Voice of Djibouti

STRATFOR WORLDVIEW 14 November 2018 What Happened: Two U.S. senators have sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressing their concern about Chinese involvement in Djibouti, Reuters reported Nov. 13. Specifically, both senators are worried about Djibouti’s decision to terminate DP World’s contract and nationalize the Doraleh Container Terminal, as well as the possibility that the country could award the port to a Chinese company. Why It Matters: The United States is becoming increasingly concerned over Chinese investment in Africa, specifically around the Horn of...

REUTERS 14 November 2018 by PATRICIA ZENGERLE WASHINGTON, Nov 13 (Reuters) – Two prominent U.S. senators expressed alarm on Tuesday about the military and political consequences if China gains control of a port terminal in Djibouti, and said they were concerned it could further boost Beijing’s influence in East Africa. In a letter to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Democratic Senator Chris Coons said they were concerned about Djibouti’s termination of a contract for the Doraleh Container Terminal with United Arab...

African Business 6 June 2018 Ethiopia will open its national carrier Ethiopian Airlines and state-owned telecom company to investors for the first time by selling minority stakes in the two firms. The move is part of a wider effort by Ethiopia’s new Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to reform East Africa’s fastest growing economy, which is dominated by the state. Ahmed, in power since March 2018, has already reduced the role of Ethiopia’s powerful military in construction and similar projects, and lifted a state of emergency introduced after anti-government protests threatened to engulf the nation. The...

africanews 13 June 2018 The decision by Ethiopia’s ruling coalition to resolver a border dispute with Eritrea has met stiff resistance from members of Badme town which was the epicenter of the war that killed tens of thousands on both sides. The 36 member executive committee of Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) announced on Tuesday that it would accept the December 2000 Algiers Agreement that was signed to restore peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea. But for many of Badme’s 15,000 residents, most of whom are veterans of the 1998-2000 conflict, the decision by premier...

KT Press 11 June 2018 Rwandan Senate has given government up to six months to come up with a clear action plan and follow up on how to put to productivity port land the country acquired in Djibouti, Kenya and Tanzania. This task will see three ministries and the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) convene to draft a plan on how Rwanda can profitably use 83.3 hectares of land. “We have resolved that in not more than six months we get a progress report on the agreement on Djibouti port and six months for government to give clear plan of how they will put the land  in Kenya and Tanzania to good...