Capital

Agency to construct apartments

By Groum Abate

Revenue Ministry re-forms to authority

By Tagu Zergaw and Tedla Yeneakal

Transport SC heads for liquidation

By Tagu Zergaw

Gypsum to be mined in Somali region

By Muluken Yewondwossen

NBE again rejects Zemen Bank

By Groum Abate

ESL raises salaries by up to 45 percent

By Tedla Yeneakal

Licenses of black market suspects revoked

By Groum Abate

At last, the two anti-poverty campaigners freed

By Groum Abate

Akir, EIG settle differences

By Groum Abate

City, Chamber to elect committee reps this week

By Tedla Yeneakal

CBE sells Mina Bld for 45.1mln Birr

By Muluken Yewondwossen

Italy-Africa peace facility avails 10mln USD

By Abiy Demilew

Dry ports to confiscate goods after sixty days

By Kirubel Tadesse

Gov't to lose 500 mln br on cooking oil tax lift To import 300 mln br cooking oil

By Groum Abate

UDJ says only the means justifies the end

By Kirubel Tadesse

Ministry drafts law to stop double commissioning

By Muluken Yewondwossen

Ethio-Djibouti railway in Kuwaiti talks

By Tedla Yeneakal

ECA to unveil African economic report,
conference of minsters opens tomorrow

By Kirubel Tadesse

Harari officials campaign in Addis

By Abiy Demilew

New product from Microsoft

By Addis Mulugeta

‘A crucial time for Africa’s economy’

By Kirubel Tadesse

Ethiopian Human Rights Commission visits prisons

By Addis Mulugeta

Nigeria assessing Somalia to send peace keepers

By Groum Abate

Agency to construct apartments

By Groum Abate

The Agency for Government Houses is going to construct apartments on its properties that have large compounds.
Sources told Capital that the agency has been contemplating to build apartments in its properties for the efficient use of the plots it owns.
Last year, the board of the agency rejected a strategic plan presented to it by the management to sell its existing villas and a plan to construct houses for sale to the public.
The Agency, submitted the proposal for selling its villas rented to clients excluding apartments, in accordance with the city’s master plan, to interested parties.
Sources told Capital that the agency proposed to completely sell out villas found in different parts of the city in the next five years, and would only administer the apartments. It also plans to construct new houses and sell them to the public. However the board headed by Abadula Gemeda, rejected the proposal.
The government has in the long-term, plans to move out of the rental business gradually, until it sells the entire properties of the agency in the long run.
The agency was established 30 years ago as the Administration for Rented Houses during the Derg regime. The agency now administers more than 3,000 houses including apartments and spacious villas that host embassies, governmental institutions, residential units and offices.
Last week employees of the agency enjoyed a salary raise after the agency finalized a restructuring study that was underway by the Agency’s accountable body of the Ministry of Works and Urban Development.

Revenue Ministry re-forms to authority

By Tagu Zergaw and Tedla Yeneakal

One of the Federal government’s twenty ministries, the Ministry of Revenue (MoR), is set to dissolve to an authority body, a suggestion forwarded and approved by the Council of Ministers after a Business Processes Reengineering (BPR) had been in effect at the Ministry for the last two years, reliable sources disclosed.
About 600 employees of the Ministry have been taking a civil service training program for the past month, finishing their training this week with the remaining employees to continue their classes shortly.
Upon completing the required training employees of the Ministry will be required to take exams after the end of the program to determine whether they will be qualified enough to be enrolled into the new authority that will replace the existing Ministry that co-ordinates three institutions, namely the Federal Inland Revenue Authority (FIRA), the Customs Authority and the National Lottery Administration.
According to the source, these organizations will be reformed as one organization, a restructuring measure that the BPR has identified as a step forward to transform the collection system.
“It is a system that has been adopted from the experiences of developed countries,” the source said. “There are many departments in these organizations that will be outsourced externally, unveiling justifiable grounds for possible lay offs.”
The Ministry was upgraded from the previous Federal Government Revenue Board during a restructuring in the year 2001, a move the government considered as putting its house in order..
“Although I can not specify the exact date, I can be sure that it will be done right after the second group of employees that will take the trainings from the Civil Service reform finish their trainings which is a month away.” The source from the MoR confirmed. “Re-establishing of the Ministry as an authority has indicated to be an effective process in the collection of revenues as taxes.”
Currently, the ratio of tax revenue is about 13 percent, and revenue collected from public enterprises comprise about 80 percent, according to recent information from the Ministry.
Archives indicate that the history of tax collection in Ethiopia dates back over six decades, it was the Federal Inland Revenue Authority (FIRA) which was engaged in the business of collecting taxes.
Collecting tax also has a fair share in the history of Ethiopia for centuries, sometimes revolving around more powerful local tribal chiefs, at other times around a more organized central government.
A reference is made to that piece of legislation on establishing an indirect taxation on unit within the former Ministry of Finance in 1943.
Many agree that the history of modern taxation in Ethiopia began with steps taken in the aftermath of the war of liberation.
According to information obtained from the MoR, the measures are part of the Civil Service Reform Programme aimed at improving service delivery, which include the provision of timely and accurate information on the application of overpayments, on top of the success achieved in implementing checking and clearance of imported goods within a single day.

