Policy Studies Institute (PSI) and the Ethiopian Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration (MOTRI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to collaborate on common issues of national importance. The signing ceremony, held on December 15, 2023, at the Elilly Hotel in Addis Ababa, marked a significant milestone in fostering a strong partnership between these two influential entities.
H.E. Minister Gebremeskel Chala and H.E. Prof. Beyene Petros
Prior to the signing ceremony of the Memorandum of Understanding, both organizations delivered presentations to introduce their respective institutes. Dr. Desta Mekuanent provided an overview of the significant activities carried out by the Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration.
Dr. Destaw presented the organizational structure and research thematic areas of MOTRI. Dr. Destaw mentioned that the trade sector has been one of the earliest ministries established in Ethiopia. Over the years, the Ministry underwent several name changes under different regimes in the country. Currently, MOTRI is the established name for the Ministry.
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H.E. Minister Gebremeskel Chala and H.E. Prof. Beyene Petros
Dr. Destaw further explained that the establishment of MOTRI is governed by Article 16 (3) of the FDRE Definition of Powers and Duties of the Executive Organs Proclamation No. 1263/2021. This legal framework provides the authority and guidelines for the ministry to carry out its duties and responsibilities effectively. By highlighting the historical background and legal foundation of MOTRI, Dr. Destaw emphasized the ministry's long-standing presence and its commitment to promoting trade and industrial development in Ethiopia.
Dr. Destaw also highlighted the mission and vision of MOTRI. He emphasized that the Ministry's mission is to make trade processes accessible and competitive while establishing fair trade practices. By doing so, the Ministry aims to provide exceptional services and support to local investors. To achieve this, MOTRI focuses on enhancing both human and technological capacities within the sector, thereby creating an effective system that ensures benefits for producers, consumers, and the business community as a whole.
Dr. Desta Mekuanint
Furthermore, Dr. Destaw shared the Ministry's vision which aspires to be a globally competitive business and manufacturing industry sector by 2030. This vision reflects the Ministry's commitment to fostering a favorable business environment, promoting economic growth, and positioning Ethiopia as a key player in the international trade arena.
By pursuing its mission and vision, MOTRI aims to drive sustainable development, attract foreign investment, and contribute to the overall prosperity and competitiveness of the Ethiopian economy. The ministry has been organized mainly in three ways. These are trade system and licensing, trade integration and export promotion, and quality, infrastructure development and confirmation.
Dr. Destaw further discussed the Trade System and Licensing sector, which encompasses various aspects such as business registration, renewal processes, post-license inspections, expanding trade infrastructure, and facilitating trade chains. Besides, it focuses on combating anti-competitive practices and maintaining order in legal trade violations, safeguarding consumers' rights, modernizing distribution and retail systems, and ensuring transparent procedures for shares and chamber of commerce associations.
Dr. Habtamu Tesfaye
Regarding trade integration and export promotion, the Ministry aims to increase the income generated from local product exports. This involves registering and promoting the export of agricultural products, expanding export infrastructure, implementing market promotion strategies, fostering value chains, creating regional integration, and exploring opportunities for international trade links. The Ministry also seeks to establish bilateral trade relations to maximize market opportunities for local businesses.
Dr. Destaw said these initiatives within the Trade System and Licensing sector and trade integration and export promotion are crucial for enhancing trade efficiency, promoting economic growth, and facilitating international trade relationships. He also emphasized the importance of quality assurance, infrastructure development, and conformity assessment in trade. He highlighted key activities such as inspecting and regulating goods supplied to the market, standardizing imported and exported goods, ensuring the accuracy of measuring instruments, verifying the quality of packaged products, conducting calibration control, coordinating technical committees across different institutions, and taking a leading role in developing the national infrastructure related to quality standards. These initiatives are crucial to ensure the reliability, safety, and compliance of products and services in the trade sector, fostering trust and facilitating smooth trade operations.
In conclusion, Dr. Destaw discussed the research thematic areas in which the Ministry intends to collaborate with PSI. These areas include conducting baseline studies and formulating trade policy and trade quality policy. In addition, the Ministry seeks to address topics such as fair trade competition, illegal trade competitions, and offenses related to legal trade competition.
The Ministry also aims to focus on enhancing the ease of starting and doing business, safeguarding consumer rights and raising awareness, issues related to the supply and distribution of basic goods, challenges and solutions in the export trade sector, ensuring the quality of agricultural products in the international market, regulating the quality of imported and exported goods, and examining the national infrastructure related to quality standards. Lastly, Dr. Destaw said the Ministry aims to promote a cultural orientation that fosters a culture of quality within the trade environment. These research areas illustrate the ministry's commitment to addressing critical trade-related challenges and finding effective solutions for sustainable economic growth.
Next, Dr. Habtamu Tesfaye provided an extensive overview of the various aspects of the Policy Studies Institute. He highlighted that although PSI comprises 14 research centers, the Trade and Investment Center of PSI is the most suitable center to collaborate with MOTRI. He explained that PSI is a semi-autonomous think tank established by the Ethiopian government through the merger of two former institutes, namely the Ethiopian Development Research Institute (EDRI) and the Policy Study and Research Centre (PSRC).
