A month ago, three economists visited President Isaias Afwerki in Massawa to apprise him of the looming economic disaster and left insulted.

Woldai Futur, Eritrea's Minister for Economic Development and Economic Advisor to the President; Yemane Tesfay, the General Manager of the Commercial Bank as well as Kibreab, the Governor of the Bank of Eritrea scheduled a meeting with President Isaias Afwerki to discuss Eritrea's economic crisis.

The move was a risky one for Woldai Futur as he has, of recent, fallen out of favor of Isaias Afwerki who, more and more, is relying on his Finance Minister, Berhane Abrehe, for economic advice.  As happens often with appointees that the president wants to boot out, the campaign of defamation begins when the president begins to speak ill of the doomed individual in his/her absence.  Regarding Woldai, Isaias Afwerki has been heard to say things like "some people earn nine thousand dollars a month and yawn all day." 

The three economists met President Isaias Afwerki in his office in Massawa.  No sooner had Dr. Woldai Futur began with "Mr. President, the economy of the nation is in dire straits…" when Isaias cut him off with, "you are such a weakling! What do you know about economics? Who told you the economy is in bad shape, the American government?"  The two others attending the meeting shuffled their paperwork and held their counsel. The meeting was over before it started and the three headed back to Asmara.

The capital and development budget has now been transferred from the ministry of development to the ministry of finance, where Woldai Futur now punches his time card and does nothing.

Economic Indicators

The shortage of basic food items continues. Sugar, which was available at ritawi dukan  [fair shop, a government-owned store] no longer is. It is only available in the black market for 27 Nkfa per kilo. Oil, lentils, tea leaves are also not available at ritawi dukan. In fact, the only thing available at the store is "ater" resulting in Asmara residents renaming ritawi dukan  as dukan shiro.

Asmara residents no longer have an option of drinking away their problems: there is shortage of beer and almost all bars are selling it for 10.00 Nkf per bottle and only after 7.30. [Refer to previous issues of Gedab News for details.]

Meanwhile, contraband cigarettes from Yemen are more numerous with Royal selling for 1.00 Nkfa apiece.  There is also talk of manufacturing Rothmans and exporting them to Djibouti—although this is also subject to availability of hard currency to import materials.  

"Something Will Happen"

Almost all military officers now predict that "something will happen in the next 2 months" although nobody knows what the something is. The military has moved artillery pieces, howitzers and tanks to environs of Folena.