Category: Business

The Angola government has said it will invest 90 billion kwanzas in listing ravines all over the country’s 18 provinces, with the aim to stop them from spreading, the national director for Engineering Works, Lucau Pedro, said Thursday in central Cuanza Sul Province.

Speaking to the press, Lucau Pedro said the Ministry of Public Works, Urbanisation and Housing has catalogued 742 ravines in the country that require urgent intervention.

In relation to Cuanza Sul, the national director – who was speaking at the ceremony that served to handover the task to the contractor that is to intervene in the ravine located in the Novo neighbourhood – said the Ministry monitors 108 erosion processes, some of which are already being dealt with, specifically in the municipalities of Seles and Amboim.

“It’s important to say that not all the ravines in Cuanza Sul are emergencies. Some are only in the formation phase, which is why each one will be solved in an isolated manner, according to the difficulty we encounter”, Lucau Pedro explained.

Source: Angola Press News Agency (APNA)

International banks have voiced, in Washington, United States, their intention to operate in the Angolan banking market.

The intention was announced Tuesday by investors to the governor of the National Bank of Angola (BNA) José de Lima Massano, and the ministers for Finance, and Economy and Planning Vera Daves de Sousa and Mário Caetano João, respectively.

The officials are taking part in the spring meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is running until 16 April, 2023.

According to a note from the Finance Ministry reached ANGOP, the governor of the BNA said that there was room for more international banks to operate in Angola.

He pointed to opportunities such as the economic diversification agenda that provides financial institutions in their relationship with the private sector, as well as the fact that financial inclusion is only around 50 percent of the population.

Speaking at the question and answer session, during the round table on Angola’s Economic Growth Potential, organised by the United States Chamber of Commerce, José de Lima Massano outlined the measures taken recently, which are making it possible to stabilise the financial system, control inflation, the operating system and exchange rate management.

On the exchange rate, he highlighted the Bloomberg platform, where banks, oil operators, diamond companies and insurance companies operate.

According to the governor of the Central Bank, the use of the platform made the system flexible, transparent and opera based on the conditions of the foreign exchange market.

At the event, José de Lima Massano floated the possibility of companies that make money transfers entering the Bloomberg platform.

Massano said it was necessary for these companies to spread their presence across the other provinces, thus avoiding concentration only in Luanda.

In terms of the principles of banking supervision, the BNA governor said that Angola had adopted the rules of the European Central Bank, which had played the role of regulator and supervisor of the system, now supported by the independence determined by the constitutional review of 2021, and noted the measures adopted to safeguard stability and avoid contagion and risks to the financial system.

Massano also highlighted the work that has been done with the Savings and Credit Bank (BPC) and the Economic Bank (BE) to control systemic risks.

On her turn, Minister of Finance, Vera Daves, addressed the macro-fiscal framework, highlighting the measures adopted to control public debt, the financing needs present in the General State Budget for 2023, as well as the prospects for launching ESG bonds (environmental, social and governance bonds) on the international financial market.

The Minister of Economy and Planning, Mário Caetano, highlighted the reforms of the political-institutional framework with the measures adopted, in the last five years, related to the fight against corruption as well as the ongoing reforms to improve the business environment.

Caetano also spoke of the pillars of the new National Development Plan (PDN), such as investment in human capital, infrastructure and economic diversification, areas in which the involvement of the local and foreign private sector is expected.

The event was attended by representatives of companies from different sectors participated in the meeting.

Source: Angola Press News Agency

Finance Minister, Ahmed Shide called up on American companies to invest in Ethiopia.

He also expressed a brighter window of growing Ethio-US business and investment collaboration.

The minister made the remark at the Ethio-US Business Forum held in Washington D.C on Wednesday.

The forum brought key Ethiopian and US investors and corporate leaders to explore the abundant investment potentials in Ethiopia.

Ethiopia’s Finance Minister mentioned a wide range of measures taken by the government such as the national ease of doing business initiative, the revised commercial law, the newly launched public-private partnership program, comprehensive privatization and liberalization program.

He reaffirmed Ethiopia’s determination to bring sustainable peace, stability and economic development.

Ethiopian Investment Commissioner, Lelisse Neme presented the conducive investment opportunities in Ethiopia including mining, agro-processing, construction, energy, tourism, technology, and manufacturing.

She said that this is high time to invest in Ethiopia emphasizing the government’s multifaceted incentives.

Ethiopia’s ambassador to the USA, Ambassador Seleshi Bekele, on his part expressed the Embassy’s readiness to support investment and trade flow through promoting opportunities that exist in Ethiopia, brokering knowledge that magnify and facilitate investment, and also providing better services for investors.

