Zemen Bank's Profit Grew by Two Million birr

Zemen Bank, the youngest but one of the prominent financial firms in the country, has registered two million birr more in profit in the 2011/12 fiscal year than the preceding year.

The bank, which joined the financial market three years ago, has registered 123 million birr in profit before taxes in the last fiscal year, while Zemen’s profit in the 2010/11 fiscal year was 121 million birr before taxes.

According to the statement of the bank, the net profit after tax is 86 million birr and for the second year straight, the bank delivered 58 percent earning per share in returns to its shareholders. In the 2010/11 fiscal year the bank’s net profit after tax was 84.7 million birr, which is 1.3 million birr less than the 2011/12 fiscal year.

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Ermias Eshetu, Vice President of Marketing and Corporate Services of Zemen Bank, informed Capital that, though the bank’s profit growth is slower compared to its previous year’s profit performance, the bank’s investment and capital has been tied up in provisional investment costs of the construction of its future head quarters and the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) bonds.  

In the last fiscal year the bank has purchased half a billion birr worth of bonds from NBE and settled compensations and other land deal duties for the plot of Zemen’s 33 storey future headquarters which will be located in front of Addis Ababa University School of Commerce.   
According to the bank’s report, deposit mobilization has grown significantly in the last fiscal year. The statement indicated that it has grown by 54 percent, rising from 1.162 billion birr to 1.792 billion birr, while gross loans surpassed the 1 billion birr mark in June 2012 compared to the 645 million birr a year earlier. Foreign exchange inflow collected by the bank rose to 15 million dollars per month and showed a 24 percent increase from the previous fiscal year. 

The statement of the bank indicated that Zemen Bank attributes its continued strong financial and operational performance partially to its unique business model which relies mainly on a single branch whose activities are supplemented by multiple service points such as ATMs, Internet Banking, Foreign Exchange Bureaus, and Banking Kiosks.  

This distinctive business model has facilitated the rapid introduction of innovative banking services and allowed for low overhead costs, without impacting the Bank’s deposit-taking, lending, and international banking activities.    
According to the report, the rollout of non-branch service centers expanded in 2011/12 and the bank’s six specialized Banking Kiosks are now mainly serving dedicated corporate clients. Usage of other service delivery channels such as ATMs, Internet Banking, and Corporate Payroll services were also expanded. 

Zemen Bank’s ATMs are now being used by over 12,000 customers every month who make over 19 million birr in monthly cash withdrawals and internet banking, which is being utilized by over 3700 customers per month to fulfil their banking needs, including electronic fund transfers to other accounts. The bank’s specialized corporate payroll service benefits over 12,000 employees, ranging from field workers at the nation’s largest commercial farms, to the staff of embassies and international organizations within Addis Ababa. 
In the current fiscal year, the bank is working on several on-going and soon to-be-launched initiatives, including an increase in the bank’s paid-up capital, an expansion of the bank’s unique “Doorstep Banking” services, whereby the Bank delivers or picks up cash from corporate clients who are signed up for the service, and the launch of a mobile banking service, dubbed ‘Z-Birr’, that is to be available to all mobile phone users (pending NBE approval).

Eritreans urged to join hands to oust regime in Asmara

The Eritrean National Council for Democratic Change (ENCDC) has called on Eritreans to join hands in the efforts to oust the dictatorial regime in Asmara.

ENCDC is an umbrella organization of all forces of good political will for change. It is an organization of the willing and represents and struggles for the Eritrean people’s salvation.

“It is time for the youth, women and professionals in Eritrea and abroad to join the struggle as the conditions in that country are getting worse and worse,” ENCDC Chairperson, Tsegaye Yohannes, said at the opening of the Council’s 2nd regular meeting here today.

Since its inception on November, 2011 in Hawassa, SNNP State, the Council has carried out a lot of mobilization works abroad targeting the Eritrean Diaspora, Tsegaye said.

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According to the Chairperson, the Council has chosen to fight from out side as the conditions in Eritrea are not favorable to struggle the regime being at home, he said.

Tsegaye highly praised Ethiopia’s support for the Council.

“Ethiopia has supported the council in all the best possible way. The late PM Meles Zenawi in particular has done a lot support to the Eritrean people to expel Isaia’s Afeworki’s regime,” he said.

ENCDC Deputy Chairperson, Freweyni Habtemariam, told WIC that all Eritrean, including the Diaspora, should stand together so as to end the suffering of Eritreans and the crimes of the Eritrean regime.

She added the Council is doing its level best to bring together Eritrean youth, women, professionals and the Diaspora to intensify the fight against the brutal leader in Asmara.

Council Executive Committee Chairperson, Dr Yusuf Berhan, on his part said the time is now for the Eritrean people to consolidate their fight for democracy. The Asmara regime has been destabilizing peace and security in the Horn of Africa region, he noted.

The 7-day meeting is expected to deliberate on ways of strengthening the fight against the authoritarian regime in Asmara.

Participants of the meeting are drawn from civic society, political parties, representatives of youth and women associations as well as Eritrean Diaspora in the US, Europe, Australia, Africa and the Middle East.

Wegagen registers 458.3 mln br profit

Wegagen Bank SC has registered a 458.3 million birr profit before tax in the past fiscal year that is an increment of only about 126 thousand birr in profit than the previous year. The 2011/2012 budget year earning per share has declined by 70 birr when compared with the 2010/11 fiscal year.


 
When compared with the performances of other banks or Wegagen’s own past performance, the profit margin was low and didn’t show any major growth.

The annual report of the bank indicated that the annual income generated from fees, charges and commissions, net gain from dealing in foreign currencies, income from ATM card payment and others is 363 million birr, which is a decline of 137 million  birr from the 2010/11 fiscal year. A year ago (during the 2010/2011 fiscal year), the bank had earned 500 million birr from the stated income sources.
According to the report, the income that was collected from fees, charges and commissions in the 2011/12 fiscal year (122.7 million birr) has declined by 125.8 million birr compared with the 2010/11 fiscal year (248.5 million birr).

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The growth of last year’s profit before taxes is stagnant when compared to the preceding year where the bank’s net profit after taxes and legal reserve had grown by 9.3 million birr. In the recorded year (2011/2012), the bank has earned 251.7 million birr net profit, while a year ago it was 242.4 million birr, but the earning per share in the past fiscal year has shrunk by 70 birr. On the 2010/11 performance the profit earning per share has been 448 birr while in the past fiscal year it has minimized to 378 birr.

According to experts on the sector, Wegagen has to expand its deposit mobilization to increase its performance in this fiscal year. In the last budget year, deposits collected from customers were 5.43 billion birr, which is 305 million birr lower than the preceding year which was 5.73 billion birr.

Bank experts stated that the bank’s total assets in the past fiscal year have not registered significant growth, which is one of the major perspectives to develop the bank’s performance. Last year’s report indicated that the total asset of the bank is 8.347 billion birr, which is 287 million birr higher than the 2010/11 fiscal year performance that was 8.060 billion birr.
On the other hand, the bank capital including reserves has grown to 1.6 billion birr from the previous 1.33 billion birr, while the paid up capital amount has increased to 953 million birr from 779.3 million birr. The loans and advances grew to 3.5 billion birr from 2.8 billion birr.

