KOMBOLCHA– Kombolcha Industrial Park (KIP) urged all stakeholders to show maximum concern towards maintaining in concert the input supply for the industrial parks mushrooming throughout the country Ahmed Seid General Manager at KIP said most of the raw materials are imported from China, USA, South Korea and Italy to feed five international companies that are currently operating in the industry parks.
“We want to substitute that with local products. That needs the coordination of many stakeholders including the Ethiopian Leather and Textile Institute. We want to have a cotton plantation in Matama of Amhara State and it has become a major issue of concern that the State administration has given due attention,” he said.
Meanwhile, these companies are exporting their products beginning late June 2018 and they have generated 6 million USD so far. Thecompanies have also created nearly 2000 jobs.
He said, the KIP has been working with the town administration and the Kombolcha Polytechnic College to get operators forthe companies engaged and the employees receive business and entrepreneurship training.
Meanwhile, each company has their owndemand in terms of technical training. In this case, one of the companies has given 20 machineries for the college and the operators would get practical training.
On the other hand, the rest of the companies would give their employees the trainings with their own machineries in the industrial park.
According to Lou Sheng Project Manager at the KIP, the industrial park which was built by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) currently has eight complete shades while five remain to be built on the first phase of the project.
He said the important advantage of building the industrial park in Kombolcha is that it is located close to Port Djibouti, which is less than 480 kms, where the export products start their way to their destinations. When the whole construction phases see completion, the KIP is expected to create more than 20, 000 jobs in the future.
The Ethiopian Herald September 1/2019
BY HENOK TIBEBU
