At dawn in the highlands of Jimma, the air is cool and still, broken only by the low, steady hum of bees moving between hives. Ms. Kibe Dame walks carefully along narrow paths, pausing to inspect each hive with practiced attention. For years, this work followed a familiar rhythm—harvest, sell locally, and hope for a fair price. What happened to her honey after it left her hands was largely unknown, and opportunities beyond the local market felt distant.That reality began to shift the day she stood alongside processors and community leaders to sign an agreement that would send Ethiopian honey far beyond Jimma—to international markets. For Ms. Dame, representing 150 beekeepers from Gera Woreda, the moment marked not only a business milestone, but a turning point in how her work—and her community’s work—was valued.In April 2024 , a business agreement signing ceremony in Jimma formalized the export of 90 tons of honey and beeswax. The event reflected a broader transformation within Ethiopia’s honey sector, driven by improvements in quality standards, skills development, and market access.This progress is supported by the Global Market Access Programme (GMAP) Ethiopia, implemented by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). The initiative focuses on strengthening quality compliance, enhancing technical capacity, and building linkages between producers, processors and international markets.Through targeted training on improved beekeeping practices, quality assurance, pre-harvest, harvest and post-harvest handling, producers like Ms. Dame have upgraded their production methods. These improvements are enabling honey to meet international requirements, opening access to export markets and increasing income opportunities.The impact of these efforts is becoming increasingly visible across Jimma Zone. Over the past three years, honey exports have shown notable progress—starting from 15 tons in 2023 and growing significantly after 2024, with a combined total of 216 tons exported between 2024 and 2026. This growth reflects both improved production capacity and stronger integration into formal markets.Beyond individual producers, the project emphasizes knowledge sharing and community-level transformation. In Yayo Woreda, training enabled one woman beekeeper to apply improved techniques and share them with her household and neighboring farmers. This exchange of knowledge has contributed to better production practices and increased yields across the community.“Through the training I received under the UNIDO GMAP Ethiopia project, I have significantly improved the quality of my honey. I now better understand good beekeeping practices, harvesting techniques, and how to meet market requirements.As a result, I have been able to connect with local exporters and prepare my products for international markets.  I am supplying honey for export, which represents an important step forward for me and the beekeepers I represent." says Ms. Kibe DameBeekeeping, once considered a supplementary activity, is increasingly seen as a viable climate smart agriculture and a reliable source of income. With improved hive management, producers can harvest multiple times a year while maintaining flexibility to engage in other agricultural activities, strengthening household resilience.Environmental sustainability is also a central component of the initiative. By promoting responsible beekeeping practices, the project supports biodiversity conservation and sustainable land use, ensuring that increased production aligns with environmental protection.In addition to training, the programme provides practical tools, including illustrated guides on best practices and essential beekeeping equipment. These interventions reinforce quality standards and support long-term sector development.A strong focus is placed on the inclusion of women, recognizing their role in production and community leadership. By improving access to training and market opportunities, the initiative contributes to more equitable participation across the value chain.The Jimma agreement represents more than a commercial milestone. It reflects a broader shift in how Ethiopia’s honey sector is structured—linking smallholder producers to global markets through improved systems, standards, and collaboration.As Ms. Dame returns to her hives, the familiar hum carries new meaning. What was once a local livelihood is now connected to a wider network of opportunity—where quality, knowledge, and access are reshaping the future of beekeeping in Ethiopia.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – The International Organization for Migration (IOM), together with the German Federal Foreign Office, marks today the 10th anniversary of the Family Assistance Programme (FAP), facilitating the family reunification of vulnerable migrants who are compelled to leave their country, with a person with protection status in Germany. 
Established in 2016, FAP operates in ten countries and supports applicants of family reunification visas in understanding complex procedures, preparing required documentation, and navigating administrative steps. The Programme provides services in multiple languages to ensure accessibility for diverse communities. 
Since its inception, FAP has supported over 700,000 individuals worldwide with processing, offering structured guidance, reliable information, and practical assistance to families separated by migration, conflict, and displacement. 
In Ethiopia, where the programme has been operational for eight years, FAP has supported around 6,500 people, many of whom originate from Eritrea, Somalia, and Sudan — communities that have experienced prolonged displacement related to conflict and family separation. 
“We as Germany together with our partners support safe, orderly, and regular migration in the Horn of Africa as well as towards Europe. The Family Assistance Programme is an important contribution in this regard,” said Christoph Anton, Counsellor Regional Officer for Displacement and Migration. “I am therefore very grateful that IOM and Germany today mark the 10th anniversary of this very successful FAP, facilitating the family reunification of vulnerable migrants who are compelled to leave their country, with a person with protection status in Germany.” 
