After the demise of the Copenhagen Climate Summit in 2009 (COP 15) this column boldly resolved to advocate for global civil obedience to address the dangerously accelerating change in our biosphere, including climate change. We believed then, and still believe now, that the highly politicized approach and unambitious methodology of the global status quo is grossly inadequate to help arrest humanity’s ecocidal mission! After ten years of procrastinating, the global sheeple (human mass), particularly the youth, has finally started to take matters in its own hands. The youth has initiated various lawsuits against those in power bent on pushing the existing shortsighted/unsustainable narrative on collective humanity. ‘Extension Rebellion’ is the name they have given the movement!
Had robust civil disobedience started ten years ago, we would have made some headway in alleviating the protracted problems by now. By civil disobedience, it is generally meant the peaceful refusal to accept all morally repugnant decrees and narratives propagated by the ruling entrenched interests. Boycotting many of the products and services that clearly contribute to the worsening of our environment can be construed as acts of civil disobedience. Mahatma Gandhi’s peaceful resistance against the South African regime and the British colonial rule (India) can serve as template for vigorous actions. Even those in ivory towers who quietly pursue their engagement with lofty ideas and ideals are facing persecution, literally. As soon as these knowledgeable start to speak out, grants promptly dry up. When ‘critical’ scientists (no more redundant) try to forcefully warn us about our unsustainable trajectories, the response from the status quo is to ostracize and out rightly incriminate the messengers, so to speak. Amongst these entities, big oil remains one of the major culprits. The tentacles of big oil reach the very soil from which we derive our sustenance. The petro agriculture that flourished in the last one hundred years, very much depend on oil and its derivatives, like chemical fertilizers, pesticides and herbicides!
The Mozambique typhoon, which killed over 300 people in Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe and South Africa, came as a surprise to many. Typhoons have not been common in this part of the world., From the look of things it might not remain rare any longer. The so-called ‘once in a century phenomenon’ are becoming ‘once in a decade’ happenstances. Climate change is by no means a straight line or linear phenomenon. In fact, it is one of the non-linear occurrences that is relatively easy to understand. Remember the story about the butterfly’s fluttering that caused the Florida hurricane? What this illustrates is a simple non-linear manifestation. Imagine trying to trace back the trajectory of the hurricane, starting from the very eye of it! Reversing the phenomenon will be confronted with infinitely many uncountable possible outcomes. Amongst these, only one yields the exact same hurricane. Other paths might yield other complex occurrences, which we might not even see, let alone understand! Nature is just too complex for our cognitive capacity, but we just go on bulldozing it whenever and wherever we can, with impunity!
‘The greatest challenge we face is a philosophical one: understanding that this civilization is already dead. The sooner we confront our situation and realize that there is nothing we can do to save ourselves, the sooner we can get down to the difficult task of adapting, with mortal humility, to our new reality.’
Roy Scranton, Learning to Die in the Anthropocene: Reflections on the End of a Civilization. “The ‘social contract’ has been broken [and] it is therefore not only our right but our moral duty to bypass the government’s inaction and flagrant dereliction of duty and to rebel to defend life itself.” Extinction Rebellion Organizer, Gail Bradbrook. Good Day!
EXTINCTION REBELLION
One more to go
AfCFTA to become a reality
The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) is nearing reality as only one country is left to ratify the Agreement for the deal to reach the 22 countries required and effectively come into force.
The House of People’s Representatives on March 21, ratified the Agreement, bringing the number of countries that have done so to 21. A total of 22 countries are required to approve it. Those in agreement have deposited their Instruments of Ratification at the African Union Commission (AUC) – with Ethiopia ratifying the Agreement, only one more country is left to reach the number of countries required.
Fifty-two countries have signed the agreement, 21 of them have ratified it and 15 have deposited their Instruments of Ratification with the African Union Commission (AUC).
When the one country ratifies the Agreement and 17 other countries that have already ratified the Agreement deposit their Instrument of Ratification at the AUC, the Agreement will come into force within 30 days.