Dr. Habtamu also shared that PSI currently consists of a team of over 60 researchers and maintains partnerships with more than 15 international organizations. He emphasized that PSI's three main goals are to conduct rigorous research and policy studies, provide consultancy services, and disseminate research outputs to relevant stakeholders. To illustrate the organizational structure of PSI, Dr. Habtamu presented the organogram, starting from the Director General, followed by the two Deputy Directors, and further extending to the 14 research departments.
Moreover, Dr. Habtamu outlined the primary functions of the Trade and Investment Center, highlighting its key areas of focus. The center primarily concentrates on thematic research areas such as international trade and investment, domestic trade, private sector development, and logistics and trade facilitation. Additionally, the center addresses cross-cutting thematic areas including gender, conflict, digitalization and finance, as well as climate change and the environment. By emphasizing these core functions and research areas, the center aims to contribute valuable insights and recommendations to promote inclusive and sustainable trade and investment practices.
Furthermore, Dr. Habtamu provided an overview of some of the completed and ongoing research projects undertaken by the center. These projects include studying the implications of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) for Ethiopia, assessing the impact of Ethiopia's suspension from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), analyzing the outcomes of the homegrown economic reform initiatives, examining trade finance mechanisms, and exploring the Horn of Africa Trade Integration Initiative. Moreover, the center is conducting research on the effects of extreme climate shocks on business activism in Ethiopia and investigating the impact of civil conflicts on firm-to-firm trade relationships. These research projects reflect the diverse range of topics that the center is actively engaged in, aiming to generate valuable insights and contribute to evidence-based policymaking.
Dr. Habtamu also expressed the PSI's eagerness to collaborate with MOTRI on various areas. These include research collaboration, generating new data, conducting capacity-building training, advocating for evidence-based trade and investment policies, disseminating research outputs, sharing data and research findings, and funding research projects. He said PSI aims to work closely with MOTRI in these domains to foster mutually beneficial outcomes and drive informed decision-making in the field of trade and investment.
Next, H.E. Prof. Beyene Petros, Director General of PSI emphasized the importance of assisting the government in various policy research endeavors. While acknowledging the presence of both strong and weak consulting firms in the market, Prof. Beyene highlighted the strong capacity of the Policy Studies Institute (PSI) to provide consulting services. He extended an invitation to government organizations to collaborate with the PSI.
Addressing concerns from some donors who suspect the PSI of being affiliated with the government, H.E. Prof. Beyene Petros reassured them that the institute operates with a high level of professionalism and bases all its decisions on data. Prof. Beyene said PSI attracts talented scholars from esteemed institutions like Addis Ababa University, further solidifying its reputation as a highly professional institute focused on data-driven approaches.
H.E. Prof. Beyene Petros mentioned that the institute is actively working to secure grants and aims to eventually cover its own costs. The researchers at the PSI also publish their work in international journals, showcasing the institute's commitment to disseminating their findings globally.
In conclusion, H.E. Prof. Beyene Petros reiterated the importance of implementing the essence of the Memorandum of Understanding into practice, emphasizing the need for practical action and collaboration to achieve the goals outlined in the agreement.
Next, Minister Gebremeskel Chala expressed his gratitude towards the Director General, H.E. Prof. Beyene Petros, PSI researchers, and Dr. Destaw. He conveyed his happiness at meeting Prof. Beyene in person for the first time, acknowledging Prof. Beyene's notable scholarly achievements and his family's reputation.
The Minister then proceeded to provide an overview of the Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration (MOTRI) from the time of Emperor Menilek until the present. He explained that the Ministry's status had experienced ups and downs, influenced by the sociopolitical conditions of the country.
Minister Gebremeskel Chala highlighted that MOTRI has now expanded both in depth and breadth, encompassing three sectors. One of these sectors, known as quality, infrastructure development, and confirmation, is crucial in international trade and involves numerous organizations. The Minister emphasized the significance of this sector, noting that it is challenging to discuss trade without considering its importance.
Addressing various concerns such as inflation, cost of living, consumers' rights, import-export dynamics, destination markets, and quality products in the international market, the Minister emphasized the need for evidence-based research to answer these issues rather than relying solely on opinions.
Minister Gebremeskel Chala stated that independent and scientific analysis, provided by research institutes like PSI, is the solution to counter opinionated ideas. The Minister emphasized the key role of research in addressing these matters, noting that some private sectors and even government academic institutions might not possess the necessary strength to meet MOTRI's research interests. He cited PSI, a specialized public research institute, as the best fit for such collaboration, referencing the track record of conducting high-quality research, including Dr. Mulu Gebreeyesus's seminal work on entrepreneurship.
Minister Gebremeskel Chala highlighted the importance of focusing research on trade policy, market policy, quality policy, and livestock policy, emphasizing that research can even validate the correctness of existing policies. He proposed discussing the methods, prioritization, leadership, financing, and dissemination of future joint research endeavors. Finally, he expressed gratitude to the researchers involved in identifying the research thematic areas, acknowledged the efforts of all parties involved in making the MOU possible, and extended thanks to the researchers of PSI and H.E. Prof. Beyene.
Under the terms of the MOU, the PSI and the Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration will join forces to address critical matters related to trade policy formulation, trade dynamics, and regional integration. This collaboration aims to leverage the expertise and resources of both organizations to develop innovative solutions and strategies that will positively impact the economic and social landscape of the nation.