Cepheus Growth Capital Partners announced an investment into Tabor Ceramics Products Share Company, Ethiopia’s leading domestic producer of ceramic products.
With this investment, Cepheus Capital will hold a significant minority ownership stake and provide strategic, managerial, and operational support to the company. Tabor Ceramics, based in Hawassa, is in the midst of a major expansion to increase all four of its main product offerings, which include tiles, sanitaryware, tableware and ceramic insulators used in electricity distribution lines.
The equity investment by Cepheus Capital will support the company’s planned expansion and also help launch the production of new higher quality and higher value product line being manufactured in Ethiopia for the first time.
Teshome Belamo, whose family owns Tabor Ceramics, said they are excited with the partnership with Cepheus. “We are excited to partner with Cepheus Capital as we are at the beginning of a major factory expansion and are also aiming to improve our management systems and internal operations to be in line with international standards. We have a very close alignment with the team at Cepheus Capital and look forward to working with them in the years ahead.”
Cepheus Capital’s Managing Partner Berhane Demissie also said that they invested in the company because of the bright future. “We see Tabor Ceramics as a promising investment opportunity that is very much aligned with the growth trends and trajectory of the Ethiopian economy—including urbanization, infrastructure expansion, and the rising numbers of middle-class consumers. The company has seen growing demand for its products in recent years, and we anticipate this will continue over the coming years, reflecting large on-going housing developments as well as the expansion of the country’s electricity network. The mix of products manufactured by the company—covering retail, residential, commercial and industrial customers—also offers multiple growth and diversification opportunities.”
Tabor Ceramics is a well-positioned import-substituting business that can replace a range of ceramic-made products currently supplied almost exclusively via imports.
Cepheus Capital is a private equity firm that invests in Ethiopia’s most promising businesses and entrepreneurs. Besides providing capital, the firm also delivers management and operational expertise to its portfolio companies, and assists them in the adoption of strong environmental, social and governance standards. Cepheus Capital is finalizing the fund-raising for its first USD 100 million fund that will be deployed across the manufacturing, agro-processing and service sectors.
Cepheus Capital invests in Tabor ceramics
ENLN forum unleashes nutrition potential
The first Ethiopian Nutrition Leader’s Network (ENLN) held its first annual forum on November 24 with the theme “unleashing nutrition leaders’ potential to accelerate multi-stake holders’ nutrition action in Ethiopia.” Ethiopian leaders’ network is working to the development of both individual and organizational leadership capabilities in the broader area of nutrition to support the government and public in reduction of malnutrition.
Israel Hailu, initiator and founder of the Nutrition Network, said “since the network is new we didn’t set specific plans and objectives for the last one year; however we have achieved many things in creating awareness about the network, an increasing number of members, in giving international training for our members.”
Ethiopia nutrition leaders network (ENLN) was launched on February 8, 2019, at the Golden Tulip Hotel in Addis Ababa, with over 60 professionals from various backgrounds Committed to ending child malnutrition by 2030. The nutrition network which is lead through Save the Children’s nutrition program currently reached its members to 150 over the country.
Israel said “the network has participants from different sectors as nutrition is every one’s concern.” Members are obliged to work eight hours per month with the network. The network is working on to be established as a legal organization to stand by itself, preparing specific objectives, plans and legal manuals on nutrition.
Malnutrition is a critical health problem in Ethiopia. Stunting is a largely irreversible result of chronic undernutrition that leads to weaker immune systems and diminished cognitive capacity. Furthermore, one in ten children in Ethiopia is suffering from acute malnutrition, which is a leading cause of death in children under five. The result is hundreds of thousands of children dying and millions who will never reach their full potential from a condition that is preventable. Israel suggested that “the government is having lots of measurements actively to reduce malnutrition and stunting” however she added, “still lots mobilizations are needed to accelerate the movement.” Child stunting rates in Ethiopia have fallen from 58% in 2000 to 37% in 2010.
