ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia - The first Oromiya's food processing, display and information center became operational as of last Saturday which was constructed with an investment outlay of 1.3 million birr [155,000 USD] in Adama town some 100 kilometers from Addis Ababa.
The Engineering Capacity Building Program (ecbp) initiated the project together with the Oromia Trade, Industry and Transport Bureau. The agreement for cooperation signed last year provided about 724,000 ETB for all equipment, materials and external services, said Thorsten Becherer, service expert of the project.
The Adama city Administration contributed 610,000 ETB for the construction and all the administration cost, it was learnt.
The center will host new start-up businesses from former Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) graduates and provide access to production facilities and technical and business assistance to help them in the region. The Business Incubation Center focuses on high quality food processing for natural products.
Mr. Hailu Efa, from the Oromia Trade, Industry and Transport Bureau said that the business center would improve the employment opportunity of young women and men that are Ethiopia's greatest assets, which alleviate financial difficulties.
He said that young entrepreneurs who generate productive employment, that is employment geared towards the production of goods and services for which there is genuine demand is not dependent on structural subsidies or protectionist measures.
The Technology Display Center will continuously strive for further new innovations and display them to its visitors, he stated.
In Ethiopia entrepreneurs are often blamed to strive only for their own benefits and use the society, which he said is a wrong perspective. According to him international experiences prove that private entrepreneurs are crucial for development. "Entrepreneurs take risks in order to start and grow their own business and create jobs. New jobs are the opportunity for employees to care for their families and increase standards of living", he said.
Private enterprises in Ethiopia are in great mostly micro enterprises. These enterprises absorb the majority of the labour force. This is the reason why micro and small enterprise development is among the biggest opportunities for the future of Ethiopia, he explained.
The Adama Technology Display Center will be a permanent exhibition displaying the latest technologies and know-how from agriculture, construction, food processing, textiles, and metal and woodwork sectors to Small and Medium Scale Enterprises (SMEs). The Center will build the capacity of entrepreneurs to directly increase their knowledge and indirectly their competitiveness and viability.
The Adama Business Incubation Center and Adama Technology Display Center follow from those recently established in Dire Dawa and Mekele. The initiative is supported by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, regions' Bureaus and the Ethio-German Engineering Capacity Building Program (ecbp)
As a pilot project the center hosted six TVET graduates who obtained the seed money for the operation from Microfinance institutions.