The Ethiopian Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration announced that it has allowed tax-free entry of essential goods, waving tax amounting to 27 billion birr. Officials have also said the government is taking several measures to address the issue of the rising cost of living.

Ashenafi Mamuye, speaking as a representative of the Ministry at the "Addis Weg" roundtable held at the Office of the Prime Minister, said the government, in addition to the tax waving measures, efforts are underway to strengthen the manufacturing capacities of factories.

Melese Minale, Senior Macroeconomic advisor to the Prime Minister, for his part, said the government is taking several measures to address inflation, such as the cultivation of wheat during the dry season. Nonetheless, he added, it takes time to see the effect of the measures.

Acha Demissei, CEO of the Ethiopian Trading Businesses Corporation, remarked operational mechanisms are being implemented in which commodities are sold directly to buyers at prices that cover only basic costs, as per the Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration's quota.

Noting that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has caused a global surge in prices of commodities such as wheat, Ephrem Wolde-Selassie, from the Ministry of Finance, said the government is subsidizing import products along those lines to lessen the burden of inflation.

"Addis Weg" (roughly meaning "Addis Talks") is a yearly roundtable of experts held at the Office of the Prime Minister of Ethiopia. This year's edition of Addis Weg is on the theme of factors that cause a rise in the cost of living, and measures for solving them.

Source: Office of the Prime Minister - Ethiopia (Twitter)