Category: Politics

Somalia’s president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud says he would work to reunite soldiers, who had gone missing since completing clandestine training in Eritrea, with their parents, a day after wrapping up a four-day visit to Asmara.

This comes after almost a year of controversy over their possible deployment in secret to the war-torn Ethiopian region of Tigray.

The announcement was made by the new head of state, elected on May 15, during a meeting with relatives of soldiers on Wednesday evening, the day after he returned from an official visit to Eritrea. During this visit, he visited training camps hosting Somali troops.

“I went there (to Eritrea) and as you can see from the pictures, I saw the boys. I am a parent, a father with children and a grandfather, so I know the pain of parents when they don’t hear from their child,” Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud said.

He said his government was working on the safe return of these soldiers but did not give timelines. He also did not mention their possible involvement in the war in Ethiopia.

The issue of Somali soldiers in Eritrea was a topic of controversy and tension during the term of his predecessor, Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, known as Farmajo.

On several occasions in 2021, families of soldiers demonstrated to demand information on the fate of their military sons of whom they had no news.

There were rumours that hundreds of them had died in the Tigray region, where they had been secretly deployed alongside Eritrean forces supporting the Ethiopian federal army in its fight against the Tigrayan rebels since November 2020.

In a June 2021 report, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Eritrea also said that he had “received information indicating that Somali soldiers were transferred from military training camps in Eritrea to the front line in Tigray, where they accompanied Eritrean soldiers”.

The authorities had conceded that soldiers had been sent to Eritrea for training, particularly with a view to fighting the radical al Shabaab group in Somalia, but denied any involvement in the conflict in Tigray.

During the transfer of power between Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud and Farmajo at the end of May, the latter declared for the first time that his government had sent around 5,000 soldiers to Eritrea for training.

He explained that their training had been completed last year but that he had decided to postpone their return to avoid interference in the fragile parliamentary and presidential election process then underway.

Source: Nam News Network

Eritrean delegation led by Mr. Biniam Berhe, Charge d’Affairs at the Eritrean Embassy in Ethiopia and Permanent Representative of Eritrea at the African Union and Economic Commission of Africa, participated in the 41st Session of the African Union Ministerial Executive Council held in Lusaka, Zambia, on 14 and 15 July.

The Session discussed advancing investment in the health sector, the establishment of African diseases control center, putting in place a pharmaceutical plant in Africa, taking notes on domestic and global financial resources, investing in infrastructure, as well as economic stimulation, and ensuring food nutrition.

The Session also elected committees to serve as the three main organs of the African Union.

The Eritrean delegation presented deliberation reflecting Eritrea’s stance on relevant issues of interest to Eritrea.

The Ministerial Executive Council also discussed the declaration issued by the Ministerial Executive Council in its 4th Session and adopted important resolutions.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

MOGADISHU, SOMALIA — Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has met with parents of troops training in Eritrea and promised they will soon return home to fight against the Islamist militant group al-Shabab. Somalia sent thousands of soldiers to train in Eritrea, sparking a series of protests over the last year from parents who were unable to communicate with them. Mohamud met with the troops on a visit to Eritrea this week, where he agreed to improve bilateral relations.

Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud met Wednesday night in Mogadishu with the parents of Somali cadets who have been in secretive military training in Eritrea, in some cases since 2018, without communicating with their families.

Mohamud, who met the troops during a state visit to Eritrea on Sunday, said their sons were doing well and would be deployed in the fight against Islamist militant group al-Shabab when they return home.

He said all the troops were given money to buy SIM cards so they can talk to their parents today or tomorrow.

The Somali president did not give a timeline for when the troops would return, but he pledged to follow up on the trainees’ case shortly after he took office in late May.

Video of Mohamud’s meeting with the parents was distributed by the president’s office.

In the video, parents thanked the president for his efforts to bring the troops back home.

One father, Ilyaas Kulubow, pledged their support for the military and the president.

He says after the civil war in 1991 there were no schools. You are the one who established schools and educated these boys, says Kulubow, we just fathered them. He says we gifted the boys to you to protect you starting from today. Thank you very much, says Kulubow, and we ask Allah (God) to be with you to be able to reconcile among Somalis.

Mohamud’s meeting with the troops in Eritrea this week was the first time many of them were seen since the training first began in 2018.

Somalia’s previous government had dismissed concerns from parents who were unable to reach their children in training and would not provide details.

A U.N. report in June last year said thousands of Somali troops had taken part in the war in Ethiopia’s Tigray region, prompting protests by parents who feared their sons were the ones sent to fight.

Somalia’s government denies any of the Somali troops that trained in Eritrea were involved in Ethiopia’s Tigray conflict. Some media reports and critics dispute that account and allege some have been killed in Ethiopia.

Matt Brydon is a Nairobi-based independent Horn of Africa security analyst.

“There is some indication they were actually deployed initially under the Tripartite alliance established between Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea in 2018 as part of a regional standby force and they might therefore be based in Eritrea for some time. But that force never materialized,” said Matt.

