A new bill meant for administering the market of precious stones in Ethiopia is presently in pipeline, a cabinet minister said on Friday.
Alemayehu Tegenu, minister of mines and energy, said the new bill will enable traditional gold miners and business people supply precious stones to the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE), the country's central bank.
At the opening of an awareness-raising training on the draft bill, Alemayehu said his ministry, in collaboration with pertinent bodies, has been striving to establish a legitimate way of extraction and marketing of precious metals, which is currently practiced in a backward and traditional way in different parts of the nation.
Though there are lots of cooperatives of traditional gold miners and licensed business people on precious stone marketing activities in the country, the volume of gold supplied to the central bank still remains minimal, he said.
The Council of Ministers has ratified the new bill with a view to curbing illicit trade while promoting the marketing of precious stones in the country, and thereby boosting the benefit of the nation from the sector, he added.
The bill, which is tabled for discussions, is expected to be put into force after endorsed by the Lower House of Peoples' Representatives.