Day: October 13, 2021

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Mattermost Launches New Project and Workflow Management Solutions for Developers

Open source collaboration platform delivers alternatives to tools like Slack, Trello, and Notion to help R&D teams improve productivity and accelerate digital operations

Palo Alto, Calif., Oct. 13, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Mattermost, Inc. today announced several new additions to its open source project at KubeCon® + CloudNativeCon North America 2021, launching and integrating modern project and workflow management solutions into its popular developer collaboration platform. Built for technical teams, Mattermost now provides flexible alternatives to tools like Slack®, Trello®, and Notion® through a unified platform for increased collaboration and productivity across a wide range of software development processes — from sprint planning and release management to incident resolution and retrospectives.

With heightened awareness around the urgency for remote collaboration and modernization of enterprise processes, developers have been increasingly asked to circumvent fragile processes, talent shortages, and security risks to deliver performance, innovation, and digital operations at scale. The newest update to the core Mattermost® platform emphasizes the complexities of these staggering objectives and the need for dynamic solutions that empower R&D teams with autonomy, flexibility, and security.

The launch of Mattermost’s modern project and workflow management solutions also reflects the company’s evolution beyond secure messaging to enable team alignment and operational agility across sophisticated R&D use cases. Unlike general collaboration products, the Mattermost platform now allows developers to contribute directly to its solutions and customize their workspaces to adapt to their preferred team processes. Mattermost also provides teams with the option to deploy on-premise or in a secure cloud instance. This gives companies more control over their data and assists them in meeting stringent security and privacy compliance standards such as those found in HIPAA, FINRA, GDPR, country-specific data sovereignty, and other regulatory requirements.

“As organizations navigate the shift to always-on digital operations, teams that effectively align their people, tools, and processes across each stage of the development lifecycle are increasing their velocity, improving delivery and gaining a strategic advantage,” said Ian Tien, co-founder and CEO of Mattermost. “With developers reporting that nearly 40% of their workweek is wasted due to tool fragmentation, manual tasks, fragile workflows, and service-impacting incidents and outages, we see a huge opportunity to help every R&D team in the world improve their operations and productivity with collaboration solutions built specifically for the way they work.”

Founded in 2016, Mattermost has powered over 800,000 developer workspaces worldwide and has a community of over 4,000 open source contributors who have updated the platform over 30,000 times since its initial release. Mattermost’s commercial offerings are used by over 800 organizations, including European Parliament, NASA, Nasdaq, Samsung, SAP, the United States Air Force, and Wealthfront.

“Mattermost has been unimaginably effective for our company and continues to exceed expectations with every new release,” said Daniel Gover, IT system administrator for Crossover Health. “The platform helps us ensure that we’re staying HIPAA-compliant while letting our clinicians collaborate efficiently and seamlessly.”

“Developer velocity is increasingly essential to driving digital operations and modernization across the enterprise,” said Paul Nashawaty, senior analyst for Enterprise Strategy Group. “Mattermost is helping to meet this requirement with a collaboration platform that reduces context switching and delivers visibility and control across the developer workflow and toolchain.”

This update to the Mattermost platform is now available to all users and features enhanced navigation and multiple tightly integrated collaboration tools, including:

Channels: The foundation of the Mattermost platform, Channels bring all of your team’s communication into one place, so you have complete visibility and control. Channels come with team messaging, conferencing, and file sharing features beyond general-purpose collaboration, including slash commands, code syntax highlighting, rich Markdown formatting, code snippets, and bot integrations.

Playbooks: Playbooks are prescribed workflows that streamline complex, recurring processes. Playbooks run side-by-side with Channels and make any structured process repeatable and predictable using checklists, triggers, automation, and tool integrations. Continuous improvement is built into each playbook with learnings and retrospectives.

Boards: Boards are Kanban-style task and project management solutions with clearly defined tasks, owners, checklists, and deadlines. Boards help teams increase transparency and keep all resources readily available, including documents, images, and links, and are used to help teams achieve project milestones and manage projects and tasks of any size.

Connections: Connections are integrations and extensions with leading developer tools, including GitHub®, Jenkins®, Circle CI®, GitLab®, Jira®, PagerDuty®, and ServiceNow®. Connections allow developers to turn any Channel into a CLI through built-in or custom commands to execute actions directly, such as posting to Channels, listening for new messages with incoming and outgoing webhooks. Developers can build Connections through custom apps, open APIs, plugins, and webhooks. The Mattermost App Framework allows developers to define custom interactive add-ons that support web, mobile, and desktop clients without changes. Apps can be written in any language, deployed on any HTTP server, or hosted as an AWS Lambda function.

