Agreement signed for 7.7 bln Birr SMEs industrial park construction

A 7.7 billion Birr agreement has been signed on Tuesday to launch the construction of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) industrial park at Akaki-Kality Sub-City.

The agreement has been signed between Engineer Debo Tunka, Head of Mega Projects Construction Office under the city administration and Engineer Jagama Keneni, Representative of MCGTN Construction Contractors at the Headquarter of Addis Abeba City Administration.

SMEs industrial park cluster will be constructed on 93 hectare of land at Akaki Kality Sub-City in two years.

City officials pledge to commit the industrial park (cluster) to agri-processing, textile, leather, steel and woodwork, construction materials, chemicals, plastic, electronics and medicine producers.

The project also consists of 21 shades and shops for 400 input suppliers and products from the cluster. This construction project will create jobs for 18 to 20 thousand citizens, according to the statement obtained from Mayor Office of Addis Abeba.

“Handing over 93 hectare of land for this project signals the priority city’s Administration has given to the sector,” Adanech Abiebie, Mayor of Addis Abeba said during the agreement program.

She added: “The project will be implemented by the budget from the administration’s pocket and it will be useful to ensure city’s economic transformation and implementing an import-substitution strategy”.

“The project will enable to capacitate local contractors through offering projects, which used to hand over to the foreign ones,” Adanech said.

Engineer Debo said for his part that, “The project is a unique one and it’s the first project to pass through competitive bid unveiled by the Office.”