Exploiting their privileged status, government-owned businesses are about to monopolize one of the last hold-outs of private businessmen in Eritrea: the transportation sector. 

The latest entrant is Harat, a parastatal corporation which recently imported 500 buses, minibuses and trucks. This is in addition to Harat�s more than ninety minibuses currently running between Asmara and Massawa as well as within the confines of both cities. 

Harat is controlled by the Fourth Operations Command and Major General Haile Samuel (aka �China�) the Commander of the Fourth Operations Command, is, in effect, also the general manager of Harat.

Like all government and party-owned businesses, Harat enjoys special privileges over its private sector competitors.  For one thing, the buses are driven by national services personnel, essentially soldiers who are assigned to the Fourth Operations Command. Meanwhile, the private sector is experiencing severe labor shortages due to the militarization of Eritrea�s youth.  Other privileges of the party-owned businesses include tax exemption, priority access to hard currency, priority access to fuel as well as, in this case, route designation.

Eritrea�s �private sector� is now a competition between para-statals: the party-owned Red Sea Trading Corporation (RSTC); the businesses owned by party-controlled �mass organizations,� such as National Union of Eritrean Youth & Students (NUEYS) and National Union of Eritrean Women (NUEW) and, finally, the businesses owned by the generals commanding the operations command.  

The encroachment by army and party-owned corporations has already squeezed out Eritrea�s private sector not only in major sectors of airline, import-export, tourism, construction, housing, agriculture, banking, publishing, communications, electronics, but also in hospitality, fishing and even internet cafes.   SATAE, one of Africa�s oldest publicly-held private companies, is now in a precarious position, with several of its vehicles grounded for extended periods.

Related Story