The dearth of entrepreneurs has long been a binding constraint on Africa’s economic development. To remedy it, African governments should foster business environments that ensure a level playing field and coordinate their actions at the regional and continental level.

As geopolitical interest in the Red Sea grows, understanding and applying the lessons learned from other maritime regions will be crucial to ensuring its stability, writes Omar S Mahmood, a senior researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) Addis Ababa Office in a commentary published in 2019.

The Ethiopian government is busy establishing a local capital market after a long deliberation. A lot of initiatives are underway to complete the plan. This is probably one of the few shifts the new government has taken from the old revolutionary democrats.

A capital market is another form of financial intermediation, like banks, to supply the necessary finance for economic investments. In some instances, however, it takes a different route than banks; it thrusts into investments that are too risky and too long for commercial banks.

The Government of Ethiopia recently released its Draft Trade Policy. The 46-page document serves as a guideline for the government when negotiating and implementing bilateral, regional, and multilateral trade agreements and when taking domestic measures to facilitate and regulate trade.

For years, Ethiopia has needed a single comprehensive trade policy document. Instead, it had a raft of general economic plans and policies to fill the gap, notably the previous Growth and Transformation Plan I and II and the current Ten Years Development Plan. These documents focused on increasing Ethiopia’s market access, trade competitiveness, and strengthening its economic relations with other countries.

Seizing the Inflation Battle Opportunity

Ethiopia’s central bank recently implemented a policy to cap credit lending rates at 14Pct to combat inflation. While this move may appear challenging, it presents an opportunity for Ethiopian banks to strengthen their financial institutions, contribute to economic stability, and enhance long-term competitiveness. Key to this transformation is the adoption of robust credit risk management frameworks, a disciplined focus on enterprise risk management, adherence to international standards, and active cost management across the entire organization, argues Michael Okwusogu, Managing Partner and Head of Financial Services at Value X Partners

“Port is a commodity and we can purchase it where it is affordable.” This statement was the opinion of the late Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Meles Zenawi. He said this when he asked about the impact of Ethiopia’s landlockedness on the country’s development two decades ago. The deceased added: “Now we do not use ports of Masawa and Assab. We lost nothing by not using these two ports. Ethiopia achieved the fastest growth and development in its history in those years. So, landlockedness does not result in poverty and we can use ports of other neighbouring countries. Therefore, there is no reason to regret the landlockedness of Ethiopia. Landlockedness is not and cannot be detrimental to us. Ethiopia was poor when we had ports. Now, we do not have ports, but we are moving forward in our development aspirations. So, a port is not necessary for development,” concluded the late premier.