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Turkey outdoes China in terms of Ethiopia investment
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.While Turkish investors had arrived later, they had since poured some $1.2 billion worth of investment into Ethiopia, Habte said.
Despite China’s outstanding record of development assistance to Ethiopia, the Asian giant’s investments in the African state lack volume, a senior Ethiopian Investment Agency official has said.
China has invested $836 million in Ethiopia over the past ten years, Debela Habte, a senior public relations expert at the agency told Anadolu Agency on Thursday.
He added that, while Turkish investors had arrived later, they had since poured some $1.2 billion worth of investment into Ethiopia.
“Turks invest their money in large-scale projects, while the Chinese are more involved in both small- and large-scale projects,” Habte said
He said Turkish investors were largely engaged in the textile industry, which, he said, required significant capital.
This, Habte added, could explain why Turkey’s investment capital in Ethiopia had surpassed that of China.
Nevertheless, Habte said, China had managed to retain its leading position in terms of investment-related job creation.
“Chinese companies have managed to generate over 75,500 jobs [in Ethiopia] while Turkish companies have generated only 20,900 jobs,” he said.
He added that both the Turks and Chinese tended to focus their respective investment projects in capital Addis Ababa.
Habte said that 296 Chinese projects – out of a total of 437 Chinese projects in the country – were located in the capital, while 55 out of 100 Turkish projects were located in Addis Ababa.
Turkish investment projects, he noted, were mainly in the fields of manufacturing, real-estate, construction and hospitality.
He added that 69 Turkish projects were in the manufacturing sector.
http://www.worldbulletin.net/todays-news/144192/turkey-outdoes-china-in-terms-of-ethiopia-investment
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Diageo Sees Africa As ‘Engine Of Growth’
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VENTURES AFRICA – World’s biggest liquor maker, Diageo Plc says Africa remains one of its most lucrative markets outside its home market in Dublin, Ireland, labeling it an “engine of growth.”
According to Diageo CEO, Ivan Menezes, Africa is a “tremendous engine of growth” for the brewer, especially for its beer business and the Guinness brand.
Diageo, which owns various leading alcoholic beverage brands like Guinness, Harp and Smirnoff, sees Africa as a major source of larger revenue in the future.
Compared to other developing nations, Africa has a large beer-consuming market and this has attracted leading beer markers like Diageo, SABMiller and Heineken to launch their products in different countries on the continent.
In Nigeria, for instance, the value of the beer market has grown from 21.8 percent in 2009 to about 23.45 percent as at 2013.
A Rabobank International report released earlier this year also confirmed that Africa provides the most interesting opportunities in terms of demographics and economics.
In the future, Menezes said the brewer will continue to increase its investments substantially while banking on quality, authenticity and heritage as its key discipline to successfully exploit the continent’s growing beer market.
http://www.ventures-africa.com/2014/09/diageo-sees-africa-as-engine-of-growth/
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Ethiopia, Ireland to consolidate bilateral cooperation
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Foreign Affairs State Minister of Ethiopia, Ambassador Birhane Gebrekristos held talks on Tuesday with Niall Burgess, Secretary-General of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Ireland, on ways of improving the bilateral relations of the two countries.
Ambassador Birhane called on Irish investors to seize the investment opportunities created in Ethiopia and invest in agriculture, health, hotel and tourism as well as industry sectors.
He further urged Ireland to consolidate its development assistance in the spheres of agriculture, food security, potable water and other infrastructural activities.
Stating the importance Ethiopia attaches to the development support it get from Ireland, Ambassador Birhane finally asked the government of Ireland to uphold its contributions to the peace keeping efforts underway in East Africa.
Niall Burgess on his part said Ireland would consolidate the development assistance it extends to Ethiopia.
He pointed out that Ireland would continue providing support for Ethiopia in its endeavors to meet the Millennium Development Goals; poverty, maternal and infant mortality reduction, and in development activities in general.
According to the Secretary-General, his country will strengthen its support to the effort underway to bring peace to East Africa and Africa in general.
Ireland has also the desire to jointly work with Ethiopia in climate change, peace and stability as well as African and other international issues, he added.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, Ambassador Dina Mufti, stated that the relationship between Ireland and Ethiopia has registered tremendous growth within a short period.
The President of Ireland is expected to visit Ethiopia after two months, it was learned.
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Kenya signs pact for 15,000MT fertiliser plant
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NAIROBI, Kenya, Sep 10 – Kenya has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Toyota Tsusho Corporation for the construction of the much anticipated fertiliser plant that will see 150,000 metric tons of NPK fertilizer manufactured by July 2016.
Speaking during the signing of the MoU, Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries Cabinet Secretary Felix Kosgei said lack of proper use of fertiliser by the farmers has led to low yields, which is attributed to the purchase price.
