The Ministry of Trade and Industry urged seven governmental agencies and departments to open an investment desk within their offices.

The request came after a meeting chaired by Girma Girrru, Trade ad Industry minister, that united several state organizations and government agencies to endorse an "Investment follow-up and support manual". Attending the meeting were Abi Wolde Meskel of the Ethiopian Investment Agency and representatives from the Ethiopian Customs Authority; Ethiopian Telecommunications Corporation (ETC); Security, Immigration and Refugee Affairs main department; Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCO); the Development Bank of Ethiopia (DBE); Mugher Cement Enterprise; and the Federal Police. Regional investment offices were represented as well.

The Investment manual stresses that it is crucial that these concerned organizations and regional offices open an investment desk to facilitate the handling and implementation of different investment requests in a focused manner. The desks will facilitate these investors with regard to their different needs like bank loans, infrastructure service provision, residential permits, visas, building construction supply and customs service.

According to an official at the Trade Ministry, investors have to be able to get these services without any problems in order to implement projects. This in turn helps them expand which, the official said, indirectly helps newcomers have a good showcase.

Although the federal investment Agency claims to have registered over 15,000 investors since 1992, only 20pc of those are believed to be operational.

According to the manual, which was prepared by the Agency's Industrial Facilitation and Aftercare Department in June 2006, there are many reasons for failed projects including investors not having adequate preparation, licensees having limited capacity, failure to inform the agency when a project is dropped, long waits for plot grants, and aborted construction due to problems beyond their control.

The aftercare department will allow an investor to get a service required by just presenting an investment license. The new arrangement will entitle the investor to get a much more efficient service in a short time.

EEPCo was a pioneer and actually opened the investment desk before the letter was sent out to the government agencies from Girma Birru. Sendeku Araya, Public Relations head at EEPCo, confirmed that the desk was already operational.

"We will see these investment desks in the coming two months," said an official from the Ethiopian Investment Agency, "and once they are in place we expect to see an increase in investment coming into the country."