Vol. 24 No. 95 Saturday, January 27, 2018 Pages 8, Price 2.00 NFA STRENGTHENING HEALTH SERVICE PROVISION CAPACITY DUTCH ACTION IS UNWARRANTED AND UNACCEPTABLE On Tuesday last week, the Dutch Foreign Ministry expelled Eritrea’s Charge d’Affaires to the country, Mr. Tekheste Ghebremedhin, invoking untenable explanations for its unacceptable act. The letter that the Minister of Foreign Affairs sent to the Dutch Parliament on the case indeed illustrates the banality of the whole affair. On the one hand, the Minister states: “the Cabinet recognizes that no judge has yet recorded proof of wrongful or punishable offenses by the Eritrean embassy office in The Hague”. And yet, the Minister alludes to “the broadcast of Argo (Dutch radio station)” and to the “... Motion of two parliamentarians requesting the government to close At an assessment meeting held in significant investment is being as well as raising the awareness of the Eritrean embassy” to explain and justify this unwarranted and Barentu, Ms. Amina Nur-Husein, made to equip health facilities with the public on health issues. unfriendly act. Minister of Health, said that efforts modern medical materials. are being made to strengthen Dr. Leul Banteyirga, Head of the Eritrea’s levying of 2% Rehabilitation and Recovery tax in the the capacity of health service Minister Amina reiterated that Ministry’s branch in Gash Barka Diaspora, enacted in accordance with the laws of the country in 1994, provision. emphasis have been given towards region, called for sustainability is a legitimate and sovereign act that cannot be misconstrued, by any the development of the capacity of the coordination that is being stretch of imagination, as a contravention of the Vienna Protocol on Noting that the effort to provide of Barentu, Aqordet and Tesenei demonstrated both by the public Diplomatic Relations. (There are indeed some countries that levy comprehensive health service to the Hospitals. and stakeholders. full income tax from their citizens abroad). Tax collection is carried public is registering commendable out through normative and appropriate transactional modalities. The result, Minister Amina said that According to reports, Dr. Josephine Namboze, Consulate naturally provides ordinary consular services, including the Medical Doctors and other health praiseworthy activities have been WHO Representative in Eritrea, provision of relevant information to its citizens in the country. professionals have been assigned in undertaken in ensuring maternity appreciated the successful health all regions with a view to provide and child health, vaccination provision activities and expressed Needless to emphasize, the Rehabilitation and Recovery Tax Law the necessary health service to the coverage, controlling the prevalence readiness to cooperate with the contains explicit clauses on the penalties that apply for tax evasion. public. She also pointed out that of malaria, environmental sanitation ministry in all its endeavors. These measures are not onerous by any standards. A citizen who fails or opts not to pay the 2% Rehabilitation Tax is entitled to all his/her rights and consular services. But he/she will forfeit business license and land entitlement rights in the home country. WORTHY EFFORT IN EMPOWERING WOMEN In the event, the designation of Eritrea’s Charge d’Affaires as persona non grata constitutes an arbitrary and provocative act that At an assessment meeting the National Union of Eritrean Women branch in Southern Red Sea region conducted on has no consonance with the Vienna Protocol of Diplomatic Relations. 25 January in the port city of Assab, it was reported that commendable effort was made in empowering women. We must also recall previous unfriendly incidents taken by the Dutch authorities against Eritrea in the past few years. Ms. Sa’adia Ibrahim, Chairperson of the branch, seminars focusing on the role and contribution of women in the nation building process were organized to women in the civil service and in the EDF. She also said that support The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the State of Eritrea rejects was extended to disadvantaged and outstanding female students. the hollow accusations leveled against its Consular Office in the Netherlands. The Dutch nonresident Ambassador to Eritrea has Noting that strong awareness-raising programs were organized with a view to eradicate FGM and under age been summoned to explain the unfriendly acts of her government. marriages, Ms. Sa’adia said that as part of the effort to ensure maternity and child health waiting room for pregnant The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is naturally considering appropriate women worth over 8 million Nakfa was constructed. reciprocal measures that it will have to take to partially redress the wrong. Ms. Sa’adia stated that organizing vocational training programs to improve the lives of women, supporting needy female student as well as strengthening participation of women in all sectors are among the priority programs for Ministry of Foreign Affairs 2018. Asmara 25 January 2018 MORE PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ACTIVITIES Eritrean nationals in Qatar significance of integrated effort During the congress, a new and Germany respectively have for the effective implementation of executive committee was elected conducted a number of activities development programs and called and the participants adopted with a view to strengthening for continued assessment of the a number of resolutions and organizational capacity and implementation of nation building recommendations. enhancing contribution to the programs. national development drive. Meanwhile, at a meeting that The Head of Organizational the National Union of the Eritrean The PFDJ branch in Qatar held Affairs of the YPFDJ, Mr. Hashim Women branch in Cologne city, its 5th congress, reports indicate. Mahmoud, on his part, noted that Germany, conducted a total of Speaking on the occasion, the enhanced awareness and higher 1, 480 Euro was contributed in Eritrean Ambassador to Qatar, organizational capacity are among support of the National Association Mr. Ali Ibrahim, highlighted the the major instruments for the successful implementation of the Front’s programs. of Eritrean War-disabled Veterans. Eritrea Profile, Saturday, January 27, 2018 Vol. 24 No. 95 2 Interview with President Isaias Afwerki : Domestic Issues sustainable supply of energy has aforementioned ongoing projects. Editor’s Note: President to be secured for meeting our We are in better position in terms Isaias Afwerki was interviewed household, industrial and other of the water resources that have by local media on domestic consumption needs. Housing already been harvested and the issues on Saturday, 20 January and infrastructural services such coverage of such projects in the this month. Excerpts of the as road networks, ports and economic development zones of interview follow; (Penultimate airports, as well as the provision our economy. 200-300 million Part). of essential social services, such cubic meters has been already as educational and health care preserved and it is estimated that services are also very critical around 400-500 million cubic factors that determine the degree meters of water is expected to Mr. President, over the past of our achievements in other be preserved in 2018. Therefore, 26 years there have been major sectors. The central point is our while it requires huge capital achievements associated with achievements in the economy and technology, we have a plan projects aiming to ensure the cannot be assessed without to transform our agricultural availability and accessibility looking at these fundamentals of practices by scaling-up irrigation of essential social services to development projects. practices. Additionally, other citizens, particularly those agricultural inputs need to be targeting the health and While it is a very important in place for this objective to be educational sectors, as well as sector, for reasons associated resources, there is a potential to improving our capacity to make finally materialized. water supply and food security. with laying the foundation with produce 80-120 tons of fish per use of the resources available in A lot has also been done in regard to the aforementioned year. In the last 25 years, even the sector. In 2018, we will move forward relation to establishing essential development projects, the 10% of this potential has not been in scaling-up the degree of infrastructural foundations. progress in our industrial efforts reached. One major challenge Concerning our experiences utilization of the water resources Given the aspirations associated is not commendable. Supplying is that our traditional practices in tourism, there have been that have been preserved in our with and what could have been unprocessed materials for have not been yet transformed distortions in this sector. This dams in order to enhance the potentially achieved in such domestic and export markets is and modernized. This sector also sector is considered to be highly return of our water resources sectors as industry, marine not effective. If cotton, leather requires huge capital, technology prospective offering shortcuts to investments. In relation to this resources, tourism and the like, products, dairy and meat products and human resources investments. increased profits and revenue. issue, the supply of electricity and the achievement or progress or any other item is sold in its raw We also have to think of adding Consequently, hotels and the provision of transportation attributed to these