Controls: Controls provide extensive data protection, information governance, eDiscovery, enterprise information archiving support, and identity/access management. Controls give administrators the ability to set granular permissions to control access to sensitive data and can be customized to meet your specific compliance requirements with fine-grained data retention, audit logs, the ability to programmatically archive and export records, and integration with Global Relay and Smarsh/Actiance for compliance, archiving, and analytics. Deployment options are available in on-prem or secure cloud environments to meet the strict requirements of GDPR, AICPA, CCPA, FINRA, HIPAA, and more.

To learn more about Mattermost’s developer collaboration platform, attendees can find the team at booth #S12 at KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2021, or please visit the Mattermost Blog.

About Mattermost:

Mattermost is an open source platform for secure collaboration across the entire software development lifecycle. Hundreds of thousands of developers around the globe trust Mattermost to increase their productivity by bringing together team communication, task and project management, and workflow orchestration into a unified platform for agile software development.

Founded in 2016, Mattermost’s open source platform powers over 800,000 workspaces worldwide with the support of over 4,000 contributors from across the developer community. The company serves over 800 customers, including European Parliament, NASA, Nasdaq, Samsung, SAP, United States Air Force and Wealthfront, and is backed by world-class investors including Battery Ventures, Redpoint, S28 Capital, YC Continuity. To learn more, visit www.mattermost.com.

Mattermost and the Mattermost logo are registered trademarks of Mattermost, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

Jeff Benanto
Mattermost
5083619001
jeff.benanto@mattermost.com
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Huawei’s Ken Hu Calls on ICT Industry to Work Together on Next Stage of 5G Development

DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — Huawei’s 12th annual Global Mobile Broadband Forum (MBBF) kicked off in Dubai today with a keynote from the company’s Rotating Chairman, Ken Hu.

He spoke on the current state of 5G development and new opportunities moving forward. “In just five years of commercial deployment, 5G has provided a considerable upgrade in mobile experience for consumers, and it’s already starting to empower different industries around the globe. Progress was much faster than we expected, especially in terms of the subscriber base, network coverage, and the sheer number of 5G terminals on the market.”

Hu outlined three areas of opportunity that will drive the next stage of 5G’s growth, including XR services, the B2B market, and low-carbon development.

Ken Hu speaking on 5G development at MBBF 2021

The current state of global 5G development

There are currently 176 commercial 5G networks around the globe, serving more than 500 million subscribers. In the consumer space, average 5G download speeds are roughly 10 times greater than 4G, which has fueled broader adoption of applications like VR and 360º broadcasting. In the enterprise space, there are already 10,000 projects exploring B2B applications of 5G (5GtoB) around the world. 5G applications in industries like manufacturing, mining, and ports have already passed trial and are being replicated at scale.

While progress has been steady, Hu noted that there are still some areas for improvement. “Right now more than half of these 10,000 5GtoB projects are in China. We have a huge number of use cases already, but we need to build more sustainable business cases.”

He went on to speak of broader changes that will have a long-term impact on the ICT industry, including accelerated digital transformation caused by the pandemic, how cloud and AI have become must-haves for all organizations, and how the world is taking climate change more seriously. “These trends provide many opportunities for our industry,” he said. “But they also create some challenges. There are a few things we can do to get ready.”

First, the industry needs to get networks, devices, and content ready for explosive growth in Extended Reality (XR). To support a smooth cloud-based XR experience, networks need to provide download speeds faster than 4.6 Gbit/s with latency no greater than 10 milliseconds. “Last year,” noted Hu, “we released our goals for 5.5G. And we believe they will help address this challenge.”

barriers to headset adoption is critical to reaching a tipping point in virtual reality, one of the key technologies in the Extended Reality repertoire of AR, VR, and MR. “To reach [this tipping point], we have to make improvements to both headsets and content. For headsets, people want devices that are smaller, lighter, and more affordable.” To enrich the content ecosystem, Hu called on the industry to provide cloud platforms and tools that simplify content development, which is notoriously difficult and expensive.

Second, telecom operators need to enhance their networks and develop new capabilities to get ready for 5GtoB. A strong network is key to 5G applications for industrial use, so operators need to keep making improvements to network capabilities such as uplink, positioning, and sensing. As industrial scenarios are much more complex than consumer scenarios, O&M can be a real challenge. To help, Huawei is developing autonomous networks that bring intelligence to all aspects of 5G networks, from planning and construction to maintenance and optimization.

Digital transformation also requires different roles. In addition to providing connectivity, operators can also serve as cloud service providers, systems integrators, and more, and develop the requisite capabilities. To drive broader adoption of 5G in industries, developing industry-specific telecoms standards is also important. In China, operators, together with their industry partners, have begun working on standards for applying 5G in industries like coal mining, steel, and electric power, and this has helped to fuel greater adoption within these sectors.

