የኢንዱስትሪ ልማት ተስፋዎች

የመሀከለኛው ክብ ወደ ጐን ለሁለት የተከፈለ ነው። ከታችኛው ክፋይ ባለው ቦታ መዶሻ፣ መሰላል፣ የልብስ መስፊያ ሲንጀር፣ ሌሎች መሣሪያዎች አረንጓዴ ቀለም መደብ ጐልተው ይታያሉ። ከላይኛው ወገን የቢጫ ቀለም መደብ ላይ የኢንዱስትሪ ምልክት በደማቁ ሰፍሯል – ሰባት ዓመታትን ያስቆጠረው የልማት ተጓዥ የጥቃቅንና አነስተኛ ልማት ኤጀንሲ አርማ።አረንጓዴ ቀለም የልምላሜ፣ ቢጫው ደግሞ የብሩህ ተስፋ ምልክት ስለመሆናቸው እርግጥ ነው።
በጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር ጽሕፈት ቤት የመሰብሰቢያ አዳራሽ ኢትዮጵያውያን በሚወዱት ሰንደቅ ዓላማቸው ላይ ያሉ ሁለት የመጀመሪያ ቀለሞችን ወክለው የለበሱ በርካታ የልማት አርበኞች በየወንበራቸው ተቀምጠዋል። ባላጋራቸውን ታግለው የረቱ ባለድል በመሆናቸው የፊታቸው ገፅታ ፈክቷል። ድህነት እንደሚሸነፍ በተግባር ያረጋገጡ የመሆናቸው እውነት ፊታቸው ይናገራል። በተለይ ቢጫውን ጋዋን የለበሱ ኢንተርፕራይዞች ከፊታቸው የቆመውን ችግር በማለፍ፤ መሰላሉን በብዙ ውጣ ውረድ በመውጣት ከግባቸው የደረሱ ናቸው። በዕለቱ ተመርቀው ወደ መካከለኛ ኢንዱስትሪ መሸጋገራቸውን የሚያረጋግጡ የልማት ጀግኖች ናቸው። በነጭ ቲ ሸርት ላይ አረንጓዴውን መቀነት ወደ ጐን ያጠለቁትም ቢሆኑ ከኢንተርፕራይዝነት ወደ ሞዴል ኢንተርፕራይዝነት የተሸጋገሩ በመሆናቸው በደስታ ፈክተዋል።
የአዲስ አበባ ከተማ አስተዳደር ለበርካታ የጥቃቅንና አነስተኛ አንቀሳቃሶች የተለያዩ ድጋፎችን በማድረጉ በሺ የሚቆጠሩ የከተማ ነዋሪዎች በዘርፉ እንዲታቀፉ ማድረጉን መረጃዎች ያመለክታሉ። ከደቂቃ ሙት ውስጥ 250 ኢንተርፕራይዞች ወደ መካከለኛ ኢንዱስትሪ መሸጋገር የሚችሉበት ደረጃ ላይም መድረሳቸውን አረጋግጠዋል።
ከእነዚህ መካከል የዮሽ ኮንስትራክሽን ኢንተርፕራይዝ አንዱ ነው። ሥራ አስኪያጁ አቶ ዮሐንስ ይግለጡ እንደሚናገሩት የኢንተርፕራይዙ ካፒታል አምስት ሚሊዮን ደርሷል።
አቶ ዮሐንሰ እንደተናገሩት፤ ኩባንያቸውን ያቋቋሙት በ2000 ዓ.ም ነው። የተሰማሩበት ዘርፍ ኮንስትራክሽን ቴራዞንና የግንባታ ሥራዎች ነው። የቴራዞን ማሽኖችን እየሠሩም ለሌሎች ኢንተርፕራይዞችና ድርጅቶች ይሸጣሉ።
በጥቃቅንና አነስተኛ ተቋም ጀምረው ወደ መካከለኛ ኢንዱስትሪ በመሸጋገራቸው እድለኛ መሆናቸውን ይናገራሉ። አቶ ዮሐንስ እንደሚሉት፤ መንግሥት የተለያዩ ድጋፎችን አድርጐላቸዋል። በድጋፉም በእጅጉ ደስተኛ ናቸው። ከአዲስ ብድር ቁጠባ በተለያየ ጊዜ ብድር መውሰዳቸውንም አውግተውናል።
በተቋቋሙበት ወቅት «በምን ዓይነት ሥራ ብንሰማራ ውጤታማ መሆን እንችላለን ብለን በማሰባችን ለዛሬው ውጤት አብቅቶናል እድለኞች ነን» ይላሉ ሥራ አስኪያጁ። በወቅቱ በመረጡት የቴራዞን ዘርፍ ማንም ኢንተርፕራይዝ እንዳልነበር ያስታውሳሉ። እንዲያውም ሥራውን የሚሠሩ በቁጥር ሦስት አራት የሆኑ የመንግሥት ትልልቅ ተቋማት ብቻ እንደሆኑም ይናገራሉ።
እንደ ሥራ አስኪያጁ ገለፃ፣ ሥራውን በሚጀምሩበት ወቅት ብዙ ሰዎች ገበያ አታገኙም የሚል አስተያየት ይሠጧቸው ነበር። በርግጥ በወቅቱ የገበያ ሁኔታ ፈታኝ ሆኖባቸዋል። በተጨማሪም 'በጥቃቅንና አነስተኛ ሥራ እንዴት ይደፈራል?' ያሏቸው ወገኖችም አሉ።
«ያም ሆኖ መንግሥት የገበያውን ስጋት ትስስር በመፍጠር ያቃለለው ሲሆን፤ በዚህም የተሻለ ውጤት በማምጣታቸው ቤቶች ልማት ላይ ጥሩ ሥራዎችን አከናውነዋል። ኢንተርፕራይዛቸው በራሱ ካፒታል የድንጋይ 'ክርኤቸር ሳይት' ተጫርቶ ገዝቷል» ብለዋል አቶ ዮሐንስ።
ኢንተርፕራይዛቸው ወደ መካከለኛ ኢንዱስትሪ በመሸጋገሩ የሚያከናውናቸው ሰፋፊ ሥራዎች እንዳሉ ይጠቁማሉ። ለኤጀንሲው «የ20 ሚሊዮን 770 ሺ ብር ፕሮጀክት» አስጠንተው አቅርበዋል።
ቀደም ሲል በሚሠራው ሥራ ኢንተርፕራይዛቸው 47 ያህል ለሚሆኑ ሰዎች የሥራ ዕድል መፍጠሩን የተናገሩት ሥራ አስኪያጁ፤ ቴራዞን ማሽኖችን በክልል ደረጃም እየታዘዙ ይሰሩ እንደነበር ነው ያብራሩት።
አካ ኃላፊነቱ የተወሰነ የግል ማኅበር የተቋቋመው በ1997ዓ. ም ነው። የተሰማራበት የሥራ ዘርፍም በእንጨትና ብረታ ብረት ነው። የኢንተርፕራይዙ ባለቤትና ሥራ አስኪያጅ አቶ አብዲላሀዲ ዓሊ በበኩላቸው በመመረቃቸው ከፍተኛ ደስታ እንደተሰማቸው ይገልፃሉ።
በአሁኑ ወቅት ወደ መካከለኛ ኢንዱስትሪ ሊሸጋገሩ የቻሉት ከአምስት ሚሊዮን ብር በላይ ካፒታል በማድረሳቸው እንደሆነ የሚገልጹት አቶ አብዱላሀዲ፤ በኢንተርፕራይዛቸው ወደ 14 የሚሆኑ ሠራተኞች የሥራ ዕድል እንዳገኙ ይገልፃሉ።
አቶ አብዱላሀዲ እንደሚናገሩት፤ ሽግግሩ የሥራንም ትጋት የሚጠይቅ ነው። ወደፊት ሊሠሩ ያቀዱት የፓስታ፣ ማካሮኒ፣ ዱቄትና ብስኩት ፋብሪካ በመገንባት ነው። ይህም ለብዙዎች የሥራ ዕድል ለመፍጠር ይችላል። ለዚህም የ13 ሚሊዮን ብር ፕሮጀክት ቀርፀው ለኤጀንሲው አስገብተዋል። ሁሉ ነገር ከተመቻቸላቸው አንዲትም ቀን ሳያሳልፉ ሥራ ለመጀመር ያላቸውን ብቃት በልበ ሙሉነት ይናገራሉ። «ሁሉም ሰው ያለመታከት በትጋት ሥራውን የሚያከናውን ከሆነ በሚያጋጥመው ጥቃቅን መሰናክል አይበገርም» የሚል እምነት አላቸው።
በ2001 ዓ.ም የተቋቋመው የጋላክሲ ኮንስትራክሽን ኢንተርፕራይዝ የተሰማራው በኮንስትራክሽኑ ዘርፍ መሆኑን የማኅበሩ ሊቀ መንበር አቶ አወቀ ጐዳና ይገልፃሉ።
እንደ አቶ አወቀ ገለፃ፤ ኢንተርፕራይዙ ያስመዘገበው አንድ ነጥብ አምስት ሚሊዮን ብር ካፒታል ነው። አስራ አንድ አባላት አሉት። ከአባላቱ ውጪ በተለያዩ ኮንስትራክሽን ሥራ ውስጥ የሚሠሩ 106 የጉልበት ሠራተኞችና ሦስት ቋሚ ተቀጣሪዎች አሉት።
ቀደም ባሉ ጊዜያት ሥራቸውን ሲያከናወኑ በርካታ ማነቆዎች አጋጥሟቸው እንደነበር አቶ አወቀ ያስታውሳሉ። ሰው በተሰማራበት ሥራ በቁርጠኝነት የሚሠራ ከሆነ የሚያጋጥመውን እንቅፋት በትዕግስት ማለፍ ይችላል ይላሉ። ኢንተርፕራይዞችም ሆኑ ሞዴል ኢንተርፕራይዞች ሊያጋጥማቸው ለሚችል ማንኛውም ፈተና እጅ መስጠት እንደሌለባቸው በመግለፅ።
«ጥቂት የማይባሉ ፈተናዎችን አልፌ በመሥራቴ በጣም ደስተኛ ነን» ያሉት አቶ አወቀ፤ መንግሥት 'ሁሌም ከጐናችሁ ነኝ' ከማለትም ሌላ በተግባር በርካታ ድጋፎችን በማድረጉ አሁንም የስኬት ጉዞዬን አጠናክራለሁ ሲሉ ሀሳባቸውን አጋርተውናል።
ቀደም ሲል ይሠሩ የነበረበትን ዘርፍ በመለወጥ ወደ ግብርናው ለመግባት የ14 ሚሊዮን ብር ፕሮጀክት መንደፋቸውን ገልጸው፤ በተለይ ከብት አደልበው ወደ ውጭ ሀገር ለመላክ በተጓዳኝም ሌሎች ሥራዎችን ለመሥራት መዘጋጀታቸውን ነው ያብራሩት።
እንደ እርሳቸው አነጋገር የመመረቃቸው ፋይዳ ብዙ ነው። ጥቃቅንና አነስተኛ ኢንተርፕራይዝ ተቋም ከተወሰነ ጣሪያ በላይ ለመንቀሳቀስ ሕጉ አይፈቅድም። አሁን ግን ከምረቃው በኋላ በተሰጣቸው እውቅና የተሻለ ነገር ለመሥራት ያስችላቸዋል። «ኢንቨስትመንት ውስጥ መግባት በራሱ ቀላል ነገር አይደለም። ይሁንና ያለፈውን ውጣ ውረድ ያለፍኩበትን ጥበብና ትጋት እንደ ተሞክሮ በመውሰድ በቀጣይም የተሻለ ነገር ለመሥራት በግንባር ቀደምትነት ለመንቀሳቀስ ዝግጁ ነን» ብለዋል።
ራዕይ ቅዱስ ሚካኤል ኮንስትራክሽን ኢንተርፕራይዝ ከአንድ ነጥብ ስድስት ሚሊዮን ብር በላይ ካፒታል እንዳለው የሚናገሩት ሊቀመንበሩ አቶ ሰለሞን ንጉሴ ናቸው። በ1997 ዓ.ም የተቋቋመው ኢንተርፕራይዛቸው የተሰማራበት ዘርፍ በእንጨትና ብረታ ብረታ እንደሆነ አመልክተው፤ የሚያመርተውም እንደ ብሎኬትና ፕሪካስት ዓይነት ምርቶች እንደሆነ ጠቁመዋል።
ሥራውን ሲጀምሩ በሁለት ሺ ብር እንደሆነ የሚያስታውሱት ሊቀመንበሩ፤ በአሁኑ ወቅት ከ30 የማያንሱ ሠራተኞች የሥራ አድል እንደተፈጠረላቸው ይናገራሉ። ከእነዚህ መካከል አምስቱ ቋሚ ሠራተኞች ናቸው ብለዋል።
ሊቀመንበሩ የወደፊት እቅዳቸውን ሲገልጹ ያሉበትን ዘርፍ በማጠናከር ዝግጅታቸውን አጠናቀዋል። በተለይ ትልልቅ ፋብሪካዎችን ለመገንባት አቅደዋል።
«ማንኛውም ሥራ ፈላጊ ሰው ሥራ ሳያማርጥ መሥራት አለበት» የሚል እምነት እንዳላቸው አቶ ሰለሞን ገልጸው፤ ሥራ ማማረጥ ግን የቀረ አሊያም የኋላቀርነት መገለጫ አድርገው እንደሚወስዱ ነው የተናገሩት።
በዕለቱ ወደ መካከለኛ ኢንዱስትሪ የተሸጋገሩትን ኢንተርፕራይዞች የመረቋቸው የኢፌዴሪ ጠቅላይ ሚኒስትር አቶ መለስ ዜናዊ ሲሆኑ፤ በዘርፉ የተማረ የሰው ኃይል በተለይም ከከፍተኛ የትምህርት ተቋም ተመርቀው የሚወጡ ወጣቶች እንዲሁም ሴቶች ሊሳተፉበት ይገባል ሲሉ ነው ያስገነዘቡት።
ለዘርፉ የተሻለ አመለካከት ያላቸው የልማት ጉዞአቸው ስኬታማ ሆኖ እነሆ ሰሞኑን ለመሸለም እና ለመመረቅ በቅተዋል፡፡ ከአዲስ አበባ አነስተኛና ጥቃቅንና ኢንተርፕራዝ ልማት ኤጀንሲው በተገኘ መረጃ መሠረት ከ20 ሺ ጥቃቅንና አነስተኛ ኢንተርፕራይዝ መካከል 400 ያህሉ ከ200 ሺ ብር በላይ ካፒታል በማስመዝገባቸው የተሸለሙ ሲሆን፤ ከአንድ ነጥብ አምስት ሚሊዮን እስከ 20 ሚሊዮን ብር ካፒታል ያስመዘገቡ ደግሞ ተመርቀው ወደ መካከለኛ ኢንዱስትሪ በመሸጋገራቸው ልማታዊ ባለ ሀብት ተፈጥሯል።

