Lawmakers Give Green Light to Privatisation Bill

Jun 14 , 2020


A privatisation bill, which will buffer the privatisation process of state-owned enterprises, was legislated by lawmakers last week. It was approved with 16 against and three votes abstaining during a session that was attended by 292 MPs. The proclamation, which replaces its two-decade-old predecessor, recognises the Council of Ministers and the Ministry of Finance as stakeholders in the privatisation process. The privatisation process will be made within the mandates of the Public Enterprise Holding & Administration Agency. The proclamation was drafted by the Ministry of Finance and the Public Enterprises Holding & Administration Agency with technical support from the World Bank Group and the Tony Blair Foundation. It also requires the revenue from privatisation to be deposited in a special account designated for the Industrial Development Fund administered by the Ministry of Finance after the associated costs of the transaction are removed.


Radar

Electricity Bills Get the VAT Jolt

The new Value Added Tax (VAT) has begun implementation on electricity consumption and various service fees affecting customers who use more than 200 kilowatt hours of electricity per month. Based on a directive from the Ministry of Finance, the tax will be applied to the excess amount of electricity consumption above 200 kilowatt hours. The Ethiopian Electric Utility (EEU) began implementing the VAT on bills starting from November though both prepaid and postpaid customers will have to pay V...


Radar

Gadaa Bank Expands Reach, Faces Lending Constraints

Gadaa Bank closed its first full fiscal year of operations with a net profit of 90.2 million Br. The 18-month-old Bank held its annual general assembly at Millenium Hall on Africa Avenue last week where the board announced that during the year, the Bank opened 15 branches and now has 85 operational branches. “Due to recently enacted policy measures on credit by NBE and unmet resource mobilization during the fiscal year, the Bank was unable to make loan disbursements,” stated Wolde...


Radar

Oromia Bank's Branch Expansion Weighs on Profits

Oromia Bank reported a 47pc decline in net profit to take in 840.9 million Br for the past fiscal year. Interest income grew by 21pc to reach 7.19 billion Br while personnel expense grew by 36pc to hit 3.16 billion Br. The opening of 72 new branches, bringing the total to 575, led to a four percent growth of deposits to 56.4 billion Br. The profits are “unsatisfactory against our ambitious moves,” said Assefa Seme (PhD), board chairperson. “The deviation is primarily attributed to our aggr...