“Beyond technology,” concluded Hu, “these are some of the intangible strengths that won’t provide immediate profit, but will be key to long-term competitiveness in the 5GtoB market.”

Third, the industry needs to get ready to go green. According to the World Economic Forum, by 2030, digital technology can help reduce global carbon emissions by at least 15%. “On one hand,” said Hu, “we have a great opportunity to help all industries cut emissions and improve power efficiency with digital technology. On the other hand, we have to recognize that our industry has a growing carbon footprint, and we have to take steps to improve that. Right now Huawei is using new materials and algorithms to lower the power consumption of our products, and we’re remodeling sites, and optimizing power management in our data centers for greater efficiency.”

“We have seen so many changes in the past two years – with the pandemic, technology, business and the economy,” Hu concluded. “Moving forward, as the world begins to recover, we need to recognize the opportunities in front of us and get ready for them. Get our technology ready, get our businesses ready, and get our capabilities ready.”

The Global Mobile Broadband Forum 2021 is hosted by Huawei, together with its industry partners GSMA and the SAMENA Telecommunications Council. The forum gathers mobile network operators, vertical industry leaders, and ecosystem partners from around the world to discuss how to maximize the potential of 5G and push the mobile industry forward.

For more information, please visit: https://www.huawei.com/en/events/mbbf2021

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1659317/Ken_Hu_speaking_5G_development_MBBF_2021.jpg

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Huawei’s David Wang Talks 10 Wireless Industry Trends in “Roads to Mobile 2030”

DUBAI, UAE, Oct. 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ — During the 12th Global Mobile Broadband Forum (MBBF), Huawei Executive Director of the Board and Chairman of ICT Infrastructure Managing Board David Wang, delivered a keynote speech titled Roads to Mobile 2030: 10 Wireless Industry Trends, saying “Huawei has identified 10 wireless industry trends to define future-oriented wireless networks and prepare the industry for the Intelligent World 2030.”

David Wang delivering a keynote speech at MBBF 2021

As he explained, by 2030, the digital and physical worlds will become deeply integrated, creating a near-real-life experience. The digital economy will also become a primary driver of the real economy, and industry will shift focus from device efficiency to decision-making efficiency. But these advances will also need us to achieve intrinsic network security and to improve energy efficiency to protect the environment through green growth.

Mobile networks will be an important part of Huawei’s Intelligent World 2030 concept, and so Wang summarized the 10 trends we will see in the mobile industry over the next decade.

Trend 1: 10 Gbps for Physical-Digital Integration

In the future, digital communications will be used to expand and deepen exchanges of information between people, delivering multi-sensory experiences including hearing, sight, touch, and smell. To enable these features, mobile networks will need to support 10 Gbps at millisecond latency everywhere and transmit information in ways that are more semantically organized.

Trend 2: One Network for 100-Billion All-Scenario IoT Connections

Digital society will be reshaped by the 100 billion thing-to-thing connections cellular networks will have to support by 2030. Driven mainly by all-scenario IoT, networks will have to begin offering different types of connections services, differentiated by speed and priority requirements. This means a deterministic experience with lower latency and higher reliability must be delivered and a new form of wireless IoT that features ultra-low power consumption and passive connections must be created.

Trend 3: Satellite-Ground Collaboration for 3D Coverage

Satellite-ground collaboration will plug the gaps in wireless ground coverage and achieve three-dimensional airspace coverage, enabling communications and control for future drones and aircrafts. Mobile networks, with their exiting advanced communications technologies and multi-trillion dollar market, will also likely be used to nurture the new satellite communications technologies.

Trend 4: Integrated Sensing & Communications for True Digital Replicas

Sensing and communications will be further integrated, enabling real-time digital replication of the physical world and facilitating high-level autonomous driving and drone management. Both radio interfaces and network architectures will need to be similarly integrated and sensing resolution technology will need to advance to the centimeter level using ultra-wideband with Massive MIMO to achieve these functions.

Trend 5: Intelligence in Every Industry and Connection

Wireless networks will become fully integrated with AI technologies to enable level-5 fully autonomous driving networks, which will further support automated O&M, deliver premium experiences, and minimize carbon footprints. Future radios will also be designed with native intelligence, and smart radio algorithms will further optimize the management of channel coding and radio resource.

Trend 6: Full-Link and Full-Lifecycle Green Networks

As network traffic grows 100 times over in the next few years, there will be an equal spike in demand for solutions that reduce network energy consumption. Per-bit energy efficiency will also need to improve at a similar rate. Energy efficiency must be considered in every aspect of network design, including radio interfaces, devices, and sites. This will enable the construction of these full-link and full-lifecycle green and sustainable networks.

