Building Confidence for Full Realization Pretoria Peace Deal

February 5, 2023

BY ADDISALEM MULAT

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed met for the first time with members of the Pretoria peace agreement implementation coordination committee. As a matter of fact, in the course of the discussion, an evaluation on the subject of the ongoing implementation of the peace agreement has been carried out.

Prime Minister Abiy has met with members of the federal government and TPLF peace talks committee.

The prime minister held this face-to-face discussion at the Halala Kela cluster section of the Koysha dine project in Dawuro Zone of southern Ethiopia.

The Premier has convened a discussion with members of the peace agreement implementation coordination committee for the first time.

During the discussion, the ongoing implementation of the peace agreement was evaluated and directions have also been put forwarded on issues requiring further attention.

Both parties expressed confidence and trust in implementing the peace accord while vowing to do their level best to work on certain issues.

The meeting is said to cultivate trust between the parties to peace deal. Previously the Ethiopian government and Tigray People’s Liberation Front met in South Africa and Kenya. The strings of discussions served as trust building mechanism paving the way for the full implementation of the peace pact. On Friday’s meeting the peace committee also reaffirmed commitment to fast delivery of humanitarian assistance to Tigray state. So far, humanitarian aid is entering Tigray via all modes of transportations.

Subsequent to the end of the war that lasted for two years in the northern part of the country and the signing of the peace accord between the two parties, the delivery of humanitarian assistance and restoration of social infrastructure has been producing results more than ever before with flying colors.

It is widely acknowledged that in the wake of the uncompromising stance of the government to expedite the provision of humanitarian assistance and other urgently needed things, the whole lot has been making progress in the right direction.

In the course of the war that lasted for two years, some groups were making the most of the delivery of humanitarian assistance provided by the government and relief agencies for various purposes apart from playing a part in tarnishing the positive images of the country.

By the same token, in times gone by notwithstanding the fact that quite a lot of endeavors have been made in many situations by some groups to distract the delivery of humanitarian assistance by thwarting humanitarian corridors, they failed to accomplish their hidden intentions on account of the unwavering stance of the incumbent.

It is important to remember that the federal government had avowed a humanitarian truce that drew recommendations from the wider international community. In the current state of affairs, the move of the federal government to beat swords into plowshares and return the conflict-affected areas into normalcy has been greatly appreciated by the global community.

The sad thing is that even though the much-needed humanitarian assistance has been entering the Tigray State via road and air, some entities have been engaged in a smear campaign against the federal government giving a lower profile to the positive developments. In the wake of the federal government’s firm stance to make peace happen relief agencies on several occasions have been providing humanitarian aid to the people of Tigray.

No matter what the challenges may be, strings of convoys carrying humanitarian assistance have been entering Tigray State. In defiance of some impediments, the Ethiopian government has vowed to assist the progress of the delivery of humanitarian assistance to the northern part of the country.

No matter how far Ethiopia’s adversaries travel to tarnish the actual accomplishments blossoming across the country, all their endeavors have been going for a burton and kissing the ground. It is an indisputable fact that since the start of the cessation of the hostilities agreement, noncombatants in the war-ravaged areas have been breathing a sigh of relief.

It is common knowledge that after the signing of the cessation of the hostilities agreement, a significant amount of encouraging acts have been taken by both parties. Other than that their readiness for realizing the peace accord has been paving the way for restoring peace and tranquility in every corner of the northern part of the country.

Despite the fact that there have been speedy developments on the subject of the delivery of humanitarian assistance and resumption of basic services in all quarters of the Tigray State, some groups have not distanced themselves from spreading lies and tarnishing the positive moves of the government. But the truth is that in the aftermath of the positive developments surfacing in every corner of the northern part of the country, the federal government has been receiving a pat on the back from a wide spectrum of bodies.

Aside from causing to happen the sought-after goal, the peace agreement has been assisting the path of ensuring lasting peace and attaining major milestones in taking the country.

Even though doomsayers pulled out all the stops to hoodwink the wider international community with their usual bogus stories concerning the positive moves, the federal government has sustained making the impossible possible and the unthinkable thinkable.

In addition to this, regardless of the fact that troublemakers do a hatchet job on the cessation of hostilities agreement, the incumbent has sustained accelerating the peace implementation in addition to making noteworthy developments.

Recently, the National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC) announced that 71 percent of the second round humanitarian aid has been distributed to people affected by the conflict in northern Ethiopia.

NDRMC Public Relations Director Debebe Zewde told local media that 5,202,297 people in Tigray State, 2,440,677 people in Amhara and 715,132 people in Afar have been recently receiving a humanitarian support that includes food and nonfood items, medical supplies, medicines, therapeutic foods and others.

As to the director, over 1,113,961 liters of fuel has been delivered to the areas and 29 international and local partners and government organizations have participated to support the needy using trucks and air transports.

The director also said that 1.6 billion Birr has been sent to Mekelle and Shire towns.

It is to be recalled that over 8.35 million citizens in the conflict- affected areas have received full-fledged first round humanitarian support following the peace agreement signed between the government of Ethiopia and TPLF.

The National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC), along with various donor groups, has continued delivering humanitarian aid to the war-ridden parts of the country.

In its latest Twitter post, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs-Ethiopia (UN OCHA-Ethiopia) announced that the government of Ethiopia and humanitarian partners continues to deliver food and non-food assistance to conflict-affected people through the air and all available corridors.

While quoting NDRMC, the UN OCHA Ethiopia indicated that the government of Ethiopia and Humanitarian Partners assisted IDPs and War-affected communities in Amhara, Tigray, Afar states through the air and land corridors.

“Looking at the latest food distribution round, the three food partners namely, EDRMC, WFP and the NGO Consortium-JEOP have assisted more than 415,000 people in Afar under round 5 including more than 138,000 people last week. In Amhara, more than 972,000 people received food aid under round 5 including 149,000 last week.”

More than 532,000 people in Tigray have also received food assistance under the third round including more than 2,300 people last week. The number of beneficiaries in Amhara and Afar states has been collected as of January 27; and Tigray’s report as of 18 January.

The UN OCH said, however, that limited areas across the three war-affected states remain hard to reach. “Humanitarian partners continue to flexibly re-prioritize the most urgent needs with available resources in the face of conflict-induced displacement.”

It is to be recalled that NDRMC Commissioner Shiferaw Teklemariam (PhD) recently held talks with the UN Secretary-General Special Advisor Robert Andrew Piper and FAO representative to Ethiopia, Farayi Zimudzi on the subject of aid assistance to IDPs

The Ethiopian Herald   5 February 2023