source..http://www.ethpress.gov.et/ethpress/main/news.php?newsLocation=home&newsInstruction=headline&newsId=2680

Platinum Exports Earn Ethiopia Unplanned $10,965

Yubdo Gold & Platinum (Yubdo Platinum), a United Kingdom (UK) based company, was the sole platinum miner in Ethiopia. The small-scale operation annually produced an average of 2.8kg from western Ethiopia at a site located 460km from the capital in Oromia Regional State.
“The company exported only 12kg of platinum during three years of operation, so it pulled out,” Tamrat explained.
This left the site, from which individuals have been obtaining the platinum, open. However, the area has since been cordoned off, pending an investigation by the ministry into how best to extract it.
“If it is found that traditional methods can be used to extract the platinum, we will establish mining associations,” Tamrat said. “Otherwise, the ministry plans to use mechanised mining methods to extract it.”  
While there are no associations extracting platinum, there are more than150 engaged in mining gold.

The ministry has sold 5,815kg of gold worth of 4.1 billion Br to National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) over the past 10 months, more than the 3,616kg it initially planned to sell for the year.

With 2,045kg, 1,517kg, and 1,127kg, Oromia, Tigray, and Benishangul-Gumuz regional states were the top gold producers, respec over the past 10 months. Gold is also mined in Gambella, Southern, and Amhara regional states.

 

 
During the first six months of the fiscal year, MoM sold 3,942.2kg of gold to NBE, while it had planned to sell 2,703.3kg. As a result, it revised its annual plan in March 2011 to sell 4,606kg, an increase of 990kg that has already been achieved.

“The performance of the ministry was positively affected by the rise in the international price of gold, which encouraged people to engage in gold extraction,” Tamrat told Fortune.

The global average price of an ounce of gold was 1,478.30 dollars in 2010 while it stood at 1,510.90 dollars on Friday, May 20, 2011.

The rise in the international price is attributed by an economic expert to investors putting their money in assets other than the dollar.

Gold is Ethiopia’s third largest export commodity after coffee and oil seeds.

A total of 281 million dollars worth of gold was exported to Switzerland and South Africa, the only importers of Ethiopia’s gold, in 2009/10, according to research conducted by Access Capital. Out of the total, Switzerland imported 211.2 million dollars, the research showed.

The purchase of gold by Swiss banks in line with a worldwide pattern in gold trade between commercial or central banks that has contributed to the increase in gold exports, according to the expert.

The government plans to increase its gold exports from 3,907kg in 2009/10 to 8,700kg in five years’ time, an increment of 122pc.

For the past two years, NBE has been adding five per cent to the international market price when buying gold from miners in order to discourage its sale on the black market, according to Tamrat.

An independent unit responsible for gold transactions was also established in September 2010.

MoM used to perform geological tests on the metal produced for sale by miners to determine its authenticity. However, following the scandal in 2008 when the central bank bought alleged fake gold for 158 million Br, the bank started conducting the tests itself.

This decreased fraud and contributed to the ministry’s increased performance, according to Tamrat.

The hearing of a group of individuals charged by the Federal Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (FEAC) for the sale is being heard by the Federal High Court, First Criminal Bench. Among the accused are four brothers: Kaf Mohammed, owner of Sofam Fashion; Sultan Mohammed, owner of Day & Night Multichoice Boutique; Fuad Mohammed, owner of WOW Fashion; and Nuredin Mohammed, owner of Nur Building.

Aside from gold, the ministry also exported precious stones and tantalum that, along with the platinum, amounted to two billion Birr over the past 10 months. It had initially aimed to export 7,315kg of precious stones and 105tn of tantalum this year.

During the first six months, it exported precious stones and tantalum worth 171.7 million dollars. While MoM had planned on 3,104kg and 43tn, it exported 6312.4kg and 85.6tn of precious stones and tantalum, respectively.

All the minerals were extracted using traditional mining methods. Like platinum, tantalum is extracted only in Oromia Regional State, while precious stones is mined in Amhara, Oromia, and Somali regional states.


(source...ADDISFORTUNE.com)

Corporation exceeds year’s goal of 3.9bn Br in revenues from sugar sales

State’s Sugar Earns 4.1bn Br in Nine Months
The Ethiopian Sugar Corporation (ESC) earned 4.1 billion Br from the sale of 314,946tn of sugar over the past nine months, exceeding its goal of 3.9 billion Br in revenues. The corporation’s ethanol sales reached 48 million Br, up from 8.5 million Br projected in September 2010.
However, the industry suffers from inefficiency and improper budgeting, according to Abay Tsehaye, director general of the corporation, who unveiled plans to revamp Ethiopia’s fledgling sugar industry to Parliament’s standing committee on industry affairs on May 11, 2011.
“For the past five years, project study designs, budget allocations, recruitment of manpower to open project offices, and the onsite execution of projects have stayed the same, with little or no progress,” Abay told the standing committee.
Wonji Shoa, Metahara, and Finchaa Sugar Factory, the country’s operational state owned sugar factories, have an annual production capacity of 2.8 million quintals.

In a bid to meet sugar shortages in the local market, the government imported 130,000tn of sugar last year and plans to import 80,000tn this fiscal year.
(source..Addisfortune.com)

The implementation of reforms and poor budgeting had delayed the corporation’s progress, but with a little time Ethiopia could meet its five-year sugar development goals, Abay claimed.

Ethiopia plans to have 2.5pc of the world’s sugar market in five years.

The strategic plan envisions building eight new sugar factories in the set period. At the start of production, these will have an aggregate annual production of 2.2 million tonnes, according to the GTP.

In July 2007, India and Ethiopia agreed on a 640 million dollar credit line for the construction of Tendaho Sugar Factory.

Tendaho and the expansion of existing factories were singled out by Abay, who was appointed as head of the corporation at its establishment in September 2010, for having shown little progress.

“The projects have shown retarded progress coupled with wastages in the budget,” he said. “Several complex land rights issues between pastoralists and the regional authorities at the Tendaho and Wolenchiti sites have remained unresolved. The delays in the projects have not only created unnecessary expenditures but also losses in potential revenues that could have been earned had they been operational.”

The corporation has finalised assessments on the shortcomings of the sector and proposed modernising measures to raise productivity and efficiency, the director general, who is a minister without a portfolio, told the committee in his two-hour report.

A revamp of the sector’s manpower is essential and appointments must be made on competency, according to Abay. He also proposed the implementation of fast tracked business process reengineering (BPR) supported with constant training to help improve the state of affairs in the sector.

It was for this reason that factory workers were refused the salary increment they requested.

“We sat down with the labour unions and discussed why the time for that is not now, and why it is not necessary,” Abay said. “When we have achieved something and are more competent, we will provide what is required.”

The rise in prices of fuel, spare parts, cement, and fertilisers made a dent in the sector’s budget, while wastages also presented a problem to the sector’s overall performance, according to the report.

The very existence of the factories has been threatened by increasing production costs and the necessity to employ excessive manpower, Abay claimed.

“Consolidation is in progress,” said Dereje Gutema, deputy director of planning at the ESC. “The corporation views potential for growth as evidence of the long-term attractiveness of this sector in Ethiopia. If we are going to become global players, we must lower production costs and boost production capacity.”

