Unprecedented economic and agricultural growth reported for 2003/2004

Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said on Friday that Ethiopia enjoyed unprecedented economic and agricultural growth over the past 11 months. Presenting his annual progress report for 2003/2004 to parliament, he said the economy had grown by 11.6 percent, and agriculture by nearly 20 percent. Meles also told the country’s 547 parliamentarians that foreign investment had grown by over 80 percent last year, while exports had risen by 13 percent in the past 11 months. Ethiopia's priority would now be to boost the agriculture sector, he said announcing in this context that the food security budget would be doubled to about US $230 million. Agriculture is vital to Ethiopia’s achieving its annual $6.7 billion gross domestic product, and more than 80 percent of its 70 million people work in that sector. The figures Meles gave are particularly significant since a severe drought brought about a 25-percent drop in harvests in 2002/2003, while the economy experienced negative growth. The country's extreme dependence on rain-fed agriculture results in fluctuating and volatile growth rates, which, some analysts argue, exacerbate deep-rooted poverty. Meles emphasised that without peace future development could be undermined, but he acknowledged that relations with Eritrea remained in deep freeze. He revealed that the annual budget for the military for the current year would remain below $348 million so as not to strain the economy. He noted that the federal police had undergone extensive training "to ensure that law and order are respected", and announced the establishment of a federal rapid deployment force which would make it possible for police to be deployed to any part of the country where disturbances erupted. Meles also spoke of defusing potential conflicts in the regions, saying "developments" in the Somali region in eastern Ethiopia could destabilise the country. "Quite a number of measures were undertaken this year to deal with instability in and between regions," he noted. In the northeastern Afar region, armed groups had laid down their arms, while in Gambela in the west a commission had been established to bring to justice people believed to have perpetrated killings there earlier this year. He warned, however, that if security in the Somali region came under threat, the government would "take whatever measures are necessary under the law" to resolve the situation. "The Somali region has also been faced with problems on and off as regards good governance," Meles said, referring to disturbances that have occurred there. "As development there can place the peace of our country in jeopardy, the federal government has expressed its grave concern to the regional administration. The federal government is confident that the leaders of the region will do away with the troublemakers in their midst and ensure the prevalence of peace and stability," he said. His 19-page report outlines the activities undertaken last year by the ruling coalition, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). Meles was first elected prime minister in August 1995 and is chairman of both the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the EPRDF. He was president of the country in a transitional government from 1991, having led the rebels in the overthrew of the former military ruler, Col Mengistu Haile Mariam. In the course of his address, the prime minister also spoke of boosting trade and industry and ending bureaucratic bottlenecks to expedite investment. He said more children were going to school, and pointed out that improving the skills of government in areas like the civil service and justice was a priority. Fighting the spread of HIV/AIDS and tackling poor health coverage were also emphasised during his address.