In its recent research release, Business Insider indicated that Ethiopia is among the top ten countries that portrayed the healthiest development in 2024. Based on this fact, it is possible to prognosis that if Ethiopia manages to keep the tempo it displays in the economic sector, the future will be rosy, for the aforementioned positive turnout attended the acid test the country went through and the perseverance it maintained.
Ethiopia’s economic development showcases resilience in the face of adversity. It withstood the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic and cushioned the devastating impact of the two-year-long war that ravaged the northern part of the country. These hurdles notwithstanding, resuscitating, the economy succeeded in standing out of the continental crowd, as adduced by disinterested partners.
Though Western financial support and loans, usually attached with strings, dried up, the country got back on its feet by mobilizing finance from its domestic sources and circumventing hurdles. At this juncture, it suffices to mention how the country handled the US sanction by precluding Ethiopia from the AGOA opportunity.
Even if Western countries and financial institutions withdrew their support, loans, and investments Ethiopia turning its face to the east attracted investment from China, Turkey, and India, among others. Most investors homed in on manufacturing and agriculture with a particular focus on horticulture. This way the country could obtain the badly needed hard currency. Its decision to join BRICS is also a showcase of sagacity, for such bold decision helps it to slash down conditional aid and support as well as aid divorced from a genuine partnership of development.
The incumbent as well brought into play macroeconomic reform by introducing a market-driven hard currency exchange. The circulation of dollars in the black market is downsized. Because of this conducive situation, banks could raise their hard currency deposit since the Ethiopian diaspora can send their money in formal channels. Ethiopia, aiming at an economic overhaul, also intends to open its financial market to foreign banks.
As the country is endowed with bountiful resources and boasts a climate that allows investors to keep themselves work round the clock year wise Ethiopia has proved to be a Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) hub.
Ethiopia is a country singled out for growth by the sweat of one’s brow. It untapped and abundant, skilled human resources and land are the allurements that attract entrepreneurs eying lucrative business as attested by investors that benefited from the industrial parks of the country. These parks are conducive to the manufacturing industry. In the agroindustry sector, better outputs with added values are being produced creating income hikes.
Ethiopia is also striving hard to supply the foreign market with a multitude of products. Aside from European countries, it is supplying fruits to Middle East countries and African countries. It as well is feeding electricity to neighboring countries.
If Ethiopia preserves its tranquility and unity given its strategic location for trade and investment it will be a powerhouse of economic development whose perks go beyond the perimeter of the country. Its inspiration and conviction for common growth as witnessed in the birth of the Grand Renaissance Dam (GERD) is exemplary. It calls for a tap on the back of all aspects.
As citizens maintained the country’s sovereignty for long repelling invaders, by the same token, this generation has to do the same getting fettering poverty behind its back. Otherwise, the country will become liable to turning a pushover for superpowers that want to optimize their gains and see to the alacritous execution of their diktats contravening the sovereign rights of loan and aid recipient countries.
Magazines and journalists that bring such astounding stories to the light too deserve appreciation.
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD SUNDAY EDITION 27 OCTOBER 2024
