April 27, 2016

1:35 pm

Four things to know about Ethiopia’s economy

How we made it in Africa

Source: How We Made It In Africa

By Dinfin Mulupi

Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous nation, has transformed into one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Charles Robertson, global chief economist at Renaissance Capital, recently wrote a report drawing comparisons between the Ethiopian and Chinese economies, and sharing experiences of interactions with stakeholders in Ethiopia.

Below are four takeaways from the report.

1. Foreign currency shortage an opportunity for exporters

The shortage of foreign currency has been an ongoing problem in Ethiopia in recent years and is often cited by the private sector as a key challenge.

However, Robertson found currency shortages are having some interesting effects on the economy. In fact, it presents an opportunity for export businesses to diversify. Some coffee growers are opting to sell their produce abroad – even when the local market offers better prices – just so they can get their hands on foreign currency.

“So companies that export roses or coffee, may diversify into importing consumer goods, because they have access to dollars. They may have no managerial expertise in washing machine sales, but will become diversified conglomerates purely as a function of these exchange rate distortions,” reads the report.

 2. Ethiopia is urbanising although still very much a rural economy
Ethiopia, like most countries in sub-Saharan, is rapidly urbanising. Some estimates suggest the urban population will triple between 2010 and 2040.

But today the economy is still very much rural. This is illustrated both in the population of urban centres and the government’s social priorities. The capital Addis Ababa has an estimated population of 3.3 million and the next four largest cities have populations closer to 300,000.

These numbers are minute considering Ethiopia is home to more than 94 million people. Having a mostly rural economy presents some challenges in labour management.

“Textile factories have a challenge explaining to their workforce that full-time employment does not mean it is acceptable to return home to bring in the harvest,” Robertson observes.

3. Agriculture booming, but other sectors growing faster

Agriculture is the mainstay of the Ethiopian economy with coffee and cereals such as teff, wheat, barley and maize, some of the top crops. Although Ethiopia will require food aid this year due to drought, agricultural output has generally been on the rise in previous years.

But other sectors such construction and hospitality are growing even faster. Hence, agriculture’s share of gross value added has declined from 55% in 1999-2000 to 39% by 2014-2015.

Manufacturing is a key focus for the government in its goal to achieve middle income status by 2025. It has made huge investments in electricity to boost manufacturing, doubling hydropower output alone in the last five years.

“Three more projects are expected to add 8,060 MW to the total – which will quintuple total Ethiopian electricity production,” reads the report. “Electricity is already being exported to Djibouti.”

4. Private equity the most plausible way to access the market

According to Robertson, private equity is the best vehicle for investors seeking access to the Ethiopian market. At the moment there is no stock exchange.

Ethiopia only issued its debut Eurobond in late 2014 and there is no clear word on when the next one is coming. Although there are plans to develop a local corporate bond market by July this year, there are concerns that currency overvaluation could deter many foreign investors from getting involved.

“In the meantime, we believe equity investors will need to consider private equity as the most plausible way to access this market,” notes Robertson.

Archive

People celebrate Timket, the annual Ethiopian Epiphany festival, in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Jan. 20, 2024.

Read more

The Ethiopian calendar is also seven years and eight months behind the Western calendar, making Saturday the start of 2014.

Read more

France’s telecom firm Orange has submitted an expression of interest to participate in the ongoing partial privatisation of Ethiopia’s Ethio Telecom firm, Ethiopia’s ambassador to Paris said on Twitter on Tuesday.

Read more

Today marked a milestone moment for Ethiopia and its flag carrier. The country received 2.184 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine through the COVAX global vaccine-sharing initiative. These doses were brought in by Ethiopian Airlines.

Read more

An 18th Century Ethiopian crown has been returned home after being hidden in a Dutch flat for more than 20 years…

Read more

The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed

Read more

Ethiopia may give up majority control over its telecommunications monopoly in a second phase of privatization once it’s sold 49% of the company next year…

Read more

September 11, 2019

2:09 pm

Happy Ethiopian New Year 2012

Dr. Arvid Hogganvik is a medical doctor born and raised in Ethiopia. He is of Norwegian descent and currently lives in Norway. His family and siblings celebrate The Ethiopian New Year. His parents came to Ethiopia from Norway in 1949 along with their two children and then the third child, Arvid Hogganvik , was born… View Article

Read more

Over 350 million trees were planted in an ambitious move to counter the effects of deforestation and climate change.

Read more

When supermodel Liya Kebede was growing up in Addis Ababa, she wore comfortable Ethiopian clothing — ample dresses made from strips of woven cotton sewn together.

Read more

Ethiopia has positioned itself to become one of the world’s top exporters of textile and garments…

Read more

March 26, 2019

10:50 am

Ethiopia: Africa’s next powerhouse?

