The Birr was devalued against a basket of major currencies twice over the last almost three decades. The first one was in 1992, when a new government under the late Meles Zenawi devalued the Birr from 2.07 to a dollar to five Birr. Following a series of depreciation since, the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) trimmed the currency by 17pc in 2010. Macroeconomists warned of major inflation as a result, and they were not wrong. Inflation picked up following the devaluation and before 2012 had reached 40pc to the exasperation of consumers.
Seven years went by and inflation came down to the single digits until only interrupted by the El Nino-induced drought in the mid-2010s. But in October 2017, the central bank took another slice out of the value of the Birr, this time with officials promising that inflation would not pick up. But it did and currently, together with a creeping 10-cent a day devaluation of the Birr in the last months of 2019, the inflation rate broke past 20pc, an amount as high as in 1992 but half it was recorded in 2008s historical high.
Increasing export earnings had been one of the main justifications for this policy. But neither the devaluation in 2010 nor in 2017 has been followed by an improvement to the state of the external sector. Now, as in then, revenues from the export of goods lies dormant at below three billion dollars.
PUBLISHED ON
Jan 05,2020 [ VOL
20 , NO
1028]
Agenda | Aug 11,2024
Sunday with Eden | Mar 20,2021
Radar | Apr 30,2024
Money Market Watch | Sep 27,2025
Editorial | Jul 09,2022
Fortune News | Dec 07,2019
Fineline | Nov 23,2019
Fortune News | Jul 18,2020
Money Market Watch | May 11,2025
Dec 22 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW
Charged with transforming colossal state-owned enterprises into modern and competitiv...
Aug 18 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Although predictable Yonas Zerihun's job in the ride-hailing service is not immune to...
Jul 28 , 2024 . By TIZITA SHEWAFERAW
Unhabitual, perhaps too many, Samuel Gebreyohannes, 38, used to occasionally enjoy a couple of beers at breakfast. However, he recently swit...
Jul 13 , 2024 . By AKSAH ITALO
Investors who rely on tractors, trucks, and field vehicles for commuting, transporting commodities, and f...
Oct 18 , 2025
The political establishment, notably the ruling party and its top brass, has become p...
Oct 11 , 2025
Ladislas Farago, a roving Associated Press (AP) correspondent, arrived in Ethiopia in...
Oct 4 , 2025
Eyob Tekalegn (PhD) had been in the Governor's chair for only weeks when, on Septembe...
Sep 27 , 2025
Four years into an experiment with “shock therapy” in education, the national moo...
Loading your updates...