Year: 2022

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A Final Farewell to South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu

CAPE TOWN — The state funeral for Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu has taken place in Cape Town, South Africa, with only 100 mourners allowed inside St. George’s Cathedral because of COVID-19 rules. The anti-apartheid hero and human rights activist who died December 26 at the age of 90 had been suffering with prostate cancer.

Desmond Tutu, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1984 for his campaign against apartheid, said he wanted the cheapest coffin. And he requsted that money intended for flowers should instead be donated to good causes.

The South African Broadcasting Corporation, airing his funeral Saturday in Cape Town, showed his widow, Leah Tutu, sitting in a wheelchair, listening to the tributes to her famous husband.

There was a televised message from the archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, who said it was like a mouse giving a tribute to an elephant. He said most messages he’s been receiving from people around the world say that when they were in the dark, Desmond Tutu brought light.

“He never ceased to speak prophetically, he never ceased to speak powerfully, he never ceased to shed light. Many Nobel prize winners’ light fades in time, his grew brighter,” he said.

South Africa’s president, Cyril Ramaphosa, gave the eulogy. He said among those Tutu spoke up for were the Palestinians and members of the LGBTQ-plus community.

“One of the causes that was dear to him and less well known to many of us was campaigning together with Her Royal Highness Mable from Organje, who is here with us today, against child marriage across the globe. I have learned how the arch traveled to villages in Ethiopia, in India and Zambia to understand the circumstances under which young girls were being forced into marriage. Such was his stamina. Such was his commitment,” he said.

Ramaphosa credited Tutu with being South Africa’s spiritual father. He said the cleric, along with the country’s first democratically elected president, Nelson Mandela, preached hope and forgiveness.

Tutu chaired the Truth and Reconciliation Commission that sought to heal the victims and perpetrators of apartheid’s atrocities.

He coined the term “Rainbow Nation,” referring to people of all colors who lived in South Africa, and of the beauty that could come after the storm.

In recent years, Tutu was critical of South Africa’s ruling party because of rampant crime and corruption in the country.

Ramaphosa alluded to this, “There are times when he felt let down, and yet, he never lost hope. The most fitting tribute we can pay to him, whoever and wherever we are, is to take up the cause of social justice for which he tirelessly campaigned throughout his life. Archbishop Tutu has left a formidable legacy, and we are enormously diminished by his passing.”

Tutu’s daughter, the Reverend Naomi Tutu, also addressed mourners.

“Many of the messages we’ve received have said, ‘thank you for sharing him with the world.’

“Well, it actually is a two-way street because we shared him with the world. You shared part of the love you held for him, with us. And so, we are thankful, and we are thankful that all of you have gathered in your many places. In person or via the wonders of technology, to be a part of celebrating daddy’s life throughout this week.

“And lastly, to him, who has gathered us here, uDaddy, uTata (Xhosa language for daddy). We say thank you, Daddy, for the many ways you showed us love, for the many times you challenged us. For the many times you comforted us,” she said.

Archbishop Tutu is being cremated in a private ceremony and his ashes will be interred in St. George’s Anglican Cathedral.

He is survived by his wife of 66 years, their four children, and nine grandchildren.

Source: Voice of America

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Some in Diaspora Respond to Call for Ethiopian Homecoming

Thousands living in the Ethiopian diaspora have begun arriving in the Horn of Africa country, responding to the government’s call for a “great Ethiopian homecoming.”

Korso Koji looks forward to joining them soon.

“I have friends who have been abroad for a long time and who believe in the unity of Ethiopia. We will go together,” said Korso, 36, who has a trucking business in Columbus, Ohio, and came from the Oromia region’s town of Shashamane.