Ethiopia has been one of the continent’s best economic performers, growing at a rate of 10 percent for the past 15 years…

Read more

Voted the Best Airline in Africa in 2018, the airline’s triumphs are arguably down to reasonably priced tickets, efficient service delivery, a good safety record and a wide network of flights…

Read more

[A]s a plan it sounded much like a Sunday in Hampshire. So you can understand my concern when I saw the man holding a carrier bag full of old rope.

Read more

At 19-years-old, Betelhem Dessie is perhaps the youngest pioneer in Ethiopia’s fast emerging tech scene, sometimes referred to as ‘Sheba Valley’…

Read more

Full of natural wonders and ancient culture, this vast country is also home to booming cities and a youthful population. Explore it with our guide on where to go, what to see and where to stay

Read more

The state-owned Ethiopian Airlines, Africa’s largest carrier by number of passengers, according to FlightGlobal…

Read more

Ethiopia Overtakes, Ghana loses No. 1 sub-Sahara spot as IMF revises 2018 economic growth forecasts…

Read more

Chicago has become one of the newest dots on Ethiopian Airlines’ global flight map…

Read more

The project is Beijing’s big experiment in outsourcing, and a $10 billion shot in the arm for the African nation—if there isn’t a civil war first…

Read more

Source The Washington Post By Paul Schemm ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — The Marvel Comics movie “Black Panther” has wowed audiences across the United States and around the world, including Africans who have cheered on the African superheroes and their fictional Kingdom of Wakanda. There is a little something for everyone in Wakanda for Africans. The… View Article

Read more

Rambunctious, manic, beguiling, exciting — it’s hard to accurately describe Addis Ababa…

Read more

an effort by Ethiopia to turn itself into an exporter of electricity to the region, channeling at least $4 billion into geothermal projects across the nation…

Read more

The old man’s face was beautiful, although it was etched with deep furrows — no doubt the result of having lived through droughts, famines and 17 years of a brutal and paranoid communist government that has slaughtered half a million of his countrymen…

Read more

Apart from Saudi-Ethiopian billionaire Mohammed Al-Amoudi, Samuel Tafesse is arguably the most popular businessman of Ethiopian origin.

Read more

The World Bank again declared that the Ethiopian economy would be Africa’s most expansive in 2017…

Read more

As Ethiopia strives to become the manufacturing hub of Africa, more and more Chinese companies are showing an interest in investing in the east African country …

Read more

As global demand for teff, Ethiopia’s gluten-free indigenous staple crop grows, officials and businesses are looking to tap the global market…

Read more

The BBC World Service has launched three websites for Ethiopia and neighbouring Eritrea as part of its biggest expansion since the 1940s.

Read more

It is an important security step since if Internet Service Providers (ISPs) do not have this new key, the Internet will not work for them or their customers, according to Mr. Dandjinou

Read more

I have always questioned God’s existence, but in the northern Ethiopian town of Lalibela, I was presented with fairly substantial evidence.

Read more

Turkish construction giant Yapı Merkezi hopes a $3 billion modern railway-line project it is building in Ethiopia and Tanzania …

Read more

The e- visa is processed and issued online on a single Web page where applicants apply, pay and secure their entry visa online.

Read more

Ethiopian Airlines was betting Airbus SE’s new A350 widebody would help it lure lucrative business-class passengers away from the likes of Emirates. . .

Read more

Government reforms are designed to encourage farmers to produce more high-quality beans…

Read more

Pizza Hut is set to open three outlets in Ethiopia this year, becoming one of the first international restaurant chains to enter Africa’s second-most populous country.

Read more

Ethiopia, the second-most populous Sub-Saharan African country with a GDP size of $61.54 billion (Rank: 73), is projected to grow annually at 8.7%

Read more

Germany fosters change in Ethiopian textil industry…

Read more

Norfund has made a USD 7.4 million investment in Verde Beef Processing PLC, an Ethiopian beef producer. Verde Beef Processing PLC produces premium beef and aims to become the largest cattle processing operation in Eastern Africa with a target output of more than 130,000 carcasses per year. The capital provided by Norfund will help the… View Article

Read more

The Danakil Depression, including the Dallol volcanic area is one of the most remote, inhospitable and poorly studied areas in the world.

Read more

The Embassy participated in the inauguration of the Ethiopian Airlines flight to Oslo on Friday 24 March 2017. Read the speech made by the ambassador below.