Ethiopia has signed the global scaling up nutrition movement for a collaborative process to end malnutrition in all its forms and for the development of the national nutrition framework. The country has prepared its first nutrition policy on 2018 to ensure that all Ethiopians secure adequate nutritional status in a sustainable manner, which is an essential requirement for a healthy and productive life. Ethiopia has now approved its Food and Nutrition Policy (FNP) and is moving forward in creating food and nutrition council and a Secretariat, a governing body for all food and nutrition-related issues and the technical arm of the governing body respectively, which requires a huge number of talented nutrition leaders that could be part of these structures and be able to provide nutrition leadership across the country. Hence, this platform, which is hoped to eventually mature into an institution, is further intended to mobilize resources on nutrition leadership in Ethiopia from various disciplines to equip new generations of excellent and visionary nutrition leaders capable of meeting the nutrition leadership demand in the country.
Somaliland, migrant consolation prize for Middle East dreams
Life seemed comfortable for Abiy Aschalew, when he found himself in the self declared state of Somaliland. Born in Abergeleë a small wereda in Amhara Regional State, Abiy initially dreamed of arriving in a Middle Eastern country.
Human Trafficking in Ethiopia occurs internally and externally in the form of adult and child labor and sex trafficking. There are also reports of organ trafficking and other related human rights violations, like child marriage, and exploitation.
Abiy, now in his mid-20’s, was unable to continue preparatory education due to poor grades so he chose to move to Addis Ababa to work and support himself and his family.
His father gave him 1,500 birr for transportation and other accommodations after convincing him to continue his education in an extension program and work during the day time.
Economic insecurity and poverty often push families to look for alternative modalities to support the family, and demands for workers in weaving and farming have pulled children and women into human trafficking to meet these demands.
An international organization has reported that most traffickers are small local operators, often from the victims’ own communities, but that well-structured, hierarchical, organized crime groups are also responsible for irregular migrants becoming highly susceptible to trafficking. Labor recruiters target young people from Ethiopia’s vast rural areas with promises of a better life.
According to the study made by IOM, labor trafficking is the most common form of exploitation in Ethiopia, although sex trafficking has also been reported, and some researchers suggest that transnational adoption and organ harvesting should be investigated as a form of external trafficking including extensive concerns over the trafficking of women for domestic labor to countries east of the Horn of Africa.
“You can learn your class there, I will recruit you in the best café’ where you can earn handsome tips up to a hundred birr in half a day,” said a broker in his area who worked for two years in Addis Ababa and then moved to the gulf states after collecting money for the next journey.
For external trafficking, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and of course Europe are the destinations. However, the routes are in Sudan, Kenya, Djibouti, and Somaliland.
For those who are not successful at having a settled life in Somaliland, like Abiy, human trafficking is common. There are around 50 victims a day.
“The delay in implementing a legal agreement with UAE on overseas employment contributed to the problem and benefits human traffickers,” said Feleke Belay, from the Hargeisa Consulate of Ethiopia, adding that they are gravely concerned over the increasing number of illegal migrants entering Somaliland.
People are heading to United Arab Emirates, via air Arebia and fly Dubai. Large numbers of Ethiopians are being deceived and lured by illegal agents so they flee the country and become engulfed in life risking journey, adds, Deputy Consul, Feleke Belay.
According to Feleke, just a year after, the journey which is mostly from eastern part of the country they commonly are lured by false promises of smugglers, borders of Somaliland accommodate hundreds of Ethiopian migrants every day.
The plan to send Ethiopians to UAE is a short-term measure to reduce unemployment in Ethiopia and to cope with increasing job demands, sending employees to one of its closest allies UAE, even if, the agreements have not been realized so far. However, while many more Ethiopians were waiting for the official agreements of the two countries, to travel to the gulf nation, the delay has created another loophole that the system to be easily exploited by human traffickers. Several networked brokers extended from Ethiopia to UAE are becoming major players in facilitating the visa application for the draw-in job seekers, by processing from the UAE Embassy Addis Ababa, said the deputy consul. Feleke indicated that a few weeks ago, the Somaliland Ethiopian Consul received information of at least 90 Ethiopians flying through the Hargeisa Airport via Air Arabia and Fly Dubai, due to official prohibition of Ethiopian women traveling to UAE via Addis Ababa.
Feleke thinks the big headache is not about people who are flying illegally through the Hargeisa airport by means of the human traffickers. However, there is another harsh situation where ethnically organized smugglers are torching Ethiopians by dropping a piece of melting plastic on their body to let their families know the terrifying painful sound so they will send the money. Surprisingly, there are smugglers settled in Somaliland in a place named Yogori and that is the place where migrants are held hostage and torched until they have received money from their relatives. Some of the smugglers are armed and, Feleke, noted that the latest rumble was between security forces and human traffickers.