The experts indicated that the major step the bank has to take is to do business at the level of or in proportion to its capital, which is one of the problems observed in the past fiscal year. He suggested that the bank has to double its deposit mobilization to get significant growth.

On the general assembly that was held on Thursday, November 22nd, the Board of Directors that is chaired by the prominent former TPLF fighter Sebhat Negga, aka Aboy Sebhat, has indicated that deposit mobilization would be one of the alternatives to increase the bank’s performance. The board chairman also stated that the customer handling division and branch office expansions had to expand to increase the bank’s revenues.

On the 19th general assembly and 11th extraordinary meeting the general assembly has agreed to increase the paid up capital to 2 billion birr from the current 1 billion birr.
During the meeting, one point that was on the agenda for discussion was the minutes that was amended by the general assembly a year ago but was not ratified by NBE.

According to the Board of Directors, the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE), which is the financial institutions’ regulatory body, did not accept last year’s (2010/11) minutes of the general assembly.  On the general assembly that was held in October 2011 the share holders had agreed to disperse 60 percent of the dividend to share holders and to use the remaining balance to increase the capital of the bank. But one of the share holders opposed the decision while three others abstained, therefore, the NBE declined to ratify the bank’s minutes for the year, citing the Country’s commercial code.

During this year’s general assembly (held yesterday, on Nov. 22, 2012) the Board of Directors of the bank proposed that shareholders present their decisions regarding the disbursement of the dividend of the 2010/11 fiscal year in 15 days to the general assembly.        
The other issue that was raised was the construction of the bank’s headquarters. Based on the plan, the construction should have commenced last year, but up to now, the project has yet to be implemented.

Wegagen, which is one of the oldest private banks since free market economy was introduced in the Country, signed an agreement with Jiangxin Corporation for International Economic and Technical Cooperation (CJIC), a Chinese construction company, on August 5, 2011 for the construction of the headquarters that is expected to cost 733 million birr. Wegagen’s project, which was expected to be completed in three-and-a-half years, was designed by ETG Designers and consultants PLC and will be located around the Addis Ababa Stadium, in front of Nani Building.

The Board of Directors have indicated that the project was delayed due to several reasons but will commence in the current fiscal year.
Established in 1997 with a 30 million Birr capital by 16 shareholders, the total capital of Wegagen Bank has now reached over one billion birr and the number of its shareholders has increased to 2,137.

Ethiopia wants Indian investments to reach 10 bln in 3 yrs

Ethiopia’s strong business relationship with one of the world’s emerging economies is yet again set to get a boost with the visit this week of a high level delegation from FICCI (Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce), the oldest and largest industry body in India. 

The delegation led by R.V. Kanoria, Chairman & Managing Director of Kanoria Chemicals & Industries Ltd, included businesses involved in sectors such as, sanitation, construction tiling, paper products, agricultural manufacturing equipment and information technology with a focus on solutions for the health and agricultural sector. 

Kanoria himself is already in the process of investing 30 million dollars in a textile project, which he says is going to export 30 million dollars in product annually which will be set in Debre Zeit city about 45 kms southeast of Addis Ababa.

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“My business will contribute directly to the garment sector, help create new business opportunities around the planet where Ethiopian companies and smaller converters will convert our fabric into trousers and jeans, and other apparel” said Kanoria, adding that when completed at the end of 2013, it is expected to employ around 500 people.

Kanoria said Indian businesses should come to Ethiopia, to participate in the growth of the country which he described as safe, with people who are willing to learn new skills, with a rule based business environment, ample power, cheap raw material and economical workforce.

However Kanoria said there are some challenges to overcome in Ethiopia like the very high cost of logistics, difficult financing because of lack of foreign exchange and regular delays when conducting business, although he said the government is making improvements. FICCI representatives had a Meeting with the Prime Minister Haliemariam Desalegn, in which he reportedly stated that he wants Indian investments to be over 10 billion dollars from the current 4.3 billion dollars in the next three years.

Ethiopian Tariku Jufar Robi Wins the 2012 Beijing Marathon

Ethiopian runner Tariku Jufar Robi shrugged off the difficulties posed by cold weather and claimed the title of the men's competition at 2012 Beijing Marathon while local female runners continue their dominance in the annual event with Jia Chaofeng leading a 1-9 finish in the women's event on Sunday in Beijing.

The low temperature on Sunday posed a great difficulty to the runners with the wind blowing fiercely and the highest temperature being 8 centigrade.

But the 28-year-old Jufar Robi who won the 2012 Houston Marathon with a personal best time of 2:06:51, dealt well with the weather. Wearing a hat and a T-shirt below his running vest, Jufar Robi clocked 2:09:39 to cross the finishing line first.

Eliud Kiptanui of Kenya finished second in 2:10:15 while Solomon Molla Tiemuay also from Ethiopia settled with the third place in 2:10:20.

Jufar Robi insisted it was a good competition in spite of the chill while Kiptanui said the cold weather affected everyone and that the only thing to do is to live with it.

The hosts best performance in the men's competition was given by Yin Shunjin, who finished sixth in 2:12:30.

Compared with the lackluster performance of their countrymen, Chinese female runners enjoyed a comfortable dominance in the women's event, sweeping the top nine positions in the race.

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The 24-year-old Jia Chaofeng, who represented China in the 2011 IAAF World Championships in Daegu and finished 15th, won the women's race with a career best of 2:27:40. It was the second international marathon title claimed by Jia who always wearing a pair of glass during training and racing because of shortsightedness as she also won the Lanzhou International Marathon in 2011.

China's Sun Lamei trailed 15 seconds behind to finish second while the bronze medal went to another local runner Sun Weiwei, who clocked 2:28:03.

"I usually trained in Qinghai and Gansu province, which are both very cold in winter, so I guess I am used to the coldness," said Jia. "My coach often told me that a good runner should be able to cope with all kinds of weather and I am happy because I did that today."

Jia's gold winning feat extended China's overwhelming record in the women's event of Beijing Marathon as it was the 21st straight title won by Chinese women since 1992.

Holland Car Goes Bankrupt!

The first automobile car assembly plant in Ethiopia, Holland Car Plc, announced to its employees last Tuesday via teleconference that the company had gone bankrupt. The company’s founder and general manager, Tadesse Tessema (Eng.), conducted the teleconference direct from Holland with his employees in Ethiopia.

The company was founded in 2005 with an eleven million birr initial capital after Tadesse decided to establish it in a joint venture with a Dutch company Trento BV, Engineering.

The company could not settle the 20 million birr loan which it borrowed from Zemen Bank, The Reporter learnt.

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“In 2010 we were asked to come up with a solution for the shortage of public transportation in the country. Following that a task force comprising [the then] Addis Ababa Branch Office of the Federal Road Transport Authority, Anbessa City Bus Enterprise, Holland Car and a few experts from the Netherlands conducted a study and managed to come up with a possible solution. On July 2010, we presented the study at a meeting held at Sheraton Addis and the project idea wast accepted by the stakeholders. Afterwards, Holland Car started to build a factory that assembles buses and we displayed the first bus that was assembled at a cost of over 8.5 million birr. However, after we manufactured the bus, we were told that the stakeholders from the transport sector are not interested to work with us on public transportation and that’s how we incurred our biggest loss,” Tadesse explained to his employees.

