BY DARGIE KAHSAY
Mekdim Hailu is a resident of Debre Birhan town, capital city of North Shewa Zone of Amhara State. He was Technical and Vocational Education trainer of manufacturing department for about 30 years at Debre Birhan Polytechnic College. He also served as head of the department. Since 2016, opening his workshop he has been producing his own innovational manufacturing machineries.
Mekdim told The Ethiopian Herald that since early mid-1990s, he has started repairing; maintaining and assembling different machineries parallel to his trainer duty at the college. And, through process, he has started innovating new products. In 2000, he started making a table saw of his own efforts which he finally realized. He presented a strong, capable and modern table saw of his own product at the Third Round National Skills Competition organized by Ministry of Labor and Skills with the theme “skills for competitiveness” here in Addis Ababa.
Before starting producing his innovational products, Mekdim was investing in producing high copy machines for experiment. Mekdim said that after he opened a small workshop in 2017, he invested in wood work though his innovational idea was producing manufacturing machineries. Through process and after he earned some capital, he shifted his business and started producing his own innovational products at his workshop. Then, he produced a brick factory, milk processing machine, workshop press and small steel-rebar processing machine and other automatic machines with his own design.
“Finally, I produced modern and strong table saw machine at my workshop after I modified and developed the ideas that I started almost 20 years ago. Currently, the table saw machine is already in the market. So far I have sold around five table saws” Mekdim said. As to him, the table saw can replace the imported one as it is strong and modern machine especially useful for wood work.
According to Mekdim, to import the table saw machine, it costs from 800,000 to 1,000,000 birr. But, his machine is in the market with around 250,000 birr. But, for Mekdim, like other startup innovators, shortage of capital, land and inflation in inputs’ price remains a challenge to expand his innovations. Mekdim also innovated and produced electric-motor-driven tri-wheel vehicles which he uses for transportation. He said he is using the electric three wheel vehicle for transportation.
Mekdim’s next plan is to expand his own workshop and to produce manufacturing sector machineries to support the manufacturing sector development in Ethiopia. In addition, he is dreaming to realize producing the electric vehicle at his own workshop both three wheels and four wheels electric vehicles, though capital and access to land remain his top challenges.
Tegbaru Girma is Manager of Tegbaru, Yared and Friends Metal Works and Machine Manufacturing Enterprise, a company formed by youth entrepreneurs, based in Addis Ababa around Gofa Industry Zone. Tegbaru and his friends were teachers and trainers at Technical and Vocational Education centers in different institutions. A year ago, five friends became organized and established the company to produce manufacturing machines.
According to Tegbaru, before they established the manufacturing enterprise, parallel to their formal job of training students, they were involved in part-time machine repairing, maintenance and other machine assembling activities in different companies. Finally, the five youth came together and established a machine producing company as they have full knowledge-p- theoretical ideas and practical experiences.
Within a year, producing a coffee roaster machine they presented their product at the third round national skills competition. Approached by The Ethiopian Herald, Tegbaru said that their company is producing different level Coffee Pulper Machines, Coffee Processing Machines, Coffee Laboratory Machines, Coffee Roasting and Grinding Machines, Truss Work, Advanced Welding Machines, Precision Manufacturing Machines and other small machines at the company.
Products of Tegabru, Yared and Friends Enterprise are already in the market and they have specialized in producing different coffee processing, roasting and laboratory machines. As to Tegbaru, their company would continue to specialize in producing modern coffee processing machines to support the value addition export of coffee in Ethiopia. “Our clients are coffee exporters and processors and our machines are liked by our clients,” Tegbaru said.
According to Tegbaru, to import the coffee roaster machine, there is a need for 45,000 USD, but the price of the machine produced by them is three folds less expensive than the imported ones. The machines produced by Tegbaru and friends Enterprise are already in the market and so far, no complaint has come from the clients as the machines are modern and operating fully. “We have prepared manuals and specifications for maintenance and operation for each machine and any mechanic can easily maintain the machines,” Tegbaru stated.
“Our company’s plan is to produce all coffee processing modern machines at home and to support the coffee value addition export efforts,” Tegbaru stated adding that “to fill the gap, we will continue supplying modern and competitive machines.” Natnael Takele is a graduate of Arada Manufacturing College, in Addis Ababa. He innovated and produced his own design leather engraving machine at his own workshop. He also presented his own innovational product at the third round skills competition fair. The engraving machine is useful to paint or to write letters, logos, photos or other inputs in leather, wood, clay or other products using radiation only.
“The machine is useful for leather products suppliers to stamp their logos, name of the company easily using the radiation,” Natnael told The Ethiopian Herald. In addition to the leather engraving machine, Natnael has different innovational ideas, including modern wheelchairs and other modern products helpful for the physically disabled people. But, Natnael faced shortage of capital to realize his innovations. While opening the Third Round National Skills Competition fair, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) said that Ethiopia is importing most of technological products at high cost and this affects the country’s economic development. Remaining dependent to import machines and technological products would continue to affect our journey of development.
Hence, PM Abiy advices innovators to continue innovating and producing solution-oriented products. According to the premier, the innovation sector in developing countries is facing multidimensional challenges. To overcome the challenges, it is important to make the innovations solution oriented, he added. “It is important to focus on the outcome to overcome the challenges that the innovation sector is facing” PM Abiy added that working jointly and in synergy would also help to solve the problems. Without innovation, it is unthinkable to transform the industry sector in our country, he added.
PM Abiy on his social media also said that “being solutions-oriented is essential to transform Ethiopia. A nationwide skills competition has begun today where young people with different skills and abilities are presenting their creative works. Let’s be strong, let’s innovate, let’s focus on solution to overcome challenges.” For her part, Muferiat Kamil, Minister for Ministry of Labor and Skills, stated that skill development sector is a new chapter to develop economic competitiveness with innovations.
As to the Minister, reforms are being undertaken under the Ministry to produce skilled, productive and internationally competitive professionals and innovators using the technical and vocational centers to realize Ethiopia’s transformation. The ministry is working to make training centers as centers of excellence in skills development and reforms are being undertaken under the motto of “Beyond training”.
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD FRIDAY 26 MAY 2023
