The Ethiopian Society of Mechanical Engineers (ESME) held their 14th annual conference at the Ghion Hotel all day on Sunday, January 3, 2010. The morning's business session involved the voting process for the chairman and members of the committee for ESME. The presentation in the afternoon stressed energy efficiency in Ethiopia after which participants were free to mill about and tour the mechanical energy apparatus including the solar panel showed in the photo above. Participants, invited to attend, were selected from universities and different energy sectors.

The Ethiopian Commodity Exchange Authority (ECEA) demanded that the six banks it is operating with, should enable it to exchange information directly with branches located out of Addis Abeba during the meeting it held on January 5 and 6, 2010 at Ghion Hotel.

The banks including Awash Bank, Nib Bank, Dashen Bank and Abyssinia Bank should create the trading system so as to guarantee the safety and efficiency of clients, according to the agency.

It urged that there should be more awareness raising forums, and banks should deploy more electronic information exchange systems in order to further advance the modern trading system.

The types of grains and number of traders joining the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX) are increasing from time to time. The information exchange systems that smooth the progress of the trading system should be strengthened as development activities are expanding across the country.

Officials and market actors at all levels need to have a clear understanding of the system, and help others be aware of it, Addisalem said.

The Ministry of Trade and Industry is expected to sign an agreement with the Chinese Government that would allow Ethiopian products to enter the Chinese market free of duty.

Ethiopia gets a chance to export its products to the US through African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) and the European Union through the 'Everything but Arms' (EBA) initiative. Both AGOA and EBA are opportunities provided to least developed countries's export items.

The agreement, which is scheduled to be signed on Tuesday, January 12, 2010, will enable Ethiopian exporters to penetrate the Chinese market.

The financial documents of Ambassador Garment are under an audit conducted by the Ethiopian Revenues and Customs Authority (ERCA), an official disclosed.

After an operation was carried out by the investigation team of ERCA, it was found that there was an alleged violation of Value Added Tax (VAT), the official in the Law Enforcement Department said. Transactions were also said to have done with out VAT receipts.

"The owner came to us and requested ERCA officials not to press charges since he will pay the amount demanded," the official said. "After the audit, the Authority would declare the amount owed that should have been paid and the company will be required to comply."

The Authority has been making moves around businesses based on its investigations by its own people, some of whom have been following tips from individuals, on alleged transactions made without issuing VAT receipts.

The Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Associations (ECCSA) in collaboration with the United Nation's Development Programme (UNDP) held a three day workshop from December 28 to 31 2009 at the Jupiter International Hotel.

The workshop was prepared to discuss corporate governance and the strengthening and sanctioning of the governance manual.

Members of the 18 commercial and sectoral associations of the chamber, presidents, vice-presidents, board members, executive secretaries and invited guests took part in the workshop.

The ratification of the manual is believed to enable executives to execute their responsibilities in a transparent manner. It is also hoped that the platform will alleviate predicaments faced by member associations and reinforce relationships between ECCSA and the 18 associations.

It has been resolute that an assembly will be held every three months and ECCSA will preside over the assembly. Members, in addition, discussed the national business agenda on Public Private Partnership Forum (PPPF).

ECCSA aims to build capacity and expand investment opportunities.

In recent developments, Sunshine Construction, Jupiter and Desalegn hotels are among the bidders who acquired the bid documents for the purchase of the Ethiopian Hotels Enterprise. 

The Ethiopian Hotel Enterprises is one of the government run institutions which the government is working to privatise. These include a printing press, a farm and some factories. However, the hotel has attracted the largest number of bidders, as 45 of the 70 bidders purchased the bid documents for the hotel.

The Privatisation and Public Enterprises Supervising Agency (PPESA) believes that the hotel, which was established in 1963 by Hotelier de Tourism with a capital of 2.8 million Br, has attracted bidders because of the hotel business boom in the country.

The hotel was nationalised during the Derg regime and its administration was transferred to the National Hotels Administration. In 1991, it was re-established as Ethiopia Hotels Enterprises with an authorised working capital of 7.5 million Br.

The Sky Bus Transport System S.C. is going announce the success and profit it has made since January 2009 at the general assembly of its 4,000 shareholders on January 10, 2010, at the Addis Abeba Exhibition Centre.

The company has transported about 5,000 passengers until mid July 2009, according to the invitation letter sent to Fortune by Mezgebu Ekule, general manager of the company.

Currently, the company gives services areas such as Gonder, Jimma, Bahir Dar, Awassa, Harer and Dire Dawa. Sky Bus started its service with Bahir Dar, the seat of the Amhara Regional government on December 24, 2008.

The general assembly to start at 1pm will also disclose the business activity it has made so far.

People rushed to Miki's Fashion attracted by a big sale that involved 15 to 70pc discounts starting from Wednesday, December 23, 2009. Women enjoyed "broad selections at bargain prices" while some male shoppers were heard complaining of "lack of size options, selection varieties and next to zero discounts." The sale is expected to last for a month unless Miki's runs out of stock by then. It is in all its branches in Addis Abeba. Miki's shop at Getu Commercial Center was overwhelmed by large numbers of eager shoppers.

Meaza Ashenafi (left), founder and former executive director of the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association, is now the chairperson of the committee which initiated the idea of starting a women's bank, currently under formation. Last Friday evening, November 13, 2009, the initiators invited prominent businesswomen to a consultation meeting held at the Belgium Embassy. Rahel Zewde, wife of Gunther Sleeuwangen, Belgian Ambassador to Ethiopia, is one of the ten women initiators who are involved in different business sectors. The initiators, who submitted their application to the National Bank of Ethiopia more than a week ago, are waiting for its approval to open a blocked account and start selling shares to the public. They expect the approval to come within a week or two.

The Ethio Poultry Expo was held at the Addis Abeba Exhibition Centre from November 4 to 6, 2009. The expo was organized by a Sudanese company, Expo Team Services Co. with an Ethiopian partner Prana Promotion. The organizers expressed their hope that the expo would be a springboard to attract international companies to enter the poultry markets in Ethiopia and other African countries. Culture and Tourism State Minister, Mahmoud Ahmed Gass, visited the expo where various poultry technologies were displayed.

The construction of the condominium houses of the Gergi site were completed six months ago. Since then, residents have started moving in. Nonetheless, the houses have no electricity and the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo) was only able to provide power to some of the residents. Consequently, residents with no access to power are sharing with those who have power by using cables which they have extended themselves. Some of the cables extend for 400 metres, Abebe Daneo, a resident, told Fortune. The cables cost about one Birr per metre and the selling residents could charge the buyers up to 50 Br for a month's share of electricity.