Ethiopian leaders hope to draw 1 million diaspora members like Korso to their homeland for celebrations of Orthodox Christmas on January 7 and through the January 19 Feast of the Epiphany and Timkat festivals that commemorate the baptism of Jesus.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, who issued the #GreatEthiopianHomeComing challenge in November, greeted diaspora visitors Tuesday with a Twitter post in Amharic reading “Welcome, my brothers and sisters, who have returned home in response to the invitation to show your citizenship!”

Abiy’s #GreatEthiopianHomeComing challenge came as a rebuke to countries such as the United States, France, Germany and Turkey, which last month urged their respective citizens to leave Ethiopia as yearlong fighting between federal troops and forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front threatened to reach the capital, Addis Ababa. On November 5, the U.S. State Department ordered nonemergency U.S. government employees and their families to leave “due to armed conflict, civil unrest and possible supply shortages.”

Fighting paused after Ethiopian forces reclaimed some ground, and the TPLF announced December 20 that it would pull back its forces to Tigray from the neighboring Amhara and Afar regions, leaving room for negotiations, diplomats and analysts have said.

In a statement shared Wednesday by state-owned Ethiopian news media, Abiy encouraged the visitors to check out tourist sites and development work — and to “witness the atrocities committed by the terrorist TPLF against our people.” (In mid-December, the U.N. Human Rights Council voted to set up an international commission to investigate alleged violations by all parties in the Tigray conflict.)

Billene Seyoum, spokeswoman for the prime minister, also welcomed diaspora travelers via Twitter this week, saying, “When the world said to run from home, your heart knew the truth! Home is indeed where the heart is.”

Earlier this month, she said the homecoming initiative would “demonstrate that Ethiopia prevails” and would “send a message of unity to the international community.”

If Tesfahun Kahsay has any message to send, it’s to oppose the Ethiopian government’s appeal. A Tigray native, the 50-year-old moved to the United States 25 years ago and lives in a Maryland suburb of Washington.

“While the international community is begging for food and medicine” to be delivered to people in Tigray, “my government is not permitting it, he said, complaining about what rights groups have described as a humanitarian blockade. “So, how do I be part of this campaign while my people are sentenced to death?”

Organizing a group

Abiy Gebrehiwot, who lives in Washington and chairs the nonprofit California-based Council for Ethiopian Diaspora Action, told VOA the council last year brought roughly 500 members to Ethiopia to celebrate the holidays and tour the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, a new hydroelectric power plant on the Nile River. He said for the homecoming, he intends to bring “as large a diaspora community … as possible and engage them in every aspect of the country.”

The council chairman said one goal was to boost Ethiopia’s economy, battered by COVID-19 and the Tigray conflict. It had been the region’s fastest-growing economy, expanding by an annual average of 9.4% for nine years ending in 2019-2020, according to the World Bank. The poor country, with 112 million people and a per capita income of $850, had ambitions to climb to lower-middle-income status by 2025. The Ethiopian diaspora has sent nearly $9 billion in remittances over the past three years, the foreign affairs state minister said this month.

Another goal for the homecoming initiative is “to show the world the country is safe and peaceful” — and to make it an annual event, Abiy Gebrehiwot said.

Alebachew Desalegn, a London-based member of the Ethiopian Diaspora Task Force, said diaspora members would be encouraged to help rebuild war-torn infrastructure during their stays.

“We focus on development, rebuilding the destroyed houses, and helping the homeless,” he told VOA.

‘Honoring’ the call

State-owned Ethiopian Airlines has offered discounts of up to 30% on its fares for homecoming travelers.

The price drop enticed Korso, who paid $1,200 for a ticket and will leave for Ethiopia on January 10. He plans to bring extra suitcases packed with medicine, protective masks and clothing — paid “at my own expense,” he said, to aid Ethiopians.

The group Doctors for Ethiopia has encouraged diaspora travelers to bring medical supplies.

Korso said he and his friends “want to honor” the prime minister’s call “because I believe the pressure being exerted by Americans and Europeans on Ethiopia is not right.”

