Industry Ministry Deliberates Draft Strategy for Construction Inputs

The Ministry of Industry (MoI) received first draft of an industry strategy which the Addis Abeba Institute of Technology (AAiT) produced with Korean experts and a hired consultant, with a team travelling to several countries across the world for experience sharing.

The MoI gave the job to Institute in July 2014 to produce a Construction Input Development Strategy for 2015-2025. The strategy considers nine construction inputs with the aim of increasing the country’s construction input manufacturers within a decade, according to a senior official at the Ministry. The input sectors included in the strategy are marble, plastic, aluminium, wood products, gypsum, glass, adhesives, ceramics, and pints. The strategy vies to make production of these inputs competitive enough to substitute imports.

The draft has been discussed with stakeholders three inputs at a time, with the draft for the last three input items being discussed on January 10, 2015, according to Abubeker Yimam (PhD), project engineer of the strategic plan from AAiT.

The draft strategy explores the problems of the sectors and suggests solutions for the problems such as enabling industries to improve actual production to their capacities; to increase the number of factories in a sector, such as ceramics production, where there has been only one factory for a long time, with a new one coming soon; as well as beginning aluminium manufacturing in Ethiopia. It also suggests local production of inputs for flat glass manufacturers.

“The strategy will help the plan of increasing the manufacturing industry’s contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to 17pc from five percent currently,” says an official.

This strategy is part of the ministry’s current engagement with Addis Abeba University, AAiT, Adama Science and Technology University and Industrial Training Services (ITS) working on the design of plans for the industry sector in three platforms; feasibility study, strategic plan and man power study. Recently, Adama Science & Technology University finalized a draft Cement Industry Development Strategy, with the aim of increasing the country’s cement consumption by more than threefold and had a discussion with the stakeholders’ manufacturers of cement in December 2014.

AAiT conducted the research with Korean experts and external consultant. The process involved 24 people in groups of four, each travelling to one country including China, Turkey, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Spain, Italy and Korea, for best experiences, according to Abuberker.

The strategic plan was conducted with the assistance of a steering committee organized by the MoI having six members chaired by Haile Assagide, chief executive officer (CEO) of Derba Cement Factory, Mesfin Abi, CEO of Habesha Cement Factory, two from Chemical & Construction Inputs Industry Development Institute and additional two representatives from the industry.

Comments from participants included problems to be reconsidered such as access to finance, problems related to lack of infrastructure such as road, water and electricity, the establishment of industrial bank, according to Abubeker.

The strategic plan included budget for the implementation, but both the Institute and MoI declined to disclose the budget saying it needed revision as the draft came up with lower implementation cost.


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