U N I T E D   N A T I O N S
Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
Integrated Regional Information Network for Central and Eastern Africa

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HORN OF AFRICA
IRIN-HOA Weekly Round-up 119
14 - 20 December 2002


CONTENTS:

ETHIOPIA: Premier faces his critics
ERITREA: EC boosts emergency aid
ERITREA: New report indicates severe levels of malnutrition
SOMALIA: Somaliland polls hailed as a success
SOMALIA: Faction leaders agree on participation
SUDAN: Peace talks reaching "decisive point"

ETHIOPIA: Premier faces his critics

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi faced his critics last weekend
during a public debate on policy issues. The debate, on 15 December, was
the first in a series, organised by the independent Inter Africa Group,
aimed at "fostering the culture of debate and the exchange of views
between the government and other stakeholders on public policy issues". On
this occasion, representatives of the private sector and civil society
groups criticised the government's economic policies, describing them as a
failure and saying the economy had not registered any growth. According to
the pro-government Walta Information Center, other members of the private
sector slammed the government's agriculture-based industrial development
plan and called for schemes whereby rural land could be privatised and
under which farmers could secure bank loans and adopt modern agricultural
techniques. They also questioned the existence of a free and independent
justice system, describing the current system as "partisan", Walta said.
[Full story at: http://www.irinnews.org/print.asp?ReportID=31413]

ERITREA: EC boosts emergency aid

The EC is to increase its emergency aid to Eritrea - which is in the grip
of a devastating drought - to over 15 million euros by the end of this
year. An EC statement, issued on Tuesday, said the Commission was
preparing a ?10 million emergency food aid assistance programme to be
adopted before the end of the year. The new contribution is equivalent to
about 40,000 mt of cereals, which will be available in the country
starting from March 2003, it said. "This comes in addition to the food aid
assistance already provided during the last quarter of 2002 [?5.8 million
or 15,000 mt]," the statement said. "This new contribution will bring the
total EC emergency aid to the present crisis in Eritrea up to ?15.8
million for 2002. Member states are bilaterally providing ?10.2 million in
humanitarian aid and food aid in response to the present crisis in
Eritrea, bringing the total EU amount to ?26 million," it added. [Full
story at: http://www.irinnews.org/print.asp?ReportID=31423]

ERITREA: New report indicates severe levels of malnutrition

A statistical analysis conducted by the UN Children's Fund of a number of
nutritional surveys carried out in Eritrea in the last six months
indicates that 2.8 million Eritreans - over half the population - are
experiencing pre-famine conditions. One-fifth of the population is
immediately confronting food shortages that are leading to critical levels
of malnutrition among children. The analysis, released at the weekend,
indicated that malnutrition levels had reached critical or emergency
conditions in three of six provinces in the country, Anseba, in the
northern centre of the country, Gash Barka, in the west, and Northern Red
Sea in the northeast. The World Health Organisation defines a situation as
critical when more than 15 percent of children under five are acutely
malnourished, according to certain measures of weight versus height. [Full
story at: http://www.irinnews.org/print.asp?ReportID=31406]

SOMALIA: Somaliland polls hailed as a success

Ahmad Haji Ali Adami, chairman of the electoral commission in the
self-declared republic of Somaliland, has described last weekend's local
elections as a success. According to Radio Hargeysa, he praised the
"patriotism and hard work" of Somalilanders, saying they gave themselves
"the responsibility of maintaining peace". Vote counting was unde rway, he
added on Monday. Independent observers also described the polling - which
took place on 15 December throughout the breakaway region - as peaceful.
However, there was no voting in the disputed Las Anod district, following
an attack earlier this month on the visiting Somaliland leader, Dahir
Riyaleh Kahin. Las Anod is the capital of Sool region which - along with
Sanaag region - is claimed by both Somaliland and the neighbouring
self-declared autonomous region of Puntland. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/print.asp?ReportID=31409]

SOMALIA: Faction leaders agree on participation

After weeks of wrangling over the number of participants attending the
Somali peace talks in the Kenyan town of Eldoret, faction leaders have
agreed to a maximum figure of 300. Sources close to the talks told IRIN on
Monday the agreement came after the leaders met the conference chairman,
Elijah Mwangale of Kenya, two days earlier. The only non-signatory was
Mogadishu faction leader Muse Sudi Yalahow. In agreeing to a maximum of
300 participants, the leaders' committee said these would be divided along
clan lines. The leaders have also called for accelerating phase two of the
talks, which includes discussions on a provisional federal charter,
disarmament, and land issues. They say they want it to run concurrently
with phase three, which is to deal with power-sharing. Furthermore, they
have called for the establishment of a 450-seat parliament. [Full story
at: http://www.irinnews.org/print.asp?ReportID=31390]

SUDAN: Peace talks reaching "decisive point"

The next phase of Sudanese talks, scheduled to begin in early January,
must make substantial progress or risk collapsing under the pressure of
hardline constituents and the domestic politics of the warring parties, an
international think-tank has warned. The latest phase of negotiations
between the Khartoum government and the rebel Sudan People's Liberation
Movement/Army ended in the southern Kenyan town of Machakos on 18
November, with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on
power-sharing. They also extended an earlier agreement on a countrywide
ceasefire and agreed on unimpeded humanitarian access to affected
populations. However, the Brussels-based International Crisis Group (ICG)
has warned there are still many obstacles surrounding the issues of power
and wealth-sharing which hardline elements on both sides could take
advantage of. "The peace process is nearing the decisive point, and when
the parties return to the table next month, it will be time for historic
decisions, compromises, and political courage," ICG said in a new report
released on Thursday. [Full story at:
http://www.irinnews.org/print.asp?ReportID=31449]


IRIN-CEA
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