When it is implemented, the agreement is expected to eliminate tariffs on 90 percent of goods, allow autonomous movement of commodities, goods and services across countries in the continent, and will be the largest trade area in the world.
Kebour Ghenna, Executive Director of the Pan African Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that the ratification of the AfCFTA seems to be progressing as planned. “Last March, 2018, 44 countries signed the AfCFTA in Rwanda, since then that number has increased to 49. Of these countries 22 have to ratify the agreement by their parliament to put it into force, so far almost 21 countries have or are about to ratify including Ethiopia” Kebour said.
“This is good news for Africa, there may be winners and losers at country levels, obviously, any economic policy that facilitates imports and exports among member countries – with lower or no tariffs, free access to the market and market information, and the elimination of trade barriers – offers numerous benefits to small and medium enterprises. And as history’s largest free trade agreement, which has a market size in the region of USD 3 trillion, most people are excited at the development,” he added.
“Ethiopia, if well-organized can be a winner with the AfCFTA. It has the capacity to increase cross-border commerce. Government has to put in place programs to help uncompetitive domestic firms become efficient, including small farmers to immediately tap into lucrative markets. The AfCFTA, when fully implemented, will see Ethiopia eliminate import tariffs on about 95 percent of its products, it’s going to be challenging, still provided compensatory policies are implemented and adverse interactions with market failures are addressed through complementary policies, all countries can come out winners with AfCFTA,” Kebour said.
According to AfCFTA, Legal Texts and Policy Documents the implementation of AfCFTA aims to progressively reduce and eliminate customs duties and non-tariff barriers on goods. At this stage the goal is for 90 percent of tariff lines to have a zero duty within 5 years or 10 years for Least Developed Countries (LCDs). A special dispensation for 7 LDCs has also been tabled; providing for a reduced ambition for specific LDCs. Djibouti, Ethiopia, Madagascar, Malawi, Sudan, Zambia, and Zimbabwe will be expected, in terms of this dispensation, to meet a reduced level of ambition of 85 percent of tariffs at entry into force of the AfCFTA, with a 15-year period to reach 90 percent.
The modalities also provide for members to negotiate on sensitive products, on a request and offer basis, on which tariffs would reduce to zero over a longer period – 10 years for non-LDCs and 13 years for LDCs. The sensitive products and their schedules of tariff reductions may be different in each bilateral relationship.
In addition, the modalities provide for an exclusion list, products on which no reduction in tariffs would be proposed.
The AfCFTA, along with the free movement of persons and the single air transport market, is a flagship component of the broader Agenda 2063 program – the African Union’s framework for structural transformation and development. The African Union’s initiatives to Boost Intra-Africa Trade, the Programmes for Infrastructure Development for Africa and Accelerated Industrial Development for Africa are essential to realise the benefits of the AfCFTA.
The pact aims to boost intra-African trade by making Africa a single market of 1.2 billion people and a cumulative GDP over USD 3.4 trillion. The UN Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA) estimates that the implementation of the agreement could increase intra-African trade by 52 percent by 2022 and double the share of intra-African trade by the start of the next decade.
Ethiopia ratified the AfCFTA on Thursday March 21, 2019 and this push forward was applauded by delegates attending the 38th meeting of the Committee of Experts of the ECA Conference of African Ministers of Finance, Planning and Economic Development in Marrakech, Morocco which was held on March 22, 2019.
Gov’t hopes for stock market by 2020
Even though the National Bank of Ethiopian (NBE), is working under a taskforce to make a stock market a reality, the bank, at a meeting last week, referred to a 20- year-old study conducted by then Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce saying that it would help the taskforce do its work.
During the Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Association ‘Ethio-Chamber Business Diner’ held on Thursday March 15 at Hilton Hotel the stock market was brought up.
The discussion entitled: ‘Stock Market in Ethiopia: Challenges and Prospects’ attracted people working in the financial sector, government, business and community leaders.
