By Yonas Abiye
ADDIS ABABA, March 9, 2011 (Ezega.com) – A group of business delegation which is visiting Addis Ababa on Wednesday announced that Turkish investors are ready to engage in multi-sectors investment in Ethiopia with a total investment outlay of USD 1.4 billion as part of bilateral trade between Ethiopia and Turkey.
The announcement was made at Sheraton Addis during the ongoing three days bilateral meeting of ‘Ethio-Turkish Trade and Investment Forum held between the two countries business communities with the participation of high governments officials at ministerial level.
Over 150 Turkish delegation headed by Zafar Caglayan, State Minister of Foreign Trade of the Republic of Turkey, and including company owners, manufacturers and exporters offered their Ethiopian counterparts the opportunity to enhance the already existing “strong” trade and investment relation between the two countries,
State Minister Caglayan noted that “we are here to develop our relationship as Ethiopia is an important country in Africa. As a result over 1.4 billon dollars of investment would be made by Turkish investors”.
He explained that Turkish investors want to use Ethiopia as a base and a gateway to Africa.
“We want to provide African people particularly Ethiopian all mutual business opportunity to ensure development. Hence many Turkish investors are ready to invest in various sectors in Ethiopia, including this 1.4 billion dollar,” he said adding that “though we have strong trade and investment relations in many parts of Africa, we invest much of it in Ethiopia that may make other countries jealous”.
The Turkish State Minister also hoped that when the newly proposed investment comes to operation, it will provide more than 30,000 job opportunities to Ethiopians.
On the occasion Mr. Caglyan also indicated that Turkish state owned Exim Bank has extended a soft loan grant to Ethiopia worth 100 million USD with low interest rate that Ethiopia would pay back in the long term.
The State Minister also extended his offer for Ethiopian business community to visit Turkey to participate in the Turkish-Ethiopia Trade and Investment Forum which is scheduled for this year in May.
Representing Turkish private sector, Mehamet Buyukenks, who is also Chairman of Turkish Exporters Assembly, on his part noted that they are working to increase the existing trade volume between the two nations.
He also underlined that the Turkish business community is looking for new investment in Ethiopia in addition to the existing engagement his country’s investors have in Ethiopia.
So far, 225 Turkish investors are engaged in Ethiopia since the last decade. Notably, Turkish investor are working in textiles, leather and hide, and agro-processing industry, among other things.
Moreover the visiting delegation team have expressed their readiness to engage in various sectors such as transportation, textile and apparel, mining, construction, building material, food stuffs, automotives and spares, medical equipment, household items machineries, package, plastic, IT system, electrical and electronic products, chemicals, and Agro-Processing business.
Despite the growing trade between the two countries, Turkish delegation told Ethiopian officials, particularly addressed to Ethiopian Minister of Finance (MoF), Sofian Ahmed, that they have at times faced “bottle neck procedural and bureaucratic problems” here in Ethiopia.
According to Mehamet, the major problems and “serious barriers” include the banking sector like shortage of foreign currency, long and hectic paper work and procedures to establish a company, high custom tax and transportation cost as well.
Commending the contribution of Turkish investment and the bilateral relation, the Minister of Finance, Sofia, told the delegation that Ethiopian government is now ready to curb all the barriers and he pledged them a promise to assist them in fulfilling all the necessary procedures.
“I assure you that government is ready more than any time to reduce all the problems. We’ll meet all your needs about custom related problems, and transportation with no unnecessary procedure while you come to get your investment licenses and facilities,’ he said.
He also challenged them to participate on problem solving, citing that they, for instance, can do to engage in transportation sector.
However, despite all the growing of the bilateral relation of the two countries, both Turkish and Ethiopian officials in common agree that the trade volume of the two countries is, of course, big and in favor of Turkey.
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Yonas Abiye is Addis Ababa based reporter for Ezega.com. He can be reached by sending email through this form.
www.ezega.com, March 9, 2011