06 Sept 2013 News Briefs

According to Behailu Sintayehu, Project Manager, the project would be completed after two years.

The 34km double track electrified light rail transit project 43 percent of whose construction has already been done is expected to cross all 10 sub cities of Addis Ababa.

On completion, AA-LRT is expected to operate 18 hours a day using 41 light trains thereby transporting 60,000 commuters per hour.

Every locomotive would travel 70kms per hour pulling a three-room car with more than 300 seats. At all stations, a train is expected every three to six minutes.

Reporter: Natinael Tsegaye

Prime Minister Hailemariam Confers With the Prime Minister of Canada

Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, in Russia attending the G-20 summit, has held talks with Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada. Discussions covered the bilateral relations of the two countries and various African issues. The two sides agreed to make efforts to enable Canadian companies engaged in infrastructure and the mining sector in Ethiopia to become operational. They also agreed to work towards strengthening the cooperation between Ethiopian Airlines and Canadian carriers. The two Prime Ministers exchanged views regarding the current situation in Mali and on ways to consolidate the relative peace and stability in Somalia. Mr. Harper underlined Somalia’s need for a military training center to build up the capacity of its security forces and affirmed that Canada would support such an initiative.

Some 6,863 cooperatives established across nation

Some 6, 863 new cooperatives were established across the nation in the concluded fiscal year, according to the Federal Cooperative Agency (FCA).
“As a result of the efforts made to expand cooperatives in various regional states, 6, 863 new cooperatives with 245 million birr capital were established across the country,” Agency Public Relations Directorate Director, Yigzaw Dagnew, told WIC.
In addition to the cooperative, some 28 unions with over 49 million birr capital were also established in the concluded budget year, the director indicated.
The five-year Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) envisaged the establishment of 59,000 cooperative and 511 unions. And so far 48,124 cooperatives with 6.6 million members and over 3.7 billion birr capital as well as 293 unions which have 8,431 and over 1.5 billion birr capital were established, he said.
According to Yigzaw, the results attained so far shows that the agency is on the right track to attain the projected target, he said.
He said the agency has been providing capacity building training, financial and warehouse supports to strengthen cooperatives and unions, particularly in regional states in need of special support.
As part of the efforts to strengthen agricultural cooperatives, Ardayita Agricultural Technical College will begin training in cooperative in the coming academic year.
The construction of four warehouses with a total storing capacity of 5,000 tons is underway in Amhara and Tigray Regional States at a cost of 37 million birr, he added.  (WIC)

Nation planting over 6.8 bln tree seedlings

More than 6.8 billion tree seedlings are being planted across the nation this rainy season, according to the Ministry of Agriculture.
Ministry Public Relations Expert, Ermias Bayu, told WIC that the plantation is underway on more than 2 million hectares of land designated in various regional states.
Some 70 per cent of the over 4.5 million tree seedlings planted in the 2004 EC dry season has sprouted, Ermias pointed out.
According to the expert, efforts would be made to increase nation’s forest coverage from the present 11 per cent to 13 per cent by the end of the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) by planting billions of tree seedlings annually.  (WIC)

Chamber to train metal industry workers

Addis Ababa, September 6, 2013  – International Chamber of Commerce in Czech Republic organized a two-day workshop with the support of Aid for Trade Project of the Czech government here yesterday aimed at fostering the manufacturing process of the Ethiopian metal industry sector.
The chamber plans to offer training of trainers (ToT) in Czech Republic for a team of experts drawn from the Ethiopian metal industry.
Chamber Deputy President and Development Project Director Dr. Jana Chvalkovska said that building the capacity of workers in the sector is crucial to improve the production quality and generate considerable advantage from it.
“The business cooperation we enjoy could be witnessed by the practical knowledge transfer in industrial sites as well as technical and vocational schools,” she added.
She also said that the training is intended to enable the workers acquire know-how and exposure to the complicated process in the manufacturing of standardized metal products.
“Ethiopia, a big country in Africa, is geographically situated to broadly access the African market. As there is huge market potential in the continent, producing quality metal product is feasibility profitable. We also facilitate market linkage in Europe and Russia. We are able to produce big machines efficiently. That is why we come here to transfer industrial know-how,” Chvalkovska said.
According to her, the planned training to be offered in Czech Republic next year, mainly focuses on metal welding, design and other technical metal processing techniques based on the need of the trainees.
Metal Industry Development Institute Marketing Director Girma Alemu on his part said cooperation is essential to adapt better technological application in the metal processing industry.
Much could be learned from Czech Republic for it is highly advanced in producing and supplying quality metal products to the world market, he added.  (WIC)

Ministry launches industrial development study

The Ministry of Industry on Thursday held a half-day workshop on the validation of a study on Ethiopian Industrial Development that provides industrial road map, strategic plan, institutional setup and governance framework to support the industrialization and transformation of the country’s economy thereby enabling the nation to become a middle income economy by 2025.
Minister Ahmed Abtew told workshop participants held at the Ghion Hotel that Ethiopia is implementing the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) which aims at fostering broad based, rapid and equitable economic growth and social development.
The Minister said that micro and small enterprises as well as large and small scale industries have been given particular emphasis. As a result, the country has been able to register 11 per cent economic growth on the average for the last nine consecutive years.
“During the first two years of the GTP, the industrial sector grew by 15 per cent and 13.5 per cent respectively,” Ahmed added. But, he said, the growth and the contribution of the sector to the economy has been lower than the set target.
Ahmed also said that the Ministry, cognizant of Korean rich experience in the sector, and to improve its contribution to the economic growth of the country invited the Adama Science and Technology University to develop the appropriate Industrial Development Strategy Plan in partnership with Korean experts.
As regards the significance of the study, University Study Team Leader Dr. Ayele Abebe said the University, in collaboration with the Ministry conducted the study to advance the industrial sector to make sure that the country will be among the middle income countries by 2025.
Dr. Ayele said: “This study mainly focuses on how the industrial sector could grow over the next 13 years. The study was carried out by Adama University jointly with Korean experts. Other universities in the country also took part in the study through peer-review mechanism by commenting and enriching the outcome.”
Adama University President Prof. Jang Gyu Lee on his part said that the project was designed to establish a long-term road map for industrial development in Ethiopia which was carried out by Adama University, Ministry and Korean experts, under the leadership of the university for almost a year.
“We have also devised a strategic plan according to the road map, and identified institutions to implement the plan effectively,” he said.  (WIC)