An average of hours in a year rural households in Ethiopia spend collecting firewood, a mark of social inequities in energy access. This equals approximately 5.5 months of full-time work a year, disproportionately affecting women and children. These households depend on biomass, accounting for 72pc of energy consumption.
Central Bank Governor Mamo Mihretu characterised a series of monetary policy overhauls, most notably the liberalisation of the foreign exchange regime. The reforms depart from longstanding controls, demonstrating his bid to modernise the financial sector and stimulate economic growth.
A seller and buyer discuss the price of a t-shirt from the open trunk of a parked yellow Toyota Vitz around the Bole neighbourhood. The car is filled with various garments and is part of hustles seen in Addis Abeba where vendors sell anything from eggs to solar powered flashlights from their vehicles. These mobile shops have the chance of changing locations to reach a wider customer base and avoid the costs associated with renting a physical store. It is common in many parts of the world, especially in urban areas where foot traffic is high.
The Tayitu Centre for Culture & Education sits in rubble as its benefactor Alemtsehay Wedajo seeks the completion of the restoration of a 120-year-old historical house in front of St George Cathedral, on Menelik II roundabout. Located in the former Arada division court compound, the house was originally the residence of former mayor Bitwoded Hailegiorgis Weldemichael and served as the city’s first municipality. Now 95pc complete, remaining works include lighting installation and other finishing touches.
Timqet, or Epiphany, features various musical instruments that enhance the celebration. The trumpet (or turumba) signals the presence of the Ark, prompting reverence from believers. Other instruments like the begenna, tsenatsen, and bells create a joyful atmosphere, accompanying the Ark throughout the holiday. These sounds foster community and enrich the spiritual experience.
A new oxygen production plant has been inaugurated at Yirgalem Hospital Medical College in Sidama Regional State. The launch was attended by the regional state’s chief administrator Desta Ledamo and Health Minister Mekdes Daba (PhD). Desta noted that a new kidney dialysis centre will soon be opened as well. Mekdes stated that the Ministry is working to increase the number of oxygen production facilities from the current 10 to 34 nationwide.
The Yirgalem plant cost 86 million Br to build and has the capacity to produce 60 cubic metres of oxygen per hour or 1,440 cubic metres per day. This production translates to 192 large 50-litre oxygen cylinders daily. A third of the production capacity is expected to be utilized by Yirgalem Hospital with the remaining two-thirds to be distributed to other health facilities in the regional state and beyond.
Research involving 400 respondents across four first-round corridor development routes revealed major challenges to the initiative.
The study, conducted by Shaka Analytics and ETC Institute in collaboration with the Addis Abeba City Transport Bureau, examined the impact of the program on transportation patterns, transit accessibility, and parking availability. The routes—Arat Kilo to Bole Deldey, Embassy of England to Arat Kilo, Mexico roundabout to Wello Sefer, and Piassa to Arat Kilo—were found to have a dramatic decline in available parking spaces with 70pc of respondents reporting a complete lack of parking options, while those that exist come with exorbitant costs, often exceeding 200 Br per day.
The study exposed widespread dissatisfaction with the current transportation system with 72pc of respondents expressing dissatisfaction with existing routes, 58pc citing inconvenience, and 61pc pointing to safety concerns due to reckless driving.
Public transportation cleanliness was also a major concern, with 70pc of respondents deeming it substandard.
While 65pc of respondents reported a decrease in traffic congestion following the development, 24pc experienced increased congestion.
Ethio telecom and the Amhara Regional State Supreme Court have agreed to implement a Smart Court project in Bahir Dar to modernize court operations using digital technology. This agreement includes building a modern network infrastructure, implementing cloud services, creating a modular data centre, establishing a network operations control centre, and connecting the region’s courts with a secure digital network.
The project is designed to facilitate secure digital information exchange between courts and improve the standard of judicial services. Users will be able to access these services either in person or remotely through e-court systems, saving time and reducing inconvenience, according to regional authorities.
Frehiwot Tamiru, Ethio telecom CEO, and Alemante Agdew, president of the regional state’s Supreme Court, toured the Supreme Court building, which is being renovated to support the Smart Court project’s infrastructure.
Safaricom M-PESA has entered a strategic partnership with Awash Insurance to integrate its services into the M-PESA payment platform. This collaboration would present customers with secure, efficient, and convenient mobile payment options for insurance-related transactions.