Read more

Lenders are lining up to set up businesses in Ethiopia, one of Africa’s fastest-growing and most under-banked economies…

Read more

ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 19 (Xinhua) — The airport of the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa is training Chinese-speaking staff upon arrivals of more Chinese travellers…

Read more

The Caesarea-based firm is teaming up with partner TodayTomorrow Ventures Inc. in a $400,000 deal to construct a wastewater treatment facility at the EPRI 1 condominium complex in Addis Ababa.

Read more

Ethiopian Entrepreneurs who were educated overseas are returning home

Read more

Bethlehem Alemu’s shoes have been sold worldwide by Amazon (AMZN, Tech30), Urban Outfitters (URBN) and Whole Foods (WFM)…

Read more

January 19, 2017

10:27 am

Ethiopian to Open Seven New Destinations

Ethiopian envisages to reach 120 international destinations worldwide by the year 2025…

Read more

Ethiopia on Saturday officially opened the Gibe 3 hydroelectric dam, which is among the biggest in Africa…

Read more

Ethiopia has welcomed hundreds of new taxis…

Read more

A $3.4 billion Chinese-built railway linking the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa and the port city of Djibouti…

Read more

Ethiopia seems awake to look in to its tourism potential. Along with the development of various tourist infrastructural facilities, the country is endeavoring to market the resource for economic development…

Read more

Gibe III Hydroelectric Project, Ethiopia […] is expected to be in full operation by August, 2016. ..

Read more

Ethiopia seems to be attracting the attention of economists interested in Africa, and for good reason…

Read more

Ethiopian has been voted as the Best Cargo Airline of the Year …

Read more

Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populous nation, has transformed into one of the world’s fastest-growing economies…

Read more

Source: CNN Native to Ethiopia, the Ge’ez is more than just an ancient, nearly forgotten language. It’s Ethiopia’s link to its distant past.  

Read more

Addis Ababa February 10/2016 The government of Sweden is interested to further strengthen all rounded cooperation with Ethiopia, according to the country’s Ambassador to Ethiopia…

Read more

February 4, 2016

5:45 pm

Investments: When Ethiopian giants dance

Ethiopia’s in the driving seat, as investors from East and West seize on opportunities in sectors ranging from construction to brewing…

Read more

A previously unknown population of at least 100 lions has been discovered by a wildlife charity in a remote park in north-western Ethiopia…

Read more

January 12, 2016

10:18 am

An insider’s guide to shopping in Addis

With the headquarters of the African Union located in Ethiopia’s capital city, as well as an award-winning airline…

Read more

Ethiopian Tourism expects the growth to double by 2016

Read more

There are now 2,700 millionaires in Ethiopia, reflecting an increase of 108% between 2007 and 2013 — the fastest growth rate in Africa…

Read more

Ethiopian airlines operated an All-Women Functioned Flight today on the Addis Ababa – Bangkok route…

Read more

Maersk Oil has agreed to buy half of Africa Oil Corporation’s shares in three onshore exploration licenses in Kenya and a further two in Ethiopia…

Read more

Addis Ababa gets first sub-Saharan Africa metro system…

Read more

Minimal corruption, efficient bureaucracy, and cheap production costs are driving China’s investment in Ethiopia…

Read more

– If there was ever a country that embodied the optimism of the “Africa rising” narrative, it would be Ethiopia. The economy of Africa’s second-most populated country has for the past decade grown at an average of 10.8% every year …

Read more

October 15, 2015

5:08 pm

Made in… Ethiopia? Yes, Ethiopia

— So we got used to “Made in Japan,” “Made in China,” “Made in Hong Kong” and most recently “Made in Vietnam.” There’s going to be a new kid in town, but he’s not Asian. Prepare yourselves for “Made in Ethiopia.”…

Read more

September 25, 2015

1:19 pm

Arsenal breaks new ground in Ethiopia

Arsenal Football Club has become the first Premier League side to secure a regional partnership in Ethiopia after announcing Dashen Brewery as its Official Beer Partner…

Read more

Tekle Negash’s days of riding a battered minibus to work in Ethiopia’s capital are over. Boarding Addis Ababa’s $475-million, Chinese-built and funded Light Rail, he can slash his one-hour commute by two-thirds and still save money…

Read more

Ethiopia is head and shoulders above the rest of Africa in meeting the Millennium Development Goals (MDG)…

Read more

Ethiopia’s Addis Ababa has the most expensive hotel room prices in Africa, according to research based on the price comparisons of select major African cities…

Read more

EEthiopia won the first gold medal at the IAAF Beijing World Athletics Championship in the female 1,500 mt race with world record holder Athlete Genzebe Dibaba in Beijing, yesterday…

Read more

Ethiopia’s government will boost spending by 20 percent in the budget year that begins next month to expand infrastructure in one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies,State Finance Minister Abraham Tekeste said…

Read more