Tesfahun, in rejecting the homecoming appeal, also referenced reports of Tigrayans allegedly being targeted for arrest and detention. If he went to Ethiopia, he said, “I might not have the same fate as others because of my [U.S.] citizenship. But those are my people from Tigray who got fired from their jobs and live in detention facilities.”

On Wednesday, Demeke Mekonnen, deputy prime minister and foreign affairs minister, presided over a welcoming ceremony at Wodajinet Park in the capital, Addis Ababa. According to the state-owned Ethiopian News Agency, he called on diaspora members to support the federal government’s reconstruction efforts.

Source: Voice of America

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US Takes Ethiopia, Mali, Guinea Off Africa Duty-free Trade Program

WASHINGTON — The United States on Saturday cut Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea from access to a duty-free trade program, following through on President Joe Biden’s threat to do so over accusations of human rights violations and recent coups.

“The United States today terminated Ethiopia, Mali and Guinea from the AGOA trade preference program due to actions taken by each of their governments in violation of the AGOA Statute,” the U.S. Trade Representative’s office said in a statement.

Biden said in November that Ethiopia would be cut off from the duty-free trading regime provided under the U.S. African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) because of alleged human rights violations in the Tigray region, while Mali and Guinea were targeted because of recent coups.

The suspension of benefits threatens Ethiopia’s textile industry, which supplies global fashion brands, and the country’s nascent hopes of becoming a light manufacturing hub. It also piles more pressure on an economy reeling from the conflict, the coronavirus pandemic, and high inflation.

“The Biden-Harris administration is deeply concerned by the unconstitutional change in governments in both Guinea and Mali, and by the gross violations of internationally recognized human rights being perpetrated by the government of Ethiopia and other parties amid the widening conflict in northern Ethiopia,” the trade office statement said.

The AGOA trade legislation provides sub-Saharan African nations with duty-free access to the United States if they meet certain eligibility requirements, such as eliminating barriers to U.S. trade and investment and making progress toward political pluralism.

“Each country has clear benchmarks for a pathway toward reinstatement and the administration will work with their governments to achieve that objective,” it added.

The Washington embassies of the three African countries did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Ethiopia’s Trade Ministry said in November it was “extremely disappointed” by Washington’s announcement, saying the move would reverse economic gains and unfairly impact and harm women and children.

Source: Voice of America

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UN Food Agency Halts Work in North Darfur, Affects 2 Million

CAIRO — The World Food Program has suspended its operations across Sudan’s province of North Darfur following recent attacks on its warehouses, a decision expected to affect about 2 million local people.

A statement released by the U.N. food agency Thursday said all three of its warehouses in the area were attacked and looted. More than 5,000 tons of food apparently were stolen, the group said.

Earlier in the week, the WFP said an unidentified armed group had attacked one of its warehouses in North Darfur’s provincial capital of el-Fasher. In response, local authorities imposed a curfew across the province.

However, the attacks continued until early Thursday, said the statement. Hundreds of looters have also dismantled warehouse structures, WFP added.

“This theft has robbed nearly 2 million people of the food and nutrition support they so desperately need,” said WFP Executive Director David Beasley. “Not only is this a tremendous setback to our operations across the country, but it endangers our staff and jeopardizes our ability to meet the needs of the most vulnerable families.”

The agency said it cannot divert assistance from other parts of the East African country to the looted warehouses without compromising the needs of vulnerable Sudanese living outside the province.

Sudan is one of the poorest counties in the world, with nearly 11 million people in need of food security and livelihood assistance in 2022, said the WFP.

The agency urged Sudanese authorities to recover the looted stocks and guarantee the security and safety of the WFP operations in North Darfur.

On Thursday, the country’s state-run news agency reported that a number of suspects were arrested in el-Fasher after they were seen riding trucks and animal-drawn carts loaded with food stocks that were allegedly stolen from the WFP warehouses. SUNA news agency did not say how many were arrested.

The WFP decision comes amid political upheaval that followed the October military coup.