Transport SC heads for liquidation

By Tagu Zergaw

Hiwot Transport and Technical Services SC (HTTS), established in 1997 with 98% of shares owned by the Ethiopian Red Cross Society (ERCS), is under inventory and odds on that it is going to be put out for sale. Its employees claim that HTTS is not bankrupt and they are striving to save it.
A source within the company told Capital that a committee for liquidation is formed and that most of the procedures lack transparency.
HTTS has 118 employees and owns 20 heavy duty trucks. It also provides vehicle maintenance service for clients. Currently all the trucks have stooped work and are parked in its premises for almost a month now.
According to a management letter auditors sent to the company in November 2007, the company has not reached the stage where a share company must dissolve.
“One of the reasons a share company may be dissolved is loss of three quarters or 75% of its capital. The Company’s accumulated loss was 14,426,290 as of July 7, 2007. This is about 66% of the capital of the Company indicating that the it is facing difficulties to continue operation,” states the letter the accounting firm, Getachew Kassaye & Co wrote.
The letter recommended that management should consider possibilities by which performance of the Company could be improved and adopt the best course of action regarding the future of the Company.
On the letter HTTS employees wrote to President Girma Wolde Giorgis, a notice was posted that stated the company is bankrupt and has closed, without any prior notice. But three days later it opened again and employees that accumulated leave were told to use it.
Also, they wrote to the President that they have been trying to notify that the current management should be re arranged for better results, and stated that they don’t understand why the Company is said to be in business loss. They mentioned that they don’t understand where the money known to be in the bank and that HTTS earned from sale of spare parts has gone. HTTS had 2.9 million birr in its bank account and secured 1.5 million birr from sales of spare parts in 2006, but in 2007 it was only 800.000 birr that was in its bank account.
TTS’s employees were ERCS’s employees and transferred to the Company with all due privileges at the time of its establishment. The initial capital for the Company was from a bank loan. The 30% down payment for the loan was obtained from the sale of ERCS’s used vehicles and spare parts.
“HTTS has finished paying up the loan so now all the trucks and the spare parts are its properties. And also after negotiating with ERCS, the money paid for rent was reduced,” added the source.
Before the agreement on reducing the rent, HTTS used to pay one million birr per year but later it is reduced to 607,000 birr.

Gypsum to be mined in Somali region

By Muluken Yewondwossen

The Ministry of Mines and Energy has signed an agreement on March 25, 2008 with National Cement SC to mine gypsum on a small scale, in Somali region’s Ayesha zone, Dewelle area and to mine pumice in large scale in Amhara region at Minjar Shenkora woreda, around Amora Bete.
The licensee has exclusive rights for large scale pumice mining within the license area for the coming twenty years, to be renewed for ten years upon the request of the licensee. For small scale gypsum mining the licensee has exclusive rights within for the next ten years, also to be renewed for five years upon the request of the licensee.
The license area covers an area of over 766, 000 meters square for gypsum mining and 483, 000 meters square for pumice. The company has allocated fifteen mln ETB for the projects.
According to the agreement, over the next ten years the company will produce 300, 000 tons of gypsum and 4.5 million tons pumice for the coming twenty years.
The license has agreed to give priority of employment to Ethiopian nationals provided that such personnel have the required qualifications and experience, and to give the employees the training required by their duties for the mining operation.
Wondossen Eshete, acting general manager of National Cement, told Capital that the two mining project will produce the input materials for the two cement factories, formerly state owned Dire Dawa Cement factory and for a new factory that is under construction five km from Dire Dawa.
National Cement SC, formerly Dire Dawa Cement SC, is to construct a new cement plant in Dire Dawa at a cost of 700 million Br. With East Africa Group Plc, possessing 80pc of the company’s shares, it was re-established in November 2005 as a joint venture with the Privatisation and Public Enterprises Supervisory Agency (PPESA).
National Cement, which has 121,202 shares each having a par value of 1,000 Br, has made new arrangements allocating 100 million Br for a rehabilitation and expansion project.
According to the Ministry of Mines and Energy, currently, the conductive investment environment created so far has attracted 55 privately owned explorations and mining companies; with 99 licenses to operate across the country.

NBE again rejects Zemen Bank

By Groum Abate

Zemen Bank has again been rejected by the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) over its formation process.
The NBE some time ago approved the article of association and memorandum of association of the Bank, giving its shareholders a green light to submit their signatures to the public notary office, the final procedure a bank has to meet before getting a license. But after the bank officials submited the shareholders signatures the NBE rejected this for reasons that the shareholders have signed for Access Bank and not Zemen Bank.
The bank is now distributing forms to shareholders of the bank to sign under the name Zemen Bank. Procedures dictate that when new banks enter the sector they must first meet the requirements set by NBE prior to signing the memorandum of association before the public notary office.
Since its formation process last year, the Bank has been going through many obstacles form the regulator of financial institutions, the National Bank of Ethiopia.
The formation process of Zemen Bank was almost completed, when shareholders went to the public notary office to secure their union with the signatures as regulations require. However, when only 200 shareholders were left to finalise the signing, which was carried out in six weeks, the public notary office stopped them, claiming they were not given the green light from NBE.
The Bank was forced to change its name to Zemen, after NBE notified the bank that this is a similar name to a bank in Nigeria.
Zemen, which is the ninth private bank to join the sector, has headquarters located at the Old Milk House building.
The board of directors of the Bank consists of Ermyas Amelga, promoter and board chairman, who returned to Ethiopia in 1996 after 12 years of banking experience in the United States (US), Ermias Eshetu, Tamiru Wondemagegn, Tekle Alemneh, president of the bank, Tsegaye H. Silase, Wubetu Workineh, Yemru Chanayalew and Eskinder Desta.
Zemen, which will only have a single branch, has vowed to come up with new products that will enable it to garner substantial profits.
With its 87 million birr paid up capital and 149.6 million birr subscribed capital, it has 2,700 shareholders.

