Public-Private Partnership Sows the Seeds of Digital Agriculture

Sep 2 , 2023


[ssba-buttons]

Nearly one million smallholder farmers across 150 woredas in six regional states foresee digital profiling and capacity-building services as the Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Institute (ATI) and Lersha, a digital agricultural platform signed a three-year agreement last week. Registration, agro-climate advisory and fertiliser recommendations will be given to farmers while enhancement of value chains in several grains including wheat and barley will be the main purpose of the agreement aside from augmenting ATI's farmer hotline service. ATI was established 13 years ago to transform the agricultural sector by working with the private sector and NGOs with funding from USAID and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Mandefro Nigussie (PhD), head of the Institute disclosed the willingness to engage with the private sector to improve service delivery and expand services while the founder of Lersha, Abraham Endrias indicated that there is a low adoption rate of technology in the country albeit expecting improvement after the agreement. Lersha joined the sector three years ago to provide aggregated farming information for both financial institutions and farmers by facilitating easy-to-handle technology. It has provided its services to over 100,000 farmers through 1,007 agents.


Radar

Nib international Bank Faces Heavy Hit from Forex Revaluation, Pays 348 Million Br in Penalties

Nib International Bank S.C. (NIB) has reported a significant loss of 2.9 billion Br, primarily due to extraordinary foreign exchange revaluation losses, this past Saturday, during its annual shareholders meeting at the Millennium Hall on Africa avenue, Airport Road. The bank faced substantial penalties amounting to 348.4 million Br. These penalties included a 251 million Br fine for liquidity shortages and a 97.4 million Br charge for violations related to Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) payme...


Radar

Railway Network Upgrade Positioned as Engine of Economic Transformation

The National Railway Business Summit took place at Skylight Hotel on October 21, 2025, signalling a historic step in modernising its railway network as a foundation for national development and regional connectivity. Government officials, industry leaders, investors, and experts from around the world convened to discuss infrastructure expansion, financing models, and technology adoption. Asma Redi, chief portfolio director at Ethiopian Investment Holdings, noted that the Ethiopian Railways Co...


Radar

Gold Prices Ease After Recent Surge

The price of gold, which surged sharply in recent weeks, has started to decline in the current selling market. Over the past 15 days, 21-carat gold has traded between 24,000 and 25,000 Br per gram for imported products and around 21,000 Br for local gold. Imported 18-carat gold sold for 21,000 Br, while local 18-carat pieces were priced at 19,000 Br. Traders note that the recent increase was twice as high as typical fluctuations, attributing the spike to export patterns from Arab countries. ...