Nestlé Continues to Press Ethiopia for $6 Million
"A country on the brink of devastating famine should not be forced to pay a settlement to a wealthy multinational corporation based on the business decisions of the dictatorship that governed the country nearly 30 years ago. Nestlé's continued pursuit of this claim is wrong." Abera Tola, Oxfam's Ethiopia program coordinator
Nestlé responded to Oxfam’s criticism with a statement indicating that it will not retract its demand for $6 million from Ethiopia. The company is demanding payment in compensation from the Ethiopian government for the nationalization of a company 27 years ago--a company that Nestlé didn't own at the time.
Nestlé’s statement said the company would "invest the proceeds of the compensation negotiation in a long-term, viable investment in Ethiopia which will contribute to the economic development of the country,” but the company continues to press the Ethiopian government for the full $6 million. It has rejected an offer of $1.5 million from the Ethiopian government that it has yet to demonstrate a valid legal claim to collect.
“A country on the brink of devastating famine should not be forced to pay a settlement to a wealthy multinational corporation based on the business decisions of the dictatorship that governed the country nearly 30 years ago,” said Abera Tola, Oxfam’s Ethiopia program coordinator, in response. “Nestlé’s continued pursuit of this claim is wrong. Ethiopia needs all its resources to feed 14 million citizens currently facing starvation.”
Read a BBC news article about Nestle’s demand.
Read more about the food crisis in Ethiopia.
Read more about the coffee crisis in Ethiopia and other coffee-growing regions of the world. The coffee crisis is a major factor in the looming Ethiopian famine.