The 21st Conference of the Parties (COP), which convened in Paris last December, made history as the first time in which a global consensus was reached to flight climate change. Chief among the outcomes of the meeting was increased funding from developed countries to help emerging nations implement programmes to fight and curb carbon emissions. However, these funds haven’t been of much help to African countries, which have had difficulties accessing these monies in the past. In fact, according to the Climate Policy Initiative, countries in Asia and Western Europe received USD 119 billion and USD93 billion, respectively, to pursue green initiatives. Africa, however, only garnered USD2.3 billion for their projects. As the Paris Climate Conference provides new funding opportunities, what needs to take place for countries like Ethiopia to benefit? EBR’s adjunct staff writer Meseret Mamo spoke with insiders to learn more about the challenges of accessing competitive global financing and what’s being done to improve the country’s chances.

Ethiopia’s export performance falls short of the government’s plans. The country hoped to earn USD5.04 billion by the end of last fiscal year, but made less than 60Pct of that amount. For this year, the plan is USD6.5 billion and so far the six-month performance is less than the nation received last year during the same period. A number of structural issues have hindered the sector’s performance, but one has become more prevalent in recent years: exporters not honouring trade agreements with foreign countries. Exporters say that there are systemic reasons why they’re unable to honour trade agreements that have largely to do with the cost and quality of local products. Others, however, argue that this isn’t a sufficient excuse and that breaching contracts will create a negative image of the country’s already struggling export sector. EBR’s Asehenafi Endale spoke with key stakeholders to learn more about the intricacies of the issue and what’s being done to address the underlying problems.

Ethiopia hopes to increase private saving from 16.6Pct to 18.7Pct of gross domestic product (GDP) by 2020. This task, however, may prove cumbersome, given that real interest rates in the country have been below zero for years, which doesn’t bode well for people looking to put their money in banks. Even the World Bank has hinted at the adverse effects of this reality on Ethiopia’s development prospects. EBR’s Bantayehu Demlie spoke with banking sector experts, customers and academicians to learn more about this complex issue and offers this report.