CAIRO: The Ethiopian ministry of mines announced that it is expecting some $849 million in earnings for the new financial year. According to the ministry, miners are expected to raise nearly 71 percent of the revenue for the projected financial year, with revenue in the $600 million range with a supply of some 13,200 kilograms of gold to the National Bank of Ethiopia. The ministry also said it plans to increase the investment levels in the sector “by 2.55 billion birr by issuing 10 mining production licenses to investors.” The mines ministry said it plans to “push petroleum investment in the country by 100 million US dollars and enhancing petroleum related revenues to an estimated 2.7 million US dollars through supervising companies that are in possession of petroleum exploration and production licenses.” Overall, Ethiopia earned nearly $700 million from mineral exports during the last fiscal year, the ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. Those minerals include gold, platinum, tantalum as well as decorative stones and gems. “The mining sector is becoming a significant source of export income,” according to Bacha Fuji, the Director of the Public Relations and Communications Directorate with the ministry. “The sector targets generating foreign currency as well as adding value to the GDP with 455 Million US dollars of the total revenue earned by artisan miners,” he noted.
