ADDIS ABABA (ENA) -The Ministry of Finance has tabled new home-grown economic reform aimed at creating more jobs, ensuring inclusive growth, and reducing poverty, for discussion and gathering vital inputs to further enrich it.
The key objective of the new home-grown economic reform is to uphold the existing rapid economic-growth and create more and better jobs, particularly for the youth, it was indicated.
In his opening remark on the discussion, Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen said that the causes for slowdown of economic growth observed in the second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II) and significant macroeconomic imbalance needs to be reviewed.
The government has taken various measures to improve and revitalize economic growth, he added. “It is crucial to introduce a home-grown economic reform to address the bottlenecks through public participation and to ensure public benefits from growth and development,” Demeke noted.
Briefing the new economic reform, State Minister of Finance, Eyob Tekalign said it rests mainly on three pillars, macroeconomic, structural and sectoral reforms of the economy. He stated that stabilizing financial systems, strengthening public financial sectors, focusing on key and potential sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, and mining is very important to ensure viable economic growth.
The State Minister pointed out that productivity of small-holder farmers will be enhanced through provision of modern inputs and prioritizing strong small scale of manufacturing sectors such as agro-processing and leather products.
The need to triple per capital GDP to reach low-middle income level, reducing poverty by half, curbing the rapidly increasing external debt, expansionary fiscal policy crowding out private sector, and galloping inflation rate that now stands at 15 percent are among the challenges that necessitated the economic reform, Eyob elaborated.
The economic reform will take lessons drawn from the notable progress and achievements registered over the past years and will help to fill the gap in foreign exchange imbalance, external debt burden, and high inflation, Eyob stated. Participants suggested that exploiting the country’s livestock potential, easing access to land for investors, setting numerical targets, and ways on how-to execute have to be clearly stated in the reform.
Communicating with the public, international community, further strengthen the reform with the inputs gathered are among the next steps before putting in place, Eyob said, adding that “but we cannot afford to pass over such an opportunity.”
Finance Minister, Ahmed Shide said the new home-grown economic reform by rectifying the weaknesses in the macroeconomic, structural and sectoral spheres will create jobs, inclusive growth, and ultimately reduce poverty.
Ahmed added that it will sustain the country’s economic growth and benefiting the youth through massive job creation while setting enabling business environment for domestic and foreign investors. Ethiopia is striving to reform its economy and adjust the public enterprises proclamation for the first time in 25 years aiming to sustain its fast economic growth.
The Ethiopian Herald, August 30/2019