Trend 7: Flexible Full-Band Sub-100 GHz

By 2030, nations will need an average of 2 GHz mid-band bandwidth and over 20 GHz of bandwidths on millimeter wave to accommodate growing traffic. The industry will need to facilitate the evolution of sub-100 GHz spectrum to NR and redefine spectrum utilization using multi-band integration and other innovative technologies to achieve 10-fold spectral efficiency improvement.

Trend 8: Generalized Multi-Antenna for Reduced Per-Bit Cost

Per-bit data transmission costs will be reduced as multi-antenna technologies begin to be applied to every spectrum band and every scenario. Ultra-wideband modular antennas will support flexible combinations of multiple bands and intelligent reflecting surfaces will apply multi-antenna technologies in more scenarios to enable cloud-based, higher-performance deployment.

Trend 9: Security as the Cornerstone for a Digital Future

Intrinsic device security and intelligent and simplified security at the network layer will become increasingly important as network security and resilience come more into the global spotlight. Operators will need to provide these kinds of simplified security services via cloud-network synergy for their industry customers to promote digital transformation.

Trend 10: Mobile Computing Network for Device-Pipe-Cloud Collaboration

Future mobile networks will support more diverse services, such as the Metaverse, industrial field networks, and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communications. This means that computing will need to be integrated with mobile networks to provide uninterrupted, high-quality services on demand as a single service model will be insufficient for building new digital platforms.

Wang rounded out his presentation by reiterating how these 10 industry trends are a bright sign that the wireless industry is moving quickly in the direction of a fully intelligent world. He closed out promising Huawei will continue to work with industry partners to define these networks of the future and make their vision of the Intelligent World 2030 a reality.

For more information, see the White Paper: 10 Wireless Industry Trends.

Photo – https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1659364/David_Wang_delivering_a_keynote_speech_MBBF_2021.jpg

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Murder trial in Görlitz – Bild.de

Görlitz – she was popular, ambitious, independent. The Eritrean Freweuni G. († 24) wanted to become a geriatric nurse and was seen as a good example of integration.

But at the beginning of December 2020, the devout Christian was brutally killed in her apartment on Görlitzer Pontestrasse.

The alleged murderer: Tesfetzgi T., a compatriot. Since Monday the murder trial has been made before the Görlitz district court. He is silent about it and gives only 2000 as the year of his birth. The embassy reports from 1998.

According to the indictment, the Eritrean is said to have suffocated and raped. For this, the perpetrator should, among other things. have used a pillow. “He pressed this on the victim’s nose and mouth,” the prosecution. After his act, he is said to have carried her body into the bedroom, dressed in new clothes and pulled a blanket over her entire body. He later withdrew 150 euros with her debit card.

Unbelievable: When her supervisor worried about “Fretta”, her nickname, days later and drove to the apartment with a friend and a spare key, T. was waiting in front of the house. He followed them around the apartment. There it appeared “cold” and like a “shadow”.

A forensic doctor confirmed a “violent asphyxiation” and found “textile-like prints” on the victim’s face.

Source: Dehai Eritrea Online

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A Tour in the Northern Red Sea Region

It is home to natural resources including a variety of marine species, incredible landscape, clear and unpolluted seashore, archaeological sites, infrastructure wonders, forestry, wildlife, and more and more. Every rock, every village, and every single place has its own history to tell and magnificence to provide to any lucky individual who visits, but even the lifetime of a man is not enough to study every single place in the Northern Red Sea region of Eritrea.

The region stretches 600 kilometers along the coastal line, and around 450 kilometers inland, a total area of 34,236 square kilometers with every single place of history and scenic beauty. Today, I would like to give you an overview of some select places in the region.

The expedition began from the port city of Massawa, capital of the region, and made its way to the very cradle of Homo sapiens, the Buya area located on the tip of the East African rift valley, around 110 kilometers from Massawa. This is the area where a 1.4 million-year-old Human Cranium of the Homo erectus family that was later identified as remains of a young lady was excavated. From archaeological studies, by local experts from the National Museum of Eritrea and foreign researchers, the skull of the early human remain was unique from the other findings of other corners of the world because it still possesses the full facial feature of the ‘Buya Woman’, and it is believed to have filled the missing link in those transition era.

Buya is also an example of uniquely preserved relics of one up to two million years old stone tools, a large number of fossilized bones of extinct animals, and others. The achulian stone tools are abundant once you lay foot on the Dandero valley of Buya and the very place where the human cranium was found is still preserved, but the actual finding was moved to the National Museum of Eritrea.