Ethiopian MoM(Ministry Of Mines) sells 4.1 billion Br of gold in 10 months, more than 4,606kg planned for year

Platinum Exports Earn Country Unplanned $10,965
The Ministry of Mines (MoM) earned 10,965 dollars from the export of 640 grams of platinum over the past 10 months, the extraction of which was unplanned. “There is no one engaged in formal platinum extraction in Ethiopia,” Tamrat Mojo, head of traditional mines manufacturing and transactions at MoM, told Fortune. “As a result, we did not expect to export any.”
The platinum was obtained from individuals who used traditional mining methods to extract the metal.
“The platinum was not extracted with modern mining techniques,” Tamrat said. “As a result, it was not washed as well as it would be with machines, causing it to fetch a lower price than it otherwise might have.”

Yubdo Gold & Platinum (Yubdo Platinum), a United Kingdom (UK) based company, was the sole platinum miner in Ethiopia. The small-scale operation annually produced an average of 2.8kg from western Ethiopia at a site located 460km from the capital in Oromia Regional State.

“The company exported only 12kg of platinum during three years of operation, so it pulled out,” Tamrat explained.

This left the site, from which individuals have been obtaining the platinum, open. However, the area has since been cordoned off, pending an investigation by the ministry into how best to extract it.

“If it is found that traditional methods can be used to extract the platinum, we will establish mining associations,” Tamrat said. “Otherwise, the ministry plans to use mechanised mining methods to extract it.”  

While there are no associations extracting platinum, there are more than150 engaged in mining gold.

The ministry has sold 5,815kg of gold worth of 4.1 billion Br to National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) over the past 10 months, more than the 3,616kg it initially planned to sell for the year.

With 2,045kg, 1,517kg, and 1,127kg, Oromia, Tigray, and Benishangul-Gumuz regional states were the top gold producers, respec over the past 10 months. Gold is also mined in Gambella, Southern, and Amhara regional states.

 

 
During the first six months of the fiscal year, MoM sold 3,942.2kg of gold to NBE, while it had planned to sell 2,703.3kg. As a result, it revised its annual plan in March 2011 to sell 4,606kg, an increase of 990kg that has already been achieved.

“The performance of the ministry was positively affected by the rise in the international price of gold, which encouraged people to engage in gold extraction,” Tamrat told Fortune.

The global average price of an ounce of gold was 1,478.30 dollars in 2010 while it stood at 1,510.90 dollars on Friday, May 20, 2011.

The rise in the international price is attributed by an economic expert to investors putting their money in assets other than the dollar.

Gold is Ethiopia’s third largest export commodity after coffee and oil seeds.

A total of 281 million dollars worth of gold was exported to Switzerland and South Africa, the only importers of Ethiopia’s gold, in 2009/10, according to research conducted by Access Capital. Out of the total, Switzerland imported 211.2 million dollars, the research showed.

The purchase of gold by Swiss banks in line with a worldwide pattern in gold trade between commercial or central banks that has contributed to the increase in gold exports, according to the expert.

The government plans to increase its gold exports from 3,907kg in 2009/10 to 8,700kg in five years’ time, an increment of 122pc.

For the past two years, NBE has been adding five per cent to the international market price when buying gold from miners in order to discourage its sale on the black market, according to Tamrat.

An independent unit responsible for gold transactions was also established in September 2010.

MoM used to perform geological tests on the metal produced for sale by miners to determine its authenticity. However, following the scandal in 2008 when the central bank bought alleged fake gold for 158 million Br, the bank started conducting the tests itself.

This decreased fraud and contributed to the ministry’s increased performance, according to Tamrat.

The hearing of a group of individuals charged by the Federal Ethics and Anti-corruption Commission (FEAC) for the sale is being heard by the Federal High Court, First Criminal Bench. Among the accused are four brothers: Kaf Mohammed, owner of Sofam Fashion; Sultan Mohammed, owner of Day & Night Multichoice Boutique; Fuad Mohammed, owner of WOW Fashion; and Nuredin Mohammed, owner of Nur Building.

Aside from gold, the ministry also exported precious stones and tantalum that, along with the platinum, amounted to two billion Birr over the past 10 months. It had initially aimed to export 7,315kg of precious stones and 105tn of tantalum this year.

During the first six months, it exported precious stones and tantalum worth 171.7 million dollars. While MoM had planned on 3,104kg and 43tn, it exported 6312.4kg and 85.6tn of precious stones and tantalum, respectively.

All the minerals were extracted using traditional mining methods. Like platinum, tantalum is extracted only in Oromia Regional State, while precious stones is mined in Amhara, Oromia, and Somali regional states.

By MAHLET MESFIN
FORTUNE STAFF WRITER

 

Eritrea opposes South Sudan, Kenya may recognize Somaliland

Addis Ababa, May 23, 2011 (WIC) - The Somaliland Press claims that Kenya is preparing to recognize Somaliland’s independence, which would create another new country in the horn of Africa.
 “Kenyan Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs Richard Onyonka said during an event held in Nairobi to commemorate Somaliland’s 20th anniversary of Independence that his country will support Somaliland as an independent state” reported Somaliland Press and Iran's Press TV. Kenyans who have called for their government to recognize Hargeisa argue that Somaliland would help stabilize the region and stop Somalia’s expansionism dreams into Kenya and into Ethiopia’s eastern regions with Somali ethnic populations. Since Somaliland’s ally Ethiopia cannot become the first African country to recognize Somaliland, analysts have often maintained that Kenya and Uganda will be the first nations to officially acknowledge Somaliland as a sovereign country.
 
Meanwhile, sources in Ethiopia claim that Eritrea’s President Isaias Afewerki is gathering anti-SouthSudan forces together even before South Sudan officially becomes a country. The Juba government in South Sudan will form an independent state on July 9, 2011 which will create the youngest country in Africa. However, Eritrea wants to remain the youngest country in Africa. President Isaias often justifies not having elections in Asmara and the lack of economic progress in Eritrea with the pretext that Eritrea is still the youngest country.
 
According to the source, Eritrean President Isaias Afawerki has a unique foreign policy of collecting anti-government forces from countries in the horn of Africa (Somalia, Ethiopia, Djibouti, South Sudan, Somaliland and Sudan) in order to be relevant and have influence in the region. By creating instability inside its neighbors, the Eritrean government often uses its ability to mediate negotiations to restore stability among its neighbors as a leverage in its foreign relations with countries in the horn of Africa. Eritrea wants to have leverage against the new Juba government since South Sudan has a long border with Ethiopia that can be used to infiltrate opponents of the Addis Ababa government.
 
Since it became a country, Eritrea has been involved in conflicts with Djibouti, Ethiopia, Yemen, Sudan and in Somalia.
 
(waltainfo.com)

Ethiopia seeks more investment from India

Addis Ababa, May 23 (WIC) – Hailemariam Desalegn, Deputy Prime Minister and Minster of Foreign Affairs said that Ethiopia seeks more collaboration with India in the areas of ICT and agricultural technologies.
In an exclusive interview with WIC, Hailemariam said that India is best known for its ICT and agricultural technologies for which Ethiopia has a great potential. He said that it will be easy for Indian investors to come to Ethiopia due to the deep rooted people to people relation between the two countries.
“We have a long history of getting along with each other,” Hailemariam said. “If we counterpart with India, it will be easy for us to come out in the world economy,” Hailemariam told WIC.

According to the Ministry of Trade (MoT), in recent years total trade exchange between Ethiopia and India has shown a 21 percent increase in average per annum while imports from India has shown an increase of 22 percent. India’s overall investment in Africa has also reached 33 billion dollars.

“Africa is becoming stable and democracy is flourishing in many African countries,” Hailemariam said. “Emerging powers such as India and China are aware they can harness Africa’s comparative advantage in untapped natural resources and young cheap labor”.

According to Hailemariam, compared to Europe and America, who were hardly hit by the financial crisis, the emerging powers with their strong saving culture, have enough money to come and invest in Africa.

Admitting that Ethiopia has not attracted European investors as much as it should, the deputy prime minister underscored the importance of promoting investment opportunities in Ethiopia to European and North American countries.

With such objective in mind the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the British Embassy in Ethiopia and Wafa Marketing and Promotion Plc, are finalizing preparations to organize Ethio-UK Investment Forum in London in June 2011.

“We need to diversify the investment in our country,” Hailemariam said. “We have to go to Europe and North America and attract FDI from those areas”.

With a view to harnessing Ethiopia’s investment potential, Hailemariam said that his government is working to modernize the overall working system.

“We are working to make the bureaucratic bottleneck easier for investors,” Hailemariam told WIC.

Source..(waltainfo.com)

PM arrives in Addis Ababa for Africa-India Forum Summit

Addis Ababa, May 23, 2011 (WIC):  Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today arrived Ethiopia for the second India-Africa Forum Summit and  a six-day visit to Ethiopia and Tanzania to step up bilateral ties.
 Singh will co-chair the Summit with the President of Equatorial Guinea, Obiang Nguema Mbasogo in his current capacity as chairperson of the AU. The leaders will discuss significant aspects of the India-Africa partnership with the objective of enhancing and widening its ambit for mutual benefit. The Summit is expected to come out with the Addis Ababa Declaration setting out the roadmap for further consolidating the strategic partnership between India and the African Union. An Africa-India Framework for Enhanced Cooperation will also be firmed up at the Summit.
 
In his departure statement in New Delhi , Singh said that the India-Africa partnership rests on three pillars of capacity building and skill transfer, trade and infrastructure development.
 
"It (India-Africa Forum) is designed to respond to the needs and priorities of Africa and for India to learn from Africa's rich experience. It is based on equality, mutual trust and a consultative and transparent approach. It is a living embodiment of South-South cooperation," he said.
 
The Second Africa-India Forum Summit here will be a landmark event that will for the first time bring together a large gathering of African leaders to meet with India on African soil.
 
"Today, both Africa and India are on the move. Africa is emerging as a new growth pole of the world, while India is on a path of sustained and rapid economic development.
 
Relations between India and Africa are marked by strong people-to-people interaction and a deep sense of solidarity and goodwill.
 
On Tanzania, he said India has excellent political and economic relations with them, which date back to the days of Julius Nyerere and the Nonaligned Movement.
 
"Our cooperation has expanded in recent years in diverse sectors. We wish to enhance the substance of this partnership in consonance with the developmental priorities of Tanzania. I look forward to my discussions with President Jakaya Kikwete to this end," he said. (economictimes.indiatimes.com).