On Friday, a doctor’s group said that five people were killed in anti-coup protests that erupted a day earlier in several provinces across the country. Security forces fired tear gas and live ammunition to disperse thousands of protesters, the group said. With Thursday’s fatalities, the total death toll since the coup has risen to 53.

Meanwhile, the Sudanese police acknowledged in a statement issued Friday that four protesters were killed and more than 290 were wounded in the protests. The statement posted on SUNA made no mention of police using tear gas or live ammunition. The police added that more than 40 policemen were wounded in clashes with protesters.

Source: Voice of America

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Water Resources Development in the Southwest Gash-Barka Part II and Final

There was a perception that building dams in the eastern and western lowlands of Eritrea is hardly possible. The big concern was that large streams of water from highlands would inundate the embankments while sediments would shorten the dams’ life. What is more, many argued that building dams in an arid region would not be effective as a large amount of water would evaporate due to the hot climate.

But emphasizing the strategic importance of building dams in the eastern and western lowlands of Eritrea, Eng. Dawit Berhane, Projects Hydrologist at Segen Construction Company, said, “Every drop of water matters to the normal livelihood of Eritreans residing in the eastern and western lowlands of the country. For them, a drop of water is the very means of their survival in such an arid zone.”

Eritrea’s vision of ensuring food security is realized through the development of large scale agricultural undertakings, and the western lowland has been chosen for this purpose because it is endowed with large and fertile agricultural plains. After the scoping and planning of water development projects in Gash-Barka were made suitable sites for the construction of the dams were selected.

As the capital invested in building dams needs to correspond with the envisaged output, the economic development of water resources was the main point considered before and during the construction of the dams. In this regard, Eng. Michael said: “Cautious ground works were undertaken to ensure longer life of the dams while suitable sites were identified to minimize the operational expenses as much as possible.”

According to Eng. Tesfazghi Michael, projects and infrastructure manager at Segen Construction Company, Fanko-Tsumu’e was constructed in three years, 2003 to 2006, at a total cost of 333,853,000 Nakfa, Gerset dam was built in four years, 2005 to 2009, at a total cost of 590,475,000 Nakfa and Fanko-Rawi was constructed in three years, 2008 to 2011, at a total cost of 255,426,000 Nakfa.

Eng. Tesfazghi believes earth-fill dams are more suitable than concrete and masonry dams in areas that have large catchment areas. Since earth-fill dams are constructed using soil, the cost of construction is a lot lower. It is unavoidable that earth-fill dams are prone to loss of water due to leakage from fractures and that sedimentation decreases the storage capacity of the dams. Eng. Michael Ghebrehiwet, head of Design and Infrastructural Works at Segen Construction Company, said rivers have been diverted to absorb as much silt as possible before the water streams get impounded in the reservoir and check dams, terraces and drainage structures have been constructed to prevent large volumes of silt from entering the dam.

After the paper work for the construction of the dams was completed, the ground work proved to be more challenging. At times, Eng. Michael said, workers were obliged to work from ten to sixteen hours and more in the construction of the dams. The Regional administration, local communities and members of the Defense Forces participated particularly in the stone riprap works at the top section of the dams. Managers, engineers and other experts in dam construction had to stay day and night at the work site to make sure that risks are avoided or minimized to the lowest possible level.

Sharing his views regarding the challenges encountered and the experiences gained from prior construction engagements, Eng. Tesfazghi underscored that it was an exclusive opportunity that boosts the company’s confidence in implementing much bigger tasks. Such an opportunity was a turning point which enabled the company to move forward.

All development undertakings in Eritrea are done by the people and for the people, and the active participation of local communities has been crucial in completing the setout programs with efficiency and within the planned time frame. For this reason, Eng. Michael expresses his appreciation to the residents of Teseney, Haykota and Goluj sub-zones for their commitment throughout the construction period of the dams.

