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Ethiopia has earned more than 500 million US dollars in revenues from the mining sector in the first three quarters of the financial year according to the Ministry of Mines.

108 million US dollars of the revenue earned was received from the larger companies involved in the sector explained Sinknesh Ejigu, Minster for Mines, speaking at a review meeting of mining stakeholders.

There are 257 licensed mining projects currently engaged in exploration and 137 active in production she said.

A website, www.rootsofethiopia.com, designed to showcase and promote various community products for tourism was launched at the Radisson Blu Hotel.

The website is intended to support the plans to make Ethiopia a notable tourist destination said Tadelech Dalecho, State Minister for Culture and Tourism at the launch.

The Ministry is committed to collaborate with stakeholders in the sector to implement the Tourism Policy which seeks to make Ethiopia amongst the top 5 tourist destinations in Africa by 2020 she said.

Ethiopian Airlines, Ethiopia’s flag carrier, launched non stop flights from Addis Ababa to Seychelles as of the 1st of April.

The airline is pleased to begin services to Seychelles famous for its beauty and the home of two UNESCO designated World Heritage Sites; the world’s largest raised coral atoll and Praslin’s Vallée de Mai, said to be the site of the original Garden of Eden according to Tewolde Gebremariam, Chief Executive Officer of Ethiopian.

The Ethiopian Airlines flights between Ethiopia and Seychelles will be mutually beneficial said Alain St. Ange Seychelles’ Minister for Culture and Tourism.

The Ethiopian Quality Awards organization will honor nine organizations selected for excellence in Ethiopia. The award ceremony will be held on Sunday April 8 at the Addis Ababa Hilton Hotel.

The nine organizations to be awarded the excellence trophy will be announced on the day of the event said Dr. Admasu Tsegaye, Board Chairman of EQA.

150 organizations expressed an initial interest in the competition this year and took application forms he noted. The competition was open to those in manufacturing and construction sectors as well as both for profit and non profit service providers.

The Development bank of Ethiopia approved 5.1 billion birr in loans to a range of investment projects in the last eight months of the Ethiopian Financial year.

The amount of money loaned by the bank is 2.8 billion birr more than the credit offered during the same period last year according to Tadesse Hatiya, Vice President for Credit Services with the bank. The bank expects to loan a total of 5.4 billion birr in this fiscal year.

The Bank of Abyssinia, Ethiopia signed a contract with Universal Consultants for the design and contract supervision of the construction of its headquarters building last week.

The bank has requested that the consultants make changes to the original design which won the architectural design competition held a year ago.

An agreement between the two parties was reached after long and exacting negotiations according to the President of Abyssinia.

Ethiopia’s National Meteorological Agency is to launch a radar system in Bahir dar to increase the agencies data collection. The system is expected to cost 4 million US dollars and is being funded by the World Bank.

The project, which will be a part of the Tana Beles Hydro Power plant, will help to monitor climate changes for the dam according to Hailu Wudineh, Director of Public Relations with the agency.

The radar system will employ state of the art technology to monitor national atmosphere and read weather patterns explained Hailu.

The Revenue and Customs Authority of Ethiopia has announced the reduction of the 20 million birr capital requirement set for IT companies interested in supplying electronic cargo devices to 5 million birr.

ERCA reevaluated the former directive which required a company to have 20 million birr in capital, a five year contract with a major IT supplier, and present a performance bond worth 2 million birr to certify as a vendor for the tracking devices as many in the domestic IT sector protested the criteria.

The current amendment to the directive not only lowers the capital requirements by 75% but it also allows assets of the company to be considered as capital. ERCA also offered a bank guarantee of a similar value as an alternative to the 2 million birr insurance bond required by the directive.

Ethiopian Horticulture Development Agency (EHDA) signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with International Saudi Agriculture (ISA) so as to enable the latter exporting organic banana to Saudi Arabia.

While signing the agreement, the Director General of EHDA Haileselassie Tekie said the agreement will enable Ethiopia to secure more than 100 million USD from the export of 60,000 tons of organic banana to Saudi Arabia within six months.

The agreement will benefit up to 30,000 small holder farmers directly or indirectly involved in the cultivation of organic banana by getting a better market price for the product. Besides, the export will create jobs for lots of compatriots in Arba Minch and the nearest localities in the SNNPs.

The recent discovery of oil in Kenya is indicative for oil exploration in Ethiopia based on the geographical similarities of the two countries according to experts.

Tullow Oil, which extended its exploration activity to Kenya and Ethiopia after discovering oil in Uganda’s Lake Albert Rift Basin, expects to drill the first well in Ethiopia in the third quarter of 2012.

It is expected the first well will be drilled in September according to an expert with the Tullow office in Ethiopia.