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Authorities at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MoFA)
are pleased with the ascending remittances flowing
into Ethiopia of late. Within four months beginning
January 2008, the country amassed 200 million
dollars from monetary transfers that Ethiopians and
foreign nationals of Ethiopian origin living abroad
made to the country.
This was disclosed at a press conference by Demeke
Atnafu, acting director general of Ethiopian
Diaspora Affairs Directorate at the MoFA, which was
held in his office on Friday May 2, 2008.
The stunning increase is primarily attributed to
directives issued by the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE),
a federal agency responsible for managing foreign
exchange in the country.
The NBE issued a directive in August 2006 that
enables Ethiopians in the Diaspora to open a foreign
exchange account in local banks. The directive was
issued to initiate investment in their home land by
Ethiopian nationals living abroad, and to eventually
augment the foreign exchange inflow. According to
the directive coined ‘Operation of Foreign Currency
Account for Non-Resident Ethiopians and Non-Resident
Foreign Nationals of Ethiopian Origin’, the minimum
amount required for an initial deposit to open a
current account is 100 dollars, or its equivalent in
any of the eligible currencies, and for a fixed
deposit foreign currency account it is 5,000 dollars
or its equivalent. This was complemented by another
directive, issued in the same year, which aimed at
improving the operations of the formal remittance
transfer system in Ethiopia by reducing remittance
costs and increasing access to cost effective,
reliable, fast and safe services to benefit
migrants.
Before the issuance of the directives, the country’s
remittance from Diasporas did not exceed 400 dollars
a year. However, following the issuance, the country
secured 632.6 million dollars in remittances in
2007. This year, it is expected to significantly
rise over and above that of last year.
Not only is the increase attributed to the
directives.
“The latest measure taken by authorities on the
black market, a.k.a parallel market, has also
contributed to the increase in formal remittance,”
Demeke told Fortune.
A joint task force, drawn from the city police
commission and the federal police had, on March 13,
raided small kiosks that illegally trade in
currencies. This has supposedly made the Diaspora
resort to the formal channel.
Ethiopian embassies abroad and authorities of the
federal government have also played a significant
role in persuading Ethiopian nationals abroad to
invest more in their country.
According to Demeke, 671 Ethiopian Diasporas, who
have a combined capital of seven billion Birr, have
obtained investment licenses within the last 9
months to invest in five regional states.
The investments are expected to create employment
opportunities for over 62,000 Ethiopians locally.
“Seven thousand Ethiopian Diasporas have secured
residential land in five different regions,” added
Demeke.
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