Central Bank Tunes Forex, Cash Rules


Central Bank Tunes Forex, Cash Rules

Regulators at the central bank have introduced new rules on foreign exchange transactions as forex reserves dwindle and the federal government struggles with a widening budget deficit and falling external loan disbursements. The directive bans the use of foreign currency in local transactions. Central bank Governor Yinager Dessie (PhD) has also lowered the period of time that returning residents can hold on to foreign currency by two thirds to 30 days. Travellers entering or departing the country are allowed to carry a maximum of 3,000 Br in cash, while the ceiling is 10,000 Br for those travelling to neighbouring Djibouti. The directive quadruples the amount of foreign currency that nationals can bring into the country without a customs declaration to 4,000 dollars, while foreigners are not required to disclose less than 10,000 dollars to customs officials. The threshold was previously 3,000 dollars.


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Yirgalem Hospital Inaugurates New Oxygen Production Plant

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 h...


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Corridor Develops with Parking, Recklessness Concerns, Research Finds

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—we...


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Digitalisation Spreads to the Court System

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 betwee...