Grammy Award-winning Nigerian Afropop singer, songwriter, actress and activist, Yemi Alade, joins African superstars supporting the Draw The Line Against Malaria campaign to inspire and empower young people from across the African continent and the globe to call on their leaders at zeromalaria.org and push for political action to end malaria within a generation.
The ground-breaking campaign, first launched across Africa in February 2021, is a unifying global platform designed to capture youth, community and public imagination, and will be rolled out globally on World Malaria Day. The campaign aims to generate mass awareness and high visibility for the Zero Malaria Starts with Me movement across malaria-affected countries and beyond, and reflects the huge energy, talent, and cultural influence emanating from the African continent with references to art, fashion, music, sport, and entertainment.
As the voice of a new Draw The Line animation, Yemi Alade joins other African changemakers from across the continent lending their talents to fight the disease: Eliud Kipchoge, Olympic Gold-medallist and marathon world record-holder; Siya Kolisi, Captain of the Springboks; Dr Omotola J Ekeinde, Nigerian actress and philanthropist; Sherrie Silver, award-winning Rwandan British choreographer; Osas Ighodaro, Nigerian American actress and producer; Saray Khumalo, South African explorer; and Láolú Senbanjo, global artist from Nigeria and Art Director for the campaign.
With narration from Yemi Alade and in partnership with dentsu International, the Draw The Line animation explores the story behind ‘Muundo’ – a fresh new universal visual language created by Láolú Senbanjo, made up of eye-catching lines, symbols, and patterns. The language is a beautiful, visual representation of the actions that are needed to end malaria within a generation, from cutting-edge technology and innovations to increased investment and bold political actions.
Nigerian Afropop singer, songwriter, actress and activist Yemi Alade says: “Living in Nigeria I have suffered from malaria many times in my life, and it’s devastating. It’s outrageous that this preventable and treatable disease is still stealing young futures and limiting life choices indiscriminately. But we can work together to find our voices, break down boundaries, and stop malaria in its tracks. I love to see people pushing themselves to find out what they are really capable of – getting up and fighting for what’s right is our collective superpower, and we can all change course of history together.”
The animation shows the different ways that malaria impacts young people, as well at the ways that it can be reduced and ultimately eliminated. As part of their partnership to support the Draw The Line Against Malaria campaign, ViacomCBS Networks Africa (VCNA) will broadcast the animation on Nickelodeon’s global platforms. It will also be shown on other regional television channels and digital networks.
To bring the animation to life, dentsu worked with award-winning animation studio LOBO. The team animated Láolú Sebanjo’s patchworks and applied them as textures into 3D models. To blend together multiple styles, the studio created a layer of upbeat animation with their talented team of 2D artists. In contrast to the fast-paced graphics, the camera moves with a slower rhythm, addressing the seriousness of the subject matter. The result is a fresh mix of different techniques and rhythms all packed by the beautiful energy of Yemi Alade’s voice.
Kika Douglas, Executive Creative Director at dentsuAchtung! says: “Malaria is the world’s oldest and deadliest disease but we can eradicate it within our generation. What has been missing to date is a campaign that can inspire and unite a generation. Draw The Line is not only a call to action to this generation to claim their future; it’s a stage that shows the world the incredible array of talent, power and creativity of African youth.”
Yemi Alade joins African Changemakers behind the ‘Draw The Line’ against Malaria campaign
Need for inclusive development financing by the Development Bank of Ethiopia
By Kamil A. Oumer
Development Bank of Ethiopia (DBE) is the only development bank for the 100 million and plus people in Ethiopia. For the last one century, the bank has been operating development financing through different monikers. After it was re-established as the Development Bank of Ethiopia in 2003, it has been empowered to provide development finance at the lowest possible rate while ensuring its sustainability. Hence, by mobilizing fund from domestic and foreign sources, it has been providing loans, lease financing, export guarantee, etc worth of billions of Ethiopian birr. The bank particularly focuses on government priority areas like commercial agriculture, strengthening small and medium enterprises (SME), agro-processing and manufacturing. The bank, however, has no interest free financial services to date. The author of this opinion piece argues that the DBE should open interest-free finance (IFF) window services for inclusive development financing.