The inhabitants of Buya received the visiting group with a warm welcome, and most interesting of all, the banners they were holding signified how well-informed they are in regards to the archaeological importance of their district and reflect how attached they are with the finding of the human cranium and how important it is for Buya to be an area where the very first humans originated.

Crossing the village of Buya, we made our way to the South-Eastern part of the region to finish the first day of the expedition in the sub-zone of Gel’alo. Before going to the destination, however, another archaeological site and of very high significance had to be visited; Abdur, a coastal site that may be the first place where man discovered the possibilities of marine resources.

This site is located on the eastern edge of the Gulf of Zula. The 125,000 years old stone tools discovered within the uplifted marine terraces along this coastline of Eritrea at the Abdur archaeological site show the earliest well-dated evidence of human occupation of the coastal marine environment.

The smooth road that mostly runs side by side with the clear coastal water and sand made the expedition extraordinary. To make matters even more trilling a family of ostriches with around fifty newly born marched crossing the road to the sea as if they were deliberately performing a march to welcome the group.

The second day was yet another very long day but of course full of adventures. As if chronologically sorted, day one started from the early pre-history of man up to where the first sea daring humans originated. The tour, as well as the history of the area, continues from there onwards.

Adulis, is a place of high archaeological importance and an ancient port city, which may be one of the oldest civilizations of the world. Located 56 kilometers from Massawa, archaeological findings in the ancient port city of Adulis show that it existed around 2000 BC and became a major port around 240 BC. The ancient port city reached its apex of prosperity and influence from 100-700 AD. Adulis was a famous port harboring many ships at one time and facilitated the transportation of raw materials from the African hinterland to the Arabian land, India and China, and vice versa.

Another harbor, just a few kilometers from the town of Gelalo is Marsa Fatuma. Standing remains of contemporary history from the Italian colonial era make this harbor worth visiting. Historical references date the rise of Marsa Fatuma as one of the main harbors of the Italian colonizers from the early 20th century.

The expedition continued to explore more and enjoy the beautiful scenery along the way. Sunrise in the region is by itself something many people would only see on postcards and to make the tour even more adventurous, the hotel we were staying in was located only a few meters from the sea. By the sides of the road around Erafaile, remains of centuries-old walls stand still narrating the history of the people of the area and their bravery to protect their land from warlords who continuously raided the area to find a Seagate.

After driving in the dusty roads around the Burea peninsula towards the tip to visit a village called Engel, the clear seashore and shimmering crystal clear coastal sands welcome you from afar. By then, it is impossible to feel any exhaustion from the long hours of drive. Most interesting of all, the cultural diversity of the ethnic groups that inhabit the area and their genuine welcoming nature, accompanied by their unique drum beats and their dancing styles, and of course the fresh seafood they provide is indeed another significant factor that makes one stay as long as possible. By far, unpolluted sea and unpolluted people would define this specific section.

The people in the region value the presence of guests and as such accorded the visiting crew with a warm welcome wherever we went. Not only was that the food they served which reflected the rich fish resource of the Red Sea in all the places we visited, was exquisite. We couldn’t stop admiring the people wherever we went; it was like a cooking competition amongst the inhabitants. Every meal served included a variety of fish and cuisine.

Zula is another historical place in the region just a couple of kilometers from the ancient port city of Adulis. Like the other parts of the region, a herd of ostriches on both sides of the road accompanied us until they reached the outskirts of the town located on the Red Sea coast. Upon arrival, the inhabitants of the area received us with face-melting drumbeats of the predominant settlers of the Town; the Tigre, Saho, and Rashaida ethnic groups. To our surprise, each ethnic group has its own style of beats but the sound of all didn’t interfere. On the other hand, they made a perfect harmony that pleased the ears of the entire group.

After almost two hours of lunch rest and breathtaking sea breeze, we made our way for yet another adventure in the port city of Massawa, the region’s capital. But before that, I forgot to mention the natural hot springs on the way to Erafaile. Many people consider it a place where nature heals nerve problems. All you need is a blanket to wrap yourself with and sit over those holes scattered abundantly all the way and receive natural steam from beneath.

After almost two and half hours, we reached the port city of Massawa, an old and modern city. The city as a whole is a blend of Arabic architecture that mostly is related to the Turks and Egyptians as well as some monumental Italian touches. The Architectural splendor of the city by itself needs an entire story to tell, but the main purpose of the visit then was to see what could be the oldest mosque in Africa.

It is called the Sahaba, which means the followers of Mohammed. It was built at around 615 A.D when the first fleeing companions of Mohammed reached on this side of the Red Sea. It is said that the mosque could have been constructed after the followers of Mohammed seek sanctuary in a land across the Red Sea, which according to various historical evidence could be Massawa. As a matter of fact, various other evidence that could underpin this evidence is abundant in various parts of the region.