President Isaias rejects independence for South Sudan

Sunday, 22 May 2011-In its May 20, 2011 “A Week in the Horn” report, Ministry of Foreign Affaiers raised issues on The 2nd India Africa Forum Summit opens next week, The Fourth UN Conference on Least Developed Countries, Somalia: The continued split in the TFIs, AUHIP hosts another round of Sudan talks, President Isaias rejects independence for South Sudan and A Sudanese delegation looks at Ethiopia’s poverty reduction strategies.. Read more.. http://www.waltainfo.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=26794&Itemid=143

PM Meles pledges support to SMEs

Addis Ababa, May 22 (WIC) – Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said that the government would extend its support to small and micro enterprises (SMEs). Some 250 enterprises whose capital exceeded from 1.5 million birr were transferred to medium-scale industries at a ceremony held at the Prime Minister’s office on Friday, May 21, 2011.
 Prime Minister Meles on the occasion said that the government would continue to support SMEs as they are engine of economic growth and employment creation. "The government would also provide all-round supports that match with their levels to those enterprises advanced to medium-scale industry today," he said.
 In addition to creating immense job opportunities, SMEs are foundation for big industries and development investors, the primer said, adding “the enterprises advanced to medium-scale companies today are witnesses for this.”
 
Our country’s economic growth expedited not only by attracting forging investors or by some Ethiopians who accumulated wealth but also by those thousands and millions of citizens who are ready to engage in various work sectors and generate wealth, he said.
 
The economic growth of the country would be more sustainable if graduates of universities and technical and vocational colleges organize themselves and engage in small and micro enterprises (SMEs) rather than waiting for job opportunities, he said.
 
PM Meles finally called on the youth to engage in small and micro enterprises (SMEs).
 
Mayor of Addis Ababa City, Kuma Demekssa, on his part said that the outcomes attained in SMEs sectors are the direct results of the developmental and democratic nature of the Ethiopian government.
 
“Today is a unique day as it coincided with the implementation of the five-year Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP), the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and the 20th founding anniversary of May 28,” he said.
 
Some 180 model enterprises whose capital surpassed from 500,000 birr were also awarded medals on the occasion.
Source..waltainfo.com

Citadel Capital Gains After Unit Finds Gold in Ethiopia

Bloomberg- May 21, 2011 Citadel Capital SAE gained the most on record after one of the units of the Egyptian private equity company said it found gold in a concession in Ethiopia. The shares rose 5.7 percent, the most since they were listed in December 2009, to 4.84 Egyptian pounds at the 2:30 p.m. close in Cairo. That valued the company at 3.2 billion pounds ($538 million).
Asec Co. for Mining said it found evidence of the existence of gold near the surface in an area where it has exploration rights in Ethiopia. The company said it completed the first phase of drilling in the area and plans to start the second phase in July and the third phase in the third quarter.To contact the reporter on this story: Ahmed A Namatalla in Cairo at anamatalla@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Maedler at cmaedler@bloomberg.net

Telecom played vital role for Ethiopia’s overall development: Ethio Telecom

Addis Ababa, May 21 (WIC) – The telecommunication sector has played a vital role in the political, economic and social achievements of the country over the past two decades, Ethio Telecom (ET) said. 
External Communications Manager at ET, Abdurahim Ahmed said that due to the special attention accorded to the sector by the government, the telecom service has expanded to a wide range of services and customers. 
In the past two decades the telecom sector has registered a steady growth in terms of the service provided, network capacity and number of customers, the external communications manager said.
 
In 1991 fixed line subscribers stood at 6,700. At the moment, it stands just below the million mark.
 
“Since the introduction of the mobile phone service, the growth of the fixed line subscribers is limited,” Abdurahim told WIC in an exclusive interview. “In the next five years, we plan to pass the million mark”.
 
Internet and Mobile phone services were introduced to Ethiopia in 1997 and 1999, respectively. At the time, the number of internet subscribers was 1,042 while mobile phone service, which originally had a network capacity to accommodate 36,000 dial-up subscribers, registered 6,700 customers.
 
“Now, mobile phone subscribers has reached 9.5 million and the network capacity stands at 20 million subscribers,” Abdurahim said. “By the end of the previous budget year, internet subscribers have reached 68,000”.
 
The telecom sector had also launched the School-net, Wereda-net, and Agri-net projects with a view to assisting education, agriculture and good governance sectors, respectively.
 
According to Abdurahim, 684 senior secondary schools under the School-net project, 631 Weredas under the Wereda-net project and 49 agricultural institutes under the Agri-net project are connected with V-Sat technology.
 
The external communication manager said that under the rural connectivity project, all weredas are now connected with digital telephone services.
 
He said that a project which was launched to connect all Kebeles through wireless technology will be completed by the end of this fiscal year.
 
“We have, so far, connected more than 11,000 Kebeles with this technology,” Abdurahim told WIC. 

Sudan, Ethiopia to boost cooperation in domains of da'wa

Addis Ababa, May 19 (WIC) - State Minister at Sudan’s Ministry of Guidance and Endowments Khalil Abdullah reviewed with a visiting Ethiopian delegation headed by the Chairman of the Higher Council for Islamic Affairs in Ethiopia Sheikh Ahmadadin Sheikh Abdullah means of boosting joint cooperation between the Sudan and Ethiopia in domains of Hajj, Umra , Endowments, Propagators and pertinent issues. 
The Minister welcomed the visit of the Ethiopian delegation and affirmed Sudan's readiness to cooperate and exchange expertise with the Higher Council for Islamic Affairs in Ethiopia, Sudan News Agency reported. 
Director of the Department of International and Public Relations at the Ministry of Guidance and Endowments, Al-Fatih Mukhtar, said the meeting stressed the need to enhance cooperation between the two sides in domains of Hajj, Ummrah, Endowments, propagation and Training.
Mukhtar added that the Ethiopian delegation will meet with officials at the Higher Council for Islamic Affairs, Endowment Authority, Hajj and Ummrah Administration.   

Source..Waltainfo.com

Dr. Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India, will hold first-ever bilateral visit to Ethiopia, Vivek Katju, Secretary (West), announced.

Addis Ababa, May 19 (WIC) – Briefing journalists yesterday, the secretary said that Prime Minister Singh, who will visit Ethiopia to take part on the Second Africa-India Forum Summit (May 24 to 25), will hold bilateral discussions with Ethiopia on May 25 and 26.
“This will be the first-ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to this country,” Katju told journalists.
The secretary said the Prime Minister will hold discussions with Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and address the Ethiopian Parliament. According to Katju, the two leaders are expected to sign an agreement which will avoid double taxation, apart from strengthening bilateral ties.

During the past two decades, the Ethiopian Investment Agency has approved Indian investment of around 4.5 billion dollars. Agriculture and floriculture, engineering, plastics, manufacturing, cotton and textiles, pharmaceuticals, healthcare and ICT are the areas in which Indian companies have been investing in Ethiopia.

“India is a partner in Ethiopia’s development process and has extended Lines of Credits amounting to around 700 million dollars,” Katju said. “A large part of this credit is committed to the development of the sugar industry in Ethiopia”.

Fifteen African countries, selected by the African Union, are expected to participate in the Second Africa-India Forum Summit, which will be held in Addis Ababa from May 23 to 26. These countries include Algeria, Burundi, Chad, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Kenya, Libya, Malawi, Namibia, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Swaziland and the host country Ethiopia.

“The choice of the countries is decided by the AU on the basis of the Banjul format adopted by the AU for the participation of African countries in Summits like this,” the Secretary said.

The Summit will give due emphasis on ways of increasing the level of Trade and Investment between India and Africa. According to the Secretary, the bilateral trade between India and Africa has reached 48 billion dollars and India hope to reach a target of 70 billion dollars by 2015.
source..waltainfo.com

Samsung to open electronics engineering academy in Ethiopia

Sunday, 15 May 2011-Addis Ababa, May 14 (WIC) - Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd, the South Korean electronics manufacturer, is planning to set up an electronics engineering academy in Ethiopia. George Ferriera, Samsung Electronics Africa, Chief Operating Officer (COO), said that the company plans to open up the engineering academy in Addis Ababa with an estimated cost of 1.5 million dollars.
The company opened the first electronics engineering academy in Africa at Boksburg, South Africa, in March 2011. The academy, which is equipped with electronics engineering lab, provides practical trainings to students from Grade 10 to 12 drawn from schools chosen by the company.According to the COO, the academy planned to be opened in Ethiopia will be similar to the one built in South Africa with a view to boosting local technical and engineering skills.
 
“The students will have practical access to the latest notebooks, tablet PCs and electronic boards to use and work on,” George Ferriera said. “They will have a place to eat and drink with transportation facilities provided”.
 
The company, which intends to have 10,000 electronic engineers in Africa by 2015, has also plans to set up assembly plants in different parts of Africa, including Ethiopia, Sudan, South Africa, Nigeria and Senegal.
 
“We are currently busy with feasibility studies to set up assembly plants for home appliances,” Ferriera said. “If we do so much business in Africa, we can do much investment in the continent”.
 
With an estimated cost of 300,000 dollars, the company recently also erected a clock tower on Teklehaimanot square, few blocks from the head office of its local distributor.
 
In its 2010 performance, Samsung registered a company record of 1.23 billion dollars revenues from its operations in Africa, a 31 percent growth from the previous year.
 
With a market share of 22 percent in consumer electronic products in Africa, as opposed to Nokia’s 54 percent in 2009, Samsung aims to generate 10 billion dollars in annual revenue from Africa by 2015.
 
“This year’s plan is to grow by 60 percent, which will effectively put us on par with Nokia,” Ferriera said.

Egypt approves of Ethiopia’s Renaissance Dam in principle and will buy Electric!!

Sun 5/15/2011-Egypt has in principle approved the Renaissance Dam that Ethiopia intends to build on its borders with Sudan this year, according to an official source.The source added that Prime Minister Essam Sharf and his Ethiopian counterpart have agreed that an Egyptian technical committee examine the blueprints of the dam, so as to determine whether it would adversely affect Egypt’s Nile water quota, and that Egypt might participate in the construction of the dam, which is expected to cost around US$4.7 billion.

An agreement has also been reached by which Egypt and Sudan will buy electricity from Ethiopia’s power station in Mendaya, which has the capacity to provide 1200 megawatts to Sudan and another 2000 to Egypt. A related agreement allows for Egypt to import a large number of Ethiopian livestock.

“More than 30 Egyptian companies have already asked to import meat from Ethiopia due to its high quality and low price,” said Ayman Eissa, head of the Egyptian-Ethiopian Business Council.

He added that Egypt aims to link its economic development to that of Ethiopia, in order to avoid unilateral projects that would harm the interest of either countries.

(Source Almasryalyoum.com)

Ethiopia to participate in the Indian-African Summit!!!

Agenda being set for India-Africa Summit in Addis Ababa
Wednesday, 11 May 2011
Addis Ababa, May 11 (WIC) -A two-day India-Africa seminar kicks off here Wednesday ahead of the second India Africa Forum Summit to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the Ethiopian capital later this month to step up ties between the two regions that account for 40 percent of humanity.
 
The seminar has been organised by the Indian Council for World Affairs (ICWA) with support from its counterpart here, the Ethiopian International Institute for Peace and Development, under "Track-II Diplomacy" initiative of India's ministry of external affairs.
 
"This the first of the seminars we are hosting, ahead of the India-Africa Summit which our prime minister is inaugurating. The outcomes and suggestions will be taken up at the larger level," said ICWA Director General Sudhir T. Devare.
 
"The focus remains how India-Africa partnership can be mutually beneficial for the overall development and growth," Devare, who is also among the key speakers at the seminar, told IANS.
 
