According to the United Nation Food and Agriculture organization (FAO), on average, once in every three years there is a locust infestation outbreak in Ethiopia. The outbreak stems back to the mid-1940s and 1950s, when desert locusts began infesting Ethiopia. Back then there were no effective defense mechanisms and this led to hardships and famine. Over the years there have been big improvements in the understanding of the atmospheric movement of the swarm. There have been efforts to bring the problem under control through using traditional methods as well as modern methods such as; using aircraft ultra-low volume spraying with new insecticides and different new tactics with effective means of control.
Even though these entire means have been introduced and aerial operations have continued against the swarm as from the end of 2019 till 2020, the rapid incursion of the desert locust across many countries of the East Africa region still poses significant damage to livelihoods and food insecurity of the region as the second wave continues to hit.
As experts suggest the current outbreak can be linked to anthropogenic climate change and the increased frequency of extreme weather events. The desert locust are considered the most destructive migratory pest in the world and a single swarm covering one square kilometers can contain up to 150 million locusts. On average, one desert locust could lay 80-120 eggs with in eight to twelve days, if the soil is wet enough to allow the egg to absorb sufficient moisture to complete its development.
A very small part of an average swarm accounts to a tonne of locusts. Each locust can consume two grams of vegetation a day and when this statistics is translated to an average swarm the damage is nothing short of catastrophic. In
Ethiopia being amongst the largest countries in the region, it has experienced a huge draw back to its agricultural sector as a result of the infestations. This has in turn rendered suffering to small holder farmers because of significant losses in croplands. The rainy season has also served as a double edged sword. On a positive side it provides a source of water for crops and cattle but on the flip side it presents a favorable condition for locusts to breed in the country. According to FAO, the current wave of the locust swarm in Ethiopia is the most severe in over 25 year period.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture, currently locust infestation has occurred in five regions and one city administration. The breakdown is as follows; for the city administration, the affected city is Dire Dewa, the regions affected include: Oromia, Tigray, Amhara, Somali and Afar. A further breakdown into the districts are; 20 in Amhara region, 30 in Afar, 24 in Oromia , 24 in Tigray, 10 in Somalia, 4 in Dire Dewa, which tallies to 112 affected districts.
As of July 2020, the swarm have plagued on 890,000 hectares of land according to the data from the Ministry. Abera Lema, Communications Director at the Ministry of Agriculture clarified that the Ministry has been doing its navigation across 3.5 million hectares of land across the five regions and Dire Dawa city. From the identified 890,000 hectares, he claimed that 830,000 hectares have been disinfected with chemicals to control the spread.
For the past 10 days the infestation has become adverse in the regional states and the federal government has been taking stringent measures. According to Abera, the Ministry is working round the clock to get the condition under control. This is being achieved through the use of pesticides including bio-pesticides by air chemical spraying through 3 chemical –spraying planes, two helicopter navigators and 120 vehicles operating from the four air bases of Kombolcha, Dire Dewa, Semera and Somali.
The current local plague has exacerbated the local economy and political limitations have facilitated the locust spread which has further put pressure on the livelihoods of communities. Though the country does not have a chemical spreading plane or drones the government has taken the initiative of taking three planes and two navigators on lease from other organizations. The government is still processing to bring other planes.
It is crystal clear that swift coordination in response will aid in the efforts of the outbreak. However, from the regional bureau of the Amhara, the affected hectares are 446,232 hectares of which only 184,499 hectare have been controlled. 123,000 hectares have been controlled by traditional means and the remainder by chemical means.
According to Tesfahun Admase, deputy head of the regional agriculture office in Amhara, clarified that 45,000 hectares of cropland have been heavily damaged with the main crops affected being teff and sorghum. According to FAO, since January 2020, the swarm of desert locust has damaged over 200,000 hectares of crop land and also recent assessments indicate that between December 2019 and March 2020 the locust damaged stood at 114,000, hectare crop land of sorghum, maize and wheat.
