By Hailegebriel Endeshaw
Staff Reporter
ADDIS ABABA – (BORKENA) Bureau disclosed that electric power provision problem has become a stumbling block to industries in Amhara Regional State. The Industry and Investment Bureau of Amhara Regional State told the Amharic Weekly Reporter that power supply problems in the Region hampered the productive capacity of industries across the Region. Bureau Head, Endris Abdu said that the problem the industries have been facing to this day in the electric power sector has adversely affected their productive capacity.
The head said that 879 industries, in manufacturing including 295 in agriculture, hotel and tourism sectors (totally 1,192 industries) across the region, have been entangled by shortage of electric power provision. “Due to power service deficiency, the industries have not been able to turn to production to their full capacity and the challenge has become a cause for shortage of production supply at national level.
“We are working with the decision of upgrading our production capacity by 60 percent to the minimum this budget year. However, the current execution process does not show the achievement to the desired level,” Endris said.
Enjibara, Kemissie and Debre-Birhan industry villages including others in Gonder areas are suffering from power shortage problems. Though efforts are being made to address the problem, still the power scarcity has not yet been resolved.
Endris said that the Industry and Investment Bureau is working to solve the problem along with the Electric Service of the Region. The problems witnessed are not only on electric power services but also on line installation, provision of transformers and meters, according to Bureau Head.
Endris said that apart from internal consumption, some of the industries were established with the intention of manufacturing exportable products. However, the power provision problem has become a challenge, according to the Head. He further said that due to their failure to operate fully, the industries have not been able to open the expected job opportunities for compatriots.
The Industry and Investment Bureau said that the Regional State has allocated a budget to solve the power problem. “Electric power is a decisive factor in the industry sector. The Amhara Regional State has taken initiative to address the challenge by allocating budgets. However, the magnitude of the problem, the fact that the provision of the power service is not to the needed amount in the Region, the economic sabotage and the imbalance of power demand and supply have adversely impacted the progress of the industry sector,” Endris said.
Endris said that construction of substations in needy areas have been started to solve the problem in the Region. “The regional government is working by allocating 400 million birr in this budget year to solve the infrastructural problems in the industry sector,” he said.
The weekly Reporter indicated that Amhara Region has given licenses to investors who were under the range of registered capital of Birr 344.4 billion. Of these, 2,755 investors have received licenses to invest in the Region. When they go functional, the investors are reportedly expected to open job opportunities for 500,000 compatriots. Upon completion of the industries under construction, the number of industries in the region will reach 3,200.
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I’m not surprised to hear such nagging operation snag disrupting businesses over there. It may get worse if peace and stability do not return to every region in that country soon. The Amhara region may even face much more disruptions of such basic services if their neighbor to the west, Sudan, goes belly up and if the two gangsters there do not stop fighting. Looking at the records of the two leaders of the fighting gangsters I don’t think it will stop soon before tens of thousands perish there. Both leaders have a history of killing and harming of civilians and both know they may end up facing justice if a democratic civilian government takes charge of running that country. We all know what RSF did to innocent civilians of Darfur and the world has taken down notes what Burhan and his security forces have been doing to peaceful demonstrators there. I feel for those noble and freedom longing people of Sudan. They are the ones who is bearing the brunt of casualties in this war between the two thugs. I just also read reports that foreigners including those involved in humanitarian work were killed in this carnage. I expect thousands of our dear countrymen/women have made the cities where the fighting is raging now their home. Let’s keep them in our thoughts and daily prayers.