Italian textile machinery producers foray into Ethiopia

Following the recent institutional mission in Addis Ababa last July, ACIMIT, the Association of Italian Textile Machinery Manufacturers, has laid the groundwork towards strengthening links between Italian machinery manufacturers and Ethiopian textile companies.

Indeed, the partnership with the local consulting firm BCaD for the promotion of Italian technology applied to the textile industry has now become operative. The agreement stipulates that BCaD will act as a catalyst for requests from Ethiopian companies, promoting Italian businesses with government agencies, training institutions and Ethiopian textile operators.

“The agreement with BCaD will allow us to consolidate a constant presence in a Country that represents a new frontier for the textile sector”, states Raffaella Carabelli, President of ACIMIT.

“The recent institutional mission undertaken by the Association and coordinated by the ICE – the Italian Trade Promotion Agency for the promotion and the internationalization of Italian companies, as well as the Italian Embassy, has allowed us to ascertain the Ethiopian government’s strong commitment towards developing its textile industry, long considered a strategic sector, providing it with suitable technology means to meet the challenges of global competition.”

Italian exports to Ethiopia are still minor (roughly 2 million euros in 2012), but appear to be growing constantly over the past few years. “We are confident that the contact point developed with our Ethiopian partner will serve to allow people to get a better idea of just what our machinery manufacturers can offer the locale textile sector in terms of technology and experience, shared with textile producers with a high level of potential.” concludes Carabelli.

ACIMIT represents an industrial sector comprising around 300 manufacturers (employing close to 12,000 people), exporting machinery for an overall value of roughly 2.4 billion euros, of which 80% are exported. The quality of Italy’s textile technology is highlighted by the large number of countries in which Italian machinery is sold, with approximately 130 nations worldwide.

ACIMIT