He went on to say that foreign currency crunch, devaluation of the birr against the dollar, the rising inflation and other steep expenses including rent forced the company in to bankruptcy.   

According to sources, the company had deals with 600 customers to deliver assembled cars of different models. However, as the company could not carry on importing items and assemble orders from customers it had no option but to refund the money that was paid by some 480 customers. Though the company has managed to import parts for 120 cars, it has been slapped with a customs duty that is still outstanding  and is obliged to pay 85,000 birr apiece to the prospective owners due to the devaluation of the birr.

The company used to assemble cars under different brands namely Docc, Abay, Shebelle, Awash Executive, Abay Executive, Imay, Tekeze and Ahadu (trailer bus).
The company’s first assembly plant was built on a 20,000-sq.m plot near Modjo, 70 kms south east of Addis Ababa. The second plant was opened in late 2008 under the name Cassiopeia Assembly Factory in Tatek, a former military barrack located on the outskirts of the capital.

Holland Car was awarded the "JAC Motors Best Overseas Plant - 2009" award from its supply partner, JAC Motors. It was also awarded the prestigious SMME 2009 award in the most innovative category and was a recipient of the 2009 Africa SMME of the year Award which was held in Cape Town, South Africa in October, 2009.

Before establishing Holland Car Tadesse founded a company named Ethio-Holland which used to import used Lada cars from the Netherlands. Later he decided to assemble cars locally in Ethiopia and launched Holland Car.

In 2007, Holland Car assembled the Lifan 520 under the name Abayuntil it parted ways with the Chinese Lifan Group in 2009. In the same year the company concluded a new deal with another Chinese company, JAC Motors, to supply it with engines.
Currently, Holland Car has around 100 employees down from a high of 250.

Ethiopian to buy a stake in Air Malawi

The airline is also set to establish a new airline in Zambia, reports Kaleyesus  Bekele from Johannesburg

The Ethiopian Airlines is to buy a stake in the frail airline of Malawi.  The Government of Malawi recently asked companies to present expressions of interest for the partial acquisition of its failing airline. Subsequently, 11 airlines submitted these to the Malawi Privatization Authority. Ernest & Young has been undertaking a study on the privatisation of Air Malawi which ceased operation this week. After evaluating the expression of interest eight companies were selected to participate in the bid.

At the 44th General Assembly of the African Airlines Association (AFRAA) held in Johannesburg from November 18-20 CEO of Air Malawi, Patrick E. Chilambe, told The Reporter that the bidding companies will submit their proposals to the Privatization Authority. The companies that presented expressions of interest yesterday had a meeting with officials of Ernest & Young and the Malawi Privatization Authority in Blantyre. Com Air of South Africa is the other airline that submitted an expression of interest.

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The government of Malawi plans to establish a consortium by selling a 49 percent stake to a foreign airline and a local investor and keep 51 percent of the shares to Air Malawi.

Hired by the Malawian government, Ernest & Young advised the government to look for a partner and partially privatize the national flag carrier. Two of Air Malawi’s aircraft are in South Africa, retained due to fuel debt. An official close to the privatization process told The Reporter that Ethiopian is the best company among the eight companies that submitted an expression of interest.

Tewolde Gebremaraim, Ethiopian CEO, who was attending AFRAA’s 44 Annual General Assembly (AGA), told The Reporter that Ethiopian wants to help Air Malawi. “They are our African brothers and we want to share our experience,” Tewolde said. The CEO said that Ethiopian is planning to establish a new airline in Zambia. “We have been holding talks with the Zambian government and we hope to sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the government soon,” he said.

Ethiopian partnership with ASKY Airline of Togo has been successful. The Lome-based airline, ASKY, which operates Bombardier Q400 aircraft currently serves 15 destinations in West Africa. Ethiopian owns a 25 percent stake in ASKY.

In a related news, Ernest & Young this week announced that by 2025 Ethiopian will be bigger than South African Airways (SAA). Zemedeneh Nigatu, managing partner of Ernest & Young East Africa, who made a presentation at AFRAA’s AGA held at the Sandton Convention Center in Johannesburg, said that by 2025 Ethiopian will be bigger than SAA. Zemedeneh said SAA will still then be bigger than Kenya Airways (KQ). He attributed Ethiopian Airlines success to management independence. Zemedeneh pointed out that African carriers should collaborate to survive the stiff competition coming from non-African carriers.      

Ethiopian Gov’t institutions launch 49 new electronic services

The Ministry of Communications and Information Technology says it has been working to modernize the activities of government institutions.

The Ministry has already enabled 7 such institutions to deliver some 49 of their services in electronic ways.

The institutions are Ministries of Agriculture, Health, Foreign Affairs, Urban Development and Construction, Labor and Social Affairs, as well as Government Housing and Transport Agencies.

According to ERTA, the new service facilities were inaugurated on Thursday in the presence of senior government officials and invited guests.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Dr. Debretsion Gebremichael said customers can get the services from wherever there is internet access via the following website: www.e-service.gov.et.

Danakil potash prospects see some exit and others double down

After buying out Nova-Ethio Potash, and the departure of BHP Billiton, Allana Potash is betting hard on the region.

The departure of BHP Billiton from its potash concession in the Danakil Depression in northern Ethiopia has been followed by consolidation between two other explorers in the area in September.

With 45°C heat in the shade and close to the tense buffer zone between Ethiopia and Eritrea, the Danakil is an inhospitable place to work.

Nonetheless, the Ethiopian government is keen to welcome miners lured by its rich potash deposits.

A spokesperson for BHP Billiton  said its concession in Ethiopia was "not expected to meet the company's investment criteria" and that its departure in July meant the company was relinquishing its leases.

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The Australian miner has been pulling back from expensive projects amid fears about the fall in commodity prices.

In early September, Toronto-listed Allana Potash, which also owns a concession in the Danakil, announced it was buying out its neighbour Nova-Ethio Potash.

Nova's lease has a large amount of water on it, important to the solution-mining process being used by Allana to extract the sylvinite resources that produce potash.

Joel Jackson, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets, says consolidation in the Danakil makes sense.

There are more than 80 potash projects in the world, says Jackson, and greenfield projects will be expensive to bring online.

"In Ethiopia, the geology is quite com- plex and the project sites are quite remote. There are some significant logistical challenges and financing hurdles," he explains.

Allana is completing a bankable feasibility study on its project, which has an indicated resource of 1.3bn tonnes of potash and could start producing by late 2014.

It plans to spend $800m on the project, including $130m on infrastructure and transportation.

"Our natural markets will be India, China and the Pacific Rim," says Richard Kelertas, Allana's senior vice president for corporate development.

Africa's demand for potash is also growing and it could become a significant buyer as production scales up in the next decade.

In September, Allana announced it had signed an MOU to the Djibouti Port and Free Zones authority to build a potash terminal at the Tadjourah port in Djibouti.

Three-month export generates close to 700 mln US dollars

Ethiopia earned close to 700 million US dollars from various products exported in the first quarter of this Ethiopian budget year, according to the Ministry of Trade (MoT).

Ministry Deputy Public Relations Head, Abdurahman Seid, told WIC that the earned  699 million 78 thousand USD revenue was from Agricultural and Industrial products exported abroad.