Zafu Eyesuswork Zafu, who previously led the city and national business chamber, took the opportunity to explain the benefits of opening a stock market. Zafu said opening a stock market will mean multiple advantages to the economy.
“The Stock market is source of capital and investment, improving saving culture, inclusive for the whole society, enabling competition on money markets between banks and shares, expanding share companies, providing real and adequate finance for new businesses and expansion and a good way to smash corruption,” Zafu explained.
He reminded attendees that the former Addis Ababa Chamber of Commerce undertook two volumes of in-depth studies on forming a stock market. Those reports were officially transferred to the government.
Even though the association undertook a study and submitted it to the government; the market, which was not a new concept in the country because there was a share dealing group during the emperor era. However a stock market has not been a potential reality until now.
Zafu said the private sector was working hard and conducted several studies to realize the market, but the government didn’t really support the idea.
He told Capital: “the government officials at the time, orally told us that a stock market was not the government’s priority.”
At the public private conference held during the time of late Prime Minster Meles Zenawi, the PM stated that the stock market was a casino.
“The developmental state paradigm does not make this a priority. If we interpret this it may indicate that investable resources should not be run in the direction that the private sector wants but instead be invested in the area the state wants,” Zafu speculated.
Recently the government announced that by 2020 the country will have a stock market. Some experts of suspicious but Zafu is optimistic.
Eyob Tekalegn (PhD), State Minister of Finance, told the audience that the government has a strong motivation to realize the initiative within the time frame.
Currently experts from the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are here to conduct a study about forming a stock market in Ethiopia, which is one of the few countries in the world that don’t have a stock market.
Abate Miteku, who came from NBE, said that a task force has been formed at the central bank and the foreign experts from international organizations are working on it. But he said that they don’t have knowledge about the Chamber study that he said could help as an input for the current study.
“We did not get the stated two volumes,” he said. Zafu told Capital that it is surprising because the document was given to government officials, who were at the office during the time; the document should be available now. “I told them to copy the document from my own copy,” he added.
Zafu stated that even though the documents are 20 years old the basic areas would not be outdated. “The basic principles were used in the past and would be continued in the future so the study that we conducted would help,” he said.
Eyob said that if the documents are available it would shorten the period of the current study so it is crucial to see the documents.
Tesfaye Hailemichael, Managing Director of Cornerstone Advisory Services Plc, showed the participants what the stock market is and addressed regulatory and operations issues.
Academy Lecturers receive both house and stipend
The Auditor General is investigating a case after finding that 30 condominium houses were given to Meles Zenawi Leadership Academy’s Lectures who were also receiving more than 5,000 birr for housing allowances.
The condominium houses that are located at Bole Bulbula, South East of Addis Ababa were given to the lecturers by the Addis Ababa Administration for 500 birr rental fee.
A source close to the issue told Capital that the academy made a mistake by giving both condos and a housing allowance to the lectures.
“As far as we know a housing allowance is an amount of money in compensation for basic living expenses for employment situations and is not given if the government or the company gives a house to the employees. In the case of the Meles Zenawi Leadership Academy’s Lectures, they are getting both which is illegal and I believe the Auditor General will take action” the source said.
The academy was established as an autonomous federal government organization having its own legal personality at the Council of Ministers and was under the direct supervision of the PM office.
Dawit Legesse, secretary of the academy’s president said that the allowance is given to the lectures to retain them for longer periods.
“They have PhDs so they are wanted by many universities and colleges and if we don’t offer a better benefit for them they will leave us. So to reduce such challenges we gave them both the allowance and the house at a very small rental fee.’’
Capital asked Dawit Legesse about the fairness of giving both allowance and house.
“It is not only in our case, if you go around many universities they are doing what we do, although the housing allowance is much smaller in our case. What we do now was approved by the board of the academy and we clarified it to the Auditor General.’’
Currently the academy gives MA courses in leadership, peace and conflict, and media among others to 100 government officials at a campus located in Sululta. It has provided short and long term trainings for 8,000 people so far.