“As the programme enters its second decade, we reaffirm our commitment to ensuring that family reunification processes remain accessible, structured, and humane, while continuing to support families seeking to reunite in safety and dignity,” said Abibatou Wane-Fall, IOM Ethiopia Chief of Mission. 
FAP is implemented by IOM in close cooperation with the German Embassy in Addis Ababa and relevant Ethiopian government partners. This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to strengthening safe, orderly, and regular migration pathways. 
 

With support from the European Union–funded Advancing the Nexus Approach in Ethiopia project, the workshop focused on sharing practical experience to support the shift from planning to implementation, as both regions work to address persistent vulnerability, climate shocks, and fragmented interventions.Both Afar and Somali Regions face recurring humanitarian needs driven by structural challenges, including low economic productivity, climate variability, and limited coordination across sectors and actors. Despite significant investments, interventions often remain siloed, short-term, and insufficiently aligned. Somali Region, supported by the Team Europe Coalition, GIZ, and UN Resident Coordinator’s Office (UNRCO) has spent the past year advancing a government-led Nexus system. Afar, having recently completed its draft Nexus Operational Plan used this exchange to learn from a peer region that has begun translating the Nexus from concept into practice.Focus of the ExchangeThe workshop centered on practical questions rather than theory. Afar’s delegation identified four key areas for learning: how to make the Regional Nexus Coordination Group (R‑NCG) effective in practice; how to move from priorities to alignment of actors and investments; how to influence partner programming; and how to strengthen coordination without creating additional bureaucracy.Somali Region’s Bureau of Planning and Economic Development (BoPED) shared its experience of operationalizing the Nexus, including the launch of the Regional Nexus Platform, the piloting of an area-based approach in Fafan Zone, and the development of coordination and planning tools. The discussion highlighted a shift toward a new way of working, one grounded in government leadership, multi-sector coordination, and focused geographic implementation.Afar presented its emerging direction, centered on transitioning from a crisis-prone system to a more resilient and productive development pathway. This includes priorities in economic upgrading, human capital development, water and climate resilience, and peace and social cohesion, with an operational model focused on strengthening regional coordination, alignment, and investment direction. Edris Outban, Director of the Afar Bureau of Planning and Development (BoPD) noted, “we need to strengthen coordination at the regional level first before cascading it further, and ensure that decision-makers are fully engaged for this to work.”Key TakeawaysSeveral practical lessons emerged from the exchange.Political leadership is essential but not sufficient. Strong top-level commitment must be supported by clear accountability mechanisms, resources, and ownership across levels of government. As highlighted by Mohammed Hassan, an Advisor from the Somali Regional BoPED, “without strong political leadership, integration does not happen, but at the same time local ownership is what makes the system work in practice.”Coordination must move from discussion to decision-making. Effective Nexus implementation requires tools that translate dialogue into alignment and guide investments. This shift was also highlighted by Menelik Anbesse, Advisor at GIZ and Secretariat of the Fafan Nexus Platform, who noted “coordination only works when it leads to decisions and alignment. Practical coordination tools, clear institutional ownership, private sector and CSOs engagement, and regular follow-up on agreed actions are essential to move from dialogue to measurable collective results”.Focus implementation to demonstrate results, while adapting to context. Somali Region’s experience highlights the value of concentrating efforts in a defined area to demonstrate how the Nexus can work in practice before scaling. At the same time, the exchange underscored that approaches must be adapted to regional context. While Somali Region has opted for an area-based pilot at zonal level, Afar is pursuing a regional, systems-led model centered on a single coordination platform. The model places emphasis on a strong regional coordination platform to guide strategic alignment and investment decisions, rather than establishing multiple coordination structures at sub-regional levels. As emphasized by Oumar Warfa, Head of Somali Regional BoPED, “the key is to demonstrate results in a focused way and avoid trying to do everything at once,” a lesson that Afar can apply through prioritized, well-coordinated interventions at regional level. Capacity development is continuous. Building a shared understanding of the Nexus across government and partners requires sustained engagement over time. As noted by Hassan, “raising capacity on the Nexus is not a one-time event; it requires continuous effort to build real ownership and operational competence.”Participants from Afar emphasized the importance of strengthening government leadership and accountability structures to translate the approach into practice. Hussein Abdella, UN Coordination Directorate Director at the Afar Bureau of Finance, highlighted that strong leadership from the Regional President’s Office is essential, noting that without such high-level commitment it becomes difficult to ensure alignment and accountability across institutions. What Happens NextFor Afar, the immediate priority is to transition from design to operationalization of the Nexus approach. This begins with formally establishing the Regional Nexus Coordination Group (R‑NCG) as the central, government-led platform for coordination and strategic decision-making. In parallel, the Afar Regional Government will move to ratify its draft Nexus Operational Model and use the R‑NCG to rally government institutions and partners around the identified