Segen Construction Company had gained experience in building smaller dams in the highlands before it moved to the lowland to build bigger dams. For the last 15 years, starting from the time it moved to Gherset, it has been making efforts to balance the challenges with opportunities. Eng. Dawit said the company has been adhering to the principle of “minimizing challenges and maximizing any available opportunity.” For instance, the human resource capacity has been growing steadily as increased exposure to challenging tasks have been creating opportunities for honing and transferring skills of those engaged in the construction of the dams.

To overcome natural challenges such as floods during rainy seasons the company had to make temporary diversion canals. At times, Eng. Tesfazghi said, structures built to support the dam unexpectedly get inundated with abundant water streams, further extending the original volume of work.

The experiences gained by Segen Construction Company have been instrumental in moving Eritrea as a county forward, from making earth-fill dams to making concrete dams. Emphasizing its implication for Eritrea as a future regional player in construction, Eng. Dawit said, “The human resource capacity built during the construction of the dams played a crucial role in the construction of mining projects and roads, making the company more competitive at regional level,”

Mr. Getachew Merhatsion, Director of Eritrean Mapping and Information Center, said that Fanko- Rawi, which was constructed as a supplement to Fanko-Tsumu’e, has a storage capacity of 20 million cubic meter of water. At present, 2000 to 3000 hectares of land is under cultivation using water from Fanko-Rawi while water from Fanko-Tsume, which can hold up to 14 million cubic meter of water, is being used for the cultivation of vegetables.

The construction of the dams has changed the eco-system from arid zone to green land. People no longer have to travel long distance in search of water for human and animal consumption. To optimize the utilization of the water in the dams, the engineers who were involved in the construction of the dams recommend that the leveling of farmlands needs to be done in parallel with the construction of dams to have three cultivation seasons in a year.

The expertise gained in the construction of earth-fill dams was a stepping stone for the construction of major concrete and rock-fill dams in the Gash-Barka region and in the highlands such as Kerkebet, Mslam and Logo dams and other dams under construction. “The experiences we gained and the challenges we faced have been quite helpful for better accomplishment and judicious utilization of resources, with more economic irrigation technology now in demand,” Eng. Dawit said.

In his final remarks about the actions that need to be taken to ensure the sustainability of the dams, Eng. Tesfazghi said that constant inspection should be made to determine the status of the dams and to ensure that the dams are operating in a safe manner, and regular inspection of spillways needs to be done to ensure a dam is not blocked by logs or trees growing near its embankment. He emphasized that the highest plant growth that should be allowed on a dam’s embankment should not be more than pasture grass to serve as protection against erosion.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

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“We are Going to Get Past this Pandemic Together!” Professor Aman

Aman Russom is a professor working as the head of a division of Nano Biotechnology at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. He was born in Eritrea and been an available resource for his country in fields related to his expertise. He believes if all of us integrate our resources, the pandemic will go away with minimum loss. As part of their research, Professor Aman and his colleagues work on a variety of diagnostic means for Sub-Saharan Africa. He has come to visit and see with his own eyes the wellbeing of his home country in the middle of the pandemic.

• Thank you Professor Aman, please introduce yourself to our audience.

I am head of the Division of Nano Biotechnology at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. This means that I am basically a full time researcher in the Institute. Among what we have developed, there is a testing DVD that has proven to be efficient to Covid-19 mass testing especially for low income countries. The research that I and my division do is generally about bioengineering; we try to combine nanotechnology with something we call microphysics with biomedicine and biotechnology. Therefore, Nano Biotechnology is specifically my field of expertise. And when you go deeper, we are more of engineers looking for biological applications. This means when the clinical question comes from biology, then the solution comes from technology. So, we combine those two and that makes it a quite interdisciplinary research. There are about 20 people in my team and we are part of a bigger department. KTH is much more similar to EIT (Eritrean Institute of Technology) in Maynefi but the research that we do is comparative with what people do in Orotta Medical School, Eritrea.

