In his inaugural speech in 2018, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) stated that the government would be committed to promote and to attract foreign investment as specifically taking significant steps to improve investments in the areas of cross border trade, tourism, energy, infrastructure, among others, on April 2, 2018.
Accordingly, over the past three years, the government of Ethiopia has been making a number of policy reforms to diversify the country’s economic sectors. The efforts have yielded significant results besides the telecom sector that has been able to attract private investment to Ethiopia.
As the Prime Minister has freshly said, the signing of an agreement with Global Alliance for Ethiopia to launch a telecom sector in Ethiopia is a turning point in the Ethiopian economy.True, June 9, 2021 is a historic day as Ethiopia’s economy enters a new phase.
The joint venture of six companies,the winning bidder for the telecom sector in Ethiopia,The Global Alliance for Ethiopia with a 56 percent stake of Kenya’s Safaricom, is expected to change the imageand performances of the Ethiopia’s 127-year-old telecom industry.
Yes, we trust that the arrival of the companies in Ethiopia will have a great potential to modernize Ethiopia’s overall economic activities.Itwill help Ethiopia to renovate and improve access to Ethiopia’s agricultural, financial and education services, which are the backbone of the republic.
Absolutely, the expected digital transformation and investment will change history in all aspects of Ethiopia’s economy, from government services to marketing and information access.
Likewise, the alliance must plan to inject the promised 8 billion US dollars over the next 10 years, making it the largest single investment that Ethiopia has attracted to date. In addition to the economic benefits, the companies’ involvements have essential roles in enhancing the bilateral relations with the nations they represent.
For instance, as Kenyan President UhuruKenyatahas said on the signing occasion, Kenya’s presence is not only a testimony of our long standing good, neighborly and brotherly relations between Ethiopia and Kenya, but also between our two peoples.
It is indeed a visible reminder of the deep bonds that hold Kenya and Ethiopia together. We believe that it is definitely a testimony of the progress that we are making towards economic cooperation between our two nations.
For that reason, theEthiopian government has made an essential decision to grant an operating license to the Global Alliance for Ethiopia, a consortium with a majority shareholding of Kenya Safaricom. It is a historic moment in the two countries’ cherished journey for mutual prosperity.
As well, Ethiopia has to scale up Kenya’s experiences as the nation has embarked on a digital economic journey.Kenya has seen the great gains and opportunities unleashed by Safaricom across the entirety of Kenyans social and economic landscape.
Ethiopia should now stand at the point of making even greater strides in Safaricom’s areas of strength, which include digital presence, mobile money, telephony, and data on fiber connectivity as well as business, agricultural,health solutions, amongst others.
Equally, thepartnership launched by the telecom sector is conducive to further enhance greater cooperation potential for regional interactions and economic integration.
At the end, as the premier has reaffirmed on the partially transferring Ethio-Telecom signatory ceremony, Ethiopia must continue to make significant changes in all sectors of the economy and further involve the private sector.
The Ethiopian Herald June 11/2021