The organisers said the seminar was also in the nature of an academic conference with expert speakers drawn from areas such as strategic affairs, banking, gender issues, finance, policy, education, foreign relations and history.
Key speakers include the African Union Deputy Chairman Erastus J.O. Mawencha, Ethiopian Education Minister Demeke Mekonnen and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Ambassador Berhane Gebrekirstos, and National Maritime Foundation Director C. Uday Bhaskar.
 
The seminar, ICWA said in a concept note, will focus on five key areas: Economic development, capacity building in terms of human resources, gender mainstreaming, diaspora resource and non-traditional security.
 
In terms of the two-million-strong Indian diaspora in Africa, the note said India has not been able to convert it into a resource and the same holds true for African nations. The speakers will seek to find answers to this issue.
 
The seminar comes at a time when India's bilateral trade with Africa crossed the 50-billion USD mark last year, and Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Shaerma has set a target of 70 billion USD by 2012.
 
In economic partnership, one of the main topics of discussion will be how the Indian private and public sector companies can contribute to the infrastructure needs of Africa both with technology and funds.
 
Addis Ababa is the seat of the African Union.
Last Updated ( Wednesday, 11 May 2011 )
 source waltainfo.com

Large-scale Technology is at Heart of Economic Structural Transformation in Ethiopia

Tsegaye Tegenu, May 14, 2011

In the European history, large scale technologies have played central role in the structural transformation the economy and society. The introduction of threshing machine, iron plows, seed drills and other important tools in the 18th century could increase the scale in agriculture. In the industrial sector, the technologies of the industrial revolution related to textile, iron production, mining, and steam power have led to an increase in the scale of production. Much later on, during the time of the second industrial revolution the introduction of new technologies such as steel, concrete, chemicals, paper and internal combustion engines led to even larger scales of efficient production. The introduction of influential technologies both in the agriculture and manufacturing sectors increased the scale of production and required large capital investment.

Egyptian PM Essam Sharaf said Egypt is not against Renaissance Dam

Addis Ababa, May 14, 2011(WIC) – The Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf said that Egypt won’t stand against the building of the Ethiopian Grand Renaissance Dam.
 
In his discussion with Ethiopian Premier H.E Meles Zenawi on Friday, Essam Sharaf  he stressed that Egypt will cooperate with Ethiopia  and it sets to play a positive role on fair utilization of the  Nile River.
 
According to the premier, Egypt is not against the dam project that Ethiopia has initiated on the Nile, adding that move taken by Egypt’s former leaders to prevent Ethiopia from getting support for its Nile-related projects was flawed.
 
Meles for his part reassured Mr. Sharaf of Ethiopia’s readiness as it used to be to work in partnership with Egypt.
source Waltinfo.com

Egyptian PM arrives in Addis for a two-day official visit

Egyptian PM arrives in Addis for a two-day official visit

Friday, 13 May 2011

Addis Ababa, May 13 (WIC) – Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf arrived here in Addis Ababa yesterday for a two-day official visit and to discuss on ways of strengthening ties with Ethiopia.
 
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hailemariam Desalegn welcomed Prime Minister Sharaf at Bole International Airport.
 
Sharaf will meet Prime Minister Meles Zenawi and President Girma Woldegiorgis during his two-day stay here beginning today.
 
Sharaf has been Prime Minister of Egypt since March 2011.
 
A 48-member Egyptian Public Diplomacy Delegation visited Ethiopia last month.
Last Updated ( Friday, 13 May 2011 )

(Waltainfo.com)

NATO intercepts Eritrea military cargo

Addis Ababa, May 11 (WIC) - Western military alliance NATO has captured a consignment of weapons destined for Eritrea, UN reports.



The ship carrying the heavy weapons was captured in the Indian Ocean.



The consignment intercepted includes 15 tons of heavy weapons shipped from North Korea.



UN imposed sanctions and arms embargo against Eritrea for an alleged involvement in training and supplying weapons to Somali Islamic rebels.



According to the UN monitoring group report, NATO forces captured 15 tonnes of rockets, surface to air missiles and explosives worth 15 million USD on the ship, which had sailed to Singapore to evade North Korean Port of Origin.

source..waltainfo.com

Stratex plans to expand in Ethiopia on promising gold finds

May 7 (WIC) - Gold exploration company Stratex International said on Friday it was actively exploring its firstmover land position in the Afar region in Ethiopia and Djibouti.

The junior has already made gold discoveries, such as Blackrock and Megenta, in the Afar region.

Stratex had identified a total of 14 km outcropping epithermal veins at Blackrock where recent rock-chip samples returned grades of up to 60, 4 g/t gold from the Black Water zone.

“It is our intention to continue to build our land position in the region and to implement defined exploration programmes to advance our discoveries through the resource development cycle and in turn prove the economic potential of our East African assets,” said chairperson Christopher Hall in the company’s annual general meeting statement.

Stratex had signed an agreement with South Africa’s AngloGold Ashanti joint-venture company Thani Ashanti to fast-track development of its first 11 prospects identified within the Afar region.

Thani Ashanti can earn 51% of the Afar project by spending $3-million on exploration and development over two years.

Drilling would also start within the week at Stratex’s other significant discovery in the region, Megenta.

Meanwhile, Hall said that the company’s Turkish portfolio with its advanced gold exploration projects and defined Joint Ore Reserves Committee resources of 1,31-million ounces of gold, on a JV-inclusive basis, offered Stratex near-term exposure to development and production.

“Our Inlice and Altıntepe gold projects are presently being advanced by our partner with the aim of gold production in 2012 and 2013 respectively,” said Hall.

Stratex was also fast-tracking three other key exploration targets in Turkey, including Öksüt, Hasançelebi and Muratdere.

“At Öksüt, we have already defined an independent Jorc resource of 317 256 oz gold, which we hope will continue to grow with our ongoing drilling programme,” said Hall.
Waltainfo.com

The Netherlands praises Ethio-Dutch trade and investment relations

Thursday, 05 May 2011

Addis Ababa, May 5, 2011(WIC) – The Dutch Embassy in Ethiopia praised the fast growing of trade and investment relations between Ethiopia and the Netherlands since 2004.
 
Ambassador Hans Blankenberg, Dutch ambassador in Ethiopia, told WIC that Ethiopia exports to the Netherlands about 150 million euros and it imports from the Netherlands about half that figure.
 
Ethiopian is the second largest supplier of flowers to the Dutch market, the ambassador remarked, adding that the trade relation has grown considerably due to Dutch’s huge involvement in the horticulture.
 
According to the ambassador, about 300 Dutch or Dutch-affiliated companies with an investment capital of over 5 billion birr are licensed with the Federal Investment Agency.
 
The Dutch investors invest in horticulture, eco-tourism, solar energy, animal feed, poultry, food processing and cosmetics, the ambassador said, adding that the Dutch Government is very keen to promote investment ventures in Ethiopia by sponsoring investment, trade missions `and ‘matchmaking’ activities.
 
According to the ambassador the Netherlands facilitated grants to innovative investments in developing countries in which Ethiopia is one of the highest beneficiaries of this Private Sector Initiative Program.
 
Fifty joint ventures were established in Ethiopia with investing capital of more than 100 million euros in the past six years, he said.
 
Dutch’s effort to promote investments in Ethiopia is not only to promote exports to Dutch’s market but supporting Ethiopia to develop production for other markets, the ambassador remarked.
 
Ethiopia and the Netherlands have long-standing trade relations dating back to the 17th century when the Dutch began importing Ethiopian coffee to Europe.
source Waltainfo.com

Ethiopia will host the next World Economic Forum's Africa meeting a year from now.

Ethiopia will host the next World Economic Forum's Africa meeting a year from now. At a press conference in Cape Town, Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said he is delighted that the WEF - host of a high-level global conference in Davos, Switzerland, each January - has chosen his country for its annual Africa conference. He said all attendees, including journalists, will be welcome.


Matthew Jordaan, www.allafrica.com
The World Economic Forum on Africa 2011 held in Cape Town, South Africa, 4-6 May 2011.
The status of journalists in Ethiopia became an issue at the press conference when a Nairobi-based correspondent said journalists are abused and harassed by the Ethiopian government. He questioned whether opposition parties would be welcome at the conference and asked for guarantees that human rights and freedom of expression would be respected in Ethiopia. The deputy prime minister responded that the questioner's facts were wrong, saying that a distinction must be made between legal opposition and parties affiliated with armed struggle and terrorism. "Ethiopia is an island of stability" in the Horn of Africa, he said, and the rule of law must be observed.

Ethiopia is predicted to have one of the world's fastest growing economies over the next decade. Among the reasons for holding its Africa forum in Addis Ababa, said a WEF spokesperson, are that it is a diplomatic hub - including hosting the African Union, it is extending development to the rural poor, with lessons for the rest of Africa, and it has never been colonized.

NATO Navy Captures Armament-Filled Ship, Bound For Eritrea

A small ship, originating from North Korea and carrying rockets and other armaments destined for Eritrea, was intercepted in the international waters of the Indian Ocean by international navy enforcing sanctions against Eritrea.

There are 15 tons of rockets, surface to air missiles and explosives worth USD $15 million on the ship which had sailed to Singapore to evade North Korean Port of Origin designation.

Forum forecasts Ethiopia to be fastest growing economies over coming five years

Forum forecasts Ethiopia to be fastest growing economies over coming five years

Cape Town, May 5 (WIC) - The World Economic Forum forecasted Ethiopia to be amongst the top 10 fastest growing economies in the world over the coming five years.  
 
Katherine Tweedie, Director, Head of Africa, said at the 21st World Economic Forum on Africa opened at the International Conference Centre in Cape Town on 4, May 2011 that Ethiopia’s economy will grow in a very alarming rate over the coming five years. “Ethiopia’s emerging economic growth is promising. It founded on the full participation of its people. Democratization and multi-political system is growing in the country. Ethiopia had peace full election in 2010 and this is a good experience,” she told WIC.  According to Tweedie, seven of the fastest growing economies in the world in the next five years will be in sub-Saharan Africa, including Ethiopia, Mozambique, Tanzania and Ghana. “A lot of discussion will be held to explore drivers behind this growth at the forum,” she said.  “Africa’s economic growths in recent years have impressed the world. The emerging middle class are contributing to greater economic diversification and a trillion dollar market opportunity in consumer goods and services.”  The three-day meeting will discuss how sub-Saharan Africa can sustain its growth path and become one of the pillars of global growth and demand. To be held under the theme, Shaping Africa’s Role in the New Reality, the meeting will take place against the backdrop of the increasing global recognition of Africa’s growth potential.  "We chose this theme because we feel it is very relevant for the events that are taking place on this continent, and the opportunity for growth and investment that the international and African communities are seeing," Tweedie said.   "Shaping Africa's Role in the New Reality," one of the three thematic pillars of the meeting will explore how Africa can take on a leadership role in the new reality and guard against newly emerging global and regional risks.  Another topic expected to draw much attention is Africa’s inclusive development. In recent years, African decision makers have been looking for ways to attain inclusive development by translating economic growth into better lives for the people.  "Government and Business have a responsibility to ensure that Africa’s wealth creation translates in to widespread inclusive development particularly as it relates to empowering youth" she said.  
"Building Partnership for Inclusive Development," is one of the thematic pillar of participants expected to debate on how can inclusive growth be put at the heart of a sustainable development agenda for Africa, and how can government of African countries work together with the business sector to distribute more equitably the benefits from the wealth in natural resources, among others.