Abdirisak Adan was an adviser to former Somali President Sharif Sheikh Ahmed.

He says many countries train Somali soldiers, including Eritrea. The problem, says Adan, was that the administration of (former President) Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, also known as Farmaajo, kept their information secret and didn’t share it with the parents.

During his visit to Eritrea on Tuesday, President Mohamud and Eritrean President Isais Afwerki agreed to improve relations between their countries, including strengthening defense and security relations.

Source: Voice of America

President of the ECOSOC, H.E. Mr. Collen Kelapile

Excellencies

Ladies and Gentleman

It gives me great pleasure to present Eritrea’s first Voluntary National Review report to the 2022 United Nations High- Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development, under the auspices of the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Spearheaded by the Ministry of Finance and National Development, the VNR preparation process used a whole-of-government approach, which was highly participatory and robust. The process was locally-owned, highly collaborative, and transparent, involving the contributions and participation of range of entities, including ministries, civil society and other organizations, and the UN development system in Eritrea.

Focusing on SDG 3 – health and well-being and SDG13- climate action, and briefly touching upon the status of implementation of the other SDGs, the report presents Eritrea’s unique experiences, including successes, lessons learned, and key takeaways, in implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Eritrea’s achievements on the two SDGs are impressive and offer important insights for other countries operating in resource constrained environments. The report also reflects on challenges on Eritrea’s development trajectory towards attainment of the priorities in its National Charter, and attainment of the SDGs.

In Eritrea, sustainable development, in all of its fundamental elements and principles, remains an integral part of the country’s long-term vision and policy architecture. The national policies and action plans are closely aligned with the SDGs. The National Charter, adopted in 1994, for example laid out the guiding vision and aspirations for the country, summarizing them into a number of basic goals: national harmony; political democracy; social and economic development; social justice; cultural revival; and regional and international cooperation.

Guided by the principle of self-reliance, Eritrea’s development and nation-building processes are grounded on social justice and leaving no one behind. Unwavering emphasis is placed on ensuring that all citizens, regardless of their (religion, language, locations… etc.), can freely and fully participate in, contribute to, and benefit from the progress in national development programs. National policies, legal instruments, and social protection programs establish a foundation for development, while guaranteeing and promoting a range of fundamental rights including addressing the specific needs of vulnerable groups in the population.

Eritrea is one of the few countries that entered the SDGs period having achieved most of the health related MDGs. The country’s experiences and noteworthy achievements during the MDGs era have offered useful lessons and valuable insights, as well as provided a firm platform to build on successes and drive forward, with added momentum, for the SDGs.

With regard to SDG 3, which aims for good health and well-being, the Eritrea’s national health policies and health sector strategic development plans aspire to maximize the health and well-being of all citizens at all ages and seeks to ensure equity and access to essential health services consistent with universal health coverage (UHC) principles. Since the launch of SDGs in 2016, a wide set of interventions have been implemented to expand access and improve health care for all, leading to the achievement of UHC.

Health service continues to be heavily subsidized, with patients required to make only nominal payments (which are wholly waived in cases of financial need). Many essential health services are provided completely free of charge, while all patients with selected chronic diseases and other disorders are provided with free care and prescribed medications. Significant improvement was made in expanding health infrastructure, through construction and renovation of many health facilities, human resource development, and provision of essential medicines and medical equipment.

Accordingly, the following achievements have been made in relation to SDG3:

• Life expectancy at birth has shown significant improvement, rising from 49.6 years in 1990 to 65.1 in 2016 and 67.1 years in 2021.

• Currently, approximately 80 percent and 70 percent of the population lives within a 10 and 5 Kms radius of a health facility, respectively, representing major improvements from just a few decades ago.

• The maternal mortality ratio dropped from 998 per 100,000 live births in 1990 to 228 in 2015, and 184 in 2019 – an overall reduction of 82 percent during the period 1990-2019.

• The proportion of deliveries by skilled health workers has risen to 71 percent from 36 percent in 2010 and only 6 percent in 1990.

• Under-five mortality rate was reduced by 75 percent, from 153 in 1990 to 39 in 2020.

• Tremendous strides have been made with regard to national vaccination. The proportion of the target population covered by all vaccines included in the National Immunization Programme is nearly universal, with more than 95 percent of children fully immunized for their age.

• HIV prevalence and new infection rates have been reduced with current prevalence among the general population of 0.6%.

• The country is transitioning from pre-elimination towards elimination of malaria.

Regarding progress on SDG 13 which advocates about climate action, Eritrea has signed and ratified a number of international climate change agreements and instruments. The Ministry of Land, Water and Environment, working closely with other ministries, offices, CSO, and UN development system, has prepared and submitted a range of climate change- and biodiversity-related reporting documents.