He said the nation managed to attain 66 percent of its target in the first quarter mainly due to coffee price fluctuation and overcrowding at port.

According to Abdurahman, the revenue was generated from the export of coffee, oilseeds, pulses, spices, live animal, meat, cotton, flower, vegetable and fruit, leather and leather products, garments, among others.

Ethiopia earned over 752 million USD in the first quarter of last budget year, it was learnt.

Ethiopia earns over 39 mln USD from conference tourism

Ethiopia earned over 39 million USD from conference tourism last Ethiopian budget year, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MoCT).

Ministry International and Public Relations Directorate Director, Awoke Tenaw, told WIC the revenue was secured from the local, continental and international conferences the country hosted in the reported period.

Last year alone, some 49,685 participants attended the conferences conducted in the country with the majority held in Addis Ababa, the director said.

According to Awoke, conference participants stay in Ethiopia for 6 days and spend 121 USD per day on average for accommodation, shopping and other services. There are 426 tourist friendly hotels in the country, he added.

In order to improve the service quality in hotels, the Addis Ababa City Administration alone trained 3,000 hotel and tourism professionals last Ethiopian budget year, he said�
Efforts are underway to expand conference tourism to regional towns such as Adama, Bahirdar, Hawassa and Bishoftu so as to boost Ethiopia’s income from the sector.

Gibe III construction project hits 65 per cent

Some 65 per cent of construction of Gibe III hydroelectric power plant has been finalized, project manager, Engineer Azeb Asnake said.

Engineer Azeb told a group of visiting journalists this week that the project launched with 32 billion Birr is well underway as per schedule. She said the project, which is one of big hydroelectric projects in the world, has capacity to generate 1,870MW.

Engineer Azeb said so far construction of tunnel, two dams and a bridge across the Omo River has been undertaken. The project will help build green economy through reducing the effect of carbon, she said.

Part of the budget for implementation of the project is allocated by the government while the balance is secured in loan from the government of China.

The project being undertaken in Wolaita and Dawro Zones of South Ethiopia Peoples' State is expected to be completed in June 2014. The project is believed to significantly contribute towards growth of power supply in the country.

Ethiopian Airlines CEO wins African CEO of the Year award

Tewolde Gebremariam, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, was given the African CEO of the Year on Tuesday on November 20, 2012 at a meeting of African CEOs in Geneva.

He was given the award for the stellar performance that Ethiopian Airlines had registered over the year.�

Ethiopian made an operating profit of 55 million US dollars and a net profit 40 million US dollars. It now has flights to 43 African countries and a growing international network including 28 flights a week to China.

Despite reduced demand overall in the airline industry due to the economic recession in Europe, Ethiopian managed to produce a 25 per cent increase in passenger numbers.

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Its expansion is continuing in accordance with its 15 year development plan.  In a speech at the meeting, Tewolde attributed the success of the airline to good cost management, efficient aircraft utilization, good route network, good corporate governance and institutional independence.

In particular, he emphasized managerial autonomy as a key to success, noting that “the fallacy is that whatever government owns is a failure. It is not.”

In fact, he underlined that it was the full managerial autonomy of Ethiopian that had made it successful while the airline was still fully owned by the state.

Atlanta-area doctors fix Ethiopian's broken heart

LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. -- Eyasu Woldekirkos, 29, of Ethiopia was bed-ridden with a bad heart before life-saving surgery at Gwinnett Medical Center.

"He had a copy of an echocardiogram, which showed he had more severe heart disease than I've ever seen," said Atlanta-area cardiologist Dr. Michael Lipsitt.

Dr. Lipsitt met Eyasu during a medical mission trip to Ethiopia back in April.

Dr. Lipsitt was there to volunteer at a clinic run by the Atlanta-based nonprofit Jewish Healthcare International.

"He came to us and asked and JHI as an organization was able to help coordinate the transportation and logistics to get him over here for surgery," said Julie Kaminsky, Program Director at JHI.

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On November 1, cardiothoracic surgeon Dr. David Langford performed a rare, complex triple valve replacement at Gwinnett Medical Center.

The damage to Eyasu's heart was even worse than Dr. Lipsitt imagined.

"It was obvious he was suffering from advanced heart disease involving multiple valves from rheumatic fever," he said.

Rheumatic fever has been nearly wiped away in the U.S., but not in Ethopia, where doctors told Eyasu he would not survive.

He talked to 11Alive's Jennifer Leslie through a translator, Muluken Messele, who traveled with him to the U.S.

"I was a dead person in Ethiopia," he said. "My hope of surviving is coming again to my heart. I'm very happy."

Eyasu is staying with Dr. Lipsitt and his wife Jeanne during his recovery. He's expected to return home to Ethiopia by the end of November.

"There's no words to express how you feel when something works and a dream kind of comes true," Dr. Lipsitt said.

He said he's thankful to JHI and U.S. Rep. Tom Price (R-Roswell), who helped secure travel documents for Eyasu.

Cecafa Cup will ready us for Afcon, insist Ethiopia

Ethiopia assistant coach, Seyoum Kebede, has defended the decision to test new players at the Cecafa Challenge Cup, insisting it is still part of their Africa Cup of Nations preparations.

The East African nation are sending a squad which includes 14 uncapped players, of which three are based overseas.

Ethiopia's 21-man squad contains just one regular player from both the Nations Cup and World Cup campaigns.

"It's been 31 years since we last played at the Nations Cup and we have to start thinking about building the national team in a different way," Kebede explains.

Many were expecting the 1962 African champions to field their full-strength side as an opportunity to benefit from competitive games before heading to South Africa.

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Instead the Ethiopians have opted to scour Europe for eligible players, whilst building a second string side as part of their preparations for the Cup of Nations.
Seyoum Kebede

Seyoum Kebede will take charge of Ethiopia for the Cecafa Cup.

"The players who've been part of the World Cup and Nations Cup campaigns need to recuperate," coach Kebede said.

"We don't want to take them immediately from the Cecafa and straight into the Nations Cup because maybe their performance might decline.

"We are also getting many contacts from Ethiopian-born players from different corners like Yusuf Salah from Sweden, who has arrived already and we would like to see him play at the Cecafa level.

"Together with the head coach we have presented this plan to the federation and suggest that this will help us for future campaigns."

The current head coach Sewnet Bishaw guided Ethiopia to the Cup of Nations in South Africa, but Kebede will be leading the coaching staff for the Cecafa Challenge Cup in Uganda.

"After a 31-year absence we are now part of history, and when you go to a competition like the Cup of Nations it is not to go and participate. We have to do something," Kebede added.

"Apart from the hosts, out of all the participants, Ethiopia will have the largest supporters in the (Cup of Nations) tournament because there is a huge community living there.

"We have to make them proud and that is why we are preparing to send a strong team to South Africa."

Kebede has said that even though his squad has no international experience they should not be underestimated.

"The team we are taking to Cecafa is also excellent and they have good experience at their clubs, so in Uganda they will get international exposure.

"They say we are in the group of death. South Sudan have players who are playing abroad and they are not different in standards to the other Sudan we know.

"Uganda have a good history in East Africa, and Kenya are also good, but I can assure you that our team is also not easy. We hope to be the surprise team of the tournament."