• Draw us a picture of how you got to become the Professor you are today?

I was born in Eritrea. I left Eritrea with my family when I was seven and half years old. We lived in Sudan for two and half years and left for Sweden when I was ten years old. So my entire education was in Sweden. I did my Masters in Chemical Engineering and my PHD in Microsystem Technology and Micro Fluids. Then I went to Boston and joined Harvard for three years for my post-doctoral degree. Then I decided to go back to Sweden, start my own research group as an assistant professor. Ever since, I have been in academia. Basically, I am one of those institutionalized researchers; never left academia.

• Please tell us about your achievements?

I think the best is yet to come but I would say I have been very interested in what I do. I am a researcher essentially. Always looking for problems to solve; create one and solve it if there is none. I have been dedicated in my work; I am motivated and I work hard. I am also passionate about giving to the society. I try to engage with the Eritrean diaspora community in Sweden. I try to contribute to different association. It is my pleasure to help in any way I can. When it comes to Eritrea, I would like to give more than I do anywhere else. To me Eritrea is home, it is where I was born. Although I live in Sweden, here is where I feel home. A lot of people like me identify themselves as such. And it is not surprising that we feel that way.

• How often do you come to Eritrea?

Not as often as I want to. I was her before the pandemic in 2019 and this is actually my first international flight since the pandemic. This makes it a one and half year gap and my hope is to come here more often; at least once a year; depending on my work load.

• What was this visit about?

It is more of a combination of work and vacation. I wanted to check myself because this is my first international flight since 2019. We do a lot of Covid-19 tests in my lab; so we are experts in diagnostics and in the testing. With such experience I felt it was important for me to come in here and check on how things are going in my country and discuss with colleagues in Eritrea. So I would say it’s a more work related trip than vacation.

• How do you see Eritrea fighting the pandemic?

That’s a good question. First let me tell you that I am quite impressed with the way the government and the people are handling the pandemic because it is normally a consuming fight. Seeing people wearing masks everywhere, washing utensils in every enterprise and the style of the greetings signifies the commitment. It is quite impressive because I saw how difficult it is for people to maintain the discipline abroad. I looked at the testing strategy and on how things are generally, it is a state of the art operation. We have PCR (Polymerase Chain Reaction) facility that really gives you the results accurately and rapid antigen testing has penetrated effectively so I think nationally and globally Eritrea is doing quite well. Compared to the rest of the world, Africa has not been hit as strongly and nobody really knows why. So, this is a very open research for many of us and it is a puzzle, a blessed puzzle I would say. Because the healthcare system and infrastructure in the sub-Saharan Africa doesn’t match with that of the West. However, the Western countries were quickly crippled by the pandemic. And that experience has probably helped Africa to be better prepared. It helped us to be alert about it, know what is coming our way and mobilize our resources. That is also what I see in Eritrea; everybody is washing their hands and maintaining social distancing. It is mandatory to have a mitigation plan; otherwise you cannot make it. That is what we learned in the West. Social distancing is the best way of mitigating the spread of the virus and to curb the transmission is everybody’s responsibility. It seems like everyone is taking it seriously around here. People of all ages, be it children or adults are very cooperative with the guidelines. I have been seeing school children fully armed with masks and sanitizers. So, it is important that we maintain the state and keep on working on the pandemic.

• Besides, the National Health Laboratory (NHL), where else have you visited in Eritrea?

The key objective was to visit the NHL because that is much more connected to my work than anything else. I have been here for only six days, so it was my primary goal and I needed to focus on what I needed to do. And then I tried to interact with the NHL and many professors in the educational sector as well because we are also looking into collaborating not only on research but education as well. But most importantly, I met with the members of the Board of Higher Education and discussed those things. I think my trip was more beneficial for me than anyone else. And I take with me the homework of working together in the future. It helped me to get clear picture of where we are going with the task.