In order to achieve a climate-resilient future, Eritrea is working towards the development of renewable energy and efficiency improvement in all sectors, particularly in energy production, transmission, distribution, and consumption, as well as in transport, manufacturing, and household energy consumption. A number of projects are also in place to conserve, restore, and enhance natural areas, including regular nationwide afforestation campaigns involving the participation of communities, students, and youth groups, as well as water and soil conservation programs. Moreover, the climate change adaptation and mitigation measures include, expansion of irrigation schemes, and construction of terraces, dams, and ponds. Households and communities, especially those in at-risk areas, receive support with adaptation strategies and technologies, helping to reduce vulnerability, strengthen resiliency, and secure livelihood

Eritrea is vulnerable to a number of natural hazards, such as recurrent droughts, flooding and storms, high winds (especially with coastal areas), locust swarms, and volcanic activity. National responses to and management of hazards and disasters involve a comprehensive approach. The Ministry of Land, Water, and Environment, along with different levels of government and administration, and various other partners work collaboratively to mobilize resources, coordinate activities, and assist communities to recover.

Regarding progress on other SDGs, there has been laudable improvement in provision of quality education; advancing gender equality through empowerment of women and girls developing infrastructure, expanding the national roads network, raising agricultural production and productivity, and ensuring food and nutrition security, while access to electricity, water, sanitation, and hygiene, among other critical services, have been expanded, with notable expansions in rural areas.

In the area of partnership and cooperation, Eritrea has established cooperative frameworks and cultivated close partnerships with a range of bilateral and multilateral partners, regional and international organizations, and other entities. Meaningful engagement and effective cooperation are built, with concerted efforts being based on complementarity and guided by the country’s locally-defined priorities and specific needs.

In an effort of containing the spread of COVID-19 and mitigating its impact on socio-economic development as well as implementation of SDGs, the government of Eritrea took sustained strong and aggressive actions. This was supported by frequent and clear communications from authorities, high levels of public buy-in and solidarity, and past experience and success in controlling endemic and communicable diseases. Accordingly, Eritrea has maintained among the lowest death and infection rates in Africa, with a high recovery rate and minimal community transmission. The total number of confirmed cases to date is 9,827, with 9,700 recoveries and 103 total deaths.

While much overall progress has been made, the VNR process has identified areas of the needs improvement to enhance further progress towards the implementation of the SDGs in the remaining period of the agenda. The process has highlighted the need of strengthening the national statistical system and enhancing the provision of timely, quality, complete, and disaggregated data to properly monitor and report on the progress of SDGs. Moreover, there is a need to expend resources, foster cooperation, and cultivate partnerships to support a sustainable recovery from COVID-19, fully realize developmental aspirations, improve the well-being of the population, and ensure the implementation of the 2030 Agenda.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of the Federal Republic of Somalia and his delegation returned back home today, 12 July, concluding a four-day fruitful official visit to Eritrea.

President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was on a four-day official visit to Eritrea at the invitation of President Isaias Afwerki.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

At the invitation of H. E Isaias Afwerki, President of the State of Eritrea, H. E Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia, paid an official state visit to Eritrea from July 9-12, 2022.

The visit underscored the historic fraternal ties and mutual solidarity between the peoples of Eritrea and Somalia.

During his stay, and accompanied by President Isaias, President Hassan Sheikh toured development projects in the Southern and Red Sea Regions of Eritrea with a particular focus on water security and management, agriculture, dairy production, green energy, and infrastructural development.

A highlight of President Hassan Sheikh’s stay was his visit to the members of the National Army of Somalia who has been undertaking military training in Eritrea. In his address to the trainees, he congratulated them on their training, apprised them of Somalia’s huge potential and key priorities and expressed his confidence that they will make a significant contribution to the peace, security, and development of their nation.

President Isaias and his brother President Hassan Sheikh held extensive, cordial discussions focusing on the situation of their countries, bilateral relations as well as regional matters. Based on their convergent views, the two leaders agreed to bolster political, diplomatic, security, economic, social, and cultural cooperation between Eritrea and Somalia.

President Isaias and President Hassan Sheikh further agreed that Eritrea and Somalia would work in concert to foster peace, stability, cooperation, and regional economic integration in the Horn of Africa.

At the conclusion of the visit, the two leaders signed a Memorandum of Understanding between Eritrea and Somalia.

On behalf of the people and Government of Eritrea, President Isaias expressed deep gratitude to his brother President Hassan Sheikh for his timely and important visit. President Hassan thanked the people and Government of Eritrea and his brother President Isaias for their warm fraternal welcome and brotherly hospitality.

Source: Ministry of Information Eritrea

Visiting Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki on Tuesday signed a seven-point Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to boost bilateral ties.

In a press statement, Eritrea’s Ministry of Information said the MoU includes agreements in the fields of economic cooperation, scientific and technological collaboration, as well as defense and security cooperation.

The Ministry of Information also disclosed the two countries have agreed to promote relations between their two peoples, including through their diaspora communities, strengthen bilateral political and diplomatic cooperation as well as jointly endeavor to advance economic integration in the Horn of Africa.

Mohamud, who has been on an official state visit to the Red Sea nation since Saturday, has visited Somali troops being trained in Eritrea. The Somali president has also visited various development projects being implemented in the Southern and Red Sea regions of Eritrea.

Source: Dehai Eritrea Online