Lessons Learned on Potential“Champion Products”

Team Ethiopia
July 31, 2012

Contents
I. Background
II.Some Examples on Potential Champion Products
III.Lessons learned
IV. Conclusion

I. BackgroundSource: International Trade Centre

I. BackgroundCon’t…

 The way medias depict the image of a country!
 The way consumers perceive the image of a country!
 Has a positive or negative implication on what a country
produce & trade!

 A country image matter for Export performance!
 How is Ethiopia’s image portrayed… ?

I. BackgroundCon’t…

 How “Champion Products” are related to country image.
 Examples: JapanHigh Quality Manufacture Products;
 Italy and Germany
Durable Engineering Products;
 HollandFlowers (roses); Bangladesh
Good Textile Products;
 Colombia and Mexico????
 Back again:
 How is Ethiopia’s image portrayed… ?

I. Background
Which Ethiopia?

Con’t…

I. BackgroundCon’t…

Background of Preliminary Survey
 In middle of May 2012 a preliminary survey team headed by H.E. Mr. Suburo
Yuzawa arrived in Ethiopia from Japan.
 With the new strategy to Ethiopia in search of “Champion Product”.
 To look for a potential Ethiopian product that can enhance the image of thecountry.
 To help the promotion of Ethiopia's Export.
 To find way in which the Ethiopian product enter in premium-market.

 Purpose: To share lessons we (Ethiopian team) have learned engaging with theJapanese team and experience of some companies, which are producing
potential “Champion Products”.

I. Background

The issues need to be flagged

Con’t…

Aspects of the Solution
ProductHow does “Champion Product”:
 enhance a country image?
 promote country’s export?
 enter in the premium market?

Consumer TasteStory?
Unique & Best one product

What peculiar characteristics that “ Champion Product” need to comprise?

II. Potential “Champion Products”
1. AGRO-PROCESSING
2. TEXTILE
3. LEATHER

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

1. Why Agro-processing?
 Main priority area in the GTP.
 An improvement in the sector:
 Improve over 80% population who stayed mainly in agriculture (valuechain).
 Contribute significantly to the economy, at large.

 Ethiopia has so many products in this sector that can produce tooutshine other competitors. For instance, Coffee (origin); Honey (unique types), Sesame (high quality), etc.

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

CON’T…

1. AGRO-PROCESSING
Example 1
Oromia Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union®
®
®

Supplies high quality coffee Arabica.
 Organic certified and provides organic coffee.
 Ensures traceability of its products.
Pursues fair trade to fulfill its social responsibilities.
 On the process to start value added coffee products.

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

1. AGRO-PROCESSING
Example 2
To. Mo. Ca. Coffee
 Long history of coffee roasting: Five unique roasting techniques.
 Adjusts roasting techniques on demand.
Entered in the premium markets of North America,
Europe, Middle East, Japan and Australia.
 Prepared different Packaging for different consumers.
Preparing coffee related product (Coffee Candy) thatwas completely absent in Ethiopia.

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

1. AGRO-PROCESSING
Example 3

White honey

Beza Mar Agro Industry
 Certified organic honey producer.
Provides unique honey from different regions. For
example,Lalibela, Zequala, & Sekota: White and grainy honeydue to the labiate flora.
 Southern Ethiopia: Coffee honey.
 Bedele & Bale: Wild forest honey.
Processing Ethiopian unique Teji (honey wine) for export.
TejiCON’T…

1. AGRO-PROCESSING

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

Example 4
Ecological Products of Ethiopia (ECOPIA)
 Produces High quality: Organic food & beverages.
 Natural cosmetics, etc.

Fruit wine Ensures traceability to all its products.
 Labels nutrient contents of all products.
 Demand oriented: health conscious.
 Pursues fair trade.

Fruit Jams

Supplies different varieties of organic fruit jams,
sun-dried vegetables, etc.
Has different and good quality packaging.