The politics between the federal government and the Tigray regional state has also contributed towards a worse situation of the infestation in Tigray Region. Michael Mirutse, communications director at the Tigray region rural development and agriculture bureau, expressed that the region is doing its best to combat the locust menace despite not receiving cooperation from the federal government. When Capital inquired if the region was using drone or planes to combat the menace, he argued by saying, “currently, we not using planes or drones. Quite the contrary, the beloved people of Tigray and Eritreans had purchased an Industrial Drone from Israel 5 months back but it has since been held by the federal government because of political issues.”
Despite the setback, Michael states that out of the 32,000 hectares infested by the locusts, 31,000 hectares is under control. He also added that the prevailing winds from Amhara and Afar region may threaten the spread. He really emphasized that the Ministry of Agriculture should gather the regions to a wholesome perspective regardless of politics because the swarm of locusts are not a respecter of boundaries.
Abera, in response to this also accused the regional agricultural bureau and expertise for not giving the needed information so that the government may offer the needed response. “The swarms movements are quick and regional bureaus are responsible in giving the information on its movements. This will help in giving controlling equipment such as air chemical spraying planes,” Abera stated. However, the Tigray Regional Bureau is not willing to give this information, he claimed.
FAO has suggested to the government to strengthen its surveillance data response team which is crucial in combating this menace. The government, inter regional and international governments are also providing support the forms of pesticides, bio-pesticides equipment and trainings. 
The desert locust control organization for East Africa is one the organizations that is responsible for such kinds of outbreaks but the organization seems to be neglected and under resourced by members.
The regional and intergovernmental organizations also fear that the swarm would lead to a considerable drop in agriculture produce worsening the food security and malnutrition in the country. According to the United Nations office for the coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, currently there are more than 19.2 million people in need of humanitarian assistant though the government has only targeted 15.1 million of them.
To cope with this, Abera mentioned that the government on short term response seeks to support the vulnerable by offering direct assistance to affected communities. In the long term response the government is planning to increase farming through irrigation to counter the vial loss of crops.
So far there are no efforts taken by the government to support the affected community, however according to the National Disaster and Risk Management Commission there is a task force established to support the situation which is awaiting the call of the Ministry of Agriculture.
FAO and IGAD expect desert locust infestations to continue threatening crop production and pasture regeneration significantly in most affected areas of Ethiopia and Somalia until at least March 2021.
The locust menace
The progress of demonetization
The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) which has been through a flurry of activities following the demonetization in mid-September has disclosed that it will continue to supply the new currency to banks so as to keep up with the demand.
On Friday, 16th of October, NBE disclosed that starting from October 17, money presented to banks which is over 100,000 birr will be confiscated.
NBE, on Tuesday October 13, stated that it has already distributed over 90.4 billion birr of which the current number has subsequently risen to 96 billion birr on Friday. This new currency within a span of four weeks is already nearing the currency in circulation (CIC) in the market prior to the demonetization.
According to NBE’s quarterly bulletin of the last budget year that evaluates the overall economic condition of the country, it indicated that CIC in the market is over 139 billion birr.
Information secured from NBE at the press conference early this week shows that currently the fresh money deposited at banks has reached over 31 billion birr. Similarly, the old currency that has been collected stood at 74.9 billion birr of which the collected amounts at banks amounted to 57.5 billion birr.
One of the targets for the currency change was to collect the currencies that are circulating outside of banks. At the press conference Abebe Senbete, Currency Management Directorate Director, said that the central bank will continue to supply the currency as per the demand.
“We cannot limit supply because it is driven by demand. Therefore, we shall continue to provide to fill the demand. If not, the market will be at stake,” he added. 
“We think that the issue is at its early stages. It is based on the request of the public. We cannot prevent it since it follows the framework and directives,” he explained.
“So far we are focusing on providing the new currency but we expect in the near future that it would be stabilized,” Abebe said.
The central bank has also said that the new currency is bought by illegal actors and that the public should inform the government. “We have been informed that for instance the new 100 birr note is being sold with 120 birr of the old currency,” Solomon Desta, Vice Governor of NBE, said.
Currently, 6,561 branches have been covered in the new currency change process except one branch in the western part of Ethiopia.
About 273,933 new accounts have been created at banks in almost a month’s time since the currency change commenced.
The central bank has disclosed that those who have more than 100,000 birr to 1.5 million birr should demonetize their money within a month time. That period came to a close on Friday October 16. Yinager Dessie, Governor of NBE on Friday announced that the government will confiscate the old note on hand for those submitting more than 100,000 birr.
Report recommends formation of Mega cities, commence national service
The Blue Ribbon Panel (BRP) report that assesses the ten societal grand challenges that Ethiopia should understand and improve on in the coming decades has recommended the formation of Megapolis (Mega cities) and the commencement of the national service.
The document which was compiled through professional study was presented at the Ethiopian 2050 Conference on December 2019. The document focused on ten pillars that the country should pay close attention to in order to improve and prepare the country in relation to population growth and global situations. The document was presented before government and policy makers for their consideration.
The high profile experts who were gathered at the conference at the time also contributed in their expertise in the economic, social and other relevant areas.
The compiled document which will be presented through a webinar session on the 31st of October with a participation of close to 500 people from Ethiopia and abroad indicated that by 2050, Ethiopia’s population is projected to double from 100 million to 200 million people.
“This powerful demographic transition will also be accompanied by several other transformative natural forces. These forces include pressure from ongoing societal, economical, geo-political, and environmental changes and disruptions,” it stated.
It added that the next set of potential conflicts in our region could be driven by the competition for valuable resources such as water and arable land that will be further exacerbated by pressure from population increase and adverse effects of climate change.
“Taken together, the next thirty years will reshape Ethiopia’s identity, character, and its global role, as it navigates both unprecedented challenges and opportunities. Therefore, we must face the full impact of these emerging forces head-on,” the document explained at its inception.
The BRP is consisting of an independent group of Ethiopian and Ethiopian-origin experts with diverse professional backgrounds.
These professionals bring deep expertise across fields such as economics, public health, statistics, education, population dynamics, technology, and urban planning. Together, they have formulated a transformative vision to proactively aid Ethiopia on its journey towards a better future.
The BRP rests upon a collective vision that is part of the broader Ethiopia 2050 Initiative and focuses on the actions that policymakers can take, with broad support of the public. Their insights were generated after extensive and careful vetting of the transformative new ideas presented at an international conference held for two days from December 19, 2019 with over 450 participants from ten countries.
Rapid urbanization, water-food-health-energy issues, job creation, institutional and civic development, gender equality are the major areas that are included in the document with related topics.
It recommended proactive strategies to manage growth in the rural areas and aid the urbanization process in the cities. It discloses that the establishment of megapolis will create city clusters vital for organized development.
Mega City Model capitalizes on agglomeration economies and de-concentrates growth away from Addis Ababa but requires building a system of cities to fully leverage urbanization for economic transformation and radiate growth to the wider rural areas and regions.
“Mega-Cities are economic engines that governments, consumers, and businesses can share benefits through effective megalopolis integration,” it explained by showing the beginning of formation of one such described as the ‘mini-megapolis’ between the cities of Addis Ababa, Dukem, Bishoftu, Mojo, and Adama is already being realized , that is the Addis-Bishofu-Adama cluster.
“With the recent introduction of the Addis-Adama expressway, further evidence is emerging that an increasing number of people are commuting daily between these cities and, in the process, expediting the process towards an inevitable emergence of a new mini-megapolis around the Addis-Bishofu-Adama cluster,” it said.
According to the document, the newly planned USD 5 billion international airport near Bishoftu with 120 million passenger/ year capacity, together with the development of supporting infrastructure has significant potential to further speedup this megapolis formation. This potential megapolis will almost certainly become a ‘mega-capital’ with a major part of the country’s economic activity, particularly manufacturing and service, concentrated within this parts.
