During this hard time, the inflow of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has enabled Ethiopia to create some 40,000 job opportunities for citizens during the previous budget year, Ethiopian Investment Commission said.
Mekonnen Hailu, Communication Director at EIC told The Ethiopian Herald that despite the global situation, the inflow of FDI has created over 40,000 permanent and temporary job opportunities during the previous budget year. FDI has been contributing its role in the efforts of job creation.
The job opportunities were created in the agriculture, service, and manufacturing industry sectors at Industrial Parks and other industrial areas, he said.
Some 80 percent of the jobs went to women and are believed to help them ease their socio-economic challenges.
However, the commission faced difficulties in achieving its overall plan due to the challenge the COVID-19 outbreak posed.
“Although COVID-19 has been challenging the investment sector, some foreign and local companies have utilized the outbreak to a blessing and disguise and have shifted their operation to the production of personal protective equipment (PPE).
Previously, there was a challenge to meet the local PPE including facemasks demand. Besides generating hard currency, the shift in operation has enabled the country to meet its local demand for PPE at a fair price.
Source : EPA
