Preliminary investigation results on doomed Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 plane discovered that the pilots followed Boeing required procedures, but could not control the flight, the Ethiopian government said on Thursday.

The Nairobi-bound Ethiopian airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed near Bishoftu town, about 45 km from the capital, Addis Ababa, just minutes after takeoff from Bole International Airport, killing all 157 people aboard.

US joins Ethiopian-led investigation at Boeing crash site

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) — U.S. aviation experts on Tuesday joined the investigation into the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jetliner that killed 157 people, as a growing number of airlines grounded the new Boeing plane involved in the crash.

The Federal Aviation Administration arrived at the crash site outside the capital, Addis Ababa, with representatives from the National Transportation Safety Board. They join an Ethiopian-led investigation.

All killed on Ethiopian Airlines flight that crashed

Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Mar 10 : An Ethiopian Airlines flight crashed shortly after takeoff from the capital Sunday morning killing all 157 thought to be on board, according to statements from the airline and the state broadcaster.

There were no immediate details on what caused the crash of the Boeing 737-8 MAX plane, which was new and had been delivered to the airline in November.

African coffee to dominate global market in coming years

KIGALI, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- African coffee products could dominate the global market in the next five years as some countries have expanded coffee growing acreage and raised quality of coffee produce, experts told Xinhua on Friday.

Production of coffee in Africa could rise by more than 2 million bags in each of the next five years, as farming improves in most coffee-growing countries like Ethiopia, Cote d'Ivoire, Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania, said Peter Kettler, global product manager for coffee at Fairtrade International.

Egypt President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi takes over chair of African Union

10 Feb 2019; DW: Egypt's President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi took up his chairmanship of the 55-member African Union (AU) at its 32nd ordinary session in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Sunday.  

During his tenure, el-Sissi is expected to concentrate on security and financial reform, but with no great plans to strengthen the AU's multilateral powers.

Instead, the focus is expected to be on combating illegal immigration while Egypt presents itself as a model for hosting refugees.

ECA hails continental free trade pact as Africa's milestone policy

ADDIS ABABA, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- The UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) on Monday said that the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement is one of Africa's milestone trade policy that would serve as an imputes towards transforming Africa's future development.

"The AfCFTA is one of the milestone trade policy developments in Africa which is expected to change the way Africa does trade and catalyze transformation in a way trade policy has not done before," the ECA said in a statement on Monday.

Ethiopia appoints first female president

Addis Ababa, Oct 25 (AFP) Ethiopia on Thursday appointed a woman to the largely ceremonial position of president for the first time.

In a unanimous vote, Ethiopian lawmakers picked career diplomat Sahle-Work Zewde to replace Mulatu Teshome who resigned.

Sahle-Work, who is in her late 60s, has been Ethiopia's ambassador to France, Djibouti, Senegal and the regional bloc, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

Just prior to her appointment as president she was the UN's top official at the African Union.

Mobile internet cut in Ethiopian capital amidst deadly unrest

ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia has cut mobile internet access in the capital city Addis Ababa, amidst deadly unrest that left five people dead in the city on Monday.

Officials from the state telecom monopoly Ethio-Telecom weren't immediately available for comments on the reason for the mobile internet cut, or why the cut was restricted to Addis Ababa and its surrounding region.

It is estimated that the majority of Ethiopia's 50 million plus mobile phone users browse webpages largely or exclusively through their mobile handsets.

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