ADDIS ABABA – The African Development Bank has withdrawn all its international staff from Ethiopia immediately.
Through a statement on Wednesday, the Bank said the office will remain open under an Officer-in-Charge.
“These measures will not affect nationally recruited staff from Ethiopia who will continue their work and remain in the full employment of the Bank. The Bank will assure them and their families of its duty of care,” it said in the statement.
The move follows an incident on October 31, 2023, in which AfDB accuses Ethiopia government security officers of assaulting and detaining its members of staff for two hours without charge or any official explanation, which it termed “breach of diplomatic protocol”.
“This was a gross violation of their personal diplomatic immunities, rights, and privileges under the African Development Bank Group’s Host Country Agreement with the Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia,” it said.
The two were released through the intervention of AfDB President Dr Akinwumi Adesina, who contacted “the highest levels of authority in the Ethiopian government”.
Local media reported that one of the victims was Dr. Abdul Kamara, AfDB’s Deputy Director General for East Africa, and Ethiopia office Country Manager.
The bank added that it formally sought an explanation from the government through a letter on November 6, in which it also asked for a full and transparent investigation into the incident.
“Dr Adesina also sent a high-level delegation of Bank officials led by its Senior Vice President to Addis Ababa on 22 November to engage with senior Ethiopian authorities on the matter and to meet with Bank staff in the Ethiopia Office in Addis Ababa,” the statement added.
According to Adesina, the assessment from the Bank’s delegation indicates that the situation is still not yet resolved in a satisfactory manner.
“It also does not provide full confidence that all the African Development Bank’s employees feel safe and secure to carry out their duties and move around the country without fear of harassment.”
“The African Development Bank remains particularly concerned that the Ethiopian government has, to date, not shared with the Bank any report, or details of investigations into the incident,” Adesina said, adding that the October incident is causing anxiety across the Bank, especially among staff at the Ethiopia country office.
“The incident has also raised concerns among the Bank’s shareholders, other multilateral development banks, international financial institutions, the broader diplomatic community, and other stakeholders,” he said.
Consequently, the Bank’s international staff in Ethiopia will work remotely outside the country until the findings of the investigations are shared with the Bank, and full details of the measures taken to bring the guilty parties to book are made public.
Adesina warned that its continued operations and future presence in the country could be negatively affected if the incident is not fully resolved.
As of September 30, 2023, AfDB’s ongoing portfolio in Ethiopia comprising 22 projects, totalled $1.24 billion.