ESL raises salaries by up to 45 percent

By Tedla Yeneakal

The Ethiopian Shipping Lines (ESL) has increased employee’s salary- ranging from 20 to 45 percent more on their previous earnings effective as of March 1st, company officials disclosed to Capital.
Engidaget Mamuye, Company Reform, Organization, and Preparation Service Manager of ESL told Capital that the raise came after the company studied the salary scale of its own as well as other enterprises for the past two years.
“The management took into consideration shipping carriers in other developing countries,” Engidaget said. “More emphasis was given to effectiveness of employees and the increased percentage varied accordingly.”
Some employees of ESL however complained that the raise is still not sufficient as compared to standard payments agreed by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITWF). The federation suggests a minimum wage payment of 500 USD for employees, whose jobs involve regular traveling.
According to information obtained, on average a senior captain earns a monthly salary of 2,000 USD after the new adjustments are made excluding other benefits.
“We stay away from our family members for a very long time when we are on duty as well as sacrificing a lot for the company. Our salary is still not enough,” an employee complained. “The adjustments did not put into consideration our years of service, which made the raise uneven. Employees in other developing countries in our line of work still earn twice as much.”
On her part, Engidaget defends that in any management decision, it is very difficult to make the entire employees happy.
“I genuinely feel the raise is very fair, considering the economic situation of the country.” Engidaget said.
An official at ESL told Capital that the raise is put in effect timely because as many as 30 employees have left the company in recent years, due to dissatisfaction over their salary.
Sources disclosed that previously the salary expense was only four percent of the total. After the new adjustment, the expense is now up to 6 percent.
Employees complain that it is still very low as compared to other foreign shipping company’s expense of about 20 percent.

Licenses of black market suspects revoked

By Groum Abate

The Ministry of Trade and Industry revoked licenses of those found involved in black market activities.
According to the notice posted on their respective shops, the licenses are revoked for reasons that they are found engaged in another business not related to their approved licenses.
Police have seized over six million dollars of hard currency in cash along with illegal money changers in an unexpected raid on March 13, 2008, that led to the arrest of over 35 suspects.
Addis Ababa Police took into custody the illegal traders in connection with foreign currency exchanges that police claims has contributed to the current destabilization of prices in the country.
Later, the court released suspects of the black market raid that were caught during the raid on bail.
One dollar changed for 10.60 birr in the two days before the police cracked down on the black market network on Thursday, March 13, 2008.
Souvenir shops around Filwoha, behind the Ethiopian Postal Service headquarters, in front of Gandhi Memorial Hospital, behind Ethiopia Hotel, around American Gibi, and behind Hilton Hotel were raided by the police.
“The illegal money changers have been in the business for several years without facing much hassle from police,” said observers surprised by the sudden raid.
National Bank on its part had alerted that the public should be aware of counterfeit birr that are being disbursed through the black market.
According to Ethiopian law, foreign currency is only exchangeable at authorized banks, hotels and other outlets and proper receipts should be obtained for transactions. Exchange receipts are required to convert unused Ethiopian currency back to the original foreign currency.
Non compliance with the law results in penalties levied for exchanging money on the black market, ranging from fines to imprisonment.

At last, the two anti-poverty campaigners freed

By Groum Abate

Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie have been released on Friday, March 28, 2008, after they are pardoned by the government.
Daniel and Netsanet were detained in November 2005 in a wave of arrests after political violence broke out for the second time that year. Denied bail for more than two years in December 2007, the pair were eventually acquitted of treason but found guilty of a lesser charge of ‘provocation and preparation’
They were pardoned and released after signing a letter to Prime Minister Meles Zenawi saying they were sorry for their ‘mistakes’.
Daniel and Netsanet would have completed their sentence in May 2008, but could have faced many more years in prison if a prosecution appeal to the Supreme Court had been successful.
The prosecution appeal, and an appeal entered by the defence, were both withdrawn on 26 March 2008.
Daniel Bekele, a lawyer with a masters degree from Oxford University and a policy manager at ActionAid Ethiopia, was arrested on November 1, 2005 along with close colleague Netsanet Demissie, who is head of the Organisation for Social Justice in Ethiopia, which works closely with ActionAid.
In January 2006 serious charges were laid against four organizations and 127 others, including Daniel and Netsanet.
Although most defendants did not recognise the court and refused to plead, Daniel and Netsanet entered pleas of ‘not guilty’.
During a short session of the Federal High Court on 22 March 2006, the prosecution withdrew its charges against 18 people. Daniel Bekele and Netsanet Demissie were not among them.
The court announced that it would reconvene on 2 May and sit continuously from then onwards.

