A lot has happened since the passing of the late PM Meles Zenawi last August. While the Eritrean President conspicuously refrained from seizing the opportunity to give a lengthy lecture as would be expected, its ally, Al-Shabaab, hailed it as a game-changer. Though, shortly after, it was driven out of the strategic Kismayou port and other strongholds by AMISOM. A process of forming/strengthening administrative structures in Southern and Central Somalia has been set in motion.

While government leaders, NGOs and corporations devise strategies to churn out more food for future generations, Eleni Gabre-Madhin is taking a different approach. Concerned by a 2002 famine in her home country of Ethiopia that followed bumper crops in 2000 and 2001, the Stanford-educated economist decided it was time to go beyond food production and take a hard look at distribution.

A new generation of EPRDF leaders arises. Former Southern Nations’ president Hailemariam Desalegn is the new Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, succeeding the nineteen-year reign of Seyoum Mesfin. An intellectual in office, Hailemariam says to be well-prepared for his job as the right hand of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and the keeper of Ethiopia’s international ties. In an exclusive interview with Capital, the first of its kind since he entered office, Hailemariam opens up about his personal life and at the same time handles some touchy political issues.

APA - In an exclusive interview with APA in Moscow on Saturday, the head of the marketing team from the Ethiopian Ministry of Culture and Tourism, Mr. Jemal Kedir Biadgligne, spoke about the potential significance of tourism development, market strategies and challenges in the industry, as they prepare to participate in the International Tourism and Travel Exhibition scheduled for March 17-20 in Moscow.

The Daily Monitor - Ethiopia could exploit the potential opportunities presented in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), in the wake of the recently elected Bulgarian Director General, Irina Bokova, the Bulgarian Ambassador in Addis Ababa said. The familiarity of the new Director General with Africa's development needs and challenges and her positive position toward the Continent makes her an asset that could be put to use through the Embassy here, he said.

Eleni Gebre-Medhin, PH.D: Much has recently been made of my ethnic identity although this is a matter of no relevance whatsoever to a reasoned discourse on the existence of the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange. However, when the unnecessary gets in the way of the important, however unpleasant it may be, it must be faced.

Reuters - The global economic crisis could have a "disastrous" impact on health and school projects in the developing world unless rich nations spend a tiny fraction of stimulus measures to help the poor, a World Bank official said.