Inclusive growth has been taken as the first of the “African aspirations” for the Agenda 2063. Agenda 2063 stipulated that the Africa we want aspires “a prosperous Africa based on inclusive growth and sustainable development.” Five of the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (goals 4, 8, 9, 11, and 16) also expressly call for inclusivity. The remaining goals also implicitly address the inclusivity agenda. Therefore, inclusive development by itself is a development objective. Development in the 21st century, however, is unthinkable out of inclusive financing schemes.
The World Bank Group’s Global Financial Development Report (2019) indicates that only 34.8% of adults above 15 years have accounts in formal financial institutions in Ethiopia. Thus, more than 66% of the adult population is unbanked. A number of research works show that inaccessibility of IFF service is one of the Predicaments for financial inclusion in the country. The National Bank of Ethiopia also acknowledged that interest free finance helps promote financial inclusion in the country. The first interest free banking directive, Directives Number SBB/51/2011, reiterated that “there has been increasingly strong public demand for interest free banking” in the country. The Ethiopian National Financial Inclusion Strategy (2014-20) also averred that IFF can promote financial inclusion in Ethiopia (NBE, 2017). Further, the “(1st Replacement) Directive to License and Authorise Interest-Free Banking Business Number SBB/72/2019” underscored that “interest free banking business has to be promoted for greater financial inclusion.”
Taking advantage of the “increasingly strong public demand” and relatively favourable regulatory environment, a number of commercial banks have joined the interest-free finance industry since 2013. So far, six conventional banks have opened “full-fledged IFB branches” while additional four banks are providing window services. Two full-fledged IFBs have also already secured operational license in the current fiscal year. A data from the National Bank of Ethiopia shows that, as of September 30, 2020, over 66.3 billion birr has been mobilised through interest-free fund mobilizations schemes and 13.529 billion birr has been disbursed through IFF financing schemes. Thus, though inchoate, commercial IFF is progressing in Ethiopia. While commercial banks are availing the market for IFF, the only development bank in Ethiopia, DBE, has no IFF service to date.
Development Bank of Ethiopia, as a policy bank, is empowered to finance projects with potential impact on the overall economic development endeavour of the nation. The mission statement of the bank stipulates that it is established to:
Promote the national development agenda through development finance and close technical support to viable projects from the priority areas of the government by mobilizing funds from domestic and foreign sources while ensuring its sustainability.
The DBE finances both private and government projects so long as they are believed to have developmental impact. It Provides capital goods lease financing, finance projects in the agriculture, manufacturing, mining & energy, financial service, and personal needs of its staffs. The bank has been financing a number of projects owned by the public sector and private investors of domestic and foreign origin. It also manges funds like the youth employment creation fund released by the government in 2018, the Rural Financial Intermediation Programme (RUFIP) fund, etc. Further, it has been providing entrepreneurial and technical supports for SME and new start-ups.
To ensure fair distribution of wealth, the bank tried to finance projects in all regional states. Following rumours in the public, it disclosed the regional distribution of its operation for the years 2017 and 2018.
Table. Regional Distribution of DBE Financing (%)
At the end of June 2019, the bank has a total asset of 83.39, paid-up capital of 7.5, loans and advances of 40.24 and customer deposit of 1.11 billion birr. It has 116 branches all over the country. The bank reported 1.87 billion and 1.670 billion birr in los for the years 2018 and 2019. In all its financing endeavours, however, DBE has no IFF schemes.