 
The over 900 participants from 60 countries are expected to exchange views on issues including Africa's agriculture development, infrastructure construction, China-Africa cooperation, impact of political situation in North African and the Middle East on Africa’s economic development, among others.

Female Enrollment at Ethiopia's Universities Approaching 50 Pct

By Staff Reporters

May 4, 2011 (Ezega.com) - The latest gender equality index published by World Economic Forum shows that it is still a man’s world in Ethiopia. On the other hand, a new Ministry of Education report indicates that women students are likely to comprise historic 50 percent share in universities in the immediate future. 46.7 percent of new students currently entering Ethiopian universities are women.

According to the latest gender equality index, Ethiopia has slipped nine places from 2007 ranking to stand at 122 of 130 countries. While the three top-ranked countries have closed more than 80 percent of their gender gaps, the lowest ranking country has been successful in closing only 45 percent of its gender gap.

Besides Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and Syria dropped farther in their relative ranking. The Report is based on four critical areas of inequality to measure size of the gender gap – educational attainment, economic participation and opportunity, political empowerment and decision making, life expectancy and survival.

Ethiopia stands at 50 in labor force participation; however, Ethiopian women do not get equal pay for equal work. It is ranked 96th in the Economic Participation and Opportunity category and 70th in political empowerment. According to the report, Ethiopian females have longer life expectancy than males and Ethiopia ranks 42 in the number of females in parliament.

On the other hand, in universities, the participation of female students is increasing. Education Minister Demeke Mekonnen confirms that 46.67 percent of the total 163,000 students entering preparatory programs this academic year are girls, according to Capital news report.

Under the Affirmative Action policies, doors have been opened for the enrolment of more girls and to assist them successfully complete their university and preparatory programs. However, the MoE report says that more efforts are the need of the hour to improve the rate of graduating female students in universities.

In September, Prime Minister Zenawi expressed concern about gender-related violence incidents at schools in both urban and rural areas.

For every 100 male students, there are less than 35 female tertiary students in Ethiopia, Eritrea, Niger, and Guinea. However, the report adds that once female students enter secondary education, they are more likely than male students to complete their studies.

For Ethiopia, its last year’s education status remains a source of pride for the administration, which appears to improve gender equality ratio, especially if we check official figures of the last year, when the first level of education coverage was 95.9 percent, which is expected to increase by one percent.

Ethiopia and Tanzania receive UN Praise for improving investment climate!!!

Ethiopia and Tanzania receive UN praise for improving investment climate


4 May 2011 – The United Nations trade body says Ethiopia and Tanzania have made significant progress in improving their investment climate, while Rwanda, Viet Nam, Argentina and Costa Rica have taken steps to clarify and simplify government rules.
The UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) undertakes investment policy reviews of developing and transition countries at the request of their governments and advises them on how to attract greater foreign direct investment (FDI) and spur economic development. To date, the Geneva-based agency has completed reviews for more than 30 countries.

Secretary-General Supachai Panitchpakdi told a meeting of the UNCTAD Investment, Enterprise and Development Commission yesterday that Ethiopia and Tanzania have made “significant progress” in improving their business and investment climates based on the agency’s recommendations, according to a news release.

Ethiopia achieved positive results in the agriculture and leather sectors, which in turn led to improved domestic production and better environmental standards. At the same time, the Horn of Africa nation still faces major constraints in terms of basic infrastructure – such as electricity, roads and telecommunications.

Mr. Supachai lauded the Tanzanian Government’s “breakthrough” in reducing the cost and time of doing business – such as in its reduction in the number of tax procedures.

He also highlighted the measures taken by Rwanda, Viet Nam, Argentina and Costa Rica to facilitate business and promote good governance, saying these efforts showed the importance of clarity and simplicity in government interactions with citizens and businesses.

Clear, simple and widely accessible rules are essential to promoting investment and encouraging the payment of taxes and social contributions, thus increasing public revenues which can enhance the capacity of States to invest in needed physical, economic and social infrastructure.

Meanwhile, UNCTAD announced today that it has finalized a set of proposed principles intended to establish clear responsibilities for borrowers and lenders of sovereign, or government, debt.

“The principles have the potential to reduce the prevalence of sovereign debt crises, maintain stable economic growth and support the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs),” the agency stated in a news release, referring to the set of eight globally agreed targets that seek to halve world poverty by 2015 by combating hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination against women.

Work on the proposed standards, which will be presented to governments at regional meetings to solicit their views, began at the height of the global financial and economic crisis in 2009.

High-level delegation left for SA to discuss with Ethiopian Diaspora

Addis Ababa, May 4 (WIC) – A high-level Ethiopian delegation led by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hailemariam Desalegn, left for South Africa (SA) on Tuesday to hold discussion with Ethiopians and foreign nationals of Ethiopian origin residing there.



The delegation will hold discussion with Ethiopians in South Africa about the current national issues and Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP), according to a statement obtained from office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.



The discussion is part of government’s efforts to sensitize Ethiopian Diaspora about the ongoing development activities and enhance their participation in the Growth and Transformation Plan, it said.



The delegation will also hold discussion with South African senior government officials on ways of strengthening the bilateral ties between the two countries.



According to the office, more than 8,000 Ethiopians live in South Africa. Similar discussion was held with Ethiopian Diaspora residing in US and Canada a month ago.

Egyptian Public Diplomatic delegation meets PM Meles

Addis Ababa, May 3 (WIC) - The Egyptian Public Diplomatic delegation requested Ethiopia to give Egypt time to sign the Cooperative Framework Agreement on Nile.

The diplomatic mission held talks with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi.

Ethiopian deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, Hailemariam Dessalegn told the press after the meeting that the delegation requested Ethiopia to give Egypt time to sign the cooperative framework agreement on Nile.

The delegation also asked Ethiopia to let experts examine the impacts of Ethiopia's project on the Nile waters.

Ethiopia has accepted the request made by the delegation, Hailemariam said, adding, the government accepted the request not because it has doubt on the agreement but because Egyptians need time to elect and form their government.

Hailemariam also indicated that Ethiopia agreed to allow experts to examine Ethiopia's Grand Renaissance Dam to assure Egyptians that the project does not harm them in any way.

Members of the Egyptian delegation for their part expressed satisfaction with their stay in Ethiopia.

After talks with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, Dr. Mustafa Elgendy, Head of the Delegation and former Member of Parliament said their visit was a success.

Dr. Sally Moore, member of the youth coalition of the recent Egyptian Revolution, for her part said that she believes Ethiopia's project on Nile would not harm Egypt.

Egypt’s PM to visit Ethiopia this month

Addis Ababa, May 2 (WIC) – The Prime Minister of Egypt will be visiting Ethiopia on the 13th and 14th of May, Ethiopian Ambassador to Egypt said.

Ambassador Mahmoud Dirir, who led the 48 member Egyptian public diplomacy delegation to Ethiopia, told WIC that Dr. Essam Sharaf, premier of Egypt, is scheduled to meet with Ethiopian counterparts to discuss relations between the two countries.

The Egyptian delegation currently on a visit to Ethiopia have already met with Girma Wolde Giorgis, President of the republic, Abadula Gemeda and Kassa Tekleberhan, speakers of House of People’s Representatives (HPR) and House of Federation (HoF), respectively.

“This is a gesture of stretching hand of friendship to Ethiopia after the Egyptian revolution of January 25,” Ambassador Mahmoud told WIC.

The Ambassador said that the government of Ethiopia has explained to the delegation that the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam being built on the Nile River is never meant to hurt Sudan or Egypt.

“The discourse we hear from them is new,” said the Ambassador. “They say that Ethiopia has every right for development”.

Ambassador Mahmoud said that this was not the case in the in the past behavior of former Egyptian politicians and some Egyptian elites.

“Creating mutual trust will enable the two countries to surmount the little misunderstanding that exist in the psyche of our Egyptian brothers,” the Ambassador said.

The delegation which included members of parliament, politicians, jurists, public figures, members of the academia, media representatives and members of the Youth Movement of the Egyptians Revolution, are scheduled to meet Prime Minister Meles Zenawi later today.

awate.com Interview: Meles Zenawi Sizes Up The Region

Following is a transcribed interview awate.com conducted with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi on Wednesday, April 13, 2011, in his office in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia. Saleh “Gadi” Johar, founder and publisher of awate.com, conducted the interview. For ease of reading, we have numbered the questions.
The following is a transcribed  interview awate.com conducted with Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi on Wednesday, April 13, 2011, in his office in Addis Abeba, Ethiopia. Saleh “Gadi” Johar, founder and publisher of awate.com, conducted the interview. For ease of reading, we have numbered the questions.

1. I didn’t see other parts of Ethiopia, but in Addis Ababa, there is a visibly frantic development activity going on. My question is: some countries went through such rapid real estate development that was followed by a catastrophic collapse of the real estate market and thus of the economy—do you think such a collapse would happen in Ethiopia?

No. Because it is not a significant part of the economy. The real estate sector is obviously growing and not just in Addis; it is growing across the country. But it is a small part of the economy, no more than 10 to 15% of the local loans given by the private banks. Public banks which provide more than 50-60% of the total loan do not provide any loan for real estate. So it will be on the range of 5-7% of the bank loans. Therefore, I do not see a real estate bubble appearing. But we are keenly following the issue. In spite of the big construction activities that are going on in Addis, there is a massive shortage of housing in this city.

2. Does the big number of new hotels on every corner of the city reflect a comparable increase in tourism? Then, I have an observation (you can consider it a personal complaint): why are Ethiopian hotels the only unfair establishments for tourists and visitors? I mean, when I buy gas, shop at a retail store, at restaurants and everything else, I am charged the same prices as an any Ethiopian for the same service or product that I get, but when I go to a hotel, they tell me: if you are an Ethiopian, you pay 200 birr but if you carry a foreign passport, you pay $40 (which is 640 birr, more than 300%) for the same room and the same bed?

On the first question, hotels space…there is still an acute shortage of hotel space, still. It is mainly related to conference tourism. A lot of conferences are held here in Addis.  And when there are conferences we have problems accommodating customers to the extent that we sort of block certain hotels for official delegation and that creates havoc. So there is acute shortage of hotel space here in town particularly at the higher end. But there is significant investment in the hotel industry happening also in the higher end. 3 or 4 additional five star hotels are coming in. And so that should reduce the pressure.

