Egypt’s Prime Minister says only 5% of Nile basin rainfall reaches #Egypt and #Sudan, calls River ‘a matter of existence, not subject to compromise’

Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly has described the Nile River as “a matter of existence, not subject to compromise,” emphasizing Egypt’s heavy reliance on the transboundary river amid renewed tensions with Ethiopia.

He said that although the Nile Basin receives more than 1,660 billion cubic meters of rainfall annually, only about 84 billion cubic meters—roughly five percent—reach Egypt and Sudan.

Speaking at the closing session of the 8th Cairo Water Week on Thursday, Madbouly said the event focused on “key issues at the heart of international water security,” particularly the challenges countries face in managing shared resources to ensure both security and development.,

https://web.facebook.com/AddisstandardEng/posts/pfbid02a5GZYvjCor4cTXXgmkdup87K437Ct9hp86hLktZxGKp1kK5XhVmS17UDDE8YUDjYl

#AS_Editorial - Vaults of the few swell, plates of millions clatter empty: #Ethiopia’s crisis demands honesty, not hubris

Ethiopia is witnessing the systematic production of inequality - a process in which political power is converted into economic privilege. What began as a promise of shared prosperity in 2018 has morphed into an architecture of exclusion, enriching a few while impoverishing millions.

This month, the #World_Bank’s Poverty and Equity Brief delivered a stark warning: poverty, measured at $3 per day (2021 PPP), has climbed from 33 percent in 2016 to 39 percent in 2021 and is projected to reach 43 percent by 2025. After two decades of progress, Ethiopia is now reversing course, undoing gains that took a generation to build.

Under the Prosperity Party, inequality has ceased to be an unintended outcome of crisis; it has become a governing tool. Fiscal power, public contracts, and investment opportunities are increasingly concentrated within......

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https://addisstandard.com/?p=52949

#Australia sheep-export ban helps #Somalia win $1 billion of sales

Somalia’s livestock exports are receiving a boost from fading Australian and Sudanese competition, which could help drive its shipments above $1 billion this year.

The Horn of Africa nation has seen its earnings from livestock exports climb from $523 million in 2021 to $974 million last year, according to government data, and that trend is expected to continue.

“This increase can be attributed to two main factors — first, Sudan, once a major livestock-exporting country, is currently facing conflict. Secondly, Australia, another key supplier to Gulf countries, has reduced exports,” said Qaasim Abdi Moallim, director of animal health at Somalia’s livestock ministry. “This allowed Somalia to take advantage of the situation and accelerate its livestock exports.”

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-10-17/somalia-s-1-billion-livestock-trade-gains-from-australia-sudan

News: Fitch affirms #Ethiopia’s foreign-currency rating at ‘Restricted Default’

Global rating agency #Fitch has affirmed Ethiopia’s Long-Term Foreign-Currency (LTFC) Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at ‘Restricted Default’ (RD), citing the country’s continued default on its Eurobond and other non-bond commercial external debt.

The agency said it typically does not assign outlooks to sovereigns rated ‘CCC+’ or below.

In a statement issued on 17 October 2025, Fitch said the rating reflects Ethiopia’s ongoing default on its single Eurobond and other non-bond commercial external obligations after the government failed to pay a USD 33 million Eurobond coupon due on 11 December 2023.

Ethiopia is seeking to restructure about USD 15 billion of external debt, including arrears as of end-June 2024, under the G20 Common Framework, for which it applied in 2021.

Fitch forecasts general government debt to peak at 40.4% of GDP in FY25 and gradually decline to 36.6% by FY27.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=52952

#Ethiopia, #China central bank governors discuss debt restructuring, financial cooperation

Governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia (#NBE), Eyob Tekalign (PhD), held talks with Governor of the People’s Bank of China (#PBC), Pan Gongsheng, on the sidelines of the World Bank and #IMF Annual Meetings.

According to local media reports, the discussions focused on strengthening financial cooperation between the two countries, with particular emphasis on debt restructuring and enhancing cross-border trade relations.

The two governors agreed on the need for central banks and financial institutions in both countries to deepen collaboration aimed at boosting trade and investment flows.

Eyob reaffirmed Ethiopia’s commitment to advancing its strategic partnership with China, including in the financial sector, in line with the country’s ongoing economic reform program.......

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Heavy security after deadly violence in #Kenya as thousands turn out to mourn former PM #Odinga

Heavy security has been deployed to Kenya’s western city of #Kisumu ahead of the final public viewing of the body of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, after five people died in the last two public funeral events.

Military officers, regular police and air surveillance teams were present Saturday at the soccer stadium where thousands of mourners stayed overnight awaiting the opportunity to view Odinga’s body.

Odinga was a respected and significant figure in Kenya and beyond, a veteran politician lauded by many, including former U.S. President Barack Obama, for his fight for democracy.

He died Wednesday in India at the age of 80 and is expected to be buried Sunday at his rural home in Bondo in western Kenya.

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/raila-odinga-kenya-barack-obama-police-india-b2847741.html?utm_source=Newswav&utm_medium=Website

News: Fano forces reportedly seize several areas following renewed clashes in #Amhara region

Fano forces have reportedly taken control of multiple areas across the Amhara region following renewed clashes with government troops, according to reports by ‘Deutsche Welle (DW)’.

Citing residents and Fano leaders, DW reported that the group had “taken control of several areas” after intensified fighting in various parts of the region. A resident of #Checheho town, situated at the junction of South Gondar and North Wollo zones, said Fano fighters now control “Checheho, #Zebit, #Geregera, and #Aflakit, including the surrounding areas.”