Towards the east of Massawa, somewhere around five kilometers by the sea, there is an Island called Sheik Seid, which is commonly known as the Green Island. Sheik Seid is a name, which signifies the existence of an ancient mosque on the small Island, while the Green Island could be related to the green view the island provides from afar due to the range of mangrove trees.

According to marine resource experts, the island is a haven for various marine species that includes a place of hatching for sea turtles. Furthermore, the location of the island controls the natural flyway of various bird species from Europe to Africa and the other way round.

Apart from the historical and architectural wonders, Massawa is endowed with, the port city is also a land of bravery and a gateway for the total liberation of Eritrea. Many battles were fought there and miracles were made by the valiant liberation fighters, but the story of resilience in Massawa and Nakfa, the stronghold of the Eritrean Liberation Struggle, will be covered in our next edition.

Just a couple of kilometers from the area is an Island called Delleme. We had to use small local boats to cross the sea. The Island was used by the Italians to control the channel that goes from the Northern part of the Red Sea to the south. Ruins of the walls that were used by the Italians and heavy artilleries are still there on the Island.

From the other end of the Island, the beautiful sound of the sea wave smashing against the cliffs immediately caught everyone’s attention as if it was deliberately calling us to enjoy the beauty and power of nature. The mangrove trees surrounding most of the Islands around the area also provide them a magnificent scenic beauty and cooler breeze.

There is nothing to leave in the area except footprints, because it would ruin the site, and of course nothing to take except photos. It is like driving on pages of history engraved by nature itself. The tour in the Northern Red Sea region doesn’t end here, there is more to tell and more to enjoy.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

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Eritrea: An Emerging Cycling Giant

When 21-year-old professional cyclist Biniam Ghirmay beat world athletes in the under-23 men’s road race in Belgium to become the first black African to win a medal in the world championship, Eritreans were flooded with pride. The pride has been extensively written and talked about in the media, on the streets, and in tearooms. Throughout history sport and national identity have been inseparably linked. A national team or an individual athlete in international arenas represents an entire nation and gives pride to members of their nation.

On Saturday, 9 October, President Issaias Afwerki received the victorious national cycling team in Adi Halo and on behalf of the Government donated 15 million Nakfa for the development of the sport. At the welcoming ceremony, President Issaias congratulated the team and described their victory as “a pride to the people and nation.” The colorful welcoming celebration was a clear sign of excitement and pride felt by Eritreans. Upon arrival at Asmara International Airport, the national team was accorded a warm welcome by sports officials and athletes, and it was greeted and applauded by thousands of people lining the main streets of Asmara as the national team’s motorcade passed by.

Eritrea, a young developing country, has been making major strides in cycling. It has produced world-class athletes who have won world championships and wore King of the Mountain jersey in the Tour de France. It has been able to showcase its potential in sport. The recent outstanding victory has received the attention of commentators and news outlets. In his article titled ‘Biniam Girmay: World’s silver is for Eritrea and for Africa,’ Patrick Fletcher wrote that “Biniam Girmay hailed a landmark moment for Eritrea and all of Africa after winning the silver medal in the U23 men’s road race at the UCI Road World Championships.” Biniam Ghirmay is the first black African to podium at the cycling world championships. In another article titled ‘Biniam Girmay: A black African rider will win a Grand Tour stage soon,’ Alessandro Poggi wrote that “The 21-year-old sprinted to silver in the under-23 men’s road race at the world’s championship in Belgium to become the first black African to win a medal in the competition and cement Eritrea’s reputation as Africa’s leading cycling nation.”

Alessandro Poggi’s opinion that Eritrea is maintaining its reputation as Africa’s leading cycling nation is a good observation. Through the victory in the world championship, Eritrea has also been able to showcase its overall national stature. Tesfaldet Mebrahtu, a sports journalist of Hadas Ertra, also wrote an illuminating article titled ‘Biniam will return to Asmara on Saturday with his silver medal’ in the Tigrinya newspaper. He wrote “only nine countries, including Eritrea, have received the Gold and Silver medals. Generally, there have been 33 medals (gold, silver, and copper) that have been won by 14 countries: Eritrea from Africa, the USA from North America, Australia from Oceania and eleven countries from Europe.” Many Eritreans living in Europe traveled to Belgium to give their support to the Eritrean Cycling team. Biniam acknowledged the contribution of the Eritrean fans by saying “Listening to the encouraging voices of Eritreans and seeing them waving our national flag is a big deal.”

