Many bottlenecks pose a challenge on Ethiopian export. Multifaceted contraband trade, weak coordination, lack of market infrastructures and logistics limitations of product and productivity, belowstandard product, malfunctioning chain of market (absence of market ethics, low skills of exporters, poor market system, inflation in global market, registration under invoicing) are among such logjams.
Contraband trade conducted by brokers is the worst hurdle that challenges the overall development of a nation. In the spheres of agriculture, especially in the livestock sector, this malice affects countries like Ethiopia badly. It has also a domino effect on other sectors. As contraband affects the nation in many ways it turns out to be a headache of a nation. Due to contraband trade, foreign exchanges the nation is expected to collect go astray.
When we come to Ethiopia’s case, neighboring countries become more beneficiaries from agriculture especially live animal export. Due to its failure to arrest the illegal trade, at a cost of harm to its citizens, Ethiopia feeds other countries’ economy. Weak prevention mechanisms, failure to control smugglers and gap in jointly monitoring things by federal and state governments are the main reasons ascribable to the increase in live-animal contraband trade.
Also, ascribable are unhealthy and close relationships among administrators at each level as source of income and inefficient marketing system divorced from regulations. Limitations are also conspicuous in coordination, in live animal quarantine and port services, in finance and in organized management. These tie down the country from coming up with competent exporters that could brush shoulders with other rivals in the global market and in supplying qualified live animals that market demands.
As to evidences, Humera, Metema, Benishangulgumuz, Gambella, Jinka, Moyale, Diredawa, Afar and Somali are the main escaping gates for contraband live animals. The immediate destinations are neighboring countries’ borders. That is borders of Sudan, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Somalia and Djibouti. After catering to consumption of respective countries’ domestic consumptions, the livestock are mostly for re-export to the Middle East .
Some of the live animal receivers are Somalia, Djibouti, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Yemen, Arab emirates, Libya, Bahrain, Qatar, Jordan, Sudan and Ruanda.. Internal and external trade does not seem immune against brokers. Exporters do transaction under invoice. Most of them do not follow legal sale systems. Unhealthy competitions are seen among exporters, Giving trade license for the third body and illegal protection for the foreign citizens that get involved in illegal trade are manifested.
Nevertheless, no administrative action is taken on such actors. On the other hand, all necessities have not been fulfilled for live animals such as land, water, market and other infrastructures and logistics as well as transport accesses in kind. Even such transport services have fallen under brokers. Investors who are engaged in this sector are conducting duties and using marketing system based on traditional ways.
Nowadays, contraband affects the overall agricultural export especially the livestock one. Learning the seriousness of this problem, Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) had organized and conducted mobilization program with export stakeholders such as Ministry of Trade and Industry, Customs Authority, National Bank, Coffee and Tea Authority, Commercial Bank, Producer Investors, and Peoples Representative Standing Committee in Adama town.
The mobilization program aimed at sensitizing about export products, opportunities, bottlenecks, ways forward and root causes. It as well aimed at promoting tackling mechanisms through creating initiative and inspiration to increase foreign exchange in a sustainable way. Aynalem Nigussie is a State Minister of Agriculture; there, she delivered a powerful message for producer investors, farmers, pastoralists, trade society, federal and regional stakeholders and other actors to do better than their best so as to increase the volume of export with focus on quality.
According to Aynalem, a concerted push is expected from stakeholders to increase the hard currency earning on the decline due to decreasing agricultural export (hard currency) on grounds of poor quality. Investors have a significant role in increasing agricultural products and productivities. Therefore, investors should place special focus on investing in this sector. The state minister pledged the government’s support.
Contraband poses a problem on the nation through the loss of foreign exchange. Consequently, every stakeholder should fight against contraband to save nation’s hard currency from agricultural exports, she said. Though it had displayed improvement years back, agricultural export is making a nose dive due to poor quality of products, As a result, the nation is not earning the expected hard currency, Aynalem noted.
She attributed the main reasons for low foreign export: untrammeled contraband trade, poor market system, failure to increase agriculture in the expected way, weak coordination among stakeholders and not abiding by rules and regulations. Finally, Oumer Hussien, Minister of Agriculture, urged every stakeholder at each level to join hands to be competent worldwide through producing qualified yields as well as to fight against contraband that challenges the nation to agument nation’s foreign exchange.
The Ethiopian Herald, March 10/2019
BY BAHIRU SETEGNE ( From MoA)
