Agriculture

Agriculture Article
  • Ethiopia’s vast land, favorable climate, and water and land resources combine to make it an incredible hub for investment. Located in the horn of Africa, Ethiopia is at the crossroads between Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Within easy reach of the Horn’s major ports, Ethiopia is close to its traditional markets for export products – the Middle East and Europe. This geographical proximity provides major exporters in the world unparalleled access to the Ethiopian floricultural market.
  • Sugarcane, horticulture, floriculture, forestry (including rubber tree plantation, fiber crops: (cotton, jute) animal husbandry, etc.
  • The total land area coverage is about 111.5 million ha, of which 74.3 million ha is suitable for agriculture.
  • Eighteen major agro-ecological zones have been identified in the country, and over 3 million ha land has been made available for investment. Ethiopia offers one of the largest and most diverse agricultural investment opportunities on the continent

Textile and Apparel

Ethiopia textile and clothing sector must get smarter - Just Style

Overview of the sector*

  • Ethiopia’s textile and garment industry witnessing rapid growth, as a number of domestic and multinational firms are being engaged in the production of textile and apparel for domestic and global markets. In the path to industrialize Ethiopia, the sector is given prominent position in boosting export, creating job opportunities, and as a model to other sectors as well.
  • This recent surge in Ethiopia’s textile and apparel production and export to the global markets shows that the country has the potential to become one of the leading textile and Apparel hubs of Africa, of exporting the equivalent of 30 billion USD with bold vision of transforming the action into compelling new apparel sourcing hub for brand, retails and their suppliers.
  • Due to focused strategy and support of the government, in recent years, Ethiopia has grown spectacularly as a sourcing destination for apparel in recent years attracting most of the FDI in the sector.

Policy and strategy

  • The sector has become a top priority for Ethiopia as part of its goal to become a middle-income country by 2025. The key objective is to make the sector globally competitive and to bring the necessary structural transformation to the nation’s economy to export industrial outputs, create thousands of jobs, attract much-needed foreign currency and above all, contribute to poverty reduction.
  • Plan 2020: generates USD 1 billion export earnings over 300,000 employment opportunity.
  • Established the Ethiopian Textile Industry Development Institute to enhance skills and technologies in the sector.

Key Reasons for Investing

  • An abundant workforce at very competitive wages, competitive cost of electricity and potential for backward and forward linkage,
  • Ethiopian workers produce as many polo shirts of the same quality per day as workers in Vietnam when using similar technology.
  • A privileged geographic location: Ethiopia is located at the center of the world with easy access to international value chains, and has access to a state-of-the-art container port (Djibouti).
  • Potential to develop a competitive cotton or textiles industry due to good climatic and soil conditions.

Leather and Leather Products

Overview of the sector

  • The sector is one of the leading manufacturing sectors for Ethiopia.
  • Currently, Ethiopia is exporting mainly finished leather followed by growing shoe exports. Other leather items including gloves, bags and small leather articles have a large potential for exponential growth.
  • The recent expansion in leather gloves production is proof of existing capacity as well as the potential to export with a steady growth of volume and value.
  • More than 75 domestic and foreign leather and leather product factories have invested in Ethiopia.
  • Export of leather, which was US $ 23 million in 2013 reaches US $ 133 million in 2018.

Policy and Strategy

  • In the GTP II, the leather sector export and employment target by 2020 is USD 800 million and 59,580, respectively,
  • Since 2012, the government has discouraged export of hides and skins to boost exports of value-added products.  

Key Reasons for Investing

  • Ethiopia has a cattle population of more than 53 million, and sheep and goat population of 25.5 and 24.1 million, respectively. This makes Ethiopia the 1st from Africa and the 9th from the world in its cattle population which enable the country to have a strong raw material base for the leather industry.
  • Only 50% of hides and skins potential are being utilized currently.
  • Ethiopia has a potential for price competitive and quality supply of skins and hides: The Ethiopia highland sheepskins have got a worldwide reputation in terms of quality, thickness, flexibility, strength, compact structure, and a clean inner surface. 

Investment Opportunities

  • Tanning of hides and skins up to finished level;
  • Manufacturing of luggage (such as handbags), saddle and harness items, footwear, and garments; and
  • Integrated tanning and manufacturing activities.

Tourism and Hospitality

  • Ethiopia is one of the oldest civilizations, the source of the mighty Nile River, and is endowed with a long-aged heritage and uninterrupted political independence.
  • Located in the horn of Africa’s Rift Valley region and known globally as the origin of mankind, Ethiopia offers a variety of tourism attractions such as Natural, Cultural, Historical, Mystical, Athletics, and MICE.
  • Ethiopia commands a large and untapped potential for the tourism and hospitality business. The increasing number of tourists and the evolving profile of today’s traveler demand a host of new tourism offerings and infrastructure projects.
    • MICE Facilities
    • Star rated tourist hotels and lodges
    • Entertainment and Shopping Centers
    • Tourist Information Shops
    • Tourist Transport and Travel Services
    • Tourism Medical Services
    • Food and Beverage Services
    • Leisure & Sports
    • Education and Training Facilities
  • In addition, Addis Ababa’s significance as the political capital of Africa brings a high representation of international and regional organizations, including the seat of the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission on Africa.

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