The Waliya Antelopes will open the Cecafa Challenge Cup on Saturday against neighbours South Sudan in the first match of Group A, which also includes Kenya and the host nation Uganda.

Gov't inks over 636 mln birr deal with private contractors for industry zone

As part of Ethiopian government's plan to spur the country's industrialization, the Ministry of Industry (MoI) signed a deal worth over 636 million birr with 12 local private construction companies and a Chinese contractor, CGC Overseas Construction Companies Ltd.

, whereby the latter would undertake the civil work of the Bole-Lemi Industrial Zone.

According to the agreement, the private contractors will carry out the first phase of the construction which includes putting up infrastructure as well as warehouses that would accommodate various factories.

The ministry also said that the construction of the industry zone will attract Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

In line with the nation's Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP), the government is set to establish new factories in major towns including Dire Dawa, Kombolcha, Hawassa and others.
Textile, agro-processing, manufacturing, metallurgy and similar other strategic sectors have been accorded priority bu the GTP.

The overall cost of the industry zone project, which is estimated to be some 1.2 billion birr, will be financed by the Industry Development Fund and partially by Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED).

Adama I wind farm to be inaugurated

The Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation is to inaugurate on December I the Adama I Wind Farm project built at a cost of 117 million dollars on the outskirts of Adama town, 98 km east of Addis Ababa. The Adama I wind power project has an installed generation capacity of 51 MW. The wind farm has a total of 34 towers each with a generating capacity of 1.5 MW. 

The total cost of the project is 117 million dollars, of which 85 percent was covered by a loan secured from the Chinese EXIM Bank. The Ethiopian government financed the remaining 15 percent. A Chinese firm called Hydro China carried out the mechanical work while CGOC, another Chinese firm, undertook the civil work.

The wind farm started generation with a full swing last June. A 132 KV transmission line 4.5 km long has been built. Another transmission line - 33 KV and seven km long - that connects the Adama wind power project with the national grid was built. The construction of the substation has been also finalised.

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EEPCo has embarked on the Adama II Wind Farm Project .The second wind farm project is located between Adama and Modjo towns. According to EEPCo, the second Adama wind farm project will have 100 turbines and the construction will take 18 months. According to Miheret Debebe, EEPCo CEO, the project will be financed by EXIM Bank of China.

The Chinese firm Hydro China will undertake the construction of the wind farm with an installed generation capacity of 153 MW at a cost of 345 million dollars in partnership with another Chinese firm, CGCOC.

The second Adama wind farm project will have 102 units (turbines) each with a generation capacity of 1.5 MW. Officials of EEPCo said that they had identified a wind energy with a potential of generating 1200 MW of electric power around Adama, Eteya and Assela towns.

EEPCo has commissioned another wind power plant in Mekelle. The wind farm built on the outskirt of Mekelle, in a place called Ashegoda, has an installed generation capacity of 120 MW. Under the five - year Growth and Transformation Plan, Ethiopia plans to generate 890 MW from wind energy. Ethiopia has the potential to generate 60,000 MW from hydro, wind and geothermal energy sources. The country’s energy demand is growing at a rate of 34 percent.

Gov’t recognizes contribution of public, private employees to Renaissance Dam

The Government of Ethiopia on Saturday awarded certificate and trophy to public and private employees to recognize their contribution to the success of the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam project.

Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn said it is important to give recognition to the efforts being exerted by public and private employees towards the success of the Grand project.

Ethiopia has been investing on huge projects with a view to expanding infrastructure in the country, Hailemariam said, adding, construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is among those huge projects being undertaken by the Government.

He said the construction of the Dam would realize the long-awaited dreams of Ethiopians towards utilizing their equitable share from the Nile waters.

More than 27 government institutes, regional administrations and pensioners have received certificates and trophies from Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn and Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen.

 

Security Council extends mandate of UN peacekeeping force in Abyei

The UN Security Council has extended until 31 May 2013 the mandate of the United Nations peacekeeping force for Abyei, an area contested by Sudan and South Sudan.

In a unanimously adopted resolution on Friday, the Council also demanded that the two countries finalize the establishment of an administration for the area, as well as constitute a police service, in line with an agreement signed in June 2011.

The pact, signed in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, provides for temporary administrative arrangements for Abyei and the withdrawal of troops by both sides.

The Council also urged Sudan and South Sudan to make regular use of the Joint Oversight Committee to ensure steady progress on the implementation of the agreement.

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The Council established the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) in June 2011 following an outbreak of violence in the area.

The mission’s mandate includes overseeing the demilitarization of the area and maintaining security. The final status of Abyei, which straddles the border between the two countries, has yet to be determined – one of the outstanding issues of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement which helped to end the long-running civil war between Sudan and South Sudan.

Ethiopia and Kenya agree on regional security co-operation

Kenya and Ethiopia on Monday agreed to work closely in order to promote peace and security in the region.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs Permanent Secretary Thuita Mwangi told journalists in Nairobi that both nations will jointly explore ways of building on the progress realized between Sudan and South Sudan following the signing of various agreements.

"Kenya and Ethiopia have agreed to accelerate efforts aimed at searching for peace and stability in the Horn of Africa region, including consolidating the gains in Somalia," he said during the opening session of the technical meeting of the 34th Kenya- Ethiopia Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) in Nairobi.

The two-day meeting will discuss strengthening of bilateral ties in the area of political, socio-economic, security and foreign affairs and will culminate in the signing of draft bilateral agreements.

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Kenya remains one of Ethiopia largest trading partner of in Africa and government statistics indicate that in 2010 Kenya’s exports reached 43 million U.S. dollars against imports of 2.4 million dollars.

He added that the holding of the two day session demonstrates the importance which the two countries attach on the need to further deepen and strengthen historical bonds of friendship through cooperation in various fields.

"The meeting will address the pending cooperation instruments identified during the 33rd session of the JMC which was hosted in Ethiopia," Mwangi said.

"This includes the proposal for a Cooperative Framework Agreement establishing a joint Lake Turkana and Rivers Omo and Daua Basins Commission, operationalization of the road transport and railway agreement as well as cooperation in agriculture," he said.

Thuita said that once the agreements are signed, they should be implemented and their impact on bilateral cooperation documented.

He added that during the drought season, lack of water causes conflict among communities at the common border due to the proliferation of small arms.

"The Kenya-Ethiopia standing boundary administration commissions will continue to meet twice a year in order to maintain peace," he said.

Thuita added that the JMC will lay the ground for the official visit of the Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn to Kenya.

Ethiopia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Directorate, Director General Wondimu Asaminew said that his nation attaches great importance to its relations with Kenya.

"A second meeting of senior officials in less than six months underlines the paramount importance of the bilateral cooperation," he said.

"Both nations are committed to enhancing cooperation on major regional and international issues of interest," he said.

He commended Kenya’s solidarity with Ethiopia following the death of its former prime minister Meles Zenawi in August.

"We are back to normalcy as all institutions are now working," he said.

Asaminew added that both parties will work together to promote peace stability in the continent as well as strengthen institutions of the African Union and its development program New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD).

He added that the east African neighbors will expand the scope of their cooperation to include health, women and children, science and technology, youth and sports and extradition.