“Fertiliser use per hectare has been very low and therefore productivity has been down, and that is why instead of the standard application of about 100-200 kilograms per hector Kenya is still applying only 31 kilos and it is because of the cost.”
“The farms they have now can even double or triple their production if proper application of fertiliser is used,” he said.
Kosgei says upon completion of the plant, there will be a significant drop in the cost of production in agriculture.
Transport and insurance when importing fertilisers have also been pin-pointed as the reasons why the cost is high.
He added that employment opportunities, potential for expansion of plants by TTC to different parts of Kenya, high yield, better profits, as well as creating a healthy competitive environment for fertiliser prices are just some of the benefits of the partnership.
Eldoret has been earmarked as the location for the construction of the plant. The Director and Senior Advisor Toyota Tsusho East Africa Dennis Awori says this is because it is at the centre of the biggest market for fertiliser.
“Transport is a big cost so if we can produce it as close to where the bulk is going to be used as possible, then we will reduce on the transport cost,” he said.
Due to high fertiliser prices, the government has been importing fertiliser and selling it at a subsidized price to the farmers most recently having procured 160,000 metric tons at a cost of Sh4 billion.
Awori says construction will begin by the end of 2014, adding the biggest drop in price will be actualised in phase two but they will need a stable source of natural gas at the right price.
“If Kenya’s natural gas deposits are found to be commercially viable, then it should be possible I’m sure with the assistance of the ministry to get that natural gas we need at the right price, that is when there will be a substantial drop,” he said.
Other areas earmarked for plant construction in the future include Mt Kenya, Western Kenya and the coastal region.
Construction of these other blending plants is so production of fertiliser can be soil and region specific as opposed to generic.
http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/business/2014/09/kenya-signs-pact-for-15000mt-fertiliser-plant/
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Three African States That Are Doing It Right
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EXCERPT:
In Addis Ababa — Photo: David Stanley
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Like Rwanda, the east African nation is not a classic commodities country. So it owes its success to the positive development mainly of agricultural productivity, political reforms, and the downsizing of bureaucracy. The average per capita income of $500 a year is significantly lower than the regional average, a fact that the government uses when plugging Ethiopia to potential investors. In the capital Addis Ababa, ever more risk capital partners are looking for entrepreneurs.
Within a few years, Ethiopia went from being one of the world’s poorest countries to joining the group of “middle-income countries,” as the UN calls countries with a minimum per capita income of $1,026. Some of the most ambitious projects on the continent are taking place in Ethiopia, among them Africa’s largest hydroelectric power station due to be constructed here, as well as a rail system nearly 5,000 kilometers long that will help the country industrialize.
The government was recently criticized for electoral irregularities and suppressing the opposition, but it invested heavily in education and health. The number of Ethiopians living in extreme poverty is shrinking by 2% per year.
The development of these countries seems all the more spectacular because of where they started. Yet all African countries together accounted for only 3% of worldwide gross domestic product. So Africa urgently needs more model states, and then headlines from the continent of crises will start to report more good news.
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Ethiopia Attracting Foreign Floricultural Investment, Technology
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An Ecuadorian investor said he has begun introducing state-of-the-art technology to the Ethiopian floriculture sector which is suitable to the European flower market.
Owner and General Manager of the Ecuador-based cut flower group Bellaflor, Mauricio Castillo, told ENA that besides its proximity to the European market, the lower transportation cost for flowers has made Ethiopia a preferred market.
Castillo said the Bellaflor group, which has gained international recognition, has 32 years experience in producing cut flowers.
Although the company supplies 75 percent of its produces to the US, it has also many customers in Europe and Asia, according to the general manager.
The investor, who came to Ethiopia last year to engage in floricultural sector, was granted 73 hectares of land in Welmera Woreda of Oromia Regional State.
Half of the total land would be used for developing cut flower, Castillo said, adding that the project launched in May will create jobs to 1,000 citizens when it goes fully operational.
The investor further said he would allocate 18 million USD in the coming three to four years to develop 32 types of roses and summer flower.
In terms of providing social services for the localities, Castillo said the company has built 3.2 kilometers long gravel road at a cost of 50,000 USD and would build a health center that particularly cares for the new born to 6 year old children.
Ethiopian Horticulture Development Agency Director-General, Alem Weldegerima, on his part said two Ecuadorian investors have invested in floriculture development in this current year alone.
Besides, investors from Middle East, Far East and South America have entered the Ethiopian market this year to engage in horticulture and floriculture, he added.
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Filed under: Ag Related, Economy, Infrastructure Developments, News Round-up Tagged: Agriculture, Allana Potash, East Africa, Economic growth, Ethiopia, Fertilizer, Investment, Kenya, Millennium Development Goals, Potash, Sub-Saharan Africa, tag1
