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ZEMEN`S SKYWARD AMBITION


In a triumph over the trials of the pandemic, a rising tide of construction costs and inflation, Zemen Bank has opened a stunning 32-storey headquarters on Ras Abebe Aregay St., Sengatera area, a hub for banking in Ethiopia's bustling capital. The ar...

May 27 , 2023


Fortune News

Meqelle Struggles to Reclaim EFFORT`s Control Amidst Post-War Saga

Meqelle is in an animated bid to reclaim control of the management of companies under the Endowment Fund for Rehabilitation of Tigray (EFFORT), a conglomerate housing 31 companies. EFFORT's Board s...

May 27 , 2023

Fortune News

Addis Abeba Revamps Title Transfer Fees to Tackle Outdated Valuations

Officials at the Addis Abeba City Administration have recently changed the title transfer fees following revised building valuation rates imposed by the Construction Regulatory Authority. This move ai...

May 27 , 2023

Fortune News

Slaughtered Husbandry Sector Poised for Reform under New Policy

The absence of technological equipment to control the contraband trade near national borders and low-quality animal feed has cast a shadow on livestock export, undermining possible forex earnings whil...

May 27 , 2023


Latest Updates

Tax Relief Bonanza Avails for Crumbling Industry Players

The excise tax imposed on digital products, including video cameras, is fully exempted, creaking hop...

May 27 , 2023


Ministry's Social Health Insurance Initiative Derailed by Fiscal Squeeze

The implementation of the Social Health Insurance (SHI) scheme, which was scheduled to begin next fi...

May 27 , 2023








Agenda

Moving Woes

In the bustling streets of Addis Abeba, an undercurrent of unease shadows the necessary act of moving house. Siyoum Haile, a civil servant at a federal agency and father of two, became the latest entrant in an expanding list of residents confronted b...

May 27 , 2023


Private Schools Price Accession, Repercussions of High Inflation

On a rainy afternoon last week, Tesfalem Hailu, 48, was waiting by the door to pick his two children up from School of Tomorrow, Bole Michael branch. Tesfale...

May 20 , 2023


Sesame Farmers Confront War Consequences, Market Volatility, Trade Winds

Asamirew Mekonnen, 49, has been a farmer all his life. He cultivated sesame on over half of his land in Humera town, Tigray Regional State. He recalls that h...

May 13 , 2023







Editorial

Banks Ride the Waves of Change Grappling with Growth, Risk

Tauted as a somnolent giant, Ethiopia's financial scene now stirs, roused by favourable demographics, geostrategic position and untapped markets, offering a tantalising prospect for growth. An incessant swell in GDP and a population bulge that is you...

May 27 , 2023


An African Paradox: Mediating Foreign Wars While Ignoring Homegrown Turmoils

The pungent irony wafting from Pretoria last week was hard to miss. Cyril Ramaphosa, the South African president, grandly announced a peace mission to Moscow and Kyiv, offering to mediate the end of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This comes with notable colleag...

May 20 , 2023

Ethiopia's Geopolitical Dance in a Tumultuous World

In March this year, Kamala Harris, the United States Vice President, visited Ghana, Tanzania, and Zambia as her first tour to Africa since taking office. With ancestral ties in Zambia, Harris addressed a matter she described as “a big issue affecting a lot o...

May 13 , 2023







Exclusive Interview

A Minimum Wage Law Warrants Some Dignity

Fortune: How has the labour movement evolved through its tumultuous half-a-century history? Kassahun Follo: The beginning of the worker's union was completely different from its current state. During the formative stages of the movement almost sixty years ago, there was no right to organize, barg...

Apr 29 , 2023


Count on France and the Paris Club

Fortune: What principles and guidelines does the Paris Club follow when dealing with debt relief for long-term and debt-burdened developing countries like Ethiopia? William Roos: It is an informal group of official creditors of rich countries from OECD and...

Apr 22 , 2023

Apprehending Global Shifts in Climate Change

Q: It has been almost 35 years since the IPCC was born. How has your understanding of climate change over the past few decades evolved? What are the most significant findings that have shaped your current position? Jean-Pascal van Yspersele: One of the key...

Apr 15 , 2023







Viewpoint

Ethiopia's Internet Shutdowns Choke Its Economy, Freedom

Asilent war is being waged in Ethiopia, one that is suffocating the life out of the internet, subjugating the free flow of information, and choking the economy in the process. Ethiopia's onslaught on digital liberty is not unique, but it is becoming notorious for these digital blackouts. These are not mere temporary blips, either. Network blockages can last from mere minutes to agonising months...

May 28 , 2023


The Dream and the Dilemma of Africa's Single Currency

It is an ambitious plan that sees the African Union (AU) striving to create a single currency for the continent, marking a crucial part of its economic integration strategy. The initiative, crafted within the broader design of the Abuja Treaty of 1991, aspires...

May 27 , 2023

As Cities Swell, a 'Healthy' Urban Revolution Takes Root

As urbanization sweeps across the globe, the challenges associated with fast-paced urban growth are becoming increasingly apparent. More than half of the world's population now resides in urban areas, with most of this growth occurring in developing countries...

May 20 , 2023


My Opinion

Backsliding on Maternal Mortality

In 2020, an estimated 287,000 women died in pregnancy, childbirth, or soon after delivering, according to the latest data from the United Nations Maternal Mortality Estimation Inter-Agency Group, which includes the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). This figure is roughly equivalent to the death toll of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami or the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, two of the deadliest natura...

May 27 , 2023


Halftime But Nowhere Near Halfway

The world faces many challenges, including the impacts of inflation and high-interest rates, the lingering effects of the COVID pandemic, and geopolitical conflicts such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Amid all this, this year marks the halftime point for the...