Dried fruit

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

1. AGRO-PROCESSING
Example 5
Ethio Agri-CEFT Plc.
 Processes unique products from a plant called Endod.
 Often referred as ‘African Soapberry’.
 Ethiopian Scientist Aklilu Lemma discovered themedicinal & bio-pesticides values of Endod.

Endod plant Control Schistosomiasis: killer diseases & endemic to 76
tropical African, Latina America and Asia countries.

 Control zebra mussels: infests water intake pipes.

Infested pipes

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

1. AGRO-PROCESSING
Example 6
Selet Hulling PLC
 Produces high-quality Humera sesame.

 Certified: HACCP, ISO 22000 and Organic.
 Grants 100% traceability of its product.
Pursues fair trade in fulfilling social responsibilities.
 Has negligible environmental pollution.
 Prepared to produce value added products.
 Enjoys a high premium price in Japan & EU, etc.
 Dedicates to sustain supply of its product.

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

CON’T…

1. AGRO-PROCESSING
Other Potential “Champion Products” =Teff Ethiopian’s for century have been cultivating Teff
selectively.
 Discovered that it is gluten-free diet that does not irritate
celiac disease. For instance, in USA about 1 in 133 people

Soupare suffering from this disease (source: Fasano et al., 2003).

 Ordinary Ethiopian quality ranks:

Bread Manga (high quality white teff); Nech teff(white teff);Sergenga (white mixed with black teff);
 Tikur (black teff).

Cake

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

2. Why Textile?
 It is one of the focus sector in the GTP.
 Country has untapped potential in sector due to: Cheap labor, power and land.
 The comparative advantage if it can use AGOA, etc.
 Unique way of traditional designs making clothes for century.

CON’T…

II PRODUCTS”
II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION

2. TEXTILE
Example 1
MUYA Ethiopia Plc.
 Makes use of traditional Ethiopian artisan
knowledge to penetrate a high-end market.
 Produces unique products embedded in theculture of Ethiopian society.
 Entered in high-end markets, such as in New
York, Tokyo, Athens, Vienna and Zurich.
 Sole supplier of one of the most renown brand- -and company run by Ethiopian supermodel
Liya Kebede.

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

2. TEXTILE
Example 2
Sabahar Plc.
 Makes a story of Ethiopian legend Queen of Sheba.
Produces pure organic silk products & silk blended with
Ethiopian cotton.
Uses long history of tradition Ethiopian weaving style.
Produces naturally dyed plant (e.g. uses Ethiopian
unique flower (Adye Abeba/meskel flower/
 Fulfilling social responsibilities.
Currently it is selling its products in more than 14
countries in the world.

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

3. Why Leather?
 Identified as priority sector in the GTP.
 Ethiopia is endowed with a huge cattle population.
 Has unique and high-quality (highland) sheep skin, which is an
uncommon in the rest of the world.
 Cheap labor and can easily be trained.

CON’T…

II. POTENTIAL “CHAMPION PRODUCTS”

CON’T…

3. LEATHER
Example 1

SoleRebels
 Ethiopian artisan heritages blended with modern
design tests.
Provides customer taste designs.

 Global consumer brand from Africa

sandals ‘Made in Ethiopia’ tagged products.

$60

 The CEO awarded as Social Entrepreneur of the Year(in 2012) at World Economic Forum.
 Pursues fair trade in fulfilling social responsibilities.

$65III. Lesson Learned
 Peculiarly characteristics of companies producing potential“Champion Products”:

 Produce demand-oriented (consumer based) products;
 Produce organic products;
 Ensure traceability of their products;
 Introduce Ethiopian Unique way of doing(e.g. artisan knowledge);
 Indicate Ethiopia as the source of the resource/product.
 Grant sustainability of product supply.

IV. Conclusion
Adopting ‘Champion Product’ as one of export promotion
strategies of Ethiopia can play indispensable role to:Enhance Ethiopia’s image; Help products to enter in the premium-market;
 Help narrow its trade deficit.

Thank You!