priority areas and agreed collective outcomes outlined in the Nexus Operational Plan.A key focus will be to translate priorities into action by identifying concrete opportunities for alignment across ongoing programmes and future investments. This includes strengthening visibility of who is doing what, improving coherence across interventions, and guiding partners toward more coordinated, system-oriented engagement. Together, these steps are intended to move the Nexus in Afar from a strategic framework to a functioning coordination and investment platform that drives collective impact over time.For Somali Region, the focus remains on consolidating its pilot in Fafan Zone, generating results from its twelve-month proof of concept test case, and preparing for gradual expansion to additional zones.For partners, the exchange reinforces the need to move beyond project-based engagement toward aligning financing and technical support with government-led priorities and systems. This includes supporting coordination mechanisms that enable alignment, accountability, and long-term impact. As a participant from GIZ noted, “making the Nexus operational means working through government systems and ensuring partners are collectively accountable for lasting impact, not just individual project results.”Moving ForwardThe exchange marks an important step in advancing the Nexus from concept to practice. By grounding the discussion in real experience and focusing on actionable lessons, both regions are moving toward more coordinated, system-level approaches that strengthen resilience, reduce humanitarian dependence, build resilience, and support sustainable development.Participants reflected a shared understanding that the real opportunity now lies not in further planning but in implementing differently, capturing the common direction emerging from the discussions. 

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia - In a landmark step toward strengthening national health security, Ethiopia officially launched the digitalization of its Public Health Emergency Management (PHEM) system, marking significant progress toward establishing the Public Health Emergency Management Center of Excellence (PHEM-COE).The high-level event in Addis Ababa convened senior government leaders and development partners, the World Health Organization (WHO) including other partners such as United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, among others.In her opening remarks, Dr. Mekdes Daba, Minister of Health of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, underscored the urgency of collective action: “We don’t have time to waste when it comes to public health. We must integrate, we must act, and we must use data. Today’s session is about converting our words into action.”Delivering the keynote address, Head of Mission and Representative to Ethiopia, the African Union and UN Economic Commission for Africa, Prof. Francis Chisaka Kasolo, commended Ethiopia’s decisive leadership, particularly during the recent Marburg virus response:“Allow me to sincerely congratulate the Ministry of Health and the Ethiopian Public Health Institute for their strong leadership. The swift detection of cases, rapid activation of the Incident Management System, and coordinated national response demonstrated the growing strength and maturity of Ethiopia’s public health emergency management system.”He noted that this progress positions Ethiopia as a potential regional hub for training, technical assistance, and knowledge exchange across Africa and beyond, advancing the vision of designating the PHEM-COE as a WHO Collaborating Centre and contributing to continental health security.Dr. Mesay Hailu, Director General of the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI), emphasized that preparedness has become a global imperative: “The number of reported health emergencies has increased substantially over the past two decades, driven by emerging infectious diseases, climate-related shocks, humanitarian crises, and population mobility. Preparedness is no longer optional — it is essential.”Highlighting the transformation underway, Dr. Melaku Abte, Deputy Director General leading the Public Health Emergency Management Wing, described the shift toward modern emergency operations: “Not long ago, emergency management processes were largely paper-based, manual, fragmented, and reactive. Today, modernization of our Public Health Emergency Operations Center, combined with interoperable digital platforms, has strengthened early warning surveillance, enhanced laboratory linkages, and enabled real-time data visualization for decision-makers.”Reaffirming the government’s long-term vision, Minister Mekdes Daba added, “Ethiopia’s investment in this Center of Excellence strengthens infrastructure, institutionalizes standard operating procedures, and builds a skilled multidisciplinary workforce. These efforts enable earlier detection and faster response, helping to protect our communities. I encourage stronger collaboration with non-health sectors, including the Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute, the Ministry of Innovation and Technology, universities, and other relevant institutions.”Partners echoed their strong support for Ethiopia’s ambition to position the PHEM-COE as a regional hub for training, technical assistance, and knowledge exchange. WHO also recognized the critical contributions of the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) and the Pandemic Fund, whose investments have accelerated preparedness, surveillance integration, laboratory strengthening, and coordinated response capacity nationwide.With a robust digital backbone now in place, Ethiopia is advancing toward its vision of designating the PHEM-COE as a WHO Collaborating Centre. Future innovations — including AI-enabled analytics, predictive epidemic intelligence, and climate-sensitive surveillance systems — are expected to further reinforce Ethiopia’s leadership in emergency preparedness across the region.The World Health Organization reaffirmed its commitment to continue supporting Ethiopia in strengthening health security and ensuring that no public health threat goes undetected or unaddressed.