Experts Debate Ethiopia’s Credit Limit Policy Impact Ethiopia’s central bank enacted stringent measures 10 months ago to reign in rampant credit growth and surging inflation by imposing a 14 percent cap on commercial bank lending. This policy has proven successful at slowing money supply expansion and reducing consumer price pressures, with inflation falling from over […]
Has Ethiopia’s Tough Credit Diet Gone Too Far? Read More »
Traders Forced to Evade VAT to Stay Competitive in Shadow Economy Across Merkato and throughout Ethiopia, widespread VAT evasion thrives as traders and tax collectors engage in a ongoing game of cat and mouse. Facing pressure to meet collection targets, officials at times aggressively fine businesses even on minor suspicions. Traders in turn employ various
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) gave lawmakers an extensive rundown on Thursday of his government’s economic stewardship to date as well as ongoing fiscal and monetary challenges. In his address to parliament, Abiy said Ethiopia has brought down its debt-to-GDP ratio from previous high levels to 17.5 percent currently. “Our target is to reach
PM Abiy Updates Lawmakers on Ethiopia’s Growth, Debt Woes and IMF Talks Read More »
Ethiopia will introduce a new hotel classification system next month, replacing the existing star ratings, the tourism minister said on Wednesday, in a sector that has seen rapid expansion over the past decade prior to COVID impacts. The hospitality industry showed drastic growth in Ethiopia over the last 10 years, with the country establishing itself
Ethiopia Hits Refresh on Hotel Ratings to Reignite Tourism Read More »
Inspired by Kenya’s success with tea, Ethiopia is scaling up planting to develop the crop into a major foreign exchange earner to rival earnings from its dominant coffee exports. Currently, tea exports bring in two million dollars annually versus over one billion dollar for coffee. But after Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed visited the top producer
Ethiopia Hopes Tea Can Mimic Kenya’s $1B Export Success Read More »
International Labour Organization (ILO) experts have recommended the gradual implementation of minimum wage legislation in Ethiopia to improve workers’ living standards without significantly impacting businesses. In a presentation recently, ILO Wage Specialist Guillaume Delautre highlighted that low wages are a major cause of Ethiopia’s high employee turnover rates, forcing companies to spend heavily on recruiting
ILO Experts Recommend Gradual Implementation of Minimum Wage in Ethiopia Read More »
Under a new draft law being considered by parliament, the minimum capital of Ethiopia’s central bank would be increased nearly twentyfold – setting the stage for what would amount to one of the largest capital surges for a monetary authority in history. The proposed changes to the National Bank of Ethiopia’s (NBE) Establishment Proclamation envisions
Draft Proclamation Proposes Record 19x Capital Surge for Central Bank Read More »
The Ethiopian Capital Market Authority (ECMA) has issued the country’s first individual securities investment advisor license, marking a major step forward in developing Ethiopia’s capital markets. The license was granted to Habtamu Eshetu under ECMA Directive No. 980/2024 governing the licensing and supervision of capital market service providers. Habtamu holds a Master’s degree in Business
Authority Grants First Individual Securities Investment Advisor License Read More »
Ethiopia has big ambitions for how artificial intelligence can help drive progress on some of its most pressing challenges. In a landmark move, the country’s Council of Ministers on Thursday approved the nation’s first overarching strategy for applying AI across sectors. The 49-page policy framework outlines a long-term vision of positioning AI as a core
Ethiopia Unveils First National AI Strategy Read More »
Ethiopia’s Finance Ministry has issued a new directive clarifying the scope of value-added tax (VAT) exemptions in an effort to boost revenue collection while still supporting low-income households. The directive, effective immediately, withdraws most past blanket exemptions granted through various decisions in favor of specifically targeting essential items. It acknowledges that broad exemptions in the
