IMF and World Bank are known to be cheerleaders of the ruling party in Ethiopia and corrupt governments in other parts of the world. These two poverty-mongering organizations have made poor countries of the world poorer. They have no success story to show anywhere in the world. In the case of Ethiopia, for over two decades they have been parroting Ethiopian regime’s claim that the country’s economy is growing by up to 11 percent every year. If that is true, why does Ethiopia remain one of the 25 poorest countries on earth? It is true that members of the ruling party and their business partners have become incredibly rich overnight. But for 99 percent of Ethiopians, little has changed. The youth unemployment rate is over 50 percent. Over 40 percent of children under 5 are stunted due to malnutrition. There is a chronic shortage of hard currency in the country because the corrupt government officials are looting Ethiopia’s banks. Food aid to Ethiopia from other countries has been increasing. Less than 2 percent of Ethiopia’s population has access to the internet. While we all know what is going on with the Ethiopian economy, for the IMF or anyone else to claim, as the CNN report below states, that it is “Africa’s fastest growing economy” is an insult to the people of Ethiopia.
Food assistance to Ethiopia has been growing over the past 30 years.
Ninety-nine percent of Ethiopians live like this or worse.
—
Ethiopia is now Africa’s fastest growing economy
(CNN) – Ethiopia, Africa’s second most populated country, is forecast to be the fastest growing economy in Sub-Saharan Africa this year, according to new data from the IMF.
Ethiopia’s economy is predicted to grow by 8.5 percent this year. The figures signal continued economic expansion following a long period of impressive growth. In the last decade, Ethiopia has averaged around 10 percent economic growth, according to the IMF.
To boost the economy, the country is pursuing a number of large-scale infrastructure projects, including the Grand Renaissance Dam and a railway network.
“[Ethiopia] has had a very high growth rate and I think that’s a result in large part of a very concentrated effort by the government to boost industrial production and manufacturing,” said Vijaya Ramachandran, an economist at the American think tank Center for Global Development (CGD).
Ramachandran, along with three academics, released a report suggesting Ethiopia can follow in China’s footsteps, and become a destination for low-wage manufacturing jobs.
However, despite sustained economic growth, in the past few years, Ethiopia has experienced increasing unrest from Oromo groups in the Oromiya region. According to human rights groups, the government has suppressed basic rights and freedoms.
New Prime Minister Abiye Ahmed was sworn at the beginning of April, signaling an intent to ease tensions.
Economic growth
Ivory Coast is expected to be the second fastest growing economy in the region at 7.4 percent. Rwanda’s estimated economic growth is 7.2 percent, and the West African country Senegal is projected to have 7 percent growth.
The data reveals that Ghana, which was previously forecast as the fastest growing economy in Sub-Saharan Africa in October 2017, at 8.9 percent, slowed in its predicted growth to 6.4 percent. Last year, a reported surge in oil and gas production helped propel the country’s economy.
Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy, is predicted to grow by 2.1 percent, an increase from 1.9 percent forecast in October 2017.
“They’ve updated it to 2.1 percent. However, they have emphasized the risks. The falling commodity prices and imbalances that are to arise because of the elections,” Bismarck Rewane, a Nigerian economist, told CNN.
South Africa’s predicted growth stands at 1.5 percent.
Long-term, according to a report from the World Bank in 2016, the proportion of the African population in extreme poverty has declined, but the overall number has increased as the continent’s population expands.
Growth across the whole region is forecast to average 3.4 percent, below the total world growth figure of 3.9 percent.
