Local Economies

By involving small and medium enterprises of the local construction sector it is aimed for the creation and growth of sustainable, market-oriented local construction companies and cooperatives, thereby increasing employment and income in the regions of UCBP sites.

However, many local enterprises in the regions of Ethiopia struggle with managerial and technical standards as well as sustainable financial viability and, furthermore, many regions have no history of cooperation between General Contractors coming from Addis Ababa and the local construction sector .

Therefore, the UCBP will focus on strengthening existing local/regional enterprises and encouraging the formation of new ones, through:

• Developing a system for involving local/regional enterprises through subcontracting by the general contractors (with a target of subcontracting 25% of construction work in phase I, and 40% in phase II);
• Providing entrepreneurial and managerial skill training for business sustainability,
• Conducting practical training on-the-job to up-grade the skills of technical staff in main trades such as masonry, metal works, carpentry, electricity and plumbing, as well as
• Cooperating with the local “Technical and Vocational Education and Training - TVET” colleges, offering internships to their students to get practical experiences in their respective trades and “Start - up - business” - training to graduates interested to create their own construction related enterprises.

At all sites the UCBP Site manager, supported by their respective SME officers, will implement the project concept efficiently.