The Ethiopian Maritime Affairs Authority issued a new rule for containerized cargo shipments limiting maximum allowable cargo weights of 20 TEU (Twenty Feet Equivalent Unit) containers not to exceed 20 tons, including the weight of the container, Capital reported.
The new rule reduced container weights from 24 to 20 tons in order to prevent damages to roads and promote safety.
The Ethiopian Maritime and Transit Service Enterprise (EMTSE) received instruction from the Ministry of
Industry last week to prepare port facilities for handling coal imported by Ethiopian Petroleum Enterprise (EPE).
It was reported in Mid August that the Ethiopian Petroleum Enterprise (EPE) was going to import coal from South Africa to secure sustainable supply of coal as an alternative source of energy for cement factories.
Metal industries in Ethiopia need to implement Non-Destuctive Testing technology to ensure that products meet international standards according to Dr. Abdul Nasser, Industrial Technology Section Head with the Malaysian Nuclear Agency.
NDT technology is a mechanism to guarantee quality and allow industrial products to gain competitiveness on the global market he said at a training held in Addis Ababa.
The technology will contribute toward the development of the industrial sector in developing countries noted Dr. Nasser.
Representatives from Ethiopia’s metal industry discussed the challenges facing the sector at meeting held last week.
Challenges include price increases, power cuts, taxes, the supply of scrap metal, capital shortages and the monopoly of the Ethiopian Shipping and Logistic Enterprise had the Ethiopian Association of Basic Metals and Engineering Industries to call for a public-private dialogue forum to support the sector.
The competitive advantage of domestic industries is adversely affected by the 5% import duty imposed on scrap metal exports while the finished product is imported duty free according to participants at the meeting suggesting the lift of import duty or develop a duty drawback scheme for domestic industry.
Micro and Small Enterprises in the Ethiopian capital have created 71,088 jobs in the last six months alone according to the Addis Ababa City Administration Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) Development Bureau.
This number is just 81 percent of the target 88102 jobs that the bureau had set for the period according to Leulseged Yefru Head of the Bureau.
The construction sector alone was responsible for creating more than 43 thousand jobs accounting for a significant portion of the total said Leulseged. The manufacturing sector was able to employ almost 12 thousand people, urban agriculture created an estimated 3 thousand and the trade and service sectors together created more than 13 thousand jobs he explained.