Akir, EIG settle differences

By Groum Abate

Akir Construction Plc. and Ethio Investment Group (EIG) have settled their differences through negotiation after the former pressed charges, demanding payment for an agreement the latter allegedly failed to fulfill.
The two parties had submitted a letter on their agreement to the Federal High Court and the Court scheduled a hearing for April 3, 2008.
The two parties are also negotiating their differences on how to settle the money spent on the lawsuit but have already settled their differences on four allegedly undelivered vehicles.
Akir and EIG signed an agreement on November 15, 2007, that entails the supply of seven vehicles 15 to 20 days after signing the deal.
Paying 180,000 birr for each vehicle according to their agreement, Akir demanded the price of four allegedly undelivered vehicles, amounting to 720,000 birr.
According to Akir, EIG received 1.2 million birr, agreeing to deliver seven double-cab pickups. However, Akir claims that EIG supplied only three of the automobiles.
The Federal High Court froze the account of EIG, after the Gofa Branch of Wegagen Bank SC, wrote a letter to the High Court on March 1, 2008, stating that it has frozen 798,637 birr belonging to EIG.
EIG, established by 26 affluent businessmen and various companies and which is an importer and distributor of BMW, Ford, Land Rover and SCANIA vehicles, was formed after the sale of Etamo Plc, then importer and distributor of SCANIA, from the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE). Among the shareholders of EIG are Star Business Group, Nile International Trading, Sunrise Plc and Dire Industry.
The plaintiff, Akir Construction, is a grade-one construction company established 12 years ago by Awetahegn Kiros and his family. Among the works it has finalized are the Bank and Insurance Professionals Training Institute in Kaliti that belongs to the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) as well as the airstrip at Jijiga Airport, the seat of the Somali Regional State.

City, Chamber to elect committee reps this week

By Tedla Yeneakal

The Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations (AACCSA) and the Addis Ababa City Administration are set to elect a ‘technical committee’ this week that comprises of members from both bodies
Teferi Asfaw, Deputy Secretary General of AACCSA told Capital that on his part, they have planned to allot three members from both the city administration and the chamber.
“The final decision however is based entirely on our joint meeting of this week,” Teferi said, “The committee will conduct its duties according to the Memorandum of Understanding we have signed last month.”
On February 21, 2008, the two sides settled for a co-ownership agreement to manage and build the Addis -Africa International Trade Center at the opening of the 12th Addis Chamber International Trade Fair.
Eyesuswork Zafu, President of AACCSA and Berhane Deressa, Mayor of Addis Ababa signed the co-ownership.
The former Mayor Arkebe Oqubay first hinted at the possibility of co-ownership. In March 2005 when the AACCSA leased the 110,126 sqm land, Arkebe had suggested co-ownership, though AACCSA did not accept immediately.
The center to be built is located opposite the CMC residential complex and had caused a number of disagreements after it was alleged that it overlapped into neighboring lands owned by Country Trading, the Ethiopian Water Sports Federation and Blue Nile Trading Plc.
When the fair was opened last month, Minister of Trade and Industry, Girma Birru had praised the fair’s theme of ‘Public-Private-Partnership for Change’ timely, as it calls on the government and the private sector to forge strong partnerships urgently. “It is intended to remind all stakeholders that if this country is to be among the middle income countries,” Girma had said while opening the fair, “within a defined period of time Public-Private-Partnership is not only imperative, but also mandatory upon all concerned.”

CBE sells Mina Bld for 45.1mln Birr

By Muluken Yewondwossen

Mina Building, previously owned by Star Business Group, was sold to Haimanot Plc by the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia for 45.105 mln birr on the auction held on last Tuesday March 25, 2008.
The building was put up as collateral for the 26.4 mln birr that the owners borrowed from the Bank.
Nile Insurance was one of the bidders and lost after by bidding 105, 000 birr lower than the winner.
The eleven storey Mina building rests on a 3,000 sqm plot and was built in 1999. Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and HST, an audit firm, are tenants of the building.
Tis Abay and Mina were rated in 2001 as “corporate customer” by CBE management and have been closely working with the Bank, able to service their debts regularly. The two companies found themselves at odds after Mina Trading took a 40 mln ETB merchandise loan from CBE, putting more than 200 trucks owned by Tana Transport as collateral in the same year, increasing the total loan portfolio of the group to 115 million Br.
The owners of the building have other sister companies like Tis Abay, owned by Abebaw Desta and Minwuyelet Atnafu. These companies were restructured in 2003, each registering a 20.5 million birr capital, shared equally between the two businessmen who also own Star
Business Group and Tana Transport Plc. The companies were heavily involved in bulk transactions of stationery items, timber, steel and sugar.
Abebaw and Minwuyelet were suspected for corruption in May 2001 and were put under custody and later acquitted after five years in detention. Both companies were indebted 180 million Br to CBE upon the pair’s release in 2006.

Italy-Africa peace facility avails 10mln USD

By Abiy Demilew

The Italian-Africa peace facility (IAPF), established on December 8, 2007 and signed by the then Chairperson of the Commission, Alpha Oumar Konaré, and Italian Prime Minister, Romano Prodi, in Lisbon, Portugal, on the margins of the Africa-EU Summit, this week moved to a new level with the signing of a 10mln USD agreement.
IAPF is designed to support the AU’s efforts in the promotion of peace and security, amounting to 40 millions Euros including the areas of conflict prevention, conflict management with particular emphasis on negotiation and mediation support; post-conflict peace building, including support to AU Assessment mission to countries emerging from conflicts and support to those countries, and support to AU peace building offices in countries emerging from conflicts, declared AU’s statement sent to Capital.
As part of the implementation of the IAPF, the two sides have identified three initial projects aimed at enhancing the capacity of the Somali Police and other structures of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG). During ceremony, the two sides have also exchange letters and signed the agreement on the three projects to be funded by the Facility, for an amount of 10 millions dollars. The Prime Minister of Somalia, Nur Hassan Hussein has been invited to attend the signing ceremony, Capital learnt.
“In order to operationalize the IAPF, the Department for Peace and Security and the Italian side held last week consultations on the modalities for the implementation of the Facility,” says the statement AU sent to Capital. “
In this respect, the two sides have signed an Agreement on the implementation modalities of the Facility which revolves around modalities for the transfer of the Italian contribution and the amount required to cover expenses relating to the implementation of the IAPF; modalities for utilization of the Italian contribution; functioning of the Bilateral Committee which will be established to follow-up the implementation of the IAPF – this committee will comprise two representatives of Italy and two of the AU Commission, according to the statement.
Meanwhile, Somali Prime Minister Nur Hassan Hussein, discussing security issues with AU officials, told reporters that he assures a speedy delivery of relief to desperately needy citizens, as a number of humanitarian agencies warn of an impending humanitarian catastrophe in the East African nation.
“We definitely agree there are difficulties in relation to access,” he said. “We will appoint focal points for humanitarian contacts, humanitarian assistance. Operations will be facilitated by a mechanism we will put in place, and agreement with the humanitarian operators,” he told VOA.
He gave no details, but pledged to appoint what he called a certain “mechanism” to speed aid deliveries hampered by security failures and coordination breakdowns, said the report.

