Addis Ababa, June 12, 2024 (FBC) – During a meeting with the CEO of Ethiopia’s Industrial Parks Development Corporation, Shibata Hironori, the Japanese Ambassador to Ethiopia, revealed that efforts are underway to encourage more Japanese investors to invest in industrial parks and free trade zones across various sectors in Ethiopia.
During the meeting, Mr. Aklilu Tadesse highlighted Ethiopia’s historical relationship with and and the relatively low involvement of Japanese investors in the country’s industrial parks. He underscored the importance of fostering stronger cooperation to boost more Japanese investment flows. The CEO expressed IPDC’s readiness to facilitate this collaboration.
Furthermore, the discussion explored strategies to help companies operating in industrial parks, both domestic and foreign, capitalize on Japan’s substantial market in addition to their existing market presence.
Recall that a groundbreaking event took place at the Bole Lemi Industrial Park last month to mark the launch of a $55 million manufacturing facility by Toppan Gravity, a prominent Japanese company specializing in the production of high-security documents such as passports, national ID cards, ATM cards, and Mastercard products with embedded microchips. This facility in Ethiopia aims to capitalize on Toppan’s expertise in secure identification and payment solutions to meet the growing demand in the country.
In that regard, the latest discussion between the IPDC CEO and the Japanese ambassador is expected to encourage more Japanese investors to follow Toppan’s lead and explore various investment opportunities in Ethiopia.