ADDIS ABABA – The government of Ethiopia should take immediate measures to increase the productivity of existing investment projects instead of looking for new investments in order to overcome the present economic challenges in the country, senior economist and President of African Chamber of Commerce, Kibur Gena told to ENA.
Ethiopia is experiencing some economic challenges notably in terms of inflation and shortages of foreign currency encountered due to local and global factors.
The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has also been exacerbating the existing problems as the price of fuel and wheat is soaring.
The senior economist and President of African Chamber of Commerce Kibur Gena said that, the government should take critical actions that aims at providing immediate remedies to curb the present economic challenges.
In this regard, he stressed the need to give priority for productivity of essential existing economic sectors instead of attempting to bring new investments.
“In order to provide immediate remedies to the current economic challenges of the country, we need to exert the necessary efforts to boost the productivity of existing economic activities instead of focusing new investments.”
Such strategy would help the nation to ease the soaring inflation by enhancing the supply side of the economy and increase export trade which is vital to address the shortages of foreign currency, Kibur stated.
The economist also suggested conducive environment for the private investors to enable them become productive by expediting their investment activities freely across the nation.
For this, manufacturers must be provided with adequate finance in order to expand their products and services so that they will be able to play their part in curbing the economic challenges, he underlined.
Beyond enhancing productivity and export capacity, remittance needs to be given the utmost priority in order to improve the inflow of foreign currency, the economist noted.
The pertinent actors in the government should continue intensifying their activities with a view to enhancing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), he said.
Peace and stability plays a vital role to expedite local investment and attract FDI, he pointed out noting the need to strengthen ongoing efforts to ensuring peace and stability across the country.
The Ethiopian Herald March 22/2022