Sport has been described as a valuable means and an alternative medium to showcase a country’s national identity. In this sense, the national team of Eritrea symbolizes the whole country and through their excellence, the athletes demonstrate the nation’s pride. The national team, in general, and Biniam, in particular, have made history for Eritreans and Africans as a whole. In the post-race press conference, Biniam said, “This means a lot for me, for my nation and for Africa…I am really happy. I am really proud of my nation, so I say congrats to all Eritreans and also to all Africans.”

Sport is at par with public diplomacy. Public diplomacy seeks to promote the national interest of a country by informing and influencing foreign audiences. In Eritrea, where public diplomacy has an equal weight with formal or traditional diplomacy, many activities that seek to advance the interests of Eritrea are undertaken by individual Eritreans and organizations. Sport can serve as a means of correcting misconceptions and creating positive perceptions about Eritrea. In this sense, sport is a public good and its development is crucial for the development of the country.

Through sports, Eritrea will have an opportunity to win in the battle for hearts and minds. For this reason, the Government has been taking various initiatives to develop and manage sports better at the national level. Currently, sport is administered under the auspices of the Commission of Culture and Sport. Acknowledging the huge potential of sports to contribute toward peace, diplomacy, and development, Eritrea is participating in various regional, continental and international contests.

Today, there exists a strong acceptance of sports as an important enabler of sustainable development. For example, Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) has emerged as an important sector of international development. This initiative with strong interest and a commitment to continue using sport as a unique tool to support the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) is gaining the attention of planners and decision-makers. Many countries have recognized sports’ growing contribution to the development and tend to integrate sports in the framework of achieving SDGs. They recognize the growing contribution of sport for the realization of development and peace, promotion of tolerance and respect, and the empowerment of young people. In Eritrea, sports can serve as a new engine in advancing various dimensions of development.

Cycling is a popular means of transportation in Eritrea and contributes to sustainable livelihoods, a better environment, improved health, and overall improvement in the quality of life of Eritreans. Cycling is popular and the pathways to the professional ranks are widening from time to time. In Eritrea, cycling is a game, sports activity, and culture. The American cycling coach, Jock Boyer, has once said “Eritrea is the only African country that has such deep roots in cycling. It’s a deep-seated culture. Every young kid in the country has tried cycling to see if they can make it onto a team. They’re highly motivated and dedicated.” Eritrea proved itself as a cycling giant nation. Eritrean riders have reached a peak to become champions at international grand tours.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

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Toff: Portrayal of Perseverance and the Fight against All Odds

Andom Ghebreslasie (Wedi-Khesi) is mostly known for his popular song titled “Embatat Adey”. In his early childhood, he learned a great deal of oral literature from his family members. Playing the “Kirar,” a traditional stringed musical instrument, helped him join a cultural troupe during the struggle for indepen¬dence. He believes that Eritrea’s modern and traditional songs of the 1960s were inspirational for his artis¬tic works. He spends his spare time reading books, which, he says, takes him to another sphere of imagina¬tion. The accumulated experience in writing and producing songs enabled him to think about giving an account of his experience and that of his comrades in the battlefields in a book written in Tigrinya titled ‘Toff,’ roughly translated as ‘Errand.’ The book has recently been translated into English and is expected to be inaugurated on 23 October in Asmara. Mr. Andom has donated 10% of the income from the sales of the Tigrinya version of the book to martyrs’ trust fund, 10% to the Association of War Disabled Veterans, and 5% for initiatives dedicated to the empowerment of the youth.

• Tell us your background as a musician and a writer?

During the struggle for independence, poetry, music, and literature, in general, that were flourishing in the 1980s and the mastery I had in playing the Kirar in 1983 was the motive behind all my work in music. The struggle enabled me to strongly believe that nothing is impossible. The day-to-day activities in the trenches and throughout the battlefields were filled with exceptional happenings. Every moment was a platform for a practical learning experience and a school for my artistic works. I also used to write poems; some were depictions of post-independence Eritrea.

‘Filmawit Selam’ was my first album published in 1995. After the referendum was held in 1993, in the period between 1993 and 1995, the military unit I was a member of helped me in all my musical works. For me, ‘Embatat Adey’ was unique. The song was about trenches and mountains of heroic feats. Names of the mountains mentioned in the song were extracted from the annual calendar published by the EPLF. The year 1998 was a turning point in my career as a musician. I released my second album, ‘Jentra’ and ‘Genet Eye Fqri’ (love is heaven) was my third album. I’ve also released around 52 singles in connection with Martyrs’ Day. I was mostly interested in music but I found it very hard to present details of historic facts in songs that each last five minutes. That is why I started writing.

• You were rather inclined toward music. So, what inspired you to write a book?

