Established in 1942, the Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) is Ethiopia’s sole national wire service, operating through a network of 36 local offices across the country. Its news output is disseminated to media outlets in Ethiopia. Besides its news wire content, ENA also runs the newspapers Addis Zemen in Amharic and Ethiopian Herald in English.
Media assets
News agency: ENA
Publishing: Ethiopian Herald, Addis Zemen
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
ENA is owned by the government. Its main governing structure, a seven-member board, is appointed by Parliament upon nomination by the government, some of whom are MPs. The board is chaired by the Vice-Minister of Information.
Source of funding and budget
ENA is funded by the government. There is no publicly available data about ENA’s budget. Local journalists and experts estimate that upwards of 90% of the agency’s funding comes from the government. In the fiscal year 2023-2024, ENA received a subsidy of ETB 100m (US$ 1.7m), according to data from the government of Ethiopia.
Editorial independence
Evidence of editorial control by the government at ENA has been collected for over a decade. Censorship and self-censorship have characterized ENA in its entire history. This strict control over the editorial practices is imposed both on ENA and its newspapers (Addis Zemen and Ethiopian Herald).
ENA is governed by a proclamation, which describes its mission and rules guiding the agency’s operation. However, no statute that guarantees the agency’s editorial independence has been identified.
No independent assessment mechanism to validate ENA’s editorial independence has been identified either.
June 2024