President opens parliament, warns against AIDS

Ethiopian President Girma Woldegiorgis opened parliament on Monday with a grim warning about the twin evils of AIDS and drought that the country now faces. He told MPs it was imperative that government policies were implemented to help escape the “quagmire” of poverty. “The alarming spread of the disease which is attacking our youngsters could be a great deterrent to the efforts of the nation in achieving sustainable development and democratic order,” he said. He added that as the country tried to develop, it found itself in a precarious position because of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. “Needless to say the epidemic is badly affecting the main working force of the nation in urban and rural areas,” he stressed. “Alongside the development efforts the nation exerts to eradicate poverty and backwardness, it is also imperative we pay due attention to the recurrent droughts that affect our country so profoundly,” he said. “The government’s attempts to take action aimed at drawing the attention of donors to the serious drought that has afflicted the country will continue unabated,” he stated. He pledged that the government would ensure the distribution of food where needed at household levels.