Jimma

" The oldest trading hotspot of Western and Southern Ethiopia ."

European historians and explorers had visited Jimma Aba Jifar at different times and wrote about its long and incredible history. Among these, Herbert Lewis calls Jimma the oldest trading hotspot of western and southern Ethiopia. Of the cities in western Ethiopia, Jimma is is endowed with rich agricultural raw materials such as coffee, honey, fruit, wood, animal products, etc, which are inputs for the agricultural processing industry. 

The city of Jimma is home to Jimma Industrial Park which is Built on a 75-hectares of land. It is one of the most desirable place for both foreign and local manufacturers, especially those engaged in the agro processing sector. 

The park has nine production sheds. Of these, five sheds are 3000sq.m and four sheds are 5500 square meters with world-class infrastructure. In addition the park has a complete infrastructure that meets international standards (water, electricity, internal asphalt roads, sewerage treatment technology, drainage lines and telecom services etc. 

Currently, two investors engaged in agricultural processing sector have started operations in the park, one of which is an Indian company named Akshay Jay, who has taken manufacturing shed. With an initial capital of 70 million dollars, the company is producing oil from avocados to supply its products to the European market, especially Italy, while generating significant foreign exchange earnings in the process. 

The company's avocado oil pressing machine was installed with a purchasing cost of 300 million birr. The huge machine has the capacity to process seven thousand kilos of avocados per hour, making it the largest avocado oil processing plant in East Africa. 

Akshay Jay has also leased four hectares of cultivated land to produce compost, soil fertilizer and bio-gas from the by-products of avocado oil, and construction of this complex has reached 25%. This company has created job opportunities for 260 local youth and it’s 70 % of its employees are women. 

Another company named Soreti International, has taken a manufacturing shed and is installing a machine to produce avocado oil. 

After Jimma industrial park started operation, it earned Ethiopia 4,000,000 US dollars in foreign exchange by supplying avocado oil to foreign market. Akshe Jay has created a market network for more than 15,000 local farmers. 

The farmers have provided avocados to the company, and this year alone, they were able to secure a market network that earned them 130 million birr. 

Since Winter is the only season of avocado cultivation, companies within the park must not face shortage of raw materials for factory inputs. Thus, in order to provide sustainable resources to produce at their peak capacities throughout the year, the company has established an avocado seedling station and distributed the seedlings to the farmers for free, so that the farmers can plant avocados on large scales. 

The company even distributed 100,000 avocado seedlings to farmers last year. In the same fiscal year, one million avocado seedlings have been prepared and distributed to the farmers. 

Come and Visit Jimma Industrial Park and the city of Jimma where you can see a land endowed endless natural blessings! 

Our doors are open 24/7 for investment and 
the sun never sets in our industrial parks! 

Reap the fruits of your diligent investment from Ethiopia’s industrial parks which are market hubs for millions! 

Industrial Parks Development Corporation!