The Ethiopian official noted that both states have a shared desire for a global system that respects the diversity and equality of nations.

Ethiopia: Refugee Camp Becomes World's Second Largest

The number of Somalia refugees sheltered at Ethiopia's Dollo Ado refugee camp has hit a record high of 170,000 making it the world's second largest refugee complex, according to the UN refugee agency (UNHCR).

The number of new arrivals to Dollo Ado have seen a decline, however, the newest camp located in Ethiopia's South East has continued to receiving new arrivals.

Since the beginning of this year, over 60,000 Somalis have fled into neighboring countries, including 25,000 to Ethiopia - making the Horn of Africa nation the largest recipient of Somali refugees in the region so far this year.

Somalis are forced to leave their home due to conflict, drought and lately due to insecurity in southern and central parts of Somalia.

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Other arrivals, according to UNHCR, also say that they had to leave in fear of harassment and forced recruitment by al-Qaida linked armed groups, who still control large rural areas of the East African nation.

Currently there are five camps in Dollo Ado. The newest, Buramino camp, which was opened in November last year is now full, hosting maximum capacity of 32,000.

UNHCR has been transferring new arrivals to Kobe and Hillaweyn camps, whose accommodation capacity has been increased into 30,000 people each.

The two oldest camps, namely Bokolmanyo and Melkadida, host more than 40,000 people each.

With people still arriving at Dollo Ado, There are now plans to build a sixth camp some 54 kilometres north of Dollo Ado town. The Ethiopian government has already authorized the opening of the new camp to accommodate more arrivals and ease burdens at crowded camps.

According to UNHCR officials, it cost more than US $5 million to open the new camp, setting up basic services and infrastructure including medical, education and warehousing facilities.

The UN refugee agency said it currently is "seeking support from donors and partners, including resources for NGO partners who would be working in the camp".

UNHCR has appealed an initial and urgent fund of US$1.5 million needed to prepare sites, demarcate land and to setting up basic infrastructure, including drilling of bore holes, setting up water points, emergency clinic, latrines.

Since January this year, UNHCR has managed to secure US$44 million. which is far less than the US$112 million needed to assist more than 1 million Somali refugees that remain displaced across the region.

Somalis are the largest refugee community in Ethiopia, which is also home to more than 91,000 Sudanese refugees, almost 61,000 Eritreans and 4,000 refugees from other countries, taking the total refugee population in Ethiopia to nearly 368,000.

Every month, the country receives thousands of new arrivals, the majority of whom are Somalis followed by Sudanese and Eritreans respectively.

According to UNHCR, Somalia remains one of the world's longest and worst refugee crises with a third of Somalia's estimated 7.5 million population living in forced displacement - either as refugees or internally displaced.

Hailemariam says Ethiopia desires peaceful solution to conflict between Palestine, Israel

Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn expressed Ethiopia's desire to find peaceful solution to the conflict between Palestine and Israel.

While holding talks with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Palestine Dr. Riyad Al Malki on Monday, Hailemariam said Ethiopia supports ongoing efforts to bring about peace between Palestine and Israel.

He said Ethiopia supports Palestine’s demand for self-determination.

The Palestinian Minister told journalists after the discussion that Palestine urges the international community to impose seize fire between Palestine and Israel.

Ambo University confers honorary doctorate on president Girma

Ambo University on Saturday bestowed honorary doctorate degree on president Girma Woldegiorgis in recognition of his outstanding contributions on environmental protection and natural resource conservation.

Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister Hailemariam Dessalegn said President Girma deserves the recognition given his immense contribution on environmental preservation.

The President for his part expressed gratitude to Ambo University for considering his contribution and honouring him such a prestige.

The University also handed over another prize which was intended for the late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi to be kept in museum.

Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen, Ministers and invited guests attended the ceremony.

Ghion on Offer for Lesser Price in Second Round

The Privatisation and Public Enterprises Supervising Agency (PPESA) will lower the indicative price of Ghion Hotel Addis Abeba, when it retenders it for full private ownership in the coming three weeks, after taking the recommendation of outside consultants, SAB management and Development Consultancy Fortune learnt.

Officials from the Agency will only confirm that the indicative price is lower than before, but have declined to state the exact amount. However a source who used to work closely on the matter had stated that it may be between 100 million and 130 million dollars.

The indicative price for the hotel had been set at 150 million dollars,when it was put on the auction bloc for full private ownership for the first time last July.

Although around 12 local and international companies,including hotel owners and those involved in the import export business had bought the bid document, no one had submitted tenders for the hotel in time for the bid closing date.

“The time was too short to secure the appropriate financing from foreign banks and submit a complete bid,” an advisor to a foreign company interested in buying the Hotel had told Fortune then.

The expert who also has long years of experience in the Ethiopian hotel business also added that the indicative price is fair if enough time is given to submit bids, since the hotel has ample open space.

Addis Abeba’s Ghion, one of the last two remaining of the 11 hotel chains under the Ghion Hotels Enterprise, was built in 1951 and sprawls over 12ha of land.

Prior to the July tender it had only been offered for a joint venture deal several times by the Agency.

Most recently, PPESA had made an agreement with a German company Dnknesh Dnknesh Vermogenveeravltung (GMBH), represented by Aklileberehan Mekonen, who claims to be a descendant of the Ethiopian royal family, to give up 80pc ownership for 8.3 billionBr.However Aklileberhan did not appear at the signing contract in November 2011, having failed to make the 3.5 billion Br down-payments.

In addition to the large space, the fact that bidders get a chance to fully own and manage the hotel will attract investors at the indicative price given, according to the expert.

Despite his opinions three officials at the Agency have indicated to Fortune that they think no bids had come in past because the indicative price set for the Hotel was too high.

The indicative price set was not based on current research but had come from previous documents when the Hotel was being offered for partial ownership in a joint venture agreement, Wondafrash Assefa, Public Relations head at the Agency told Fortune.

Interested in getting a current asset and business valuation assessment on Ghion and five other public enterprises it plans to put on the auction bloc, PPESA had floated an open international tender in September 26, 2012, using funds from the World bank.

SAB management and development Consultancy PLC, a local firm had been picked from around four that had submitted proposals, according to the source who was working closely on the matter.

The consultancy finally signed an agreement with PPESA four months ago for an undisclosed sum. Along with Ghion it is also doing valuations for Adola Gold Development Enterprise, Minerals Development Enterprise and Artistic Printing Press.

To carry out the task, SAB had subcontracted the job to Zimbabwean and British property valuators, according to a source who wants to remain anonymous.

Ghion, along with Adola, Artistic printing and Minerals development will now be put in the auction bloc in the coming two weeks, after the board makes a final decision.

 

Ethiopia bring in new faces for Cecafa Challenge Cup

Ethiopia have announced a squad which includes more than a dozen uncapped players for this month's Cecafa Challenge Cup in Uganda.

The former African champions will be without the majority of the players who helped the team qualify for next year's Nations Cup in South Africa after a 31-year absence.

Midfielder Yared Zenabu, of Ethiopian league champions Saint George, is the only player in the squad who contributed actively in the 2013 Nations Cup qualifying campaign.

The 14 uncapped players are home-based except for Abraham Kassa who plays in Alabama in the United States.

