Addis ababa: Ethiopia's ongoing macroeconomic reform program is delivering encouraging economic results, with stronger-than-expected growth and easing inflation, Finance Minister Ahmed Shide told lawmakers on Monday. Presenting the Ministry of Finance's nine-month performance report to the House of People's Representatives (HPR)'s Standing Committee on Planning, Budget and Finance, the minister said reforms introduced since the 2017 Ethiopian fiscal year have begun producing measurable improvements across key economic indicators.
According to Ethiopian News Agency, Ethiopia's economy outperformed earlier forecasts, expanding by 9.2 percent, compared with the government's initial projection of 8.4 percent. The minister stated that the government expects growth to accelerate further to 10.2 percent in the 2018 Ethiopian fiscal year if reform efforts continue, potentially positioning Ethiopia among Africa's fastest-growing economies.
The minister highlighted the government's introduction of additional measures this fiscal year to strengthen the reform agenda. Inflation, one of Ethiopia's most pressing economic challenges in recent years, has also shown signs of easing. Ahmed noted that inflation fell to single digits for the first time in December, reaching 9.7 percent, before declining further to 9.4 percent in March following a prolonged period of price pressures. He attributed the improvement to tighter fiscal and monetary policies, combined with productivity gains.
However, lawmakers urged caution and stressed the need to sustain the momentum. Desalegn Wedaje, chairperson of the Planning, Budget and Finance Standing Committee of the HPR, said efforts should continue to strengthen domestic revenue generation, narrow the budget deficit, and maintain inflation controls. He described the government's revenue and expenditure performance over the past nine months as encouraging but called for stronger measures to ensure continued progress. Desalegn further emphasized the need to accelerate debt restructuring efforts and deepen cooperation with development partners to support Ethiopia's broader economic reform agenda.