• How was your interaction with the staffs at the NHL?

I have to say I was super excited and very interested. May be it is because this is in the middle of a pandemic but I saw the spirit; extremely high level of knowledge. It is almost shameful for me because now I know I need to do a lot of home work in order to be more resourceful to the lab.

• How was their feedback?

Of course, it’s important that they knew the level of experience and knowledge that I have acquired from my work at KTH. This isn’t the first time I have been here. Moreover, I believe it was also a good experience for them to have somebody that spoke the same language. So, it was a very good and positive interaction. We checked on the different methods of testing and discussed the pros and cons and many other things. It was like meeting new colleagues; I hope they also appreciate our time because I had the chance to do this. When you are in diaspora, you watch the situation on TV but it is not the same. So, being able to discuss with the professionals face to face and have the opportunity to visit was a privilege to me. And I intend to pay back by contributing as we go forward.

• What can we expect from this visit?

We can expect to find a way to do more. It is not only Covid-19; there are many other infectious diseases. So, I think the fact that we have full speed operational state of the art equipment due to Covid-19; gives us the luxury of asking what else we can do with it. As a researcher, it is important not to be satisfied with what we have but look forward for more. The way I see it, I think, the situation in Eritrea is under control and I am proud of what I saw.

• What do you suggest could be done better in Eritrea?

I suggest that we look at what the trends are and keep pace. We were hit with another wave in Europe that just started a month and half ago and we expect more of it. Despite high vaccination rates, we are now going back to restrictions to contain it. This proves that vaccination alone does not do all the work; mitigation plans on breaking the transmissions are very important. If there is one infected person, how to isolate them and stop the spread is another challenge. Of course it’s not an easy task. Furthermore, as we go forward, we have to look at the strategies and always be ready to adapt depending on how the virus is behaving. Sometime along the line, it is very likely that Africa in general and Eritrea as part of it, come across the same problem. That is why it is crucial to be aware of the pandemic updates from all over the world and plan accordingly. The trends that dominate in Europe are not necessarily the same as in any country. That is why we need to have our own surveillance system on how things are developing in Eritrea, then in neighboring countries all the way to the rest of the world. That is going to help us remain prepared ahead of the hardest hit populations. But from a public health perspective, keeping up with the social distancing, wearing masks, washing hands and the overall hygiene are the best measures we can take to tackle upsurges.

• What will we be expecting from this visit?

I think from my point of view, it’s more like being a resource when needed and a colleague in terms of brainstorming about trends that might be important to Eritrea. For instance, when new things are happening in Europe, I will be immediately reporting to say “this is what we are seeing, are you finding the same thing?” I will mostly be the colleague and be there for them both on the technical side and on the trends and prediction of the inclination of the pandemic.

But on the same note, a message to the Eritreans in diaspora is that don’t sit there and wait. You have to come and interact. Because Eritrea is busy dealing with the pandemic, they are very focused and working on things according to priorities. We need to identify where we can put an input that supports their efforts. So, we need to come here, ask the right questions, and ask if you can help with it. “I am identifying areas I excel at and say hey, I think I can help here, what do you think?” that makes things easy for everyone. We have our people in the laboratory working relentlessly really hard. We have essential workers in the lab working on weekends and weekdays none-stop. I say Salute to them. So, if you get a chance like mine, come in here and let them know they are not fighting this alone; I believe it is important to them.

• Any final remarks?

Thank you for the great opportunity I got to interact with my colleagues in Eritrea, I appreciate it. I would also like to underline the resilience around here. We are learning a lot with time and I want to say that we are in this together. The public cooperation, clinical interventions and the testing strategies are going to be helpful for a great leap forward. Eritrea is on the right track. Salute to my people, greetings to Eritreans in diaspora that are still thinking about Eritrea and its well-being. And we look forward to the world past the pandemic; assured that we are going to get past this together.

• Thank you for your time.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea