The only side to appoint a foreign Coach in the coming premier league new season Saint George handed Salhadin Said a two-year contract extension. A striker from Ivory Coast has also joined Saint George to pair with lone wolf front man Salhadin.
Hardly to serve Saint George in full capacity for nursing a long-time ligament injury since the past two seasons, Salhadin has joined his teammates at the club’s training facility at Bishoftu 45 kilometers from the capital participating at the preseason under the Serb Head Coach.
The former international who played for different foreign clubs in Belgium, Algeria and Egypt wining the league championship with Al-Ahly is still considered the number one striker in Ethiopia had it not been for the frustrating injury. This means The Horse Men are going to have a strong strike force pairing Salhadin with their new accusation from Ivory Coast Zabo Dani. Putting pen to paper for a one-year contract the former Ashanti-Kotoco striker is said to be a deadly goal machine much anticipated to help Saint George back in to title contention after two empty handed seasons in a row.
Two frustrating seasons later the diehard supporters of the record 14 times Ethiopian champions Saint George are anxiously awaiting the start of the new season believing that the good old times are coming back along with the Serbian Coach whose priority is claiming back the title eluding the team for last two years.
“We need to build a strong squad spearhead by deadly strikers in order to compete at equal footing with the defending champions Mekele 70Enderta that boasts a superior attacking duo: last year top scorer Amanuel G/Kidan and Nigerian Okiki Afolabi. Otherwise things are going to get difficult to bring back the title” Mengesha Teferi suggested. “Mekele 70Enderta is the team to beat and it is only Saint George to have every weapon to deny them retail the title for second season in a row” he added.
Salhadin Said handed two-year extension
Ethiopia eliminated from CHAN Cup final
Though Ethiopian national side Waliyas kicked out of 2020 CHAN Cup final to be held in host nation Cameroon, every one including the usually soft spoken and close to the media Abraham Mebratu disappeared from the stage in order to downplay the whole fiasco.
Waliya’s 2020 CHAN qualification campaign came to an end after an aggregate defeat at the hands of Rwanda. Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana and Ivory Coast are among the high profiled absentees in the Cup final to be held in Cameroon.
A costly 1-0 first leg home defeat followed by an away draw in Kigali, Ethiopia missed to be back to the Cup final for second time in a row.
A first leg defeat in front of tens of thousands home supporters in Baherdar stadium followed by another friendly home defeat by visitors Uganda, the qualification campaign ended in a misery Ethiopia once again absent from the continent’s second biggest sport event.
Everyone concerned with the qualification including National Technical Committee Chairperson Sewnet Bishaw went shy of public appearances.
The players’ back to their respective sides’ things at the federation appears business as usual with no one to be accountable for the failure.
National boss Abraham Mebratu’s performance is nothing to talk about for his record shows the recent time worst ever record.
It is recalled that qualification for CHAN 2020 was one of the requirements set for Abraham. Failure to deliver that commitment is surely entails consequences.
Three East African nations: Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda are among the 16 nations that booked a place in the Cup final.
Cameroon the host nation, Zambia, Tunisia, Morocco, Congo Republic, DRC, Niger, Mali, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Togo and Namibia are the cup finalists for CHAN fourth edition.
14th Addis Ababa City Cup opens on Friday: Baherdar Vs Wolkite
Addis Ababa City Cup 14th edition kicks off the coming Saturday bringing together eight teams in to two groups.
Saint George, Ethiopia Coffee, Mekelakeya and Ethio-Electric are the four teams from the Capital while Baherdar Town, Sebeta Town, Welwalo-Adigrat and Wolkite-Town are the invited guests.
The group draw took place on Thursday at the presence of Addis Ababa mayor Engineer….who is said to have played a major role in the city’s sport development.
Group one brings record five times champions Saint George, relegated Mekelakeya, visitors Baherdar Town and newly promoted to the top tier from Debub region Wolkite Town.
