• Addis Ababa to launch urban agriculture soon
ADDIS ABABA – Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed has called for measures to alleviate the impact of (COVID-19) on the national economy.
Addis Ababa City Mayor, Engineer Takele Uma also announced preparations to launch urban farming in the city.
Tweeting on his page, Premier Abiy said: “To mitigate the adverse impact of COVID-19 on our economy, it is critical to take measures to protect employment and income, scale up safety net programs to the most vulnerable, maintain the supply chain of key commodities and support the productive sectors of the economy,”
“Ensuring agricultural productivity is also critical to maintain food security. We will ensure uninterrupted supplies of fertilizers, improved seeds, and pesticides to prevent any potential supply shortages.” he added.
“As insufficient public health measures can also prolong the economic crisis, we will also invest heavily in the health system as part of our economic responses,” he tweeted.
Ethiopia has so far confirmed 114 cases, with three deaths and 16 recoveries from the virus.
Meanwhile, City Mayor hints that preparations are underway to launch urban farming in the city.
In his personal tweeter account, City Mayor, Engineer Takele Uma said yesterday that the administration will designate land for urban agriculture in the city so as to meet growing demands for agricultural products.
“If you have a passion and any formal education in agriculture we need you! We will assign designated land for building the urban agriculture capacity in the city to address growing demand,” he said.
Details on how to sign up for the business would come soon, he said.
“Let’s feed this city through modern agriculture,” the City Mayor added.
Prior to the advent of COVID-19, the nation had planned to create three million jobs in 2020 across the country.
The National Jobs Creation Commission had recently announced the creation of 1.8-1.9 million jobs over the previous eight months, out of which 35 percent were temporary.
Admitting that the recent challenges posed by COVID-19 would make it very difficult to continue with that pace,the Commission had announced on Apr 9, 2020 that the re-strategizing of the plan was underway to support already existing enterprises.
The Ethiopian Herald April 22/2020
BY STAFF REPORTER