Dry ports to confiscate goods after sixty days

By Kirubel Tadesse

Dry ports are set to take possession of goods that are not removed by the consignee within sixty days after completing the requirements of the dry port and customs formalities, the draft bill presented to the House of Peoples’ Representatives by the Ministry of Transport and Communications (MoTC) proposed.
According to the bill, a Proclamation to Limit the Liability of the Dry Port to the Consignee, abandoned goods; any property including livestock, containers, pallets or packaging supplied by the shipper, shall be retained and sold by auction under the Customs Authority. Before confiscating the abandoned goods, all the dry port has to do is to notify the shipper or post a notice for fifteen days.
The bill orders that after deducting duties, taxes and dry port service, the balance of the proceeds of the sale should be deposited for the account of the owner.
The bill states in cases of loss, damage or delay in delivery of the goods occurred in the dry port’s custody, the dry port would be liable. But the bill limits the liability the dry ports are subjected to in another provision. “In cases where a damage or loss has incurred to the goods and where the type and valorem value of the import or export goods has not been declared by the consignee during hand overing, the liability of the dry port is limited for the loss or damaged goods by its weight and shall be limited to SDR 2.5 per kilogram, “reads Part 2/6 of the draft bill.
The liability of the dry port for delay in delivery, which is defined as a three day period after all procedure is in place and with no other special agreement, extends to two and half times the charges payable to the dry port service. The draft bill was sent to the Budget and Finance Affairs Standing Committee by majority vote. The bill is expected to get final approval in less than three weeks. According to the MoTC, the bill will help Ethiopia to implement a modal transport system efficiently.
On the Thursday March 27, 2007 meeting, the second for the House this week, it endorsed the Amended Bill of Excise Taxes by majority vote. Capital reported that the endorsed excise tax would increase the tax from 50 to 75% on whisky and cuts on soft drinks down to 20 % from 40%.

Gov't to lose 500 mln br on cooking oil tax lift To import 300 mln br cooking oil

By Groum Abate

The Ministry of Trade and Industry has announced that it has lifted all types of tax imposed on cooking oil. The ministry has also lifted a sur tax on soap as of yesterday, Saturday, March 29, 2008.
Girma Birru, Minister of Trade and Industry, said that the lifting of the tax on cooking oil alone would cost the government an estimated 500 million birr annually.
Lifting of different tax titles and increasing the supply of consumption goods are some of the measures being taken by the government to stabilize the market.
Girma said the government would import 1.5 million quintals of sugar of which 400,000 quintals would be distributed in April this year.
He further said the Ministry is also under preparation to import cooking oil worth over 300 million birr with the intention of raising supply.
The government would also import 400,000 quintals of wheat to be distributed among consumers.
He said that a task force was established in Addis and various regional States with a view to monitoring the implementation of the steps taken to regulate the price hike.
The action to be taken on illegal bodies would not be new and would be based on the rules and regulations of trade in the country.

UDJ says only the means justifies the end

By Kirubel Tadesse

Anedargachew Tsige, former Coalition for Unity and Democracy Party (CUDP) member, together with a hitherto unknown writer called Bementu Zeleke, has distributed a twenty three page paper proposing for the CUDP to follow the path of armed struggle to overthrow the current Ethiopian government. The proposal resulted in a strong denunciation from Birtukan Mediksa, who is among the former CUDP majority which is collecting signatures for new party Unity for Democracy and Justice (UDJ).
Anedargachew Tsige, who was once a member of the supreme council of the CUDP is now in London in one of the support chapters of the former CUDP. He was in Ethiopia during the May 2005 elections and published a book claiming to unveil his past ties with the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Front (EPRDF). He left Ethiopia after a few months, claiming that he was harassed into leaving the country again. He was also a member of the international leadership of the CUDP, which was established hoping to keep the party’s effort alive when most of the leaders were in custody. In his latest paper, which has an unrecognized co-writer, with a name allegedly to an alias to protect his or her identity, he tries to recall South African armed struggle which led to the peaceful political struggle in the end. The paper illustrates how armed struggle would benefit the nation in the long run, claiming that it is the only way forward, which is according to Birtukan, intolerable and talk from the past.
Capital obtained a copy of her four page letter addressed to the former CUDP supporting chapters found in the USA and Europe. In her letter, Birtukan explained that it is with a sense of urgency that she is issuing the letter which targets to underline the party’s means of struggle. “Seeing the Ethiopian government’s decision to put the political leaders in jail and a desire to stay on an undemocratic course, doesn’t justify to follow any kind of struggle which isn’t by peaceful means,” reads Birtukan letter, “in light of the raised question of revising political struggle means, it needs to be very clear that the very basic aim of CUDP was to change the government with the will of the people with fair and free elections, targeting to administer the nation by better political and economic polices.”
Birtukan also states that the idea of armed struggle usually comes after the failed attempt of peaceful struggle, from anger, disappointment and frustration. “Even if the peaceful struggle through elections costs much. It brings change not only in who is in power but in the system of governance otherwise, it is only the people in power that change; the corrupt with other corrupt, old dictators with new ones.”
Birtukan concludes her letter by demanding the chapters to continue their financial and political support, only putting in mind that the party is striving to change the government through legal and civilized means; elections. “What ever changes we may achieve, if it is through unethical, undemocratic and uncivilized means, its end will never benefit our people.”

