(3 Minutes Read)
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has announced a significant reduction in the country’s foreign debt, declaring that Ethiopia’s external obligations have dropped sharply from USD 23 billion to USD 4.5 billion over the past six years. The prime minister described this milestone as a “turning point” toward achieving national economic independence and self-sufficiency.
Addressing the House of People’s Representatives on Tuesday, Abiy emphasized that Ethiopia’s economic growth is now being driven largely by domestic capacity rather than foreign borrowing. “Our economy is growing without foreign loans. We have built a system that stands on Ethiopia’s own capacity,” he told lawmakers.
Defending his administration’s Homegrown Economic Reform Programme, launched in 2019, the prime minister said the initiative had successfully addressed key macroeconomic imbalances while improving domestic revenue collection. Abiy noted that government income, which previously stood at 170 billion birr (around USD 2.95 billion), is now projected to reach 1 trillion birr (approximately USD 17.3 billion) — a nearly sixfold increase.
He further disclosed that the government had allocated 440 billion birr (USD 7.6 billion) in subsidies to curb inflation and ease the burden on citizens. These subsidies, he explained, were primarily directed toward fuel, fertilizer, public sector salaries, and social welfare programs such as school feeding initiatives. Thanks to these measures, inflation has fallen to 11.7%, its lowest level since the economic reform agenda began. “We have used every possible instrument to ease the cost of living. Our economy is standing tall again,” Abiy declared.
Read Also;
https://trendsnafrica.com/ethiopia-wants-to-restructure-usd-4-9-billion-debt/
Despite these encouraging indicators, economic analysts remain cautious, warning that the benefits of recovery have yet to be felt by many Ethiopians. While headline inflation may have slowed, food and housing costs remain persistently high, and real wages have been undermined by the rising cost of urban living. Experts note that Ethiopia’s experience mirrors that of several African nations implementing fiscal reforms amid global economic uncertainties, where macroeconomic stability has not yet translated into tangible improvements in everyday life.