May 20 , 2023

Smart Investments Turning Billions into Learning Powerhouses

One thing that taxpayers and politicians agree on practically anywhere is that more money should be spent on children's education. This seems like a no-brainer: better education offers children a better start in life. But we need to be careful. Many famous...

May 13 , 2023






Featured

Persistent Price Increase Strangles Holiday Consumers

Abdulkarim Murad, 23, vehemently bargains the price of sandals with the vibrant vendor that matches the energy while simultaneously dealing with many customers. He arrived at the Merkato area with plans to buy a holiday gift for his father. He recalls the same type of pair was sold for 1,400 Br a couple of months ago when he bought one for himself, accusing the vendor of attempting to garner windfall profits by capitalizing on the holiday demand. The vendor argues that the price hike should n...

Apr 22 , 2023


Commentaries

A World of Debt

Recent headlines seem to augur a global debt crisis. The United States is teetering on the precipice of a self-inflicted default. Egypt, Ghana, Pakistan, and many other countries face grave financial difficulties. Italy and Japan's debt burdens have grown heavier. And the Chinese are delaying or hampering multilateral efforts to restructure low- and middle-income countries' debt. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) counts 41 countries as being heavily indebted, and that does not include...

May 27 , 2023


News Analysis

Abay Insurance Flourishes Amidst Currency Woes, Rising Costs

Abay Insurance's upswing in profit and impressive earnings per share (EPS) growth last year was marked by foreign currency shortages, rising costs and violent conflicts affecting the industry. The company's net profit climbed by 55pc to 105.05 million Br, rewarding shareholders with 60 Br more EPS than the previous year's 250 Br. These results positioned Abay Insurance between its peers, Ethiopia Life & General Insurance and Oromia Insurance, in an increasingly competitive industry. Th...

May 6 , 2023


Delicate Number

29,386,649,000

The value of treasury bonds in Birr that commercial banks bought from the central bank between December 2022 and April 2023. The amount the banks buy monthly has dropped by more than half within this period.  

May 27 , 2023


Fineline

Leaders of the National . . .

Leaders of the National Election Board are in a charm offensive mood, of a sort. Last week, they organised a rare tour for members of the media, showcasing what polling stations will look like during the upcoming national elections; and they took the...

Oct 3 , 2020


Verbatim

“We live in a world of unprecedented destructiveness.”

Henry Kissinger, America’s legendary diplomat and scholar of international affairs, told The Economist about the risks humanity faces from the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI).






Fortune Video




Sunday With Eden

The Road to Success is Always Under Construction

A while back, I was asked to cover as a substitute teacher for a friend at her primary school teaching job while she travelled to the United States. The private school around the Bole area had tested my ability with an exam before agreeing to it. The month-long endeavour had its own thrill. But the school had a teaching guide, which made up for my lack of teaching experience. I enjoyed it to th...

May 27 , 2023


Optimism Despite Prevalence of Poverty

I met a new mother out on the rainy street of Addis Abeba with her infant. She was selling vegetables and roasted corn under a plastic cover to shield themselves from the pouring rain. She gets up early in the morning to buy vegetables and corn from wholes...

May 20 , 2023

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly Revelations of Social Media

I visited my friend's cousin, who severely broke her legs and hip last week. She had fallen off a tree while taking a picture for her Instagram profile. She is a fun-loving person in her early 40s. It was sad to see her bedridden and in great pain. The...

May 13 , 2023


Life Matters

Debt Trap Impacts Small Businesses Financial Stability

I was standing next to a lady at one of our neighbourhood shops. She was arguing with a shopkeeper to get credit, saying she had been a regular customer for years. They kept going back and forth, and he decided to give her credit no longer unless she settled her previous debt. I was surprised by her entitlement. The lady recalled the time she had spent close to 4000 Br and paid for it throug...

May 27 , 2023


Distress of Digital Payment Penetration

I came across an older man who was complaining about the newly founded experience at a gas station. He, among many others, grumbled that the process took longer than expected, especially during the first few weeks of introducing digital fuel transactions. D...

May 20 , 2023

Sugar What?Conservative vs. Liberal Dilemma

I was wishing for the return of the rainy season because the sun was unbearable while I headed to work one afternoon. An intriguing advertisement captured my attention. It insinuated hooking young people with wealthy older men and women, commonly referred t...

May 13 , 2023





Radar

STAPLE WHEELS

Injera is distributed to small cafes around the Mexico area at dawn. The staple food made out of Teff is a part of nearly every meal in the Ethiopian diet. Last month, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) concluded that a gene-edited variety of the teff would not be subject to its biotechnology regulation. With per capita urban consumption of teff estimated at as high as 61Kg a year by the Open...

May 13 , 2023


HEFTY GREEN

Street vendors around the Shola area take a rest in the shades of the capital's newly planted trees. Upon reporting on its 10-month performance before parliament, the Agricultural Minister indicated that up to 43pc of the arable land in the country has been rendered acidic. This requires large amounts of limestone to be imported from abroad; the tight forex crunch has not allowed the Finance Minis...

May 27 , 2023

In Picture

Coffee Train

Tomoca Coffee has opened another outlet inside the La Gare Train Station and is converting an old train car into a café. Open in 1917, the train station is one of the attractions of the city. It will now be part of the La Gare Eagle Hills Project. The removal of the historical Buffet De La Gare inside the train station following the start of the construction had led to an outcry...

Mar 14 , 2021


NEW MESQEL SQUARE

A construction crew, equipment and materials still obscure the progress of the Mesqel Square project. Nonetheless, the fencing that once enveloped the construction site has largely been removed, and the crescent-shaped steps have been installed. Costing 2.5 billion Br, the project is one of many that attempt to rehabilitate parks, public spaces and rivers of Addis Abeba...

Feb 13 , 2021