Ministry drafts law to stop double commissioning

By Muluken Yewondwossen

The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MLSA) is to send a draft law that prohibits international employment agencies that find employers in Asian countries for Ethiopian laborers from receiving money other than the commission that the foreign employers pay.
Those who have returned from Arab countries have participated on the drafting process of the law.
According to Zenebu Tadesse, State Minister of MLSA it became necessary to minimize illegal activities committed during the process of sending employees to these countries
“Some agencies are asking up to 12 thousand birr for a workers to go to Arab countries for employment. The workers should not spend a dime other than the money required for passport and medical tests. If anyone is asked to pay, they should come and inform us,” added the Minister.
Recently one agency got a contract job in Qatar for 60 men. And after the visa process was completed and was issued, the agency demanded 9 thousand birr from each. But the men were alert that they do not have to pay, so they contacted the Ministry and other concerned organizations.
“The Ministry found out that the employer has already paid the due commission to the agency for their tickets and was expecting its employees to arrive. We were told that necessary measures will be taken on the Agency and to wait patiently,” said one of the company’s employees.
In related news, the government of Ethiopia has signed an agreement with the Saudi Arabian government for 50 thousand Ethiopian employees of different professions to go to Saudi for employment. Further agreements are expected to be made between the two countries concerning professionals in the near future.
According to Zenebu the necessary processes of these professionals journey will be facilitated by legal agencies who have agreements with the Saudis.
Currently in the Middle East Ethiopia has two embassies in Saudi (Riyadh) and Kuwait; and three counsels in Jeddah, Dubai and Lebanon. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, there are more than Sixty five thousand legally employed Ethiopian workers are in Arab countries, except in Syria. It was two years ago that the government stopped employees from going to Syria. However sources told Capital that at the present time there are many illegal workers in Syria.

Ethio-Djibouti railway in Kuwaiti talks

By Tedla Yeneakal

Kuwaiti firm, Al-ghanim and Sons Group, is in the final stages of negotiations to take over the management concession of the Ethio-Djibouti Railway Enterprise, an official at the Ministry of Transport and Communications disclosed to Capital.
According to the official, the concession agreement will likely end in a couple of months.
“The technical team has met and agreed on several points, clearly indicating that it is in the final stages of the management take over,” the official said.
The discussion of the two sides mainly focuses on management of the Railway Enterprise in concession and modernisation of the Enterprise’s trains with electronic tools.
The Ethio-Djibouti Railway Enterprise has been operating without a profit ever since it was established. Both the trains and the 782Km railway lines of the Enterprise are obsolete.
The governments’ of Ethiopia and Djibouti initiated two years ago to give the Enterprise to an experienced foreign firm by concession failed, as Komazar, a South African management company that won the tender floated, overlooked the terms of the deal.
A donation from the European Union (EU), amounting to a 40 million euro rehabilitation work, started on the railways.

ECA to unveil African economic report,
conference of minsters opens tomorrow

By Kirubel Tadesse

The first joint annual meeting of the African Union (AU) Conference of Ministers of Economy and Finance and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) Conference of Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development opens tomorrow in Addis Ababa under the theme Meeting African New Challenges in the 21’st Century.
According to UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), Abdoulie Janneh, during this conference which will be on until Wednesday April 2, 2008, Economic Report on Africa (ERA) 2008 will be launched. The conference of ministers will be held with the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the ECA.
Abdoulie Janneh, opening the 27th meeting of the Committee of Experts, which held from March 26 to 29 prior to the ministerial meeting, stated that Africa registered a marginally better economic growth performance in 2007. According to Janneh twenty-five countries achieved a growth rate of over 5% or more last year while another fourteen grew at over 3%. “The continent is still far from achieving the necessary momentum to meet the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) by the target date of 2015.”
Even if Africa’s current growth still needs increase to over 7 percent annually in order to meet the MDGs, the possibility of worldwide recession is a threat in addition to failing to generate the quantity and quality of jobs. Commenting on this problem Africa faces, Janneh stated that it is partly because the growth derives from capital-intensive extractive sectors and there is very little value-added to export products.
Dr.Maxwell M. Mkwezalamba, Commissioner for Economic Affairs, AU, also shared the urgent need for African economic growth to generate adequate employment. “It has been observed that relatively high economic growth rates may not be sustainable owing to their having largely emanated from increases in demand for Africa’s commodities and prices of fuel,” explained Dr.Maxwell. “The challenge facing the continent is how to promote sustainable growth and ensure employment creation,” he said, explaining that the world food shortage cannot be taken as a temporary phenomenon or a simple supply and demand dilemma.
According to the survey of economic and social conditions in Africa 2007, when growth slightly decelerated in North Africa, all other regions experienced higher growth compared to 2006. East Africa, a non-oil region with limited mineral exports, continued to lead economic performance in Africa, whereas Central Africa lagged behind all other regions in 2007.
This week ministerial meeting is expected to address high commodity price, food shortage, other issues that troubles the continent.

