Endowed with abundant natural resources, Ethiopia has one of the most diverse agro-ecological configurations in the world. With 74.3 million hectares of arable land spread over 18 major agro-ecological zones at altitudes ranging from 148 meters to 4,620 meters above sea level, the country’s diversity makes it suitable for growing over 100 types of crops. Agriculture forms the biggest component and bedrock of Ethiopia’s economic development, contributing to about 32.7 Pct of the country’s GDP and 65.6 Pct of employment. With 85 Pct of Ethiopia’s 105 million people living in rural areas, the agriculture sector primarily consists of smallholder farmers who make their living from less than one hectare of land. The agricultural sector has reported considerable growth rates over the past decade as the result of an estimated doubling in the use of modern farm inputs, rapid expansion of arable land, increased labor productivity, government investments in the extension system, and an improved road network. The light of hope in the farming fields, however, is dimmed by startling losses following harvests, writes EBR’s Bamlak Fekadu.

The bars of gold, the diamonds, the gemstones, and the oil were stories Ethiopians have lived with about the riches of their country under the earth. Not materialized enough to change lives, those stories have remained a myth. Even though various administrations admitted the economic value of gemstones and mining in general, the lack of proper policy and legal frameworks, skilled labour, private investment, and market promotion at local and global scale have challenged the robust growth of the sector. This seems to be the thing of the past as the current administration of Abiy Ahmed (PhD) has put the sector at the heart of its ten-year perspective plan. With an overhauled institution under the leadership of Takele Uma (Engi.), the Ministry of Mines is set to enable the country make the most out of its mineral resources. Even though there are still high hopes for gemstones with positive global market prospects, production is still challenged by conflicts, parallel markets, and artificial products, among many other challenges, writes EBR’s Bamlak Fekadu.

Since the inception of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), the concepts of economic union and integration have existed without realization due to various factors including the similarity of goods produced, subpar infrastructure, and dissimilar legal systems, to name a few. Relative to other regions, the continent is primarily reserved to small-scale trading. Ethiopia, like many other African nations, enjoys such cross-border trade along its borders with neighboring nations. For many years, such trade has been treated as illegal, and the traders were nothing but contrabandists. Despite the significance of these trade points and the signing of framework agreements among neighboring countries, the severe lack of infrastructure and skills necessary to oversee the trade process has prevented countries from reaping the benefits of developed cross-border trade. Even though there are few improvements on the Ethiopian side in terms of setting up free trade zones and other infrastructure, ongoing security and natural challenges prevent this landlocked country from realizing the full potential of cross-border trade, writes EBR’s Bamlak Fekadu.