PM Abiy Says Gov’t Working to Exploit Natural Resource Potentials, Ensure All-round Dev’t of Ethiopia

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said that the government of Ethiopia has been actively engaged in the utilization of the available natural resource potentials of the country with a view to ensuring all-rounder development.

The Premier made the remark today during his visit to Soybean cultivation developed through cluster farming in Tegede district of central Gondar Zone, Amhara Region.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Demeke Mekonnen and other senior government officials have also participated in the visit.

Some 38,000 hectares of land has been cultivated with soybeans in the zone, of which Prime Minister Abiy and other government officials paid visit  to the 1,200 hectares of land that was cultivated with soybeans in Addis Alem Kebele.

During the visit, the premier said that as part of the plan put in place to increase agricultural productivity of the Amhara region, extensive soybean cultivation is being carried out, citing the government’s ongoing efforts to utilize the available natural resources is evident to ensure multifaceted national development of the country.

According to the PM, the government’s priority is to bring development that will ensure the benefits of all citizens and even others beyond Ethiopia.

“Multifaceted developments mean not only enhancing import substitution, but we have to abolish the sense of dependence on others and  safety net through expanding export items that were much known before in Ethiopia such as coffee and flower as well as the productivity of wheat, soybeans, sesame as well as cotton and others including rice  as there are potentials in all aspects including human resource, water and farmland in Ethiopia.”

Indicating the replication of successes being registered in wheat production on other areas, the PM said: "It would not be a faraway dream for Ethiopia to become food self-sufficient and even begin exporting its agricultural products to the international markets," citing the preparation of the country to export wheat to other countries this year.

In this regard, he added that the soybeans cultivation cluster farming being carried out in Central Gondar is exemplary.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Demeke Mekonnen for his part stressed the need to replicate the successes registered by Ethiopian heroes in defending the survival of the nation by sacrificing  their lives and repeat in the development of the country.

Making Ethiopia food self-sufficient is the responsibility of the current generation, he underlined.