2merkato

Operators in the tour and travel sector in Ethiopia protested against the revocation of duty free privileges enacted by the Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority.

The association representing Tour and Travel companies said the decision to revoke the duty free status of vehicles imported by players in the sector was unfair and requested an intervention from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism to mediate the situation.

ERCA reached the decision because most of the vehicles imported by Tour and Travel companies are not being used for the purposes intended according to a letter signed by Gebrewahid Gebregiorgis, Deputy Director of the tax authority.

Yara International has awarded the 2012 Yara Prize to Dr. Eleni Gabremadhin, former CEO of the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange.

Dr. Eleni has been selected by the committee for her visionary leadership in managing the process to establish a functioning market for agricultural produce as the founder and chief Executive of the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange.

The Yara Prize Committee selected Dr. Eleni and Dr. Agnes Kalibata, Rwandese Minister for Agriculture and Animal resources for their work on ground breaking sectors in the African Green Revolution and contributing to effective public policies to support agricultural development and for profound innovation in agricultural markets.

The Ethiopian Airlines office in Muscat is processing Ethiopian Visa requests for Omani nationals. The airline expects that it will attract more passengers from the Sultanate to visit Ethiopia for tourism purposes by allowing them to apply for visa’s through its office.

The visa application process will be facilitated within ten working days from the time the documents are initially submitted and the actual visa will be stamped into travel documents on arrival in Ethiopia it was noted.

Many Omani nationals who would like to visit Ethiopia for tourism purposes are unable to do so because Ethiopia does not have an Embassy in Oman to facilitate visa requests explained Sami Muctar, Country Manager for Ethiopian Airlines in Oman.

Ethiopia conducted a business seminar for a business delegation from the Guangdong Province of China at the Addis Ababa Hilton Hotel.

The Ethiopian government has created a conducive investment environment for foreign investors said Seyoum Mesfin, Ethiopian Ambassador to China at the seminar held yesterday. The government encourages Chinese investors to engage in joint ventures with local businesses to promote technology transfer he noted.

A business seminar like the one conducted yesterday is expected to strengthen the long standing relationships between China and Ethiopia noted Birhane Gebrekirstos, State Minister for Foreign Affairs.

Ethiopian Airlines will receive its first B777 freighter aircraft on the 19th of September from Boeing at Everett, Washington.
Ethiopian will be the first carrier to operate the ultra modern freighter in Africa according to the press statement released by the airline.

The B777 is unparalleled in freighter aircraft for long range capabilities, temperature control for fresh produce and life science materials, exceptional cargo and fuel efficiency according to Tewolde Gebremariam Chief Executive of the airline.  

Ethiopian expects to deploy this aircraft on longer freight routes to transport fruits and vegetables and flowers in an effort to expand and enhance cargo services he said.

Allana Potash has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of Nova-Ethio Potash Corporation. Nova holds a 100% interest in a strategically placed potash license adjacent to the Allana project in the Ethiopian Dankil Depression.

The acquisition will come into effect through the merger of subsidiary owned by Allana and Nova in line with the laws of the British Virgin Islands according to the company statement.

The Nova license in Ethiopia is found on the Western and Southern boundaries of the Allana concession and incorporates extensions of the alluvial fans and potential aquifers present on the western portion of the Allana license.

Ukraine’s largest private power and coal producer DTEK is to supply coal to Ethiopia this year. The company will deliver coal to Ethiopia to be used in cement production as part of its bid to increase its presence in forign markets.

The export potential to African markets is estimated at least 300, 000 tons of anthracite coal according to Andrev Favorov, Commercial Director with DTEK in a statement.

There is significant demand for high quality anthracite coal on the African continent he noted.

The Chinese Government has facilitated a grant and soft loan totaling 23 million US dollars to support development activities in Ethiopia announced Vice Premier Hui Liangyu.

The loan arrangement was announced after the Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier Hui Liangyu held talks with Hailemariam Dessalegn, acting Prime Minister yesterday.

The loan is planned to support the development activities in Ethiopia and is part of Chinese efforts to further intensify the long-standing bi-lateral ties between the two countries noted Hui Liangyu.

Emirates airlines announced a series of new deals for Ethiopian passengers including new special fares for flights out of Addis Ababa. The new fares represent several tiers of savings that extend to 30% reductions.

The offer is open to business and economy classes of tickets booked on Emirates between September 1st and October 15th 2012 for travel period between September 20th and December 5th 2012 and cover eight popular destinations Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Emirates is offering promotional fares to eight destinations: Dubai in the Middle East, Chennai, Hyderabad, Karachi and Bangkok in Asia and Paris, Milan, Rome in Europe.

The African Development Bank approved a 251 million US dollar loan for Ethiopia. The two parties signed the loan agreement last Friday at a ceremony held at the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and Economic Development.

The loan agreement was signed by Ahmed Shide, StateMinister for Finance and Economic Development 
and Lamin Barrow, the African Bank’s country representative in Ethiopia.

The loan is intended to finance phase three of the ‘Promoting Basic Services’ program according to the AfDB. The fund will offer budget support to Ethiopia over three fiscal years, to offer block grants to regions in efforts to enhance access to decentralized service delivery in a range of sectors including agriculture, health and education as well supporting improvement to infrastructure such as sanitation, roads and water supply.