Accidents are common on the route, some weeks ago, at least 11 people died while the driver filled up 28 people in a minibus with a 12-person capacity.
“Human traffickers are networked and camped in one of the border areas plus the money they receive from the hostage families through the bank.”
Such acts are known by the government of Ethiopia and there are times when the police force demolishes their temporary shelters in the boarder
Travelers don’t have sufficient information regarding the issue. What they said is: “there is no job at home and we don’t have any other choice but to stay, said the Deputy Consul, noting that the desperate voices that he has heard while talking to travelers. The exact number of Ethiopian refugees and migrants heading to Somaliland is unclear, but large numbers of people are fleeing.
Ethiopia has recently been identified as a country with a burgeoning human trafficking problem, although accurate rates of the number of trafficking victims are difficult to find the U.S. Department of State said.
The exact size and extent of the problem is not known, but media, government, and advocacy groups have increasingly raised concerns over human trafficking in Ethiopia in recent years.
Families continue to play a major role in financing irregular migration, and may force or coerce their children to go abroad or to urban areas in Ethiopia for employment.
The year 2019 has also seen a spike in arrivals of East African refugees and migrants there. Latest estimates show that the monthly average of migrants arriving in Yemen this year is 18,500, the highest number since data became available in 2006.
Abiy and other Ethiopians living in Somaliland say they are content as the people of Somaliland are friendly and respectful considering Ethiopian gratitude during bad times of civil war but they still dream of traveling to gulf states.
EnDev new phase for Energizing Ethiopia project
Energizing development (EnDev) launches the third phase of energizing Ethiopia and energy solution for displacement setting project. The project will stay from 2019-2022 with 9.4million Euro budget. EnDev Ethiopia promotes household electrification through hydro power plants, by providing technical assistance and introducing appropriate low-cost designs for hydro power, solar and stoves. Give technical advice and training, policy and financial support, for private and governmental firms on the energy sector.
The country project trains local scouts to promote hydro power and assist municipalities in identifying and developing suitable sites for new plants in rural areas as well as old water mills that can be rehabilitated and upgraded. EnDev provides financial resources to cover parts of the investment costs. EnDev energizing projects implement in five regions of the country including the central.
Social Institutions, households and small to medium sized enterprises are beneficiary from access to electricity and modern cooking energy of the project. EnDev Ethiopia ICS) has been working to reduce fuel consumption by raising awareness and establishing other mines of energy such as building network of stove producers.
The joint action focuses on equipping social institutions with solar power, upgrading water mills to micro-hydropower plants and strengthening local markets for solar lanterns, improved cookstoves and biomass briquettes. With the additional funding from the EU Delegation to Ethiopia and EnDev core donors, lower income households, social institutions and small & medium-sized enterprises in Ethiopia will gain better access to energy from renewable sources.
Endev Ethiopia phase one implemented from 2005 up to 2009, and phase two 2010 – 2020. Since 2005, up to 2017 with Euro 34 million budget repots shows 1.4 million people have gained access to modern cooking energy and further 395,000 people now have access to electricity. 562 social institutions and 3,200 enterprises have been supplied with modern energy through EnDev.
The Ethiopian Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Electricity is the lead partner of the project. Other national partners of EnDev Ethiopia include the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the Ministry of Health and of Education as well as the Regional Energy Bureaus.
The Energizing Development partnership is a joint impact oriented global program facilitating self-sustaining markets for modern energy solutions, financed by six donor countries. It cooperates with governments, NGOs and the private sector in 25 partner countries in 15 Africa, four Latin America and six Asia. The European Union (EU) support provides solutions for a wide range of demands in Ethiopia. The support will be directed towards developing and growing the market for modern for modern renewable energy technologies and services as well as energy efficiency solutions. The implementation of energizing program started in 2005, with initial objective of facilitating sustainable and modern energy accesses to 3.1 million people in developing countries.
Ethiopia is endowed with abundant renewable energy resources with an enormous potential for electricity generation. Nevertheless, it is one of the lowest energy consuming countries in the world. In 2012, only about 26Pct of its 94 million inhabitants had access to electricity. Form the approximately 70Pct of the population lived in the rural areas around 5Pct are had the accesses. This seriously limits the country’s potential for economic growth and social development.
