Environmentally friendly laundry in Addis Ababa The project partners have established an environmentally friendly laundry service for hospitality industry and other major users in Addis Ababa, and will produce 1,750 tons of clean laundry at the end of the project period. Traditionally, Ethiopian hotels are equipped with own in-house laundry facilities. The equipment used often simple, basic and sometimes outdated  generally is characterised by a high consumption of water and energy, while water is usually not filtered and simply sent into the sewer. Recently, increasing international activities and tourism has led to a strong growth of the hospitality sector. Under the influence of modern management hotels are looking for ways to outsource their laundry activities. But there is no commercial industrial laundry company in Addis.Kleentec B.V., the applicant, is active in (industrial) cleaning and disinfection operations. The local partner, Avis General Business Plc, is a service provider of car rental and travel packages for tourists. The partners will establish a joint venture.The project has established a large scale environmentally friendly laundry service in Addis Ababa, which was not available there. By using new laundry technology, the use of water is reduced by 75%. The chemical pollution of the environment is reduced by 50% by using modern detergents. Filtering and recycling of waste water substantially reduced the contamination of the sewer water.Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)The most important CSR issues in this project are related to labour conditions, health and safety, and the environment. They aim to acquire ISO certification which will anchor CSR in their activities.Impact•	Employment and working conditionsThe project pays good salaries, provides free lunch every day and training on new technologies and ISO/ HACCP.•	Innovation / Transfer of knowledgeIndustrial laundry is a new activity in Ethiopia. Currently, hotels use simple washing machines, employees work at bad conditions, they have low productivity, and their work is harmful for the environment. Even if Sheraton may have large and modern facilities, it is not providing these services to other hotels.•	Chain effectsThe main local supplier is the agent of the European detergents. Annual supplies will amount approximately to 50,000 euro in the first year growing to 100,000  euro at the end of the project period.Hotels, who are the clients, will be able to focus on their core business. In Western countries all larger hotels out-source their laundry services for this reason. Other advantages are: it is cheaper to out-source laundry, and linen will last about 25% longer because it is treated better (with less detergent).•	Impact on the sectorOnce the project has demonstrated the market, it is expected that other service providers will enter the market. Competition is favourable for the sector as it might contribute to improvement of reliability of the service and its quality. If there is more laundry capacity available in the market, it will be easier for larger hotels to out-source their activities: if one service provider does a bad job, they can easily shift to another provider.•	EnvironmentThe washing technology used shortens the washing times, and requires less water and detergents. Modern and environmentally friendly detergents will be used. Moreover, 70% of used water will be filtered and reused. Energy and water use will be much lower than with present technology. In addition, water can be disposed of cold, whereas hotels dispose their waste water warm and with detergents in it.•	Position of womenThe project will employ 57 women on a total of 66 employees.•	Impact on waterWater use is minimised, and through filtering and recycling water use and pollution are further reduced. To establish an environmentally friendly laundry service for hospitality industry and other major users in Addis Ababa that will produce 1,750 tons of clean laundry at the end of the project period.