The National Investment Group (NIG) – a prominent conglomerate in Ethiopia playing a major role towards nation building announces its formation with 1.5 billion birr capital in combination with nine companies.
The Group boasts of colossal companies including National Airways and one of the strongest private aviation academies in the country.
The newly formed Group has businesses in technology, air transport, agriculture, higher education, telecom, aviation and tourism, general trade, transport and logistics stemming from its nine companies.
National Airways which was established in 2007 is signaled as the inception for the formation of the group. The airway has been providing different services for the past one and half decade. It has also helped to give birth to the National Aviation College, which has gained recognition from different higher bodies including international institutes such as IATA.
Students including two state ministers have graduated on a ceremony held on Saturday November 12 in an event where the formation of the National Investment Group was disclosed.
The college trains students up to second degree level on various fields mainly aligned with the aviation industry and some other business, economic and social studies.
Besides its aviation operation, the National Airways now consults the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) on the chemical hopper agricultural aircraft, air track 802, and in the procurement and administration of MoA’s aircrafts operating in the aerial spray.
It is also providing humanitarian air cargo services for international organizations.
National Investment Group strategically anchors itself to “Build The Nation”
Gov’t to privatize 40% of Ethio telecom
Ministry of Finance issued an invitation for expression of interest today to partially privatize Ethio Telecom. The company which will win the bid will own 40% of the equity share capital of Ethio Telecom and join the Ethiopian telecom market.
The partial privatization advertisement posted on the website of Ministry of Finance states that the expression of interest could be submitted until 20 December 2022. Deloitte Consulting Limited is appointed as transaction advisor by the Ministry for advising on the privatization process.
In a bid to identify the third telecommunication company that will join the two current active companies in Ethiopia, Ethio Telecom and Safaricom Ethiopia, the Ethiopian Communication Authority (ECA) will hold a consultation that will last from November 16 to December 16, 2022 on the website of the ECA.
It is recalled that the Ministry of Finance said it has decided to postpone its plan of partial privatization of the state-owned Ethio Telecom back in March 2022.
In its statement the Ministry indicated that “…given the recent developments and fast-moving macroeconomic changes both globally and a country perspective, the Government of Ethiopia has chosen to postpone the privatization process”.
Over 327,000 visitors flock EIMA 2022
The 2022 edition of EIMA international reached its highest ever result, with 327,100 visitors, of whom 57,300 from abroad. During the five days of the exhibition – an event of worldwide importance for the agricultural machinery sector, organised by FederUnacoma – the number of visitors exceeded the record (317,000) set in the 2018 edition, before the crisis caused by the pandemic.
The Bologna exhibition thus overcame the most critical two-year period for trade exhibition events (2020-2022), brought about first by the health emergency and then by the difficult economic situation, and strengthened its leadership in the trade exhibition landscape. Foreign visitors, from every continent, accounted for 18% of the total attendance, and 80 official delegations of economic operators organised thanks to the ICE Agency animated business meetings in the Foreign Delegations Pavilion that was specially set up.
“The success of EIMA confirms the growing interest in new-generation agricultural technologies to meet the food needs of a global population that will grow by almost a billion within the next ten years – declared FederUnacoma president Alessandro Malavolti – and confirms how in every region of the world, work is being done to innovate cultivation methods, seeking to make scientific and sustainable use of water resources and soil fertility”. “In this perspective – added Malavolti – a trade exhibition like EIMA has an important mission also for the years to come”.
“The result of this edition is the result of a very rigorous monitoring that we carry out as a Federation, trying to offer manufacturers and the trade public increasingly efficient trade exhibition services – added FederUnacoma General Manager Simona Rapastella – and it is also the result of the substantial investments we have made to promote the exhibition and to involve all strategic targets”. “Additional investments were made by BolognaFiere to improve the structures of the exhibition centre concluded Rapastella – which will continue in the coming years in step with a show that has a great present and a great future”.
The next edition of EIMA International is already set for 6 to 10 November 2024, but a major event for agricultural machinery will also take place next year, with the return of Agrilevante by EIMA, the exhibition dedicated to mechanisation for crops in the Mediterranean area, which will be held at the Bari exhibition centre from 5 to 8 October 2023.
Italian Cuisine Week
The Italian Embassy in Addis Ababa celebrated The Week of Italian Cuisine in the World.
This is an annual themed event, launched by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and produced by Slow food. Returning for the 7th year, the Week of Italian Cuisine in the World highlight the key elements of the model for food and wine production which are Respect for knowledge and traditions, Sustainability, and innovation.
The major aims of this initiative are to publicize regional food, wine, and tourism itineraries, rediscover villages through traditional food production, promote the Mediterranean diet and its ingredients, raise the profile of products with protected and controlled designations of origin, combat the phenomenon of “Italian-sounding” products and encourage the internationalization of Italian cooking and hospitality training.
