Kiya Ali – Ethiopian Business Review

With its distinct ecoregions and vast range of fauna and flora, the area is home to Ethiopia’s second-highest peak as well as otherworldly landscapes—the Harenna Forest and Sanetti Plateau. Religious tourism, also present at Sof Omar and Sheik Hussein’s tomb, brings numerous Muslim pilgrims. With the recent advent of hiking groups making such travels more accessible to locals, the region stands to win if enabling infrastructures and sustainable development putting locals at the center are employed.

Foreigners residing in Addis Ababa usually have no choice but to fit into the status quo. Irrespective of their social makeup and which continent they are from, they blend fast and move on with the existing spectra. This is mainly due to an absence of room to socialize. Especially Africans have less options since more venues emulate western cities than African values. Finding their original staple food and drink, authentic gestures, art, and language in Addis means ending homesickness. House of Fulani, is the pan-African make-believe unveiled in the heart of Addis Ababa, to serve the growing African community in the capital. Kiya Ali, paid a visit.

Why it Remains a Daunting Task

Historically, fish has played an important role in food security for many countries. Globally, it contributes 15-20Pct of current total animal protein intake requirements. Ethiopia is among nations with a vast potential in this regard. The country has many lakes and rivers for fish production and various species exist in these bodies of water. But the current annual production—57,360 metric tons—only satisfies a fraction of the demand. Instead of becoming a commercialized and thriving industry, the fishery sector in Ethiopia still remains a small scale and artisan-oriented industry. EBR’s Kiya Ali investigates.

The liberal free market economy Ethiopia adopted under the reign of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Party (EPRDF) has been a start of the growth of the private sector. Under such an economy, major public and private companies (especially those operating in finance) access the bulk of money pumped into the market. Then, this huge money trickles down under small pours to the society at large. As has been evident in cities that have made the transition to metropolitan status, the skyline of Addis has welcomed high rising buildings serving as the headquarters of the elite companies in the country.

It has been nearly six months since the Coronavirus made its landmark in Ethiopia. As has been the case around the entire world, businesses have crumbled under the immense pressure the pandemic has exerted upon economic and social life. With the Ethiopian new year up on us, the pressure seems to have persisted as the sectors hit hard by the realities of a world under pandemic have not recovered enough or recovered at all. Kiya Ali looks into the business side of the social celebrations associated with the new year.

The age old claim of Ethiopians that their country is the cradle of mankind has been scientifically proven right. Archaeology and carbon dating have provided evidence that early mankind hailed out of present day Ethiopia. Since then, we have heard a number of internationally recognized people from across the world site that fact to claim that everyone is Ethiopian after all.

The Ethiopian Job Creation Commission along with other research institutions predicted during the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic in Ethiopia that the health problem would end up slashing 1.5 million jobs in a few months. Fast forward a few months and the commission has announced that the governmental goal of creating three million jobs has been achieved. Some experts and citizens interested in the matter have all be surprised by the report. Kiya Ali looks into the matter.

It has been quite a long time since mobile banking started in Ethiopia. However, its penetration is still very small considering the potential size of the market. With branch expansion taken as the primary goal of banks to expand their services to people in all corners of the country, mobile and agent banking seem to be in the back burner. However, poor banking infrastructure outside of the capital Addis Ababa seems to have raised the relevance of mobile banking in some regions of the country. EBR’s Kiya Ali looks into the expanding mobile banking market in the country.

Ethiopia, along with countries like China and Bangladesh, is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. The second African most populous country achieved a commendable economic trajectory in the last two decades. Although the rate is a subject of debate among scholars and policymakers, the government claims an average of 9.9Pct growth was achieved in the past 10 years. This was corroborated by the various mega construction and other major infrastructural projects implemented during the period. Though this has helped the country achieve the title of ‘African Tiger’, it has piled up the country’s debt, both external and domestic. EBR’s Kiya Ali explores the dangers of domestic debt piles.

COVID-19 Interventions Support has Left Commercial Sex Workers Behind

Commercial sex workers make up one of the most stigmatized group of people outcast by society. With the advent of COVID-19 in Ethiopia and the subsequent strains on normal social interactions, commercial sex workers have been forced to refrain from sexual engagements with their clients. The latter have also quit visiting sex workers. The situation has left the commercial sex workers with quite a predicament as their dried income makes it hard for them to pay for food and rent while breaching social distancing rules could jeopardize their health as well as those around them. EBR’s Kiya Ali looks into the matter.

Bale Mountains The Height of Adventure

The Rising of The Fulani Empire In Addis

Commercializing Fishery

Why it Remains a Daunting Task

Addis Ababa: A City in Transition

Carrying the Weight of COVID-19 into the Ethiopian New Year

Telsem: Resurrecting an Old Relic

Pandemic Defying Job Creation, Buy It Anyone?

Expanding The Mobile Banking Market

The Dangers of Ethiopia’s Rising Domestic Debt

The Attention Gap

COVID-19 Interventions Support has Left Commercial Sex Workers Behind