Harari officials campaign in Addis

By Abiy Demilew

A delegation of senior officials of the Harari Regional Government, led by Murad Abdul Hadi, President, held discussions with Hararis living in Addis, in a campaign for attracting and encouraging investment to the ancient town of Harar.
The regional government plans to embrace the private sector involvement in the development of the town, especially encouraging Hararis living in Addis, it was reported.
In the recent Harar Revitalisation Forum, held in Harar town two weeks ago, President Murad noted that the regional government will work closely with the private sector, in attracting investment to speed up the development of the town.
“The private investment sector is among the stakeholders listed to take part in the activity to develop the basic facilities in Harar,” senior official told Capital.
The regional government wants to uplift Harar in speeding up development activities with the support of major stakeholders and this is part of that initiative and commitment, according to the official who posed for few words with Capital.
Harar lacks modern amenities such as hotels, restaurants, hospitals etc and suffers from a chronic water shortage. Each resident now gets five gallons of water per day. Harar also faces a challenge to meet the demands of the 4500 tourists who visit every year. The character of the Old Town desperately needs to be preserved, while at the same time the infrastructure and housing conditions need to be improved for the residents, according to the study that was presented on the forum.
“This is the first ever large campaign to involve this number of senior officials for a special mission” disclosed the official.
“Economic Model for the Revitalization, The overall economic model for the revitalization (the source of revenues resulting from the revitalization and how they would be captured to repay the cost of the effort) will be a key output of the Forum. The economic model is expected to include a role for the Harari diaspora,” according to the study presented on the forum three weeks ago.

New product from Microsoft

By Addis Mulugeta

Microsoft Server Software launched three software solutions to the Ethiopian market on March 25, 2008, at the Sheraton Addis. The new products will help secure information, network management more efficiently and ensure users deliver better results. It will be of particular interests to information technology (IT) professionals and managers, excusive and senior public officials responsible for IT and others who develop software application across Africa.
David Ndungu, Microsoft Marketing Manager for East and Southern Africa, stated that they are in Ethiopia to launche three new software solutions known as Windows Server 2008, Visual Studio 2008 and SQL Server 2008 as part of a global event that that began in March, and includes 19 countries in Africa.
Mr. Ndungu said that Windows Server 2008 is one of the three products they were launched here in Ethiopia with new technologies that allows people to secure information, control access to the network and take greater responsibility for the overall performance of their IT systems. It literally frees up people to do more with their time.
On the other hand, Visual Studio. allows programmers and developers to work together using visual and graphic tools to develop software programs and business processes in a streamlined and professional manner, Ndungu said and added this is not widely known. It is one of the tools that are available and the most popular one used by software and web developers to either produce new software or to develop content on websites.
He explained that SQL Server 2008 is also available now market and that it is the latest Windows version of the company’s database server software aimed at driving greater reliability and availability of critical business information. It maintain data and database application.
He added that much as Windows Vista SP1 drives desktop personal computers, Windows Server 2008 is an operating system that drives the servers that sit at the heart of a large-scale computer network.
Before releasing the final version of software, 4 million prototypes were distributed throughout the world.

‘A crucial time for Africa’s economy’

By Kirubel Tadesse

“Witnessing particularly good times, the African economy is at a crucial time which can be used to lay down the foundation for a brighter future and achieving the millennium development goals, said Abdoulie Janneh, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of Economic Commission for Africa (ECA.)
Briefing journalists on Tuesday March 25, 2008 at the ECA, Janneh disclosed that there are positive signs even if MGDs are not met in Africa.
According to Patrick Bugembe, Director, ECA Sub regional Office for Eastern Africa (SRO-EA), achieving MDGs isn’t impossible as some critics claim. “The last half decade has shown that a stable macroeconomic environment reflected in low inflation, market-determined exchange rates, low fiscal deficits, and prudent monetary policy- is required to raise growth rates and reduce poverty, “ explained Bugembe. Further explaining East African conditions, he stated in the last decade, the Eastern African sub-region continued to record negative trade balances.” These are due, notably, to the quality and quantity of exported goods, the low productivity level in the export sectors and the unfavorable terms of trade.” One of the problems, according to his commentary is that the economy of the sub-region is more import-dependent than export-oriented.
“The growth rate in Eastern Africa, estimated at 6.8 percent in 2007, is still below the one required to make significant inroads in reducing poverty,” explained Bugembe, “Most studies have shown that an average of Africa growth rate of at least 7 per cent is needed for that.”
Bugembe advised that these countries need to keep sustainable peace and security in the sub-region, pointing out Ethio-Ertiera border conflict, Kenya post elections riots and others which negatively affects the countries economies.
Regional integration, which the New Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD) has adopted as one of its core objectives, was also proposed to undertake concerns such as harmonization of macroeconomic policies, trade liberalization, negotiation policies, improving economic governance, rehabilitating transport and ICT infrastructures, etc.
Almost all of the countries of the sub region show a low level of development and a high level of poverty. Although this sub-region has the biggest share of African population (30%), it represents only 10% of the GDP of the continent. Five out of 13 countries are landlocked, 5 have access to sea and 3 are islands in Indian Ocean. More that 50% of the population in the sub-region live on less than one dollar per day and per person. The sub-region is considered as one of the poorest in Africa.

