March 15-21, 2025
MOLS establishes National Skills Council; Gvt imposes new "Disaster Risk Response" tax; ENDF alleges TDF-Fano collaboration; TIA term to be extended; Bovine epidemic kills thousands of livestock.
Business & Finance
The Ethiopian Capital Market Authority (ECMA) has introduced a series of stringent penalties to ensure compliance with international financial standards & safeguard investor interests. ECMA also granted licenses to 5 new capital market service providers, including investment banks, on March 21.
Ethiopian Airlines (ETH) signed an MOU with the African Development Bank (AfDB) for the construction of a new international airport in Bishoftu. The $7.8 billion project will increase the annual passenger capacity from ETB 17 million to over ETB 60 million by 2040.
Ethiopian Airlines Group signed a Joint Business Agreement with Etihad Airways to enhance connectivity between Africa, the Middle East & Asia. In other news, ETH will launch four weekly flights to Hanoi, Vietnam as of July.
The Ethiopian Maritime Authority granted multimodal transport licenses to Ethio-Djibouti Railway SC, Ethio Railway Logistics Plc, and Gulf Igot FCZ Multimodal Operator on March 14, & warned the first batch of licensed firms to start operations or face revocation. The sector is expected to open to foreign companies within two years.
Ethiopian Shipping and Logistics (ESL) has been granted exclusive rights to manage cargo from key international trade routes.
Ethiopia has launched an initiative to bolster its coffee sector amidst a significant increase in coffee prices, resulting in higher-than-expected exports amidst a local shortage.
ZamZam Bank reported a net profit of ETB 110.31 million in 2023/24, marking a reversal from previous losses & outperforming competitors in the emerging Sharia-compliant banking industry.
Economy & Development
The Ministry of Trade & Regional Integration (MOTRI) held bilateral talks with the U.S. on March 19 regarding market access and World Trade Organization (WTO) accession by 2026. MOTRI also expressed a desire to participate in the 5th WTO Working Group Summit.
The 43rd AfCFTA meeting took place in Addis Ababa this week, with discussions focused on the lack of progress in implementing the AfCFTA & highlighting the importance of safeguarding African markets from external dominance, boosting intra-African trade & empowering youth.
Ethiopia has reached a deal with its official creditors to restructure $8.4 billion of international debt. Meanwhile, PM Abiy Ahmed claimed that Ethiopia’s economy will likely grow by over 8% over the current fiscal year. Learn more about Ethiopia’s economy in this op-ed.
The gap between the official & parallel market forex rates stood at around ETB 6.1 this week as the official rate averaged at around ETB 129 per dollar while the black market rate averaged around ETB 150 per dollar. Read more about this week’s forex market here.
A new report by the Ministry of Finance (MOF) disclosed that federal institutions utilized ETB 342 billion over the first half of the fiscal year, representing nearly a quarter of the ETB 1.45 trillion annual budget. The report did not include information on spending by regional and city administrations.
A new directive by the Ministry of Revenue imposes stricter administrative penalties for non-compliance with tax obligations in a bid to fight under-reporting & boost revenue collection.
Society & Human Rights
8 survivors of the 2020-22 war filed additional criminal complaints asking the German Federal Public Prosecutor to open investigations into 12 senior Ethiopian & Eritrean government & military officials accused of war crimes & crimes against humanity.
Human Rights First reported ongoing abductions, unlawful detentions & harassment in Southern Tigray zone amidst attempts by the TPLF faction led by Chairman Debretsion to seize control of the local administration.
EHRC confirmed that at least 4 people were injured while 4 others were detained in Adi Gudom town, Tigray region during a clash between regional security forces and local residents last week.
Governance & Corruption
A revised national disaster risk management bill proposes the establishment of a Disaster Risk Response Fund which would receive mandatory contributions by imposing a new tax on both public and private sector institutions and employees.
The Ministry of Labor & Skills has announced the establishment of a new National Skills Council to address the widening gap between industrial demand and workforce capacity.
Parliament unanimously passed a law establishing the Ethiopian Institute of Certified Public Accountants amidst a critical shortage of certified accountants.
