ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia is set to start construction of three industrial parks during the current Ethiopian Fiscal Year 2018/19, that started on July 8, an Ethiopian official said on Friday.
Speaking to Xinhua, Lelise Neme, Chief Executive Officer of the Ethiopia Industrial Parks Development Corporation (IPDC), said the three planned industrial parks are Aysha and Semera Industrial Parks located in eastern part of the country and Assosa industrial park located in western Ethiopia.
"The three planned industrial parks are expected to play a critical role in Ethiopia's plan to transform its still largely agrarian economy into an industrialized one by 2025, using the textile and garment sector as a key component" said Neme.
Neme further said the planned industrial parks will be a welcome addition to the four industrial parks that have already been commissioned.
Bole Lemi, Hawassa, Mekele and Kombolcha are the four industrial parks that are already operational.
Adama Industrial Park, constructed by China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation, is expected to be inaugurated by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Sunday, helping create job opportunities for thousands of Ethiopians.
The commissioning of Adama Industrial Park is expected to increase the number of operational industrial parks in Ethiopia to five, thereby helping the Ethiopian government's strategy of increasing the GDP share of the manufacturing sector in the east African country from the current five percent to around 22 percent by 2020.
Ethiopia plans to increase the number of operational industrial parks from the current four to around 30 by 2025, as part of its efforts to make the country a light manufacturing hub and lower-middle-income economy in the same period.
