The Saygin Group subsidiary in Ethiopia is set to generate as much as 100 million US dollars per annum from textile manufacturing according to the Turkish company.

Saygin Dima Textile SC, which launched operations at its Ethiopian factory just three months ago, is looking to manufacture 50 thousand meters of fabric a day for international export said Ahmed Turan Yangin, General Manager.

The company is set to take advantage of low power costs estimated at  a third of what they would be in Turkey and wages one 20th those of the home market said Yangin.

Workers earn 600 Ethiopian birr or 34 US dollars a month for a 48 work hour said Yangin who feels that the low production costs are the most important incentive for a textile investor to choose Ethiopia.

It is to be remembered that Ethiopia earned 71 million US dollars from the textile exports in the first ten months of the financial year which is a 50% increase from the same time last year according to Fekadu Ethiopia, spokesperson for the Textile Industry Development Institute.

Ethiopia should strive to capitalize on its labor resources, raw materials and land to enhance light manufacturing industries that require relatively less set up costs such as textiles, leather, agro-business and metal according to the World Bank report in March.

The Ethiopian Privatization and Public Enterprises Supervising Agency has a 60% stake in the 80 million US dollar Saygin plant.

The factory currently employs 800 Ethiopian at the factory engaged in spinning, weaving and dying natural and synthetic fibers.

Source: Bloomberg