PM Abiy Ahmed announced that the GERD will be inaugurated within the next 6 months during a March 20 parliamentary hearing.
Bajaj drivers in the Afar region reported that fuel shortages at official stations for nearly a year has forced them to rely on the black market, where fuel prices have surged to ETB 300 per liter.
Humanitarian Needs
2 earthquakes with magnitudes of 4.4 and 5.5 were reported in Mount Dofen, Afar region this week.
Over 1,400 livestock have died in the South region due to a bovine pasteurellosis epidemic that has affected 4 zones in the region after first appearing in the Gofa zone on March 14.
The Minister of Health confirmed a cholera outbreak in major cities, including in Addis Ababa, & rejected claims that the government had attempted to conceal news of the outbreak. Meanwhile, tens of thousands of South Sudanese refugees fleeing conflict have crossed the border into cholera-stricken Gambella.
A new ACAPS report revealed that the sudden USAID suspension caused significant disruption to relationships of trust between aid recipients & the humanitarian communities.
UNICEF warned that it will run out of ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) for children suffering from severe wasting in Ethiopia & Nigeria by May, unless urgent funding is secured.
Politics
The Tigray Interim Administration (TIA) reported that ETB 8 billion birr was allocated between May 2024 & Feb 2025 to support former TDF combatants waiting to participate in the DDR program. Meanwhile, the National Rehabilitation Commission (NRC) recently held discussions with stakeholders on the progress of the DDR program.
TPLF Chairman Debretsion G/Michael accused TIA President Getachew Reda & federal officials of misrepresenting “limited operations” to “restore order” in certain administrative institutions as an attack and attempted coup against the TIA, rejecting these accusations.
PM Abiy Ahmed suggested that the TIA, whose mandate recently expired, will be extended for another year, & indicated that “there may be changes” in its leadership in his March 20 parliamentary address.
Heightened tensions between the 2 TPLF factions have sparked fears of a return to war in Tigray and the subsequent breakout of another Ethio-Eritrean war, leading various stakeholders to call for restraint & dialogue. Eritrea’s Foreign Minister has asserted that Eritrea played “no role” in the crisis in the Tigray region.
Benishangul Gumuz regional officials dismissed claims that the recent constitutional amendment in the region was politically motivated in a March 16 press release, claiming that it was introduced to make the constitution “multi-ethnic & inclusive” despite the unlawful arrest of 3 opposition party members who had filed a petition opposing the amendment.
Conflict & Security
The ENDF issued a March 21 press release claiming to have crushed a “coordinated attack” in various parts of the Amhara region that was “encouraged and coordinated” by senior TDF Brigadier General Migbey Haile “and his associates”.
OLA militants reportedly attacked a bus travelling from Addis Ababa to Debre Markos and abducted over 56 people in the North Shewa zone, Oromia region on March 17. OLA confirmed the attack & pledged to “investigate the incident”.
The Lutheran World Federation sent a pastoral letter to the Ethiopian Evangelical Church Mekane Yesus, expressing solidarity following a series of attacks targeting the congregation in Gatira, Oromia region.
Geopolitics
Eritrean officials accused Ethiopia of harboring outdated & misguided ambitions for maritime access whether through diplomacy or military force, & accused Ethiopia of exploiting the longstanding border dispute between the 2 countries as a pretext to stoke conflict.
PM Abiy Ahmed reiterated that Ethiopia has no intention of invading Eritrea to gain maritime access, emphasizing that the government aims to seek access to the Red Sea “peacefully through dialogue”.
Russia and Ethiopia have signed a cooperation agreement on training and capacity building to support Ethiopian efforts to rebuild its naval fleet.
The AU has rejected the parallel Sudanese government formed recently in Nairobi, while tensions heighten between Sudan and Kenya.
An airstrike by South Sudan’s Airforce near the Ethiopian border killed at least 19 people, threatening to reignite the 2013-2018 South Sudanese Civil War in which hundreds of thousands died.
Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, the newly elected chair of the African Union Commission (AUC), his deputy, & four other commissioners assumed office last week.