Preparations get underway for the effervescent East African Finance Summit, an annual event that brings together financial experts, policymakers, and industry leaders from across the region to discuss the state of the financial industry and its development.
The summit is gearing to be hosted this week on June 15–16, 2023, in Addis Ababa at the Skylight Hotel.
The event, which aims to promote financial inclusion and innovation as well as foster collaboration among stakeholders, will be held under the theme, “Emerging Frontiers in Africa’s Finance Sector: Regional Integration, Innovation, and Access to Finance.”
The Summit was co-organized by the Capital Africa Institute, Jimma University, the Association of Ethiopian Insurers, and the Ethiopian Professional Association of Accountants and Auditors.
“The theme highlights the importance of collaboration among stakeholders to drive innovation and improve access to financial services across the continent. The summit is said to bring together experts from various fields, including finance, technology, and policy, to discuss ways to promote regional integration and enhance financial inclusion in Africa,” highlighted Gemechu Waktola, founder and CEO of I-Capital.
As he indicated, with a view of creating a multilateral dialogue among leading industry experts, researchers, financial institution representatives, executives, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and government officials in the region, more than 300 participants are expected to participate in the event to share their insights and knowledge on the latest trends and developments in the sector.
“In the last five editions, we have raised certain issues regarding the financial sector of Ethiopia and the East African region as well. And we have witnessed that those issues have been addressed over time,” says Gemechu, adding that it is now time to talk about regional integration, innovation, and access to finance.
“Moving forward, it is crucial to focus on regional integration, innovation, and increased access to finance. A robust financial system, exploring new technologies and approaches, and fostering collaboration between countries are essential for a strong financial sector,” the CEO elaborated.
The East African Finance Summit was first held in 2016 in Addis Ababa.
“The whole intention of the summit is to bring dynamism to the finance sector through discussion and networking, bringing best practices from other countries to the room, and creating a platform to discuss such things as challenges, opportunities and current trends in the sector,” said Gemechu, whilst depicting the core essence of the summit.

Ethio Telecom pens a memorandum of understanding with Addis Ababa City Administration to implement Addis Ababa’s smart city project through the deployment of a wide area network (SD-WAN Network).
This new move is said to be pivotal in that it will enable easy interconnection of various bureaus, service rendering institutions, and the city administration with one main data center.

“The project will utilize state-of-the-art information communication technologies, contributing to the city’s growth as Africa’s headquarters and the seat of international organizations,” stated the duo during the signing ceremony held on June 6, 2023 at the Skylight hotel.
The project is also said to make Addis Ababa a technology hub, modernizing residents’ lifestyles whilst addressing data security concerns. Furthermore, the latest operating systems featured are stated as high-quality, reliable, and efficient, which enable quality services and maximize service provision capacity.
Recently, Ethio telecom also commenced the implementation of Adama City’s Smart City Project and will continue to make digital Ethiopia a reality by providing technology and digital solutions to similar institutions in Ethiopia.

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced its expectation for overall renewable fuel production to reach an estimated capacity of at least 69 billion liters (55 million tonnes) by 2028. Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) will comprise a portion of this growing output which is being achieved through new renewable fuel refineries and the expansion of existing facilities. Importantly, the expected production has a wide geographic footprint covering North America, Europe and Asia Pacific.
“The expected production increase is extremely encouraging. Seeing this, we need governments to act to ensure that SAF gets its fair production share. That means, in the first instance, production incentives, to support aviation’s energy transition. And we need continued approval for more diversification of methods and feedstocks available for SAF production. With these two measures successfully in place, we can be confident that the expected 2028 production levels will be realistically aligned with our recently published roadmaps to net zero carbon emissions by 2050. That is important as we are counting on SAF to provide about 62% of the carbon mitigation needed in 2050,” said Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General.
Trends supporting this optimistic outlook are already visible. In 2022, SAF production tripled to some 300 million liters (240,000 tonnes) and project announcements for potential SAF producers are rapidly growing. IATA counts over 130 relevant renewable fuel projects announced by more than 85 producers across 30 countries. Each of these projects has either announced the intent or commitment to produce SAF within their wider product slate of renewable fuels. Typically, there is a 3 –5-year lag between a project announcement and its commercialization date. This implies that further renewable fuel capacity out until 2030 could still be announced over the following years.
If renewable energy production reaches 69 billion liters by 2028 as estimated, the trajectory to 100 billion liters (80 million tonnes) by 2030 would be on track. If just 30% of that produced SAF, the industry could achieve 30 billion liters (24 million tonnes) of SAF production by 2030.
“Achieving the necessary SAF percentage output from these new and expanding facilities is not a given. But with governments the world-over agreeing at ICAO to a long-term aspirational goal (LTAG) of net zero by 2050, they now share accountability for aviation’s decarbonization. That means establishing a policy framework to ensure that aviation gets the needed share of renewable energy production in SAF,” said Walsh.
Policy Support & Government Investment
The case for diversification, within current sustainability criteria, is clear. At present, it is expected that 85% of future SAF volume over the next five years will be derived from just one of nine certified pathways, being Hydrotreated Esters and Fatty Acids (HEFA), which is dependent on limited availability of feedstock such as waste fat, oil and grease feedstocks (FOGs, recognized by industry as second-generation feedstock).
More fundamentally, the challenge is finding the capital needed to fund the development of new technology and production facilities. Governments must look at the broader sustainability picture with these investments. SAF can be produced from surplus forestry and agricultural residues, municipal solid waste, food waste and wet wastes (third generation feedstocks). Producing SAF from these can create long-term return on investment opportunities for governments, with the potential of financing the clean-up of the environment, supporting developing economies and delivering a future-proofed intersection of energy transition and energy security.

Awash Bank recognizes 14 entrepreneurs who achieved success in its ‘Tatariwochu’ entrepreneurship competition.
On an event held on Tuesday, May 30, 2023, at the Skylight Hotel, the bank awarded 14 entrepreneurs who got into the finals based on the judge’s selection.
In line with the bank’s commitment to encourage innovation and contribute to the development of micro, small, and medium enterprises, Awash Bank launched the Tatariwochu programme in May 2022. The programme, which lasted for one year, had more than 1265 competitors who featured their work from the registered 7000 entrepreneurs from all over the country.

The competition aimed to encourage and support young entrepreneurs in Ethiopia. The winners were selected based on their innovative business ideas, market potential, and sustainability. The rewards included cash prizes, mentorship opportunities, and access to funding from Awash Bank as well as certificates.
The bank’s CEO, Tsehay Shiferaw expressed his satisfaction with the quality of the entries and emphasized the importance of supporting entrepreneurship in the country.
“The Tatariwochu competition is just one example of the bank’s commitment to promoting economic growth and development in Ethiopia. By investing in young entrepreneurs, Awash Bank is helping to create jobs, stimulate innovation, and drive progress in the local community,” the CEO stated.
As indicated at the event, the goal of the programme was to provide training, business development support, and access to finance for entrepreneurs with innovative and problem-solving business ideas.
The top five winners received cash prizes, equal to; one million birr, seven hundred thousand birr, five hundred thousand birr, three hundred thousand birr, and two hundred thousand birr. Additionally, they were granted up to five million ETB collateral-free loans.
The CEO announced that the competition will continue as part of the bank’s corporate social responsibility.