As the only development finance provider and a state owned bank, development bank of Ethiopia need to re-consider the hitherto operation and work to provide interest-free development financing schemes. Providing IFF services has already been recognized as one factor for promoting financial inclusion in Ethiopia. Failure to provide IFF services, therefore, widens financial exclusion in the country. Specifically in development financing, the failure of the sole development bank which is a state owned policy bank to provide IFF services bedevils the efforts of the country to boost financial inclusion. Introducing interest-free finance also help the bank to mobilize more fund from both domestic and foreign sources. The bank has the mandate to accept time deposit and providing all banking services for its customers. Over the past eight years, as already mentioned, commercial banks managed to mobilize over 66.3 billion birr through IFB schemes from domestic sources. This shows that the bank can mobilize its own share from the interest-free financial industry.
It is also important to note that IFF principles are more consonant with development banking than commercial banking. Adjusting capital lease financing in-to Murabaha financing, for example, requires a little more than a political will. The more than eight years of IFB experience in Ethiopia also makes predicaments in terms of knowhow and human resource less challenging. Therefore, it is high time for the Development Bank of Ethiopia to join the IFB industry.
The writer can be reached via kamillaw2009@gmail.com
Relegation nightmare looming over Sidama, AbaJifar and Adama
Things appeared positive when twice defending premier league champion Gebremedin Hile reached Sidama along with four foreign footballers including Nigerian Okiki Afolabi. But last two defeats at the hands of Fasil Kenema and relegation threatened Dire Dawa Kenema showed the side is still under a heavy cloud of slipping-off from the top tier. Seventeen points from eighteen matches Sidama sits three points above the relegation zone. Gebre, famous for turning water to wine, could still manage something unbelievable. But if so it is at the cost of the two teams close to the relegation zone; Diredawa and Wolkite Kenema.
When your side is in trouble, all hope has been lost and you look destined for relegation, who will you call? In former champions Jimma AbaJifar case it was wondering boy Tsegaye K/Mariam who called to risk the side from relegation nightmare. But things turned out to the worst for Tsegaye as he only managed two wins over Sidama and Adama. Thus the doomsday is closing over the sky of AbaJifar 12th in the table with 12 points from 19 matches.
Halfway into the season’s second round, Adama kenema sits rock bottom of the league table. Once Oromia Football flagship, Adama managed to secure just eight points from 17 matches and look destined for relegation despite the expenditure face lifting spending in the transfer market. Why those foreign footballers couldn’t bring change is the most bizarre question among football fans thus unraveling this riddle is up to Adama’s recently appointed Coach Zeray Mulu.
Cordaid successfully complete their ‘peace now’ pilot project
Cordaid Ethiopia officially closed the Selam Ahun (Peace Now!) pilot project which lasted for more than six months.
The Selam Ahun project addressed the protection of women’s rights and their involvement in conflict resolution and peace building in their respective communities in Addis Ababa and Oromia region.
The project has been implemented in partnership with the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association (EWLA) and HUNDEE Oromo grass roots development initiative, aimed to improve the inclusion of women in decision-making and community conflict resolution to facilitate better mediation of local conflicts as well as improve and increase women’s access to utility of formal justice structures and legal consultations.
The project was a six-month project which was implemented from August 1,2020 to January 31,2020, originally planned for 5 months. An addition one month was added to allow for the establishment of hotline services.
The project closely worked with traditional justice structures to strengthen women’s roles in conflict management and peacebuilding, vulnerable and destitute women and girls were targeted and their needs such as free legal aid or representation and provision of survivors’ funds were addressed.
In the very short life span of the project, ‘Selam Ahun’ has reached a total of 2335 beneficiaries through this project. 9 kebeles in Yabello were targeted to improve the local security and justice situation. Moreover, 250 poor and vulnerable women from Addis Ababa and regions accessed survivors fund for transportation and court fees. Furthermore, a total of 120 women from Kality prison received sanitary materials and covid 19 protection items and also capacity building was provided to 905 adult male and 886 adult women. Trainings for community members, traditional leaders and government representatives on the protection of women rights; on conflict management, and peace building was also successfully engaged.
