ADDIS ABABA- Federal Small and Medium Manufacturing Industry Promotion Authority announced that over 1,500 new small and medium industries have been created within the past nine months.
Ashenafi Melesse, Commu – nication Director of the Authority said that to ensure the goal of Growth and Transformation Plan, the Authority has been expanding new small and medium industries and providing different support for the existing ones in collaboration with government financial and development institutes.
As to him, to support the existing industries in a scientific way, the Authority has been working in collaboration with different research institutes and, the industries have been creating a job opportunities for several unemployed citizens.
He noted that by using these supports a lot of industries have been modernizing and transferred from small into medium level and from medium to higher industry.
He underscored that to encourage small and medium industries; the government has been undertaking a lot of measures including establishing the institution which deals with the industry at zonal level.
“The Authority has been undertaking measures to enhance the technological capacity of industries. This, in turn, has enabled small and medium industries to produce products that were manufactured by only at higher industries level.
He added that even though small and medium industries have been producing and supplying products that are competitive in terms of quantity and quality, unwillingness of some consumers to buy local products has become a major challenge of the sector.
Tsehaynesh Mengiste, Senior Communication Officer with the Authority on her part said that within the past nine months 212 industries are transferred from small scale into medium level and 76 industries are transferred from medium to higher at national level.
She noted that within the past nine months beside providing quality products, small and medium industries have created job opportunities for some 44,784 Ethiopians. Within those months the government has allocated nearly 178 million Birr for working capital credit and 463 million, for capital goods, she further said.
The Ethiopian Herald, June 12/2019
BY TAMERU REGASA
