State of Emergency Has Not Impacted on Productivity Negatively: PM Hailemariam

The state of emergency declared about three months ago has not affected the national economy in any way, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said today.

 

Estimates indicate that the harvest expected from the meher season, without including that of the belg season, has shown 12 percent growth, he added.

The state of emergency has not impacted negatively on the economy and development as well as peace of the country, the PM stressed, adding that the only sector that declined slightly is the tourism industry.

Yet the situation is changing even the services sector as the number of tourists visiting the country has been climbing back, he pointed out.

Commenting on the industrial sector, the premier cited Central Statistical Agency showing that there was no productivity decline.

According to him, some industries have registered increased productivity and new investment in the year has grown.

On the other hand, 26 factories and flower farms that were expected to halt production due the damages perpetrated on them  have become operational following the efforts in the past two months, it was indicated.

Close to 450 million birr damage was on inflicted on those; but the destruction did not have significant impact taking into consideration the whole industrial sector, Hailemariam elaborated.

With respect to earning foreign currency, the premier said the export during the period is same as it was in the past year.

The gap in this respect is rather structural than the effect of the state of emergency, he stated, pointing out that boosting export as desired is not possible as long as structural changes are implemented.

He noted that the government is building industrial parks to gradually free export from the fluctuating agricultural sector.

Following the normalcy in the country, the government has allotted 10 billion birr revolving fund for the creation of jobs to mainly the youth, the premier said.

The federal and regional governments have finalized the implementation of the package launched last week.

The youth must actively participate not only in the economic sector but also in building democracy and enjoy the political space, the PM stated.

Responding to a question posed about shortage of foreign currency, Hailemariam said it is no wonder that Ethiopia faces shortage of foreign currency as it is a developing country that has allocated 40 percent of its GDP for investment.

Salary increment for civil servants will start this month, the premier added.

He underlined, however, that the public has to play a leading role in helping maintain good governance and in struggling against obstacles that drag the country from coming out of the quagmire of poverty.

source ena