2merkato

Zemen Development and Management Institute, Ethiopia is to graduate its first batch of candidates for the Master of Business Administration and candidates for the International Diploma in Project Management in November.

The programs were offered in a joint effort between ZDMI and Cambridge International College and Castle College in the UK.

The MBA program is a two year program of full time study but students are allowed to extend the time required to up to three years if necessary.

The Ethiopian Revenue and Customs Authority is to launch a new system to control under invoicing for imported products.

A new computer program designed by Indian tech firm, The Center for Development of Advance Computing, is expected to transform the way the tax authority assesses tax according to sources.

The new system will set prices for imported goods on the basis of transaction costs which will be a better alternative to the not so successfully program currently being used by ERCA to avoid under invoicing. The pilot for the new system will be launched this month according to ERCA officials.

The Ethiopian Privatization and Public Enterprises Supervising Agency has endorsed the proposal offered by Horizon Plantation for the six Limu Coffee Farms. Horizon Plantations made an offer of 1.184 billion birr for the purchase of the six farms and the head office of the Limu Coffee Plantation.

The six farms included in the deal are Soka, Gumer, Cheleleki, Goma I, Goma II and Suntu. The bids for each individual farm ranged 70.9 million birr to 266.6 million birr while Horizon offered 60.4 million birr for the Limu Coffee Plantation Head office.

The agreement according to the bid document will entail Horizon paying 35% up front with the difference to be settled over a period of five years.

Pamela Hueston has been named as director of the Ethiopian Potash Corporation effective. The appointment of Hueston will be effective immediately.

Hueston is currently serving as the Director of Finance with Premier African Minerals Limited, a company working in mineral exploration and development in the West and Southern parts of Africa.

She also worked for Deloitte in a range of international positions as a Senior Manager in Forensic Accounting previously. Pamela graduated with an MBA from the University of Cape Town and is a Chartered Accountant in Canada.

Bunna International Bank, Ethiopia has declared 30.3 million birr in profits after tax for the past fiscal year. The profit earned by the bank is 54.7% (19.4 million birr) more than what it earned in the previous year.

The board of directors of the bank has recommended that 22.1 million birr to be paid as dividend to shareholders. The earnings per share have grown to 132.5 per 1000 birr which is a 24% increase on the dividends per share last year.

The increase in earnings per share is below the average for the industry because of the new regulation by the National Bank which raised the equity requirements for banks to 500 million birr from 75 million birr.

The Ethiopian Shipping and Logistics Services Enterprise is to take charge of two tanker ships in October according to sources.

The ELSE ordered the two tankers along with seven multi-purpose ships in deals that total 293.5 million US dollars. 80 percent of the financing for the acquisition of the ships was covered by the Export-Import Bank of China.

The two tankers cost 37 million US dollars each while the 28 thousand ton multi-purpose ship where each purchased for 32.5 million US dollars according to sources.

A wire and cable manufacturing plant was inaugurated in Ethiopia by Siraj Fegesa Minister for Defense. The manufacturing planted constructed in the Oromia Regional State is expected to contribute towards alleviating the shortage of electric wires and cables in the country he said at the inauguration ceremony.

The products manufactured by the plant are expected to play a significant role in supporting the large infrastructural projects in the country including the construction of hydro electrical dams, railway systems, sugar factories, fertilizer factories, road networks and other industrial initiatives that are part of the national development agenda according to Shambel Assefa Yohannes, Manager of the Ethiopian Power Engineering Industry.

The World Bank has approved a 1.15 billion US dollar loan to fund a range of development activities in Ethiopia according to a statement issued by the bank.

The bank also approved a new Country Partnership Strategy for Ethiopia at the same time. The new strategy is intended to build upon the development of the country to encourage more growth, employment, health and education.

The ban released the interest free credit totaling 1.15 billion US dollars on the basis of the new strategy explained the statement.

The third African Bee keeping Exhibition has been launched in Ethiopia. The exhibition is intended to display bee products in Africa under the theme of: ‘Bee Keeping for Food and Combating Climate Change’.

The Ethiopian government has committed to supporting small hold farmers and the Api-Expo is expected to offer an opportunity for experience sharing second Mekonnen Manyazewal, Minister for industry opening the exhibition.

The issues of agriculture, food security and climate change are heavily interconnected and a focus of Ethiopia’s development agenda he said.

The agricultural sector is the livelihood of millions of small holders and is also expected to play a significant role in providing the raw materials for manufacturing enterprises in the bid for industrialization explained Mekonnen.

The Exhibition will offer a rare opportunity for small hold farmers in Ethiopia to engage with international and continental counterparts said Mulufird Ashagere, President of the Api-Expo Africa 2012 Organizing Committee.

The Ethiopian Sugar Corporation Signed a 500 million US dollar deal with the China Development Bank. The loan is intended to finance the construction of two refineries as part of plans to double output in the next ten years.

The Ministry of Finance and Economic Development and the Sugar Corporation signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the refineries to be built by the Metal Engineering Corporation in the Southern Regional State.

It is to be remembered that the Sugar Corporation launched the development of 10 plantations and refineries last year as part of its objectives to make the nation one of the 10 largest sugar exporters in the world. The plan calls for increasing the production capacity of the nation to 2.3 metric tons which is significantly higher than the 265 thousand tons produced by the country last year.