ADDIS ABABA — Amid challenging global and domestic environment, Ethiopia has continued registering fast and robust economic growth within a stable macroeconomic framework during the first three years of GTP II implementation period, the National Planning Commission disclosed.
While opening the consultative forum held to review the midterm performance of the second Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II) yesterday, Commissioner Fitsum Assefa said the average annual growth rate for the three years of the Plan stood at 8.6 per cent, which shows a slight shortfall compared to the targeted goal of 11 per cent.
The drought that occurred in the 2015/16 fiscal year, the political instability, social unrest and tense security situation were among the reasons for the shortfall behind achieving the target, the Commissioner added.
Fitsum, on the other hand, said that the average rate of economic growth achieved during the first three years of GTP II was above the required growth rate [7 per cent] to achieve the SDGs by 2030.
In the remaining two years, enhancing agricultural productivity and expanding investments in the manufacturing sector will be the major efforts to sustain the high growth momentum and to meet the national development objectives, the Commissioner stressed.
Further, she highlighted the need for putting more emphasis on the effective utilization of the rapidly expanding industrial parks and agro-processing clusters to sustain economic growth, speed up economic transformation, and increase export earnings.
In this regard, Co-Chair of the Development Assistance Group (DAG) and Head of DFID Ethiopia, Dr. Christian Rogg, for his part said the government is now accelerating reforms to encourage greater private sector participation in the economy, contributing more to growth, job creation, and generating exports.
A focus on maximizing returns from recent investments in industrial parks, railways and energy may be more important than continuing to invest in new infrastructure, he added.
“Also, strengthening the implementation capacity of the government, and enhancing citizens’ engagement are critical to speeding up the structural transformation of the country”.
The greater commitment and renewed urgency to GTP’s effective performance is also crucial for the expansion of basic services needed to reduce poverty and achieve sustained transformation, Dr. Christian noted.
Herald December 12/2018
BY ZELALEM GIRMA
