Government, Int’l humanitarian organizations hold first high-level consultative meeting on Tigray
Addis Ababa, June 3, 2021 (FBC) – The Ethiopian government, International Aid Organizations, the UN Agencies and members of the diplomatic community in Addis Ababa have held the first consultative meeting on ongoing humanitarian and rebuilding activities in Tigray region.
The consultative meeting co-organized by Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Peace has been held in attendance of high ranking government officials, representatives of international humanitarian organizations and UN Agencies including the UN Resident Coordinator and UN Humanitarian Coordinator, Ethiopia, Catherine Sozi.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Ethiopia, Demeke Mekonnen and the Peace Minister Muferihat Kamil, CEO of the Interim Administration of Tigray, Dr. Abrham Belay and other high level officials briefed the participants on the ongoing humanitarian activities underway in the region by the government, aid organizations and partners.
In his opening remarks, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister, Demeke Mekonnen said the platform is critical and timely in terms of creating shared understanding what is really going on in Tigray regarding the humanitarian and rehabilitation efforts.
Saying that the humanitarian situation in Tigray is an outstanding issue, Demeke said the government, interim administration of Tigray, a number actors including international organizations, implementing partners have been underrating a wide range of activities to address the need in the region.
Concerted efforts of the government and partners are needed to fully address the situation in the region, said Demeke reiterating commitment of the government to jointly work with the international community based on guiding principles to do so.
Disinformation, Misinformation and fake news continue to pose hindrances in the ongoing efforts, the Deputy Prime Minster said calling organizations and partners to shun baseless allegations regarding the situation in Tigray.
The Peace Minister, Muferihat Kamil, to her part, stated on the occasion that 4.5 Million people in need have been accessed through 1st emergency support while 2nd and 3rd round delivery enabled to reach 4.9 million people in need in the region.
Muferiat said during the first round humanitarian aid drive 70pct of the need was covered by the government while remaining 30pct was accommodated by international organizations and partners. International organizations shared 86pct of the need in 2nd and 3rd aid operations while government contributed 14pct, she said.
Many health, education and other institutions have been restored and made ready for basic social services and agricultural inputs including fertilizers, seeds and other technologies are being delivered to the region, Muferihat added.
70pct of the land in the region is being cultivated for the upcoming harvest season, she said.
Representatives of international organizations raised concerns regarding civil-military coordination structure, poor communication infrastructure in some places and closure of Humera and Shire Airports.
Government representatives said announced setting up of Emergency Coordination Committees at all levels and preparations to restore the two airports. Interest of partners to bring in communication equipment are not allowed due to several reasons, said authorities while addressing issues raised by the participants. Only some pocket areas are restricted for humanitarian access due to security concerns while the commitment of government to unfettered access to the region is still maintained, according to the officials.
Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen reiterated that the government of Ethiopia is courageous and ready to work with full agility and responsibility to fully restore normalcy in Tigray region.