The Ethiopian National Defense Force (#ENDF) on its official social media page announced that its army corps in the Amhara region has launched operations against what it described as an “extremist group” accused of disturbing public peace and engaging in looting in #Mersa town and surrounding areas of the #North_Wollo Zone.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=52958

New report uncovers “genocidal sexual violence” affecting over 280,000 women and girls in #Tigray

A new report by the “Commission of Inquiry on Tigray Genocide (CITG)” has documented what it describes as “war-induced genocidal sexual and gender-based violence” committed against hundreds of thousands of women and girls across Tigray during the two-year Tigray war.

The report, released on Thursday, paints a harrowing picture of the systematic use of rape, sexual slavery, and other forms of gender-based violence as weapons of war.

According to the report, out of 481,201 women and girls surveyed, 286,250 suffered at least one form of gender-based violence.

Commissioner Yemane told Addis Standard that the findings were based on a door-to-door survey conducted using the ODK application and guided by the IASC GBV principles. “As the war-induced sexual violence was widespread throughout Tigray, universal screening was employed,” he said.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=52965

#Somalia sets #November date for one-person, one-vote elections

Somalia is preparing to hold its first one-person, one-vote local council elections in over half a century, with Mogadishu residents urged to get ready for the landmark event this November.

Abdikarim Ahmed Hassan, chairperson of the National Electoral and Boundaries Commission, announced on Tuesday that voting in the Banadir region (Mogadishu municipality) is scheduled for November 30, 2025, despite opposition politicians rejecting the plan. The Commission emphasised that this marks a major step towards universal suffrage—last practised in Somalia 56 years ago.

“On November 30, everyone residing in Mogadishu should prepare to vote in the one-person, one-vote local council election,” Hassan said, adding that voter registration concluded on September 30.

Hassan also noted that nearly one million people had registered in the Banadir region. Banadir, which includes Mogadishu’s 17 districts, is the most populous administrative region in Somalia, estimated to host some four million people, even though there has been no actual census conducted in Somalia in recent years.

Mogadishu-based opposition group National Salvation Forum (The Forum) has repeatedly issued statements calling the process “illegal.”

Led by former president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed, alongside prominent politicians including former prime ministers, ministers, and dissenting lawmakers, The Forum accused President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of manipulating the process through a unilaterally drafted electoral law and handpicked commission members, all based on a revised constitution.

https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/news/east-africa/somalia-sets-november-date-for-one-person-one-vote-elections-5235510

#Uganda halts registration of new asylum seekers, including #Ethiopians, amid declining aid

Uganda has suspended the registration of new asylum seekers from countries including Ethiopia, #Somalia, and #Eritrea as it struggles to cope with declining donor support and a growing refugee population, The Monitor reported.

According to the report, the suspension applies to countries that are not currently experiencing active conflict.

Geoffrey Mugabe, Senior Settlement Commandant in the Department of Refugees at the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM), said the decision was driven by financial constraints, reductions in World Food Programme (WFP) rations, and a continuous influx of refugees

“We intend to narrow support to only vulnerable refugees. Registration from countries not in conflict — notably Somalia, Ethiopia, and Eritrea — has been closed,” Mr. Mugabe said.....

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Concerned #Ethiopians convene in #Amsterdam, urge for transitional framework rooted in peace, stability to address Ethiopia’s ‘worsening political, security, and economic crises’

A group of concerned Ethiopians representing various political organizations, armed and civil society groups, scholars, and activists convened in Amsterdam on October 18 to discuss what they described as Ethiopia’s “worsening political, security, and economic crises.”

In a statement sent to Addis Standard, the representatives said the gathering, which follows a similar meeting held in August 2025 in the United States, was organized to deliberate on “the importance of political transitioning, the principles and process of political settlement, mechanisms for transition to peace, and the management of external actors’ influence.”

The statement asserted that after seven years in power, “Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s unchecked power, war-mongering, and governance failures have plunged Ethiopia into...

https://addisstandard.com/?p=52980

#Eritrea yet to release six Sri Lankan sea marshals despite ongoing diplomatic efforts

Diplomatic attempts to secure the release of six #Sri_Lankan Sea Marshals detained in Eritrea since November 2024 have so far failed, The Island reported, citing sources familiar with the ongoing negotiations.

The Sri Lankans, employed by Azerbaijani company Caspian Marine Service B.V., were among 24 crew members aboard three Azerbaijan-flagged tugboats intercepted in Eritrean waters on 7 November 2024. The vessels were reportedly diverted into Eritrean territory due to adverse weather conditions. While Eritrea released and repatriated the 18 Azerbaijani crew members in late March, the six Sri Lankan Sea Marshals remain in custody.

The detained men were deployed through Seagull Maritime PMSC, with Freightplan (Pvt.) Ltd. serving as the local agent. Their exact whereabouts remain unknown.

https://island.lk/govt-seeks-release-of-six-sl-sea-marshals-in-eritrean-captivity/

#Op_ed: #Ethiopia’s education crisis, birth of lost generation

In this op-ed, Mulugeta Gebregziabher draws on John Dewey’s warning that “If education does not teach you to resist injustice, it has failed,” calling it “a moral indictment of the current state of Ethiopia’s education sector.” He notes that “since 1990, Ethiopia has experienced a remarkable expansion of educational access,” yet the system has entered “a period of alarming decline” after 2019.

The author explains that university enrollment has stagnated, graduation rates have fallen, and “over 91% of students failed the 2025 national exam.” Furthermore, conflicts in #Tigray, #Amhara, and #Oromia have destroyed schools and displaced millions, while “at least 13 million children are currently out of school.”

“What is happening in Ethiopia is not mere neglect; it is a slow, painful self-destruction,” Mulugeta writes, urging officials to depoliticize education, invest significantly, and restore academic freedom.

https://addisstandard.com/?p=52973