As part its commitment to international projects focusing on technical and economic cooperation between companies in Italy and abroad, an Ethiopian delegation from Addis Ababa led by the Minister for Industry, Tadesse Haile, and comprising a total of 15 government representatives will tour the leather and leather products industry in Italy.
The visit to the Association’s headquarters forms part of a fact-finding tour organised by UNIDO to support Ethiopia in the sustainable development of its footwear, leather goods and tanning industry via knowledge and technology transfer from Italy.
As well as visiting Vigevano’s footwear and machinery industry, the delegation will also go to the leather goods zone of Florence and the tanning and machinery district of Santa Croce sull’Arno to visit and gain first-hand knowledge of Italian production facilities.
“We are preparing the best welcome possible for this important Ethiopian delegation – says Assomac President Giovanni Bagini – which gives us a unique opportunity to showcase the excellence of Italian companies, particularly in the footwear and machinery zone in Vigevano. In recent years, the Ethiopian tanning, footwear and leather goods industries have advanced rapidly leading to increased exports of Italian footwear, leather goods and tanning machinery to Ethiopia. Exports to Ethiopia of machinery for the sectors represented by Assomac generated sales worth €2.5 million last year. We hope this visit marks another step forward in an ever closer and lasting collaboration between companies in Italy and Ethiopia.”
Among others, the delegation comprises the Deputy Mayor of Addis Ababa, Abate Sitotaw Fenta; the Director General of the Leather Industry Development Institute, Wondu Legesse; the Director General of the Micro and Small Enterprise Development Agency, Gebremesekel Challa Mottalla; the Ethiopian Ambassador in Italy, Ato Milugeta Alemseged Gessese; Maria Aurelia Calabrò, Director of the UNIDO headquarters in Vienna and Andrea De Marco representing the UNIDO office in Addis Ababa.
