11 November 2010 - DANGEROUS SITUATION IN SUDAN DISCUSSED DURING GROUNDBREAKING VISIT TO ETHIOPIA

The visit began with a field visit to Tigray to discuss a program designed to increase food security for some of the most vulnerable people in Ethiopian society and to adopt a proactive developmental approach to food security rather than one premised on humanitarian food relief. That program, The Productive Safety Net   was developed with the support of the World Bank. The idea is that rather than relying on systems designed to hand out food every time famine strikes, the goal should be to work closely with the people in affected areas to deal with the sources of famine including land degradation, recurrent drought, population pressures, subsistence agricultural practices, and the lack of employment opportunities.

The delegation observed how the Ethiopian government and local officials with strong support from the World Bank and donor nations are implementing this program. Particularly vulnerable people are being paid to restore denuded hill sides, stabilize land so that it is not washed down deep and destructive gullies during the rainy season, adopt new agricultural techniques, expand rural education, develop vital water preservation and water harvesting techniques and provide social safety nets so families are not tempted to sell off productive assets like cows and plows when times are hard. Members saw how properly conceived, co-ordinated and funded development strategies which engage people directly can make a great difference in the lives of entire regions of a vulnerable country. In the view of sub-Committee Chairman, John Sewel, improved food and human security directly translates into greater strategic stability. Such approaches, he noted, are essential to the security interests of allied nations.  

The political situation in Ethiopia was also discussed.   According to some analysts who met with the delegation, Ethiopia ’s leadership is compact, coherent and effective - more so than many other African countries.   Yet efforts to suppress dissent, ingrained suspicions of private markets, and an insistence on controlling economic processes creates real vulnerabilities over the long term.

The grave security situation in the region was also discussed. Ethiopia is the key power broker in what is one of the most dangerous, complicated and unstable corners of the world. Somalia to its East is a failed state under threat from an Islamic rebellion that is linked to Al Qaeda. Piracy poses a daunting problem, and there are signs of links between some pirates and Al Shebab. Meanwhile various factions in Mogadishu are at war with each other while Eritrea and some Arab and Islamist groups are funneling funds and weapons to Al Shebab.

Ethiopian parliamentarians and western government representatives in Addis Ababa expressed serious concerns to the delegation about the situation in Sudan. The reigning assumption seems to be that the south will indeed vote for impendence in a referendum that will be held this January.  A concerted diplomatic effort is underway to encourage leaders on Northern Sudan to accept the results of that referendum.  Yet all sides seem to be bracing for an outbreak of violence.

Finally the delegation met with the Secretary General of the African Union, Mr. Jean Ping who outlined the work of the AU in peacekeeping and peace making. Mr Ping reiterated the AU’s strong opposition to Al Shebab which he characterized not only as a regional but also a global threat.  He discussed the strong support the EU has extended to the AU and its co-operation with NATO on a range of mutual security challenges.