Perhaps, the most experienced player in the 21-man squad is globetrotter Fikru Tefera, who has played in Europe, Africa and Asia. The other foreign-based player is Yusuf Salah, of Swedish club Syrianska.

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The inclusion of both Salah and Kassa forms part of Ethiopia's drive to search for overseas-based players of Ethiopian origin to strengthen their squad for the Nations Cup.

Ethiopia have been drawn in Group A of the Cecafa Challenge Cup, along with hosts Uganda, neighbours Kenya and South Sudan.

They will open the competition against South Sudan on 24 November at the Namboole Stadium. The final will be played on 8 December at the same venue.

Goalkeepers: Binyam Habtamu (Hawassa City), Samson Asefa (Harar Beer), Deraje Alemu (Sebeta City)

Defenders: Moges Tadesse, Robel Girma (Sidama Coffee), Girma Bekele (Hawassa City), Mehari Mena (Commercial Bank Ethiopia)

Midfielders: Gatoch Panomo, Masood Mohamed (Ethiopia Coffee), Yared Zenabu, Mesfin Kidane (Saint George), Tilahun Wolde (Defence), Abdul Karim Hassan (Electricity), Elias Mamo (Commercial Bank Ethiopia), Mulualem Mesfin (Arba Minch)

Strikers: Dawit Fekadu, (Dedebit), Yonathan Kebede (Electricity), Amele Milkias (Arba Minch), Fikru Tefera (Thanh Hoa, Vietnam), Abraham Kassa (Alabama College, USA), Yusuf Salah (Syrianska, Sweden)

Is Ethiopia ready for foreign investment?

Ethiopia was once a byword for poverty and famine.

It is still one of the poorest countries in the world, with an estimated third of the population earning less than $1 (63p) a day, but the country also has one of the world's fastest growing economies.

Opinion is sharply divided, however, as to whether or not it is wise to invest in the country.

Since 2004, its economy has been expanding by about 10% a year. The government expects growth to continue in double digits - but a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) suggests it will slow to 6.5% in 2013.

Even the IMF predictions are impressive, however, considering the current global financial climate and the fact that unlike many other countries on the continent, Ethiopia does not have much in the way of natural resources.

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Entrepreneurial spirit

Coffee is one of the biggest export earners in Ethiopia.
Continue reading the main story    
“Start Quote

    You need to be aggressive, but not arrogant”

Michael Girma Coffee exporter

In Addis Ababa, the country's capital, coffee exporter Michael Girma says it was a challenge to launch his business.

"To start up in the export sector, you need to perform with your own cash. Then after that, you can approach the banks," he says.

Apart from exporting coffee, he now also owns a cafe, a bar, and a pizzeria, employing 140 people altogether.

Although the business environment is getting very competitive, he is achieving a profit margin of 20-30% each year and feels confident about the future.

"A lot has changed in the last seven years," Mr Girma says. "You need to be aggressive, but not arrogant."

Although foreign investors are encouraged, many sectors are reserved for domestic investors.

"The restricted sectors are those which supply to the local people. If foreign investors want to come in and invest in projects which are export oriented, anything is open," Mr Girma says. "It would be very hard to compete otherwise."

Diverse opportunities

Despite annual high inflation, some investors think the potential in Africa's second most populous nation has not been recognised.

Earlier this year, Shultze Global Investments launched a $100m equity fund aiming to invest in Ethiopian businesses.
Ethiopia ethnic tribes Dozens of ethnic Ethiopian tribes do not generally benefit from the growth in the capital, Addis Ababa

In a nondescript building on a hillside overlooking Addis Ababa, Berhane Demissie decides where to put that money.

"Ethiopia offers significant opportunities for investors," she says, pointing out that agriculture is a strong growth sector.

"Anything grows in Ethiopia with the various climate and soil diversities that we have. That also follows through to the agricultural value-added chain with processing and exports," Ms Demissie says.

With 85% of the population dependent on the agricultural sector, she says the government is trying to ensure those farmers have access to finance and fertilisers that will allow them to grow more.

Ms Demissie says this will lift people out of poverty.

"If the programme was just about big farms I would have said no, but the smallholder farmers are being included in the overall growth of the economy," she says.

She also says there is a lot more demand for consumer goods and services within the country, but too few manufacturing companies.
Business concerns

In 2010, Transparency International, which rates countries according to perceived corruption, listed Ethiopia at 120th out of 183 countries and the Washington-based Global Financial Integrity research organisation concluded that illicit financial outflows between 2000 and 2009 totalled $11.7bn (£7.4bn) in 2009 - which was more than Ethiopia had earned through exports.

It is reports like those which deter some of the diaspora from returning to the country to look for business opportunities.
Continue reading the main story    
“Start Quote
Berhanu Nega

    The government has been pushing tens of thousands of people off their lands because of the land grabs by China, Saudi Arabia and India”

Berhanu Nega Bucknell University

Berhanu Nega went back to Addis Ababa in 1994 after the change in government and was elected mayor in 2005 - only to find himself imprisoned for life on the day he was elected on charges of treason, because he had called for the overthrow of the president.

He was released after 21 months and returned to the US where he is now an economics professor at Bucknell University. He is also the co-founder of Ginbot 7, an Ethiopian opposition party, and he does not believe the country is a good place to invest in for the medium or long term.

"If you want to make big bucks and get out then it is good for the short term," he says.

Apart from concerns about corruption, he is also worried about the uncertainty of inflation: "The government has been printing money since 2005 and inflation, depending on which figures you look at, ranges between 40-60%."

He says many businesses have closed down because of the taxation the government has imposed to pay for its expanded security forces.

He adds: "The government has been pushing tens of thousands of people off their lands because of the land grabs by China, Saudi Arabia and India among others, which has caused serious conflict in many areas."

Mr Nega does not feel there will be any changes soon and is pessimistic about the country's future business environment.

Ethiopia Permits Mobile Banking and Money Services

Ethiopia is one of the last countries in Africa to permit mobile banking.
 
Mobile banking has proved to be profitable in the developing world, where many people still do not use banks. Earlier this year, the World Bank reported that seventy-five percent of the world’s poor are “unbanked.” That is about two point five billion people. Banking through mobile telephones lets people take part in financial services even if they are not near a bank office.
 
In Africa, only Ethiopia and Zimbabwe do not provide mobile money services. Now, that will change for Ethiopia.
 
 BelCash and M-Birr are mobile banking technology providers. They have been setting up mobile banking and mobile money services in Ethiopia for the past three years.
 
Dutch company BelCash is working in partnership with banks to provide easier access to financing through bank accounts. Ireland-based M-Birr is a mobile money service that works with micro finance groups where no registration at a bank is needed.

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Ethiopia’s mobile industry is young. And wireless service coverage in the country is not well developed. The pressure on the wireless network is expected to increase.
 
In the past four years, the number of mobile users grew from three to seventeen million. And Ethiopia’s telecommunications provider, Ethio Telecom, expects that number to grow to forty million in the next three years.
 
The government closely controls Ethiopia’s telecommunications market. That means there is only one provider. Competition is not permitted.
 
M-Birr General Manager Thierry Artaud says Ethiopia’s neighbors have several mobile providers.
 
"If you look at your neighbors, Kenya, Tanzania Uganda, they all have multiple mobile operators and they all have mobile money services and even multiple mobile money services.”
 
