SNV showcased its activities at Dutch Business Day in Addis Ababa

20 May, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: SNV showcased its activities at the Dutch Business Day organised by the Netherlands Embassy, together with the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency, the Ethiopian Netherlands Business Association (ENLBA) and other local partners.

The exhibition aimed at showcasing the activities of the Government of Ethiopia as well as those of Dutch companies, development, knowledge and business institutions and diplomatic missions.

The trade mission brought together  investors interested in building cross-border businesses, delegates from the Dutch embassies in Sudan, Kenya and Uganda as well as representatives of Dutch companies working in the agro-food and horticulture sectors and knowledge institutes.

SNV project advisors connected with specialists working in the production of milk processing equipment and biogas technology and in capacity building for farmer organisations.

Visiting the SNV stand, her Excellency Lidi Remmelzwaal, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Ethiopia, wanted to find out more about the developments taking place in the biogas sector in the past two years. Bekallu Molla, SNV Biogas Advisor, spoke about our technical support to the National Biogas Programme, especially in the design and implementation of the private sector development framework, the construction of 14,000 biodigesters and the active promotion of bio-slurry as organic fertiliser. Regarding the production of biogas appliances, Molla added that the limited demand has been a bottleneck for the private sector to embark on the business. SNV has been building the capacity of biogas small and medium enterprises aiming to make biogas an attractive business.

Her Excellency noted that the Dutch presence in Ethiopia is visible not only in business but also in projects, making the Netherlands the fifth largest investor in the country as well as a global export market for Ethiopian products. These investments have been generating more than 70,000 jobs in Ethiopia. In 2015 alone, the SNV projects in agriculture, energy and water, sanitation and hygiene created 1819 new jobs.

In this context, Fitsum Arega from the Ethiopian Investment Commission mentioned that Dutch companies are visible in the investment sector as they focus on innovation, are committed and work ethically, aligning with government priorities.