The Ethopian Ministry of Mines has announced a profit of US$419 million from the export of minerals supplied by artisanal miners in the first 11 months of the budget year.

Export of gold took the giant share of the total profit by generating US$409.1 million in foreign currency with gemstones and tantalum earning US$9.3 million and US$1.6 million respectively from total of 7878.3 Ksg of gold, 20,126.3 Kg of gemstones and 32.95 tons of tantalum. The export of minerals has become Ethiopia’s second largest foreign currency earner, contributing over 23 percent of overall export earnings. Oromia, Tigray, Benishangul-Gumuz, the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples, and Gambella Regional States are among the gold producing regions.

In the same vein, the Ministry of Industry has declared a profit of US$254.7 million from the export of manufactured goods. Exports include textiles and clothes, leather and leather products, agro-products, pharmaceuticals and chemicals. More than US$111 million of this came from the export of leather and leather products, over US$90.7 million from textiles and clothes, US$45.6 million from agro-processing and US$7.3 million from pharmaceuticals and chemicals. And the quality earned this year exceeded the amount earned during the same period the same period the previous year by 24.3 million US dollars.