Our songs have been stolen and our history has been rewritten using false narratives. I read some books in Amharic language that twist the true narrative of our heroic deeds and our perseverance against all odds. Eritrea’s 25th Independence anniversary was a turning point for me as far as my interest in writing is concerned. There was an event I attended in connection with the 25th anniversary and the recommendations forwarded on the occasion were wake-up calls for freedom fighters to write accounts of their experiences using whatever resource they have at hand.

It is sad that a number of freedom fighters have passed away without writing a single account of their experiences. At the very beginning, it was really hard for me to write a book based on the true stories of freedom fighters and to select an appropriate title. I also thought various themes had already been reflected in many literary works and music. Therefore, I decided to write about Toff, an errand to and from different command posts of the EPLF. The errand men and women had to travel, often on foot, days and nights to deliver critical military messages and at times they would fall into the enemy’s trap and at other times might be devoured by wild animals. There were freedom fighters who delivered such decisive messages more than 100 times. Toff for the EPLF was more like DHL. I wrote Toff on my mobile phone after attending a writing course in Norway.

• You wrote ‘Toff’ while you were in Norway. Tell us what the situation was like?

Writing, publishing, and distributing a book abroad is very challenging. You are away from home and you don’t have much time to spare to be able to write and publish. But the strong support of my wife and the encouragement I received from Eritrean communities around the world helped me to write and publish the book. Many people participated in the making of the book. The book was first inaugurated in Eritrea and the ceremony was quite amazing. I was accorded warm support from the Eritrean people. After all, the book belongs to the people and I was right in my decision to donate around 25% of the income from the sales of the book to the people.

• Do you maintain a balance between music and writing books?

There were concerns from my friends and my fans that I may get lost in writing books. But I decided to keep the balance. I still work in music and I also give lyrics to artists.

• Do you think the title ‘Toff’ befits the theme reflected in the book?

The book is based on true stories. Being an errand man or woman during the struggle for independence was considered by the freedom fighters a rare opportunity. The idea in writing the book was to develop the theme through actual stories of errant men and women. The martyrdom of married couples while performing their duties in errands, the fight against nature, and the fight against wildlife and against all odds are reflected in the book. The stories are developed with factual images, factual stories of freedom fighters, and factual political situations. Difficult-to-believe heroic deeds of freedom fighters, particularly that of the errands men and women, are the major contents of the book. The stories of the errands will be represented better in the second volume of the book, ‘Toff 2.’

• Why did you decide to translate the book?

For many Eritreans abroad the expressions, proverbs and some words used in the book are quite difficult to comprehend. So, these Eritreans repeatedly asked me to translate the book into English, which I did in response to their requests. The translated version is likely going to be more accessible to Eritrean communities around the world. It took around two years to complete the translated version of the book.

• You wrote an essay titled ‘Post-independence’ while the country was still under colonization. What did you imagine post-independence Eritrea would be like?

The essay was written in 1988 after the war that liberated Afabet and during the battle for the liberation of Keren. Independence was inevitable in the hearts and minds of all freedom fighters. But we were not sure who would remain alive to see Eritrea’s independence. We were also certain that not all freedom fighters would be soldiers in the post-independence period as most would be in other professions of their interest. This is the idea reflected in the essay, that post-independence Eritrea would provide multiple opportunities for all Eritreans.

• Do you think the vigor and essence of the themes in ‘Toff’ have been very well reflected in the English version ‘Errand?’

The English version of the book was sent to me and I was very surprised to see the accuracy, which is a reflection of the dedication and professionalism of its translators. Despite the challenges they faced in understanding and translating some expressions and proverbs into English, they managed to translate them without affecting the flow and vitality of the core ideas. Writers in the English language who read the translated version are appreciative of the work done. Some diaspora Eritreans actually told me the book is more readable in English than in Tigrinya. Some native speakers of English also said that the book is well written.

• Who translated the book and what were the challenges?

Yosief was a great help for me in both the Tigrinya and English versions of the book. You can hear from him about the translation process.

• Yosief

The translation of the book was teamwork that started later in 2019. The expressions and proverbs the writer uses in the book were very challenging to translate. The outbreak of COVID-19 was also another challenge. But the commitment of Rahwa Dawit, Kisanet Haile, and Aster Mehari in translating the book made it possible to publish it within two years.

• Any other message you would like to convey at last, Mr. Andom?

The book is about Eritrea and its owners are the Eritrean people. The stories presented are the history of the Eritrean people and the noble values portrayed there belong to the people. That is why I decided for the inauguration of the translated version of the book to be held in Eritrea. I would like to use this occasion to call on all freedom fighters to document the miracles of the struggle for Eritrea’s independence before it is too late.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea