October 11th 2019 (Nyamilepedia) – The Ethiopian Prime Minister Dr. Abiy Ahmed has won the 2019 Nobel Peace Prize.
This, according to a jury in Oslo, is for Dr. Ahmed’s efforts at achieving peace and resolving the border conflicting with Eritrea as well as bringing together South Sudan rivals, Dr. Riek Machar and President Salva Kiir Mayardit.
In a series of declarations and agreements, the Prime Minister reinitiated reconciliation talks with the Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, bringing about the end of a “no peace, no war” two-decades long stalemate between the neighboring countries culminating in peace deal signed in July 2019.
The news announced Friday was surprising for those who expected a teenage climate activist, Greta Thunberg or Hong Kong protesters to be the winners.
Abiy is expected to receive an award of approximately US$900,000 in December, in the Norwegian capital of Oslo.
Claiming the prize out of 301 candidates, the Prime Minister was also praised for engaging in peace processes in various countries in East and Northeast Africa.
He also facilitated diplomatic relations between Eritrea and Djibouti, Kenya and Somalia over disputed ownership rights of marine areas, and Sudan’s transition constitution.
The 43-year-old victorious figure was commended for his national reforms in a country formerly known as one of the most repressive in the continent.
“He spent his first 100 days as Prime Minister lifting the country’s state of emergency, granting amnesty to thousands of political prisoners, discontinuing media censorship, legalising outlawed opposition groups, dismissing military and civilian leaders who were suspected of corruption, and significantly increasing the influence of women in Ethiopian political and community life,” reads the Nobel Peace Prize’s official statement.