Now the hotel business…I am not going to justify this; I am going to try to explain it without justifying it. Whenever I go to foreign countries, including Rome, they tell me–for meetings, they tell me the rates during those meetings are much higher than the normal rates…they tell me, this is even true of New York. Because the occupancy rate becomes higher during meeting, they charge higher during meetings than is the case normally. So there is a distinction in every hotel. The rates vary from time to time. Now what these hotels in Ethiopia do is use the local customers as local fillers from whom they do not make much money and use foreigner, and the only way they distinguish foreigners is by passport. And if there is a consolation to your predicament, it is the fact that if you had been an American of Ethiopian origin, you would still have faced the foreign rate, it is just your passport that distinguishes you as a foreigner and nothing else. The justification behind it is that they make the real money not from Ethiopians that they use as a sort of gap fillers, but out of the foreign tourists. And the other justification is that on balance, the rates here are much higher than comparable cities. But I cannot justify it.

3. I have been visiting Addis Ababa frequently since 1991 (excluding the period between 1998 and 2008): there are still a considerable number of beggars and crippled persons, but I have noticed a drastic decrease. Why is that, did their economic situation improve? Or in the case of crippled persons, I think most are polio and such victims, has the healthcare situation improved in Ethiopia that much?

What is happening is that the people who used to come from every corner of the country without any specific job or opportunity of getting a job but to engage in begging on the streets in the hope and expectation that they would be able to survive on the alms given to them,  a good number of them are getting alternative sources of income. We have trained some them and engaged them in coblbestone working in the city; some of them have gone back to their village where the opportunities are significantly higher now. And over time, we are beginning to institutionalize support for those who do not have the means to survive on their own. We didn’t want to take a drastic step against it, because of the history—I don’t know if you know the history, of Addis- but what used to happen, when I was a student, when there was a meeting, this ugly face of Ethiopia will be cleaned off Addis streets for a few days and eventually they come back again. We felt that this would be insulting, to everybody, including the victims themselves. They are not begging because they love begging, but because they do not have other opportunities. So it took a lot of time, because we wanted to do it in a sort of a natural way…and that is happening across the country. Step by step, those who are unemployed, but can work, are encouraged to be trained and given an opportunity to work. Those who can go back to their villages are also encouraged to go to their villages. And those that cannot fend for themselves in any way, then we encourage institutionalize support for them.

4.  A sustainable economy needs efficient use of assets, why is the concept of maintenance so poor in Ethiopia? Don’t you think you are losing so much man hours and money to replace broken assets whose life span could have been elongated with proper maintenance—this goes to cars, lifts, street lamps, sewage, etc…

I wouldn’t be surprised if these assets happen to be government assets.

5.  Most probably yes.

I would be surprised if these assets are private ones. In terms of government assets, the culture is to build, use and dispose. Maintenance has not been a major aspect of it. In recent years we have taken steps for maintenance work to maintain power installations, and telecommunications, infrastructure in general. We have specifically allocated funds for maintenance in these basic infrastructure projects. But housing is managed on the basis of its own income. The government has inherited a lot of houses, and we are not building new ones except low cost housing and that is transferred to owners immediately so that they take care of it. But we still have government houses that are managed by public enterprise, and because this institution has no future—it has a past but no future—sooner or later it will disappear because we don’t have plans to own government housing indefinitely. Over time, we will either bulldoze it of transfer it to the private sector. And there has not been a culture of maintaining these housing, so public assets are not properly cared for specially real estate type of assets of the government. And some of it might come to the private sector; after all, those who run private housing might have been working in the public sector and sort of inherited the culture from where they were working initially.

6. Unemployment. How severe is it and what is being done to alleviate it?

In terms of unemployment, we have been perhaps lucky in the sense that rural-urban migration is extremely low, probably the lowest in the Africa. This is partly a reflection of our focus on rural development and land ownership system in Ethiopia. So the influx from the rural areas that, traditionally, created portions of unemployment in urban area, it is not happening anymore. The young people from the rural areas stay behind in the urban areas after they complete their education. Most of them don’t go back, to the rural areas, but they have some education. So unemployment in the urban areas is much lower than it was, let’s say, five years ago. Second reason why it is lower is because we have network programs here, small and micro enterprise sector, we train young people, engage them in all sorts of public projects to give skills, employment opportunity and startup capital as a result of the work that they do. That has lessened the pressure but I can only say that the pressure has been reduced, it is not removed, it is never removed, and in countries such as Ethiopia you don’t have unemployment insurance programs. So it remains to be a significant challenge but not as big as it used to be five or six years ago.

7.  Recently there is shortage of cooking oil, sugar and other the price of other essential food stuff is increasing…sometimes beyond the reach of the poor. How are you facing this difficulty?

Edible oil and sugar: We are at a tussle with the private sector who were distributing edible oil and sugar, because it had been monopolized by a small group of about five businessmen and they were charging exorbitant prices (what is called rent-seeking), and so we had to distribute it through cooperatives, and the traditional channels of distribution has interrupted sugar and edible oil. So we had a shortage in the recent weeks but it is an artificial shortage because we are not trying to restructure the distribution and retail sector– it used to be a forest where nobody knew who was who, whose income was what, and so on. So we are requiring everybody to have a tax identification number, like the social security number. And most of our businessmen don’t like it. So it is a difficult task.

Eritrea, Ethiopia & Egypt

8. Ethiopian Egyptian relationship has been deceiving on the surface because, deep inside, both countries were mutually suspicious of each other—two major issues have been the Eritrean revolution and, hydropolitcs: the Nile water. You have now embarked on an ambitious power generating (not irrigation) project and it is making the Egyptians uneasy. You said that the projects would protect both Egypt and Sudan (in fact you said they should partially fund the projects). If that is the case, how do you explain the Egyptian reaction? Or is it the Egyptian wish to keep the 1929 agreement intact? Why would they object to Ethiopia generating power from the Nile?

You know the advantage of being in my position is you get to access information that is not necessarily publicly available. And the first thing that I learned that these Nile issues, debate on distribution of The Nile issue, was really a bogus issue. It was really a bogus issue because if you were to treat the Nile basin–and the most sensitive part of the Nile basin is the so-called eastern Nile, the Nile that goes from Ethiopia to Sudan and Egypt– because 85% of the water that goes to Aswan comes from Ethiopia. This part of the water, Nile, which is supposed to have shortage of water, doesn’t have shortage of water; it only has shortage of money. Ethiopia is structured to be the power generating center of the Nile, geographically. Sudan is, geographically, created to be the main agricultural producer of this region. Only the delta part of Egypt is supposed to produce goods, agricultural goods. And so if you use the Nile water in a rational manner, there will not be any shortage of water. The fact is, for example, that if you built dams in Ethiopia and removed Jebel Awliya from Sudan, it is useless; it generates 17 mega watts of electricity but exposes Nile water to evaporation in unheard of proportion. So you don’t need the regulation of Jebel Awliaya because the water would have been regulated here. And reduce the operating level of Aswan Dam, you would have enough water to irrigate more than a million hectares in Ethiopia; and 4 to 5 billion cubic meters of additional water for the Sudan, and Sudan can use the water better than anybody else. The Egyptians themselves have a water conservation project which will end in 2017. And their plan is to save 8 billion cubic meters of additional water. Now, unless they want to take this water and let it evaporate in the desert, they don’t have land that requires 8 billion cubic meter of water. So it is not really about water, it is about politics and power.

The problem, as I see it, is the politics of the Egyptian elite: there is a bit of racism behind it, and there is a bit of colonial inheritance behind it. Colonial clerks tend to be more colonially inclined in their attitudes than their masters and the Egyptians have been, to some extent, clerks of British colonialism in Sudan. And so they inherited this British theory of the Nile serving Liverpool via Egypt. Egypt growing cotton for Liverpool. And finally, the Nile has been this drug that has been used to hook the Egyptian people for external enemies and justify this gargantuan state, Egyptian state which is there to protect the Egyptians vis-a-vis the Abd from the South. So it has been a political instrument more than anything else. And the fact that the Egyptian edifice is beginning to crack now, is allowing alternative opinions amongst Egyptians to creep through the cracks… and these opinions are: why should we quarrel over some natural resource that belongs to us, let’s see if there is a rational win-win alternative…this is unheard of, but it is beginning to creep even into the Egyptian media, so I am very encouraged by it.

9.  Do you intend to develop irrigation projects using the Nile in the future? And how would you balance the natural rights of lower Nile countries and your country’s right to exploit the Nile water resources?

The fact is that the Egyptians could sustain this irrational policy for a number of reasons. First, the geopolitical position was such that they could prevent Ethiopia from accessing grants, loans and credits for projects on the Nile. They have completely shut off our access to credit whether it is from World Bank, or Brazil or China or Europe or the USA.  And so they were assured, given the poverty level in Ethiopia, that Ethiopia will not be investing anything on the Nile, of substance. That was the key instrument. The other instrument they had was that Ethiopia itself was unstable and was not going to focus on development and it was surrounded by hostile government. That is why [Gemal Abdel] Nasser went out of his way to recruit non-Arabs into the Arab League simply because they were in close proximity to Ethiopia—Somalia is a case in point. Now we have reached a stage where some of these assumptions are no longer valid. We are now able to do something significant. We first started with minor projects on the Tekeze [River], Lake Tana. Now we are in a position to be able to finance, on our own, the biggest dam that can be built on the Nile, in Ethiopia. We believe that this is going to dismantle much illusion amongst the Egyptians. We believe that this is going to convince them that they cannot stop us. We believe that this is going to convince them that they do not need to stop us because we are doing their job. The dams we build, we are unable to use 100% of their service, because much of the service is downstream-inevitably, unavoidably. So we will show them in practice, that where we build dams, these are not intended against them. In fact, these are dams that they ought to finance, at least partly, because they will benefit from them. So once we break this taboo, I believe the path will be opened for a rational engagement between ourselves and the Egyptians. By the way, on balance, the Sudanese have taken a rational position on the Nile. On the surface they seem to be twins on their positions on the Nile; that is far from the truth.

10.  Eritrea is considered a Nile basin country, what is the strategic leverage that Eritrea has to influence Nile politics?

Eritrea is a marginal player on the Nile; it is part of the Nile riparian countries primarily because of the Tekeze River. As you know the Tekeze River or the Atbara River in the Sudan carries about 9 million cubic meter of water. There are one or two minor rivers from Eritrea that flow to the Tekeze and maybe contribute about 0.1% or so of the Tekeze which is itself part of the Nile basin. Every stream counts. That is why, technically, Eritrea is a riparian country but it is not in the meetings of the ten riparian countries of the Nile. This is not by design but because your president is not infatuated with international organizations of any sort.

11.  Ok. Now, he has never been my president…sorry for the correction Mr. Prime Minister….The head of the Eritrean regime had close relations and coordination with Egypt on Somalis’ and Sudanese politics. He also had good relations with Gaddafi and benefited from him financially. Now, Mubarek is gone and Gaddafi is on the edge of the cliff. How do you think this would affect the Eritrean regime and how would that effect the stalemate between Eritrea and Ethiopia?

The thing is that Isaias needed the support from these parties, to do not just their bidding, but his own internal drive. So this was a marriage of convenience. This was not Egypt and Kaddafi hiring out Isaias. These [are] two groups coming together on the basis of a common agenda. Egypt providing some of the diplomatic clout, some of the training and assistance; Kaddafi providing the finance and Qatar also providing the finance. Now, what the current environment suggests is that this external support is no longer available. But that doesn’t mean Isaias is going to change his color; he will seek alternative sources of financing—and by the looks of it, he is likely to look at possible mining resources within Eritrea to fill in the gaps that will be left by the discontinuation of support from abroad.

