Slippery Locks


Slippery Locks

Rows of slippers are hung in the locker rooms of employees at a horticulture farm in Koka, Oromia Regional State. Ethiopia has experienced significant success in flower exports, doubling in eight years to around half a billion dollars last year. Concerns over employee safety and wages have coincided with the industry's growth. Recent regulatory changes have entailed codes for sustainable flower farming that include the safe use of pesticides, water management, and social justice. This stems from the global notoriety of the industry for poor working conditions, health risks and low wages. The government has also introduced a series of incentives to increase floriculture investments, like easy access to land at nominal lease rates and half a decade-long income tax exemptions.

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In-Picture

TRENCH TALES

A "fresh chapter" for the city's waterways is taking shape, if you consider a trench full of mud and two workers elbow-deep in pipes a poetic start. Around the stadium, the Filwuha River gets its long-overdue facelift, with construction clamor providing the soundtrack to what is supposed to become a green, inviting retreat. The plan? A place to stroll, relax, and get fresh air ,once the dust settles, the mud dries, and the pipelines stop demanding more attention than the people who will eventual...


In-Picture

RIGHTS DIALOGUE

Dignitaries from China and across Africa gathered at the Sheraton Addis for the inaugural China-Africa Human Rights Seminar. The event focused on “Building the China-Africa Community with a Shared Future and Working Together to Realize the Right to Development.” After sub-forums exploring poverty reduction, sustainable development, and international cooperation, the seminar wrapped up with the launch of the “Addis Abeba Consensus on the China-Africa Right to Development....


In-Picture

TWO-WHEEL TERRACE

Around the National Theater, bicycles rest in neat rows as cyclists take a well-earned pause. The usual parking lot transforms into a mini stage where the city's cycling culture steals the spotlight. Traffic noise fades, replaced by laughter, chatter, and the soft hum of wheels. Fun fact, studies show that urban cyclists are 30pc more likely to wave at strangers, proof that two wheels can boost both community spirit and awkward hand gestures. This little patch of concrete and greenery quietly ce...