Awash Insurance will now be able to receive payments like premium payments and other insurance-related transactions directly through M-PESA. It is believed that it will enhance the speed, security, and accessibility of payment and increase the adoption of mobile finance services in the country.
Elsa Muzollini, CEO of Safaricom M-PESA, stated that Safaricom is simplifying the way businesses and customers interact by making an accessible, efficient, and time-saving mobile payment system.
“Together, we are not just improving transactions; we are also contributing to the realization of Digital Ethiopia,” said Jibat A. Faji, CEO of Awash Insurance, adding that the insurer is fostering innovation and empowering customers with the tools to secure their futures in a digitally connected world.
He stated that the partnership aligns with their company’s strategic transformation plan, which emphasizes the need for products and services to be accessible, efficient, and real-time. He added that they have been investing in cutting-edge systems and communication technology that save restricted information customers time and money.
Authorities are pursuing the integration of climate action into food systems and nutrition strategies through a national workshop held last week at Skylight Hotel on Africa Ave. The workshop gathered government ministers, development partners, private sector representatives, academics, and civil society members, seeking to incorporate climate impacts into solutions for Ethiopian Food Systems Transformation & Nutrition (EFSTN) with the overall aim of strengthening the country’s implementation capabilities.
This workshop is part of the Convergence Initiative, which is championed by the government with support from the UN Food Systems Coordination Hub and other stakeholders. A key focus of the workshop was identifying and assessing the costs of climate-induced vulnerabilities towards building resilience across social, economic, and environmental sectors, while simultaneously addressing food security and agricultural sustainability.
The workshop also addressed Ethiopia’s climate ambitions, including the goal of achieving net-zero emissions by mid-century and mitigating the long-term impacts of climate change on vulnerable populations. The workshop served as a platform to refine strategies to align food systems and climate actions with the 10-year development plan with an emphasis on securing sustainable funding mechanisms and engaging the private sector, as well as developing a monitoring and evaluation framework.
Federal legislators passed a landmark property tax law last week, granting regional states and municipal authorities new powers to levy taxes on land-use rights and housing. The bill, with four votes against and 10 abstentions, sets the taxable base at 25pc of a property’s total value, with rates ranging from 0.1pc to one percent. Lawmakers backing the legislation believe it will reduce reliance on federal funding and boost the country’s tax-to-GDP ratio, which they note lags behind other sub-Sahara African countries.
Federal officials argue the change will provide local authorities with a dependable revenue stream for infrastructure projects, including roads and public works. By broadening the tax base, they contend, regional administrations can become less dependent on federal subsidies.
Dissenting voices in Parliament, however, say the law risks placing an excessive burden on low-income earners and small businesses.
Desalegn Chanie (MP-NaMA) described the bill as unfair, attributing his opposition to the already high income tax rate, where salaries above 10,000 Br are taxed 35pc, compared with under 10pc in some African countries. He argued that several homes are financed with loans and urged that properties still under mortgage should be exempt from the new levy. Desalegn also warned that layering the new property tax atop existing taxes could stifle economic activities by overstretching households and businesses.
The Council of Ministers approved a regulation that dissolves the Public Enterprises Holding & Administration (PEHA) which managed several state-owned enterprises (SOEs) for over two decades.
The regulation approved last week mandates the rights and responsibilities to be transferred to the Liability Asset Management Corporation (LAMC) to enable it to continue privatization efforts, which have been managed by PEHA. In 2021, LAMC was created to manage the consolidation and servicing of a portion of the country’s SOE debt.
Established in 2003 as a merger of the Public Enterprises Supervision Authority and the Privatization Agency, PEHA was mandated to oversee the management of SOEs and facilitate their privatization.
Recently, Ethiopia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Ethiopian Investment Holdings (EIH) expanded its portfolio, incorporating a number of parastatals, bringing together 40 companies. The latest enterprises to join EIH include Ethio Post, Ethio Engineering Group (EEG), Ethiopian Industrial Inputs Development Enterprise (EIIDE), Ethiopian Railway Corporation (ERC), Industrial Parks Development Corporation (IPDC), Development Bank of Ethiopia (DBE), Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP), and National Veterinary Institute & ShieldVax, both subsidiaries of Ethio Pharma Group.
Previously managed by PEHA, these companies operate across critical sectors such as infrastructure, energy, finance, and industrial development.
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