12.  According to the Eritrean regime, your government is on the verge of collapse and they mention defections and military operations by your opponents in North Ethiopia. How true is this?

According to the Eritrean regime, we have been on the verge of collapse, for what…ten years now! And these ten years happen to be, in the eyes of a neutral observer, the golden years of Ethiopia. We have been growing at a double digit rate for seven, eight years now. The country is stable from end to end. Obviously we have our own challenges; we are still a very poor country. Seven years of growth does not mean much when you start from the bottom of the heap. But there is clearly light at the end of the tunnel and it is visible to every Ethiopian. And you don’t have to come to Addis to see it; you could see it in Washington. Ten years ago, none of the meetings that we would call for would be attended by any significant number of people. The other day, in spite of massive campaign by the Diaspora opposition and the Eritrean regime, we had thousands upon thousands of Ethiopians attending our meeting and deciding to buy bonds for the construction of the dam on the Nile. So, it is a very stable government and that is what every major country that has interest in the region would tell you. I think this [claim of imminent demise] is how they keep the illusion of succeeding in their agenda of regime change in Ethiopia.

13.  After the last election and after forming a new government, observers believe that the old guards [of the Ethiopian ruling party] were unceremoniously distanced from the center and new blood occupied their positions. This is said to have caused a rift between you and some of your colleagues. How true is this?

It started out with my declaration that the last term would be my last term. In some ways, that was my public declaration of that intention and it was contradictory to normal party procedures. Because it has not been sanctioned by party debate; I didn’t do that by accident but it was, nevertheless, not within the rules of the party. So it pressed a debate on succession and carried out studies and we saw experiences of other countries and, in the end, leadership came to a conclusion that there should be an organized, gradual withdrawal of the leaders of the armed struggle. And the best way to withdraw is while the going is good, while that leadership is still alive and able to influence policies from behind. So, at that stage this was the consensus position. Now, who goes first and who goes later—there was some debate but it was mostly focused on when I leave, when I depart. And then it was agreed that I will depart at the end of this term. And that would be my departure and the team that departs with me would be the last one. That is why everybody has to depart between the beginning of this term and the end of this term. So it was a consensus position and there has not been any of those that have been retired. They are not unemployed—some of them are ambassadors, some of them are training our leadership, some of them are working in public enterprise and so on and so forth. So there are no complaints.

14.  Last year, you signed an agreement with the Ogaden groups and they even participated in the elections and are part of the local government.  Are they in the federal government? If you could describe for me where that agreement that reached… what was achieved and what was not, maybe sticking points if there are any?

Yes we signed agreements with two groups—one was an Islamist group, an offshoot of Al-Itihad Al-Islami group. Their agenda, their decision was to get out of politics and integrate into society, do business and so on and so forth. That has been completed. And then we had an agreement with one group, one faction of the ONLF, again the agreement was a process of integration domestically and for them to try to win over the rest of the ONLF particularly in the Diaspora. So I believe the program and the agreements are being implemented quite well.

15.  Are they in the federal government?

Yes

16.  Now you have South Sudan as an additional country that borders Ethiopia. As if how Sudan would have close relations with Ethiopia and Eritrea is not confusing enough, South Sudan has close relations with both Eritrea and Ethiopia. Can you tell me how that is possible when there are so many interconnected crisis in the region?

The assumption is wrong. South Sudan is not in good terms with Eritrea. Before South Sudan is born, Eritrea is beginning to destabilize South Sudan. Those in the know in the region, they know among other things the Eritrean regime is beginning to arm a militia group led by a certain gentleman known as George Attol.  I am told by reliable sources that the Southern Sudanese went to Asmara to plead with the president not to destabilize southern Sudan, and I am told that the response they got is a surprised stare—which is typical of the Eritrean regime: they never admit what they are doing. So, the relationship between South Sudan and Eritrea is typical of Eritrea’s relations with everybody in the neighborhood.

17.  I heard from some sources that a leader of Southern Sudan is apprehensive that Ethiopia has relations with the Eritrean national opposition because he considers them Muslims and Arab influenced. First, is this true? If yes, what was your response? Why would a new country adopt such a bigoted position?

The assumption is wrong again. Silva [kir, the leader of South Sudan] never, ever, asked me to, in anyway, affect my policy on Eritrea. Not just with the opposition, but also with the regime. He never raised any of this issue, at all. Naturally he didn’t, at all, raise the issue of who we are supporting or nor supporting section of the Eritrean opposition…I don’t think he draws all that conclusion of  Eritrea.

I have heard and seen articles in the Eritrean opposition website about what Eritrea could teach southern Sudan and that and the other. I think this is largely ill-informed. First of all, southern Sudan currently has no business with Eritrea, they have no borders, and they have no economic interaction. Ten years ago, they needed Eritrea because they needed arms; now, if they need arms, they buy them; they can’t get them from Eritrea. So the only interest for Isaias in southern Sudan is that there is a significant Eritrean Diaspora in southern Sudan and they are doing well, business wise. And the regime is trying to suck money out of them like it does everywhere else.

18.  You have Libyan investment in Ethiopia. One of them is Libyaoil: Is it true that Libyaoil is owned by one of Kadaddfi’s sons? If that is true, wouldn’t [it] be a gesture for Ethiopia to hand over the assets to the transitional Libyan administration? How about the Libyan embassy in Ethiopia—what is its position, still with Gaddafi? And how much of your oil comes from Libya and how has the supply been affected?

I understand the embassy, at least formally, is siding with Kaddafi. The Libyan government has bought off Shell Ethiopia and it is now OilLibya. That is the only investment I know of the Libyan government or Kaddafi—it is very difficult to distinguish between the Libyan government and Kaddafi. I don’t know where Gaddafi private starts or where the Libyan government property ends. Now, the way we operate here in Ethiopia is to follow first international law—Security Council has said this property is sanction on Libya that applies to Ethiopia.  Secondly, there is AU—sometimes we agree within them sometimes we do not agree with them. But even when we do not agree with them, we do not believe in publicly second guessing them. This, we think, is part of the due that we have to pay for the fact that we host the AU. So at this stage we have not recognized the national council in Benghazi, we wait for the AU to do so. Even in the case of, for example, Somaliland where we engage with the authorities like a sovereign authority, in everything except name. We refrained from recognizing them, and we have told the Somaliland authorities, they have got to get the African Union supporting them before we can recognize them. Again, in the case of [Alassana] Ouattara, in Ivory Coast. He is the internationally recognized president and he wanted to change his embassy here and we recognize him like the AU he is the internationally recognized leader, but we asked the AU if they would give us clearance, because he will also be the ambassador not only to Ethiopia but also to the AU. The AU told us to hold up for a moment, hopefully now they will give us a clearance. The way we operate here is such that we don’t take initiatives in recognizing states especially in Africa.

19.  Over the last few weeks, you made statements regarding Eritrea and there were also statements from the Ethiopian ministry of foreign affairs. Is anything extraordinary happening at the border area, troop movements, preparation for an attack…or anything of that nature?

It is not so much about a tense border situation; it is about the fact that we have reached a stage where our previous policy of passive defense does not work, it cannot work anymore. In the past, our policy was to try and follow the terrorists that Isaias was sending across the border and try neutralizing them rather than responding at the source. That was fine for two reasons: first their target ground opposition and terrorism was government and government institutions, specifically, military and security establishment and other government entities.  These are what they call “hard targets”, you can harden them and protect them. You can never be 100% fullproof. If some terrorist slips through a crack you can take it from there and move on because these are government targets. In recent months, the target has been shifted. The recent crop of terrorists that Isaias sent across the border were targeting things such as Fil-Waha [hot springs in Addis, which is a tourist destination] , Mercato [shopping district], taxis, buses—these are what they call “soft targets”. The instructions that they were given when they were being trained around Asseb in Dankalia region, was to change Addis into Baghdad.  Now, when you have such soft target, the only way you can protect the soft targets is at the source. So, we now have to tell the Eritrean regime, if you carry outrageous acts in Ethiopia, not only the terrorists that you send, but you yourself, you are going to pay. And our response is going to be proportional. As I was saying in parliament the other day, if they shoot a bullet at us, we shoot a bullet back at them. If this forces them to stop the destabilization activity, all the better for everybody. If they maintain the current state of undeclared war and do not escalate it, we will maintain a response that is appropriate to it, we will not escalate it. If they escalate it to a war and a full scale invasion of Ethiopia,  we will do what we always said we will do in the past because this will be a second certified invasion of Ethiopia where the proportionate response to it would be to make sure that there would not be a third one. So there is a shift in direction, it doesn’t automatically mean that there is going to be war –it all depends on how Isaias responds.  [If it is] by escalation and invasion of Ethiopia, then we will have war. If he responds by de-escalating, then there won’t be one.

Djibouti, Eritrea & Ethiopia

20.  Last week I was in Djibouti and I visited the port facilities, the container storage, car storage, oil tank farms and dry cargo facilities. I also visited Bilbela, a town that seems to thrive on business from the Ethiopian drivers and the general Ethiopia-Djibouti business and the transport trucks that pass through it. I also saw thousands of Ethiopian trucks in that area. My question is: how much business is Djibouti getting from Eritrea? And if what happened ten years ago didn’t happen, how much of that business do you estimate would have been the share of Eritrean ports? And, if the political situation in Eritrea changed and there was a liberal, business friendly government there, how much of this do you think Eritrea would regain…I mean, including Massawa, which is more convenient to the northern part of Ethiopia.

Quite a lot. The current prospects in Ethiopia now are such that even if we had Eritrean ports as key ports, we will still be needing Djibouti. So, while we have not given up on the hope of normalization between these two countries, Eritrea and Ethiopia, nevertheless, we are convinced that even with normalization, Asseb and Massawa, and a few other ports like Tio, will just not be enough. So we are investing heavily in Djibouti. We are going to build a new railway from Addis to Djibouti. We are going to build a new railway system from the north to Tajura—a new port will be built in Tajura [old Djibouti port]. In the short run, all of that business, 80% of that business would have gone to Asseb and a small percentage would have gone to Massawa, but now it is completely diverted to Djibouti.

21.  Can you give me some figures, the value of this business?

I do not have exact figures at hand, but I will be surprised if the net income of Djibouti were to be less than half a billion dollar or so.

22.  Do you think that this business is lost forever by the Eritrean ports or Eritrea would be able to regain these lost opportunities under normal situation?

It is going to regain it precisely because the demand of the Ethiopian economy is going to go beyond the capacity of Tajura and Djibouti to take care of the requirements of Ethiopia. For example we are beginning to develop the potassium resources in the Afar region of Ethiopia—that is millions of tons per year that needs to be transported. Technically, the closest port to this is not even Asseb, it is Tio. You could develop it into a big port. So under normal situation, Eritrea could regain most of these businesses and develop new businesses as well.