Ethiopia sets $200,000 minimum spend for foreign investors
Ethiopia has set a minimum threshold of $200,000 for foreigners looking to invest in local businesses and infrastructure projects.
The move comes as part of the East African nation’s privatisation plans for the year ahead, part of which welcomes foreign investment across a wide range of sectors. The government is setting out clear benchmarks for the type of industries it wants to secure foreign investment and the kind of capital it expects to generate from each investor.
Ethiopia sets foreign investment thresholds
Ethiopia’s government has set a minimum threshold of $200,000 for individual foreign investors looking to invest in local business and infrastructure projects. For those interested in a joint venture with a domestic partner, the threshold drops to $150,000 and this figure drops further still for architectural and engineering initiatives, according to a draft proposal.
As part of Ethiopia’s privatisation drive, the government plans to sell a majority stake in its national telecoms firm, Ethio Telecom, in 2020. The company is one of the country’s four economic pillars, which also includes Ethiopian Airlines, Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation and Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics Services Enterprises.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed plans to sell stakes in all four firms and open key sectors to greater competition, breaking away from Ethiopia’s previous economic model of state-run industries.
Featured image: By Francisco Anzola from United States – Ethio Telecom, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61904306
