Ethiopia heralds its lead role in expansion of Africa's bamboo sector
A combination of an abundance of bamboo and eager foreign investment is making Ethiopia a frontier for the bamboo industrial revolution in Africa. According to the IMF Ethiopia was one of the fastest growing economies in the world, registering over 10% economic growth from 2004 through 2009.
"Ethiopia has the resources, the investment, a rapidly developing manufacturing industry and a strong demand for our bamboo products from foreign markets. We have what we need. The expansion of Africa's bamboo sector has begun," Ethiopia's state minister for agriculture and rural development, Mitiku Kassa, told IPS.
Demand for Ethiopia's agricultural output can drive growth and development for the country's poor people as long as it generates employment opportunities and remains non-exploitative towards farm workers and the land, said research fellow Steve Wiggins of the Overseas Development Institute.
"It is good if there is another source of demand for farm produce, so long as the economics of bamboo offer decent returns to land and labour, equitable deals can be struck in the supply chain, and the crop is environmentally sustainable," he said.
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