In a tweet, Abiy Ahmed’s National Security Advisor Redwan Hussein announced on Saturday that the Ethiopian government has started sending funds to the capital of Tigray to facilitate the restart of banking services in the war-ravaged region.
According to the tweet, in line with Prime Minister Abiy’s decision, the amount sent by the Central Bank to Mekele is estimated at five billion birr, the equivalent of $90 million. This sum would be distributed from Monday.
Redwan Hussein added that even the number of flights of the national airline Ethiopian Airlines to the region will be increased from 3 to 5 flights per day.
The decision follows a meeting between the Prime Minister and Tigrayan leaders for the first time after the peace agreement signed in November. The peace agreement was reached after a brutal conflict between the federal government and rebels in the Tigray region that led to severe shortages of medicine, food, money and fuel in the region.
These measures are evidence of adherence to the peace agreement signed on 2 November in Pretoria, This agreement provides for the disarmament of the rebels, the reopening of access to the region and the restoration of federal authority in Tigray.