Additional urban-clusters around the country such as Gondar-Debarq-Debre Tabor cluster, Bahir Dar-Wereta cluster, Dessie- Kombolcha cluster, and Hawassa-Yirga Alem-Shashemene cluster are stated as potentials.
It states that on the formation of mega cities, farmer-friendly policies, strategies, and programs should focus on; encouraging the continued existence of these farmers and their lands across the corridors through zoning laws and thoughtful planning of roads and other infrastructure, offering fair ownership and sharing of wealth generated where the land is converted to urban areas or infrastructure, and involving the concerned communities in the planning process.
On the process the paper also recommended the development of effective institutional arrangements and governance systems to manage emerging mega-cities.
The document has also added the ratification of ‘national food, water, health and energy security charters.’
It said that the guarantee of food, water, health, and energy security in Ethiopia should be based on the recognition of these basic human rights, with a goal of achieving universal access in these areas for all rural and urban households. 
Regarding water security the document recommends to; establish watershed management policy master-plans, immediate remedial rehabilitation measures, and community-based watershed management. Similarly health and energy securities have got priorities in the document.
It added that the establishment of “Digital Literacy Charter” will serve as the corner stone of digital policy. The digital literacy charter ensures social participation and this document also highlights basic digital skills such as using computers and accessing digital information as a national necessity.
Rural development, building world-class workforce trainings that will enable the country to create a competitive society, massive transport infrastructure to harmonize the demanded growth, empowering the construction industry, advanced manufacturing industry, sustainability and environment security are stated as a challenges that will be tackled in a holistic manner.
The document added that institution building was identified as a critical and key component, for all the recommendations for the grand challenges to be successful having a long-lasting impact.
The document also recommends the establishment of the ‘Good Governance Charter as well as the Introduction of the ‘Voluntary National Service.’
It explained that data from countries that have a strong culture of national services like Singapore, Korea, and Israel clearly show that national services contribute significantly towards nation building and innovation.
“We propose a similar initiative in Ethiopia with some unique characteristics that factor in the current conditions of the country. The ‘National Service’ will be voluntary and will be available to the young between the ages of 18-25, after secondary school or after completion of a tertiary education,” the document added.
According to the recommendation it will have the components that the service will last for a period of 18 months, and the public and government bodies that volunteers can join different services.
The mandate of the Blue Ribbon Panel was to write a comprehensive consensus report that outlines credible, relevant, and pragmatic ideas and practical strategies to address the 10 Grand Challenges and Opportunities identified by the Ethiopia 2050 Initiative. These ideas and strategies have been presented to some government bodies. They will also be disseminated widely to Ethiopians both in Ethiopia and aboard.
The Ethiopia 2050 Conference held on December 2019 was co-hosted by the Joint Ethiopian Engineering Professionals’ Association, Ethiopian Science Academy, Ethiopian Economic Association and Unity University at the Skylight Ethiopian Hotel.
MIDROC, Alkhorayef industries strike deal
MIDROC Ethiopia investment group has signed a Memorandum of Understanding /MoU/ with Saudi based Alkhorayef Industries to rehabilitate its farms with a central pivot irrigation technology.
CEO of MIDROC investment group, Jemal Ahmed stated that the agreement is vital in increasing productivity as well as reducing costs.
“It will enable us to produce three times a year by making us independent from rain,” he stated. 
One center pivot irrigation can water up to 80 hectares of land and the technology will spread over the 13,000 hectares of land farms, he explained. The four farms set to benefit from this include; Ayehu farm, BirSheleko farms Netly and Shalo farms which are located across different regions of Ethiopia.
Khaled A.Shalabi, Alkhorayef Industries’ Vice President of Africa, said that for the next five years they are keen on working in areas such as; land preparation, feasibility study, design, and capacity building by training the staffs of MIDROC on the system application.
Alongside fruits and vegetables the company is engaged in coffee, tea, cut flower, oil seeds, cotton honey and spices farms.