He says, if Ethiopia had no restrictions, his company would have to compete with larger companies.
 
Ethiopia has looked at other developing countries with mobile banking. National Bank of Ethiopia officials visited Kenya, Pakistan and Brazil.
 
Frezer Ayalew is with the National Bank of Ethiopia. He says mobile banking services will help the country.
 
“For the economy it has great contribution in terms of mobilizing domestic savings with these services.”
 
The National Bank of Ethiopia recently finished a draft order on how mobile banking services should be structured. This comes as more companies have shown interest in starting mobile banking services.

ERCA collect over 22 bln birr during first quarter

The Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority’s (ERCA) collected a 22.26 billion birr revenue during the first quarter of the current fiscal year, surpassing its plan by 103.57 percent. The authority had planned to collect 21.49 billion birr during the first quarter of the fiscal year, which started on July 7, 2012 and successfully accomplished its plan by collecting 22.26 billion birr, Ephraim Mekonnen, head of the authority’s public relations department, told journalists at a press conference he gave on Wednesday.

The authority’s first quarter performance increased by 6.2 billion birr compared with the same period of the previous year and this is a significant achievement to the authority, Ephraim said.

Indirect taxes such as Value Added Tax (VAT), Excise and Turnover taxes have considerable contribution to the authority’s first quarter revenue collection. Type of taxes in this category jointly raised 16.13 billion birr or 72.47 percent out of the total revenue collected in the quarter.

VAT, the contentious tax type listed in the indirect category alone raised 9.1 billion birr, 41 percent to the total revenue of the quarter, according to the authority’s performance report.

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Direct taxes, such as employment tax, profit tax and others have raised 5.7 billion accounting for 25.65 percent of the total revenue collected in the first quarter of this fiscal year.

Furthermore, the authority collected 2.55 billion birr during the stated period in aid of the Addis Ababa City Administration in accordance with the latter's request to boost its revenue.

It also seized contraband goods worth 7.3 billion birr while crossing borders into Ethiopia, according to the authority’s first quarter performance report.

Cigarettes, electronics, cosmetics, different types of bullets and medicines were some of the contraband items seized while crossing the Somali borders in to Ethiopia.

Similarly contraband goods and livestock worth 1.2 billion birr were also seized while being smuggled out of Ethiopia, according to the report.

Norway refuses to grant Ethiopia’s fingerprint request of over 400 refugees

The Norwegian government has disagreed with Ethiopia on the latter's request for fingerprints of the over 400 Ethiopian refugees residing in Norway, who were expected to be deported, as it is not in their repatriation agreement. On January 26, Torgeir Larsen, Secretary of state with Norwegian government and Ambassador Berhane Gebrekristos, Minister of Foreign Affairs, signed a Memorandum of Understanding to repatriate back Ethiopian citizens in Norway. Since March 15, the Norwegian government was in the process of sending back over 400 Ethiopian refugees living in the country without legal documents or resident permits.

Sources told the The Reporter that though the Ethiopian government requested as a precondition  fingerprints of the Ethiopians who are set to be deported, the Norwegian government refused to get engaged as the request was not in their repatriation agreement.

The agreement was signed between the two countries to let citizens repatriate voluntarily, Ambassador Dina Mufti, spokesperson with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told The Reporter. According to the agreement, the repatriation is going to be carred out by the Norwegian government.

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“Thus, we don’t follow up the status and I don’t have any information regarding the fingerprint request,” Dina told The Reporter.

“In the first place there was no one who could voluntarily return back to Ethiopia, as many are political refuges and that is why the demonstration has kept on here in Norway,” an Ethiopian who resides in Norway told The Reporter in a telephone interview.

The agreement stipulates that Ethiopian citizens, who choose to return voluntarily, are entitled to receive a lump sum upon arrival and will be offered support to reintegrate, which paves the way for a new start in Ethiopia. For Ethiopians, who do not want to go voluntarily, the Norwegian government will resort to the option of enforced return.

A recent report from Norwegian Organization for Asylum Seekers (NOAS) shows that before the repatriation agreement was signed, the deportation of Ethiopians was very complicated. The number of deportations of Ethiopians from Norway and other Western countries in the past few years has been minimal. There have also been relatively few voluntary returns to Ethiopia.

Ethiopian to Provide Paperless Cargo Service

Ethiopian Airlines is hoping to start e-freight service to certain cargo destinations by December 2012, in order to reduce paperwork and save time when processing airway bills and other travel documents for cargo shipments, Fortune learnt.

The e-freight initiative was launched in 2004 by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), an industry wide trade group headquartered inCanada, which has 240 Airlines accounting for 84pc of the current global air traffic as members worldwide, aiming to eliminate paperwork from the international air cargo supply chain.

As many as 30 documents may be needed for one cargo shipment, creating a lot of paperwork and delays, according to the IATA website. Eliminating paper documents will save 1.2 billion dollars industry-wide, IATA claims and envisions to have a 100pc e-freight penetration in the industry by 2015.

Ethiopiajoined the initiative and started the process of implementing e-freight for cargo flights in March this year.

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The national carrier, which has hauled 42,000tns of cargo in 2011, usually issues airway bills to cargoes that are around twelve pages long and incorporates travel, trade and customs information. All these can now be processed online once Ethiopian starts the airway system. To do so, however, it must first fulfil IATA’s several requirements for implementing e-freight. One of the requirements is for the Airlines to pass a High Level Assessment (HLA) and a Detailed Level Assessment (DLA).

Ethiopian has already passed HLA and is finishing with the DLA, according to an official in the cargo department involved in the project. In addition, if a country is to send cargo using e-freight system, it needs to be a signatory of an international agreement that the destination country is a participant of.

There are two major international agreements relating to airway carriage, the Montreal Protocol (MP4), which was signed in 1975 and entered into force in 1998 and the Montreal Convention (MC99) signed in 1999 and which entered into force in 2003.

While Ethiopian has signed the MP4 protocol gaining access to major export locations likeLiege,Belgium, should it use e-freight, it is not a signatory of the Montreal Convention.

“This means we cannot implement e-freight in emerging markets likeChina” the official from the cargo department told Fortune.

In order to rectify this, the Airlines had written a letter to concerned government offices including the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority (ECAA), Ethiopian Revenues & Customs Authority (ERCA), the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED) and the Ministry of Trade (MoT).

“We received a request four months back, but since the issue also concerns customs, we have notified the Airline’s officials to talk with them first,” Bochu Sintayehu, senior legal expert at MOFED told Fortune.

Ethiopian is now conducting a study on the MC99 protocol and its cost and benefits to a country likeEthiopia.

Another requirement for country to launch e-freight is a streamlined customs law that can accommodate electronic documents when clearing Cargo.

“We need customs to recognize electronic information as valid customs document and set a system to accommodate it” the cargo official told Fortune.

ERCA has tried to incorporate this request in a draft amendment of the current customs law. The Authority had been working on this law since March 2011 and plans to present it to parliament soon.

The Airlines is now waiting on this law to start e-freight system to MP4 signatory countries.

No new technology is going to be installed to launch this system, as the Airlines believes that the current CHAMP cargo systems software it uses contains features which can handle e-freight, according to the cargo official.