Ethiopian Human Rights Commission visits prisons

By Addis Mulugeta

The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission has been visiting various jails and police stations of the regional states to check on the human rights situation of prisoners. The commission started by visiting nine prisons in Tigray. During the visits they discussed with prisoners and different officials to learn about human rights problems of prisoners.
Similarly, the commission and its delegates had been visiting prisons in Jijiga. According to the report document, out of the total number of prisoners in Jijiga, 600 prisoners are suspects.
The commission has discussed its visiting assessment with presidents of regional state, the office of the Prime Minister and other concerned bodies. However, the discussion was fruitful to solve human right violence in prisons.
The commission has a plan to visit all other regional prisons and will announce its findings at the end of this year.
According to the half year report, it was indicated that the commission faced some main problems: an approved salary scale, finding qualified professionals and lack of vehicles.
Getahun Kassa, Excutive Director of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, said there are different varieties of human rights violence in a given country including Ethiopia. Executives, legislatives and judiciary bodies have to be responsible to investigate these situations on the side of the commission.
There was religious violence especially, in Agarro and Jimma last year and this year also such type of violence had occured in Dembidollo .
On the other hand, according to Yeshireg Damte Commissioner for Children and Women’s rights, a number of children under 18 years old are in prison and the commission is trying to protect their right.

Nigeria assessing Somalia to send peace keepers

By Groum Abate

Ten Nigerian commanders are in Somalia currently assessing the situation for sending peacekeepers to the region.
Sources told Capital that the ten commanders are presently in Somalia assessing the possibilities of sending peace keepers to the war torn country.
If Nigeria agreed to send peace keeping troops the warn torn country would get additional peacekeepers apart from Ugandan and Burundian troops.
Meles Zenawi said that Ethiopia could not afford to keep troops in Somalia much longer and that Somalia’s stability depended on the quick injection of foreign peacekeepers.
In a speech to Parliament in early 2007, Meles said that Ethiopia had accomplished its mission to wipe out the Islamist forces of Somalia. Meles said his soldiers were not peacekeepers and already seemed to be paying the price for stepping into Somalia’s messy and violent internal politics.
The Security Council last week reviewed options for increased UN involvement in strife-torn Somalia but key members ruled out an early deployment of a full-fledged peacekeeping force.
The 15-member body heard a briefing from the UN special envoy to the country, Ahmedou Ould Abdallah, who told reporters afterwards that “there is renewed interest in Somalia,” a country wracked by civil war for the past 17 years.
“Somalia has been neglected for a long time,” he told reporters, adding that Somalis “are still paying” for the failure of the UN peace mission during the 1990s.
The council’s discussion focused on four scenarios laid out by UN chief Ban Ki-moon in his latest report on the volatile Horn of Africa country.
They were worked out by UN planners who sent a fact-finding team to look at alternatives to the African Union force now in Ethiopia (AMISOM) and to the Ethiopian troops propping up the Somali government in its battle with Islamist insurgents.
The UN Department of Peace Operation planned to send a new mission to Somalia next month.
Under consideration are relocating Nairobi-based UN personnel dealing with Somalia to Mogadishu, boosting the UN presence in Mogadishu and other areas or south and central Somalia or deploying up to 28,500 UN troops and police provided there is “a viable and inclusive political process and an agreement on the cessation of hostilities.”
Another option would involve sending “an impartial stabilization force formed by a coalition of willing states of about 8,000 highly trained and capable troops, together with police officers,” before political and security agreements have been finalized ahead of a withdrawal of Ethiopian troops.

Agency to construct apartments

Revenue Ministry re-forms to authority

Transport SC heads for liquidation

Gypsum to be mined in Somali region

NBE again rejects Zemen Bank

ESL raises salaries by up to 45 percent

Licenses of black market suspects revoked

At last, the two anti-poverty campaigners freed

Akir, EIG settle differences

City, Chamber to elect committee reps this week

CBE sells Mina Bld for 45.1mln Birr

Italy-Africa peace facility avails 10mln USD

Dry ports to confiscate goods after sixty days

Gov't to lose 500 mln br on cooking oil tax lift To import 300 mln br cooking oil

UDJ says only the means justifies the end

Ministry drafts law to stop double commissioning

Ethio-Djibouti railway in Kuwaiti talks

ECA to unveil African economic report, conference of minsters opens tomorrow

Harari officials campaign in Addis

New product from Microsoft

‘A crucial time for Africa’s economy’

Ethiopian Human Rights Commission visits prisons

Nigeria assessing Somalia to send peace keepers

Agency to construct apartments

Revenue Ministry re-forms to authority

Transport SC heads for liquidation

Gypsum to be mined in Somali region

NBE again rejects Zemen Bank

ESL raises salaries by up to 45 percent

Licenses of black market suspects revoked

At last, the two anti-poverty campaigners freed

Akir, EIG settle differences

City, Chamber to elect committee reps this week

CBE sells Mina Bld for 45.1mln Birr

Italy-Africa peace facility avails 10mln USD

Dry ports to confiscate goods after sixty days

Gov't to lose 500 mln br on cooking oil tax lift To import 300 mln br cooking oil

UDJ says only the means justifies the end

Ministry drafts law to stop double commissioning

Ethio-Djibouti railway in Kuwaiti talks

ECA to unveil African economic report, conference of minsters opens tomorrow

Harari officials campaign in Addis

New product from Microsoft

‘A crucial time for Africa’s economy’

Ethiopian Human Rights Commission visits prisons

Nigeria assessing Somalia to send peace keepers

ECA to unveil African economic report,
conference of minsters opens tomorrow

ECA to unveil African economic report,
conference of minsters opens tomorrow