When the group (A) opening match takes place on Friday
at Abebe Bikila stadium last year city cup finalist and under newly appointed Coach Seyoum Kebede clashes against Wolkite under new boss Degarege. In the day’s second match title favorite Saint George takes on old rival Mekelakeya. Saint George is the only side with a foreign Coach from Serbia while Mekelakeya is under Zelalem. Group (B) considered the death group opening match brings together Super League side and trice former City Cup champions Electric versus visitors Welwalo. Signing more than a dozen footballers including four foreigners Coach Yohanes Sahle is expected to become one of the strongest sides of the group.
Ethiopia Coffee under much talked about Coach Kassaye Arege is to be tested by fire when it entertains Sebeta Town under highly regarded Coach Wubetu Abate. Ethiopia Coffee is the only team decided not to employ foreign players in the league season
Determined to build an impressive squad capable of rattling the heavyweights, Sebeta boasts number of renowned veteran footballers that go along with four foreigners.
The two-week event is expected to turn out the biggest Addis Ababa City Cup tournament ever.
Health Ministry, partners renew commitment to end polio
To mark World Polio Day 2019 the World Health Organization, UNICEF and Rotary International came together to jointly reaffirm their commitment in the fight against polio, ‘that no child anywhere in the world suffers from this completely preventable disease’.
World Polio Day commemoration was organized on October 24th by the Federal Ministry of Health (FMoH) together with Polio Eradication Initiative partners and allies for the 7th time in Ethiopia, under the theme ‘Let’s sustain the gain to End Polio Now.’
At the event, State Minister of Health, Dr. Lia Tadesse said that the government has been working with partners to free the country from polio. “We want everyone to become fully covered with vaccinations, and we are using consecutive campaigns and surveillance systems to increase our immunization coverage. What matters is not only the coverage but the quality as well,” she said. “The government is working hard to sustain the achievements in polio virus eradication not only from Ethiopia but from the region as well.” 
WHO’s Representative, Dr. Boureima Hama Sambo on his part, congratulating the FMoH for the successful maintenance of Polio Free status for almost six years, said the day is celebrated “acknowledging what we have achieved so far towards eradicating polio and pledging for tomorrow.” To end Polio for good in the horn of Africa we must take bold steps to addressing the challenges of reaching every child trough routine immunization. Eradicating polio is everyone’s responsibility, he noted.
However, the current reduction in funding is very much affecting health projects, noted Dr. Filimona Bisrat, Representative of Core Group on his key note address. “We need to come together as one with our partners and allies and work in areas especially where surveillance and vaccinations are weak. This huge cut has affected projects we had in the pipeline, but Core Group will use all the resources it has to support and assist all it can to eradicate polio from the world, ” he said.
Dr. Rajeev Gera, lauded Ethiopia’s polio free status on behalf of UNICEF’s representative, saying that effective immunization and strong partnerships are the core tools needed for this achievement “And this is the result of strong and effective leadership. The government of Ethiopia has effectively responded to polio outbreaks and ongoing solid eradication efforts.”
However, our continuous dedication is required given that Ethiopia is still considered a medium risk country for the importation of polio virus. Beside leading the two pillars within this partnership, which are; procurement, communication and social mobilization UNICEF is equally committed to supporting and strengthening routine immunization to sustain the gains we have made this far,” he noted. 
National Polio Plus Committee Chair Rtn Teguest Yilma on her part, expressed gratitude for the firm commitment of Ethiopia in polio eradication and called upon the government to sustain its achievements. “Rotary International has been working with the government of Ethiopia to make the country free from polio, and is committed to continue supporting Ethiopia’s Polio eradication efforts until Polio is completely eliminated from the world.”
“We have come a long way in the fight against Polio,” she said. Today there are less than 200 cases of polio reported globally, and are mainly in the last two Polio endemic countries Afghanistan and Pakistan,” she said, a great achievement in the fight against polio considering that 30 years ago when Rotary announced its Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) there were 350,000 cases in the world.
On world Polio day, Rotary and its GPEI partners announced that wild polio virus type 3 has been eradicated worldwide. Following smallpox and wild polio virus type 2, this is the only third infectious human disease to be eradicated from the world.
Ethiopia joined the GPEI in 1996, which was set up in 1988.
The event was held at Qusqwam Entoto Polio Eradication Initiative Park in the presence of Rotary Country Chair Mulu Tenashewa, members of rotary clubs of Ethiopia, rotractors and members of the surrounding community.
