Ethiopia plans to make the manufacturing share to GDP grow 17.2%

Ministry of Industry held workshop on productive capacity in collaboration with UNCTAD bringing together government and non-government stakeholders.

At the opening session of the work shop, Mr. Tarekegn bululuta, the state minister of Industry said that Ethiopia endowed with variety of natural resources that are essential for the manufacturing sector. Currently, Ethiopia exports raw materials with no value addition and this hindering the sector’s contribution to the economy.

As Mr. Tarekegn, disclosed, the manufacturing sector has made a contribution 0f 6.9% to the GDP, In 2019/20. It .attracted 60% of Foreign Direct Investment and created 230 thousand new job opportunity in 2020.

Ethiopia plans to make the manufacturing share to GDP grow 17.2%. The plan incorporates to absorb more human resource even taking share of employment from Agriculture and other subsectors and bring about urbanization across regions. Currently, manufacturing share to employment is 5% and by 2030 the plan is to reach 15% by creating 5 million new job opportunities.

Ministry of Industry will be working to accelerate the structural transformation by giving much emphasis to its backward and forward linkages that is the core of the future manufacturing sector according to the state minister.

Fitsum Asefa (PH.D) Minister for plan and development, on her side said that Ethiopia has super ambitious plan to transform its economy structure from agriculture led economy to industry led economy through formulating GTP I and GTP II through enhancing industrialization in priority.

Ethiopia introduced a well-synchronized set of comprehensive homegrown economic reform in 2019.The introduced a well-thought out set of policies and administrative measures to redress the macroeconomic imbalances manifested in the form of persistently high and rising inflation, unprecedented level of unemployment, inefficient and ineffective financial sector performance, and an exchange rate regime that was inconsistent with the economic fundamentals as her.

Mr. Paul Akiwumi, Director, and Division for Africa, LDCs and Special Programmes, United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) on his side said that his organization has been a Thought leader in advancing production transformation as key to achieve sustainable economic growth.

UNCTAD has articulated policies and strategies needed for building economy wide productive capacities in the form of 3 pillars namely the productive, entrepreneurial capabilities, and production linkages and these 3 pillars have optimistic impact on creating vibrant economy through structural transformation and will be ready to support Ethiopia the director added.