Bineta Diop is the Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security to the African Union (AU). The first woman to hold the position of special envoy, Diop is also the founder of Femmes Africa Solidarite (FAS), a non-governmental organisation that promotes women’s rights and interests in Africa. As the daughter of a feminist mother, she managed to complete school in her home country of Senegal, at a time and place where not many women were able to. She studied business in Paris, where she accompanied her husband, a career diplomat, over various countries and events, including to Ethiopia for three years during Emperor Haile Selassie. Having joined the International Commission of Jurists, human rights NGO in Geneva in 1981, she then started FAS in 1996. Diop was also involved in in the development of the African Charter on Human and People’s rights (also known as the Banjul Charter), as well as the Protocol to African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women In Africa (the Maputo Protocol), alongside a group of African lawyers. In her position as Special Envoy, she was instrumental in the development of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda for the AU, and the subsequent Continental Results Framework. She sat down with EBR’s Menna Asrat on the sidelines of the recent African Union Summit, to discuss the developments in the position of women on the continent in light of International Women’s Day 2019. Diop stressed that the AU will continue working on the grassroots level by putting federations of women’s groups, which she calls them ‘the army without guns’ together all over Africa to amplify women voices.

Derartu Tulu (Chief Superintendent) is a legendary Ethiopian long-distance runner. She was the first black African women to win a gold medal, after she became the victor in the women’s 10,000 meters in Barcelona in 1992. Since then, she has racked up an impressive list of achievements, including coming back from injury, and starting a family, to win the gold in the 2000 Olympics. She also took up marathon running, finishing second in the Madrid marathon, and becoming the first Ethiopian women to win the New York marathon in 2009. Currently, she serves as the president of the Ethiopian Athletics Federation, taking over the post from Haile Gebreselassie in late 2018. EBR’s Kiya Ali spoke with Derartu about her views on gender equality and leadership.

Tewodros Shiferaw, 44, is a businessman with a huge appetite. The father of four lived in Japan and China for 12 years working as an exporter and importer, among other activities. In 2008, he came to Ethiopia and established Rosetta General Business, a company engaged in real estate development, hotels, import and export as well as media and communication. Tewodros, who is in the real estate sector, built 142 villas and transfered them to the owners on time despite the huge inflation at the time. However, not all his endeavours have been successful. In fact, two of his hotel projects in Addis Ababa and Hawassa didn’t materialise because the authorities couldn’t give him land on a lease basis. He is now more visible in the broadcasting industry. In fact, Tewodros was a partner at ARTS and a year ago acquired Nahoo TV, a privately owned entertainment TV channel operating in Ethiopia. EBR’s Samson Berhane sat down with Tewodros to learn about his successes and failures

Adil Khan is the managing director of AMS Hospitality Group, a privately held provider of hotel brands, solutions and services. Established in 2008, AMS’s brand portfolio spans a range of hospitality segments, from premier economy, to select service properties, mid-scale hotels and resorts. AMS has been managing the Hub Hotel, which was opened in December 2018 in Addis Ababa. EBR’s Ashenafi Endale sat down with Khan to learn about AMS’s activities in Ethiopia and elsewhere.

Addisu Habba, president of Debub Global Bank (DGB) is the current president of the Ethiopian Bankers’ Association (EBA). He was re-elected by the professional association of bankers in March 2018 to continue in the post for the next three years. Addisu, a married father of two, has had immense experience in the banking sector. He is a graduate of Economics from Addis Ababa University and holds Master’s degree in Banking and Finance from Italy. In the past, Addisu held several positions at the former Construction and Business Bank, including as a credit clerk and internal auditor, before rising to the post of President. He then became president at the Bank of Abyssinia and served for five years. Three years ago, he joined DGB, one of the later entrants into the banking sector. EBR’s Samson Berhane sat down with him to learn more about the challenges and successes of the industry, as well as the activities of EBA.

John Snow, 43, is the General Manager of J&S Metals, the only company in Ethiopia that produces steel roofing nails. J&S Metals exported steel nails to Ethiopia from China for ten years before it established a factory on the outskirts of Addis Ababa five years ago. The company, which currently employees 130 people, produces roof nails. Snow sat down with EBR’s Ashenafi Endale to reflect on the challenges manufacturers are facing particularly in relation with the labour force.

A consultant and attorney at law, Tadesse Kiros has had decades of experience in a wide range of legal expertise such as taxes, mergers and acquisitions, and energy as well as infrastructure finance, among others. Tadesse served as deputy chief justice of the Supreme Court of Ethiopia under the Transitional Government of Ethiopia. Prior to that he served as a member of the Legal Committee formed under the Office of the President of the Transitional Government between 1991 and 1992. He later established the Tadesse Kiros Law Office, one of the most successful de-facto law firms in the country, and a leading service provider, both in coverage and organizational capability.

Currently, Ethiopia is striving to construct 30 industrial parks in the next two years, as shortcut to cope with late industrialization. However, Birhanu Gizaw (PhD), who has been an industrial engineer both in the academic and private sector for 30 years, the last 15 of which he has spent in Germany, boldly argues that Ethiopia needs to revise its industrialization policy. He argues industrialization is about a fundamental change in mentality, and manufacturing products and technology that simplify the life of each and every citizen, rural and urban alike. Currently, he is developing a technology park in collaboration with Jimma University, the first of its kind. In addition he is a lecturer at the Addis Ababa institute of Technology, and is chairperson for the Society of Electrical Engineers. He recently sat down with EBR’s Ashenafi Endale to discuss the country’s industrial efforts. The following is an excerpt:

Martin Plaut is not new to the geopolitics of the Horn of Africa, having amassed more than three decades of experience in the region, starting as a journalist with the BBC World Service in 1984. He has reported from most of East Africa, as well as some parts of West Africa, and but his specialty lies in the Horn of Africa and Southern Africa. He later served as the Africa Editor for the BBC World Service News and published extensively on African affairs. Currently, he is working as an adviser to the United States Department of State and Senior Researcher at the Institute of Commonwealth Studies.

Tegbaru Belete Program Leader of the Ethiopia Soil Information System

Soil acidity has been a big concern in Ethiopia for a long time. Although the problem has been known for over a decade, the level of action taken by the government was minimal. To avert this problem and develop policy to help farmers improve their yield, the Ethiopian Soil Information System (Ethio SIS) was launched by the Agricultural Transformation Agency in 2012, to bolster the growth and transformation of Ethiopia’s agriculture sector. Tegbaru Belete, program leader of the project, sat down with EBR’s Ashenafi Endale to talk about some of the ins and outs of the project and how the soil acidity problem can be solved.