By Staff Writer
(Nairobi, Kenya) — The Ethiopian government has announced sweeping nationwide measures against illegal commercial operations and systemic corruption, revealing that thousands of individuals, state officials, and private enterprises have been targeted in a major campaign to safeguard the country’s macroeconomic reforms.
Speaking to reporters in Addis Ababa on Thursday, Minister of Government Communication Service W/t Enatalem Melese declared that federal law enforcement agencies are taking “uncompromising war” against network operators and syndicates attempting to sabotage economic growth and misappropriate national wealth.
According to government officials, illicit networks have infiltrated core sectors of the financial and trade ecosystems to manipulate domestic supply chains and evade regulatory oversight.
“These entities have infiltrated the financial and trade systems and have been committing economic sabotage in an organized manner to derail domestic economic reforms,” W/o Enatalem stated. “Such activities have caused foreign currency losses, aggravated inflation, expanded contraband trade, and created artificial shortages of essential consumer goods.”
Federal and regional multi-agency task forces executed coordinated enforcement actions across key economic sectors:
Trade & Retail: Authorities issued formal warnings to 13 major supplier firms accused of hoarding essential goods to artificially drive up market prices. Additionally, over 7,000 business enterprises and illegal warehouses were shuttered.
Financial Services & Banking: Legal proceedings were initiated against 169 Ethiopian and foreign nationals engaged in black market currency trading, illicit hawala transfers, and parallel market arbitrage. Thirty-six individuals were arrested for fraudulent withdrawals from commercial bank accounts, with associated assets frozen. Seven cryptocurrency applications used to obscure unauthorized fund transfers were blocked nationwide.
Betting & Fintech: Authorities closed 38 digital betting operators and fintech companies for concealing transactional revenue and customer records. Company executives were detained and institutional bank accounts frozen.
Mining & Gold Smuggling: In the mining sector, 183 individuals—including public officials, regional security personnel, mineral producers, and foreign nationals—were indicted for gold contraband networks. Implicated foreign nationals were deported, while illegal gold reserves, processing equipment, foreign currency, and firearms were seized.
Fuel Distribution & Logistics: Legal actions were taken against 38 government officials implicated in generating fraudulent documentation to divert fuel supplies. Nationwide, more than 650 brokers, traders, and logistics companies were prosecuted for illegal fuel distribution.
Agricultural Inputs: Senior leaders within the Ministry of Agriculture were charged with procurement irregularities after facilitating contracts for expired and substandard fertilizer through conflicts of interest.
Power & Energy: Four senior executives at Ethiopian Electric Power were disciplined for executing unauthorized power purchasing agreements with 36 crypto-mining operators. Enforcement actions were also levied against entities involved in industrial electricity theft.
Labor & Foreign Employment: Eight officials were arrested for accepting bribes and manipulating foreign employment registries, while 44 human trafficking brokers were taken into custody.
Customs & Revenue: Investigators identified 109 tax officials and intermediaries involved in fraudulent tax assessments and illegal receipts, placing 91 suspects under active detention.
Despite the federal government’s high-profile announcement of a sweeping nationwide crackdown on economic crime, independent observers, civil society organizations, and opposition figures have expressed skepticism regarding the campaign’s political neutrality.
Critics argue that while public enforcement actions target lower-level operators, private businesses, and municipal officials, systemic corruption and administrative malfeasance within the ruling Prosperity Party and the broader administration of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed remain largely unaddressed.
Despite the federal government’s high-profile announcement of a sweeping nationwide crackdown on economic crime, independent observers, civil society organizations, and opposition figures have expressed skepticism regarding the campaign’s political neutrality.
__
Join our Telegram Channel: t.me/borkena
Like borkena on Facebook
Join the conversation. Follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @zborkena to get the latest Ethiopian news updates regularly. Subscribe to the YouTube channel. To share information or for submission, email info@borkena.com
This is good and it should have been enforced all the time. Well, every one is asking the law enforcement to prove it. That is why I am being Jerry Maguire and screaming from the top of my lung at our daughter H.E. Enatalem bint Melese and H.E. PM Abiy with ‘Show me the money!!!’ because talk is most of the time and especially with regimes in Africa has proven to be so cheap. Show me the money! Louder! Show me the money!! Not loud enough!! Show me the money!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!