President and CEO of the Corporate Council on Africa, Florizelle Lizer reassured her offices unwavering commitment to link US investors with Ethiopian counterparts and facilitate an increasing US investment in Ethiopia.

Several participants expressed their satisfaction by the forum content and commit for more investment in Ethiopia.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

The Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC) will hold an international investment forum with the objective of promoting Ethiopia’s ample investment opportunities from April 26-28, 2023 in Addis Ababa.

Promoting the wide investment opportunities of Ethiopia to the global community is the objective of ‘InvestEthiopia 2023’ forum.

Briefing the media today, Deputy Commissioner at the EIC Temesgen Tilahun said that the forum will be attended by more than 600 new foreign direct investors and will have the potential to generate more than 3 billion USD in investments in Ethiopia over the next few years.

Accordingly, the forum will bring together investors, business leaders, policy makers and entrepreneurs from around the world to explore and unlock investment opportunities in Ethiopia.

The forum will also provide a platform for participants to learn about Ethiopia’s business climate, investment opportunities and government policies aimed at promoting investment and economic growth, it was indicated.

‘Invest Ethiopia 2023’ will showcase some of the most promising investment opportunities in Ethiopia, with a focus on sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture, energy, ICT, healthcare, transport and logistics, tourism and other emerging sectors.

Ethiopia is a country with enormous investment potential boasting a young, dynamic and rapidly growing population, abundant natural resources, and strategic location at the crossroads of Africa and the Middle East.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

Ministry of Labor and Skills has signed an agreement with a Chinese company, Orient International Holdings to enhance the efficiency of professionals in the textile sector and create more job opportunities in Ethiopia.

The agreement is expected to help produce capable human power in the textile industry and create more job opportunities in the sector, it was indicated.

Speaking on the occasion, State Minister of Labor and Skills, Dr. Teshale Berecha said that Ethiopia will work in collaboration with the Chinese government to empower citizens in the field of education and training.

According to him, as the agreement will help to enhance the development activity that the country has embarked upon in the textile sector, due attention will be given for its implementation.

” The textile industry has enormous potential to economic growth in Ethiopia and else where in the world. We have been working relentlessly towards improving the skills of workforces in the sector to meet the demand of the industry and we belive that collaboration with the company will further boost the sector’s overall role in skill development and knowledge transfer.”

The State Minister further said that the agreement will help to expedite the ongoing efforts to realizing sustainable development, job creation and skills development in Ethiopia.

He stated that the company will carry out skills development activities both in the country and abroad noting that the company has plan to establish a training center in Ethiopia.

Orient International Holding Chairman Tong Jisheng said that the textile industry sector requires qualified and skilled workers and technology.

Essential support will be extended to realizing this requirement in Ethiopia, the Chairman added.

Mentioning that the Shangtex textile manufacturer under the company has extensive experience in the field, Jisheng expressed commitment to extend essential support in producing qualified manpower in Ethiopia.

“We strive to introduce high level skills and technology in textile industry in Ethiopia,” further stating that some 100 Ethiopians will travel to China to receive training in the field.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency

Realizing the “Ethiopia Tamrit” (Let Ethiopia Produce) Movement is crucial to catalyze the nation’s manufacturing industry by resolving the critical problem of coordination in the sector, Manufacturing Industry Development Institute Director-General (MIDI) Milkessa Jagema said.

The movement, which is part of the 10-year development plan for the industry sector, is intended to address the challenges that producers at all levels face during manufacturing and increase the sector’s contribution to the GDP.

In an exclusive interview with ENA, Institute Director-General Milkessa noted that manufacturing is one of the priority sectors with huge potential that the government wants to exploit.

Citing the market problem at the industrial parks, he stated that some of the products manufactured in the parks are being sold locally due to lack of access to markets abroad while diplomatic activities have been underway to get destinations for the goods.

The other problem of the manufacturing industry is lack of coordination and many stakeholders are working on this to solve the problem

Noting that integration and coordination are critical to the industry, Milkessa said that the Ethiopia Tamrit movement is designed to solve such critical problems.

Apart from increasing export revenues, the movement aims to help manufacturers meet the increasing local demand by substituting imports and reducing production costs.

Furthermore a draft import substitution strategy is being developed to determine the types of products we produce for the local market, how to produce it, and the incentives for import substitution, the director-general added.

“Not only do we need promote export but also quality import substitutes to satisfy the demand of our society.”

There is lack of strategy in this area, he stressed, adding that the draft strategy identify which kind of product should be produced as import substitute and the incentive mechanism attached to it as well as financial issues, among others.

Source: Ethiopian News Agency