Preparation of Environmental & Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) of MODJO LEATHER CITY Project 133 views4 applications

UNITED NATIONS INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT ORGANIZATION TERMS OF REFERENCE FOR CCONSULTANCY FIRM FOR THE PREPARATION  OF ENVIRONMENTAL & SOCIAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (ESIA) OF MODJO LEATHER CITY Project

SAP 160086

1. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

1.1. Partner country and promoter

The promoter is the Ministry of Industry (MOI) of the Federal Republic of Ethiopia.

1.2. Relevant Country and Sector Background

1.2.1. Country Background:

Ethiopia’s location gives it strategic dominance as a jumping off point in the Horn of Africa, close to the Middle East and its markets. Ethiopia is landlocked, bordering Eritrea, Somalia, Kenya, South Sudan, and Sudan, and has been using neighboring Djibouti’s main port for the last two decades. However, with the recent peace agreement with Eritrea, Ethiopia is set to resume accessing the Eritrean ports of Assab and Massawa for its international trade.

With more than 112 million people (2019), Ethiopia is the second most populous nation in Africa after Nigeria, and the fastest growing economy in the region. However, it is also one of the lowest per capita income of about $850. Ethiopia aims to reach lower-middle-income status by 2025. Ethiopia’s economy experienced strong, broad-based growth averaging 9.4% a year from 2010/11 to 2019/20, Ethiopia’s real gross domestic product (GDP) growth slowed down to 6.1% in 2019/20 due to COVID-19 (corona virus pandemic). Industry, mainly construction, and services accounted for most of the growth.The consistent higher economic growth brought with it positive trends in poverty reduction in both urban and rural areas. The share of the population living below the national poverty line decreased from 30% in 2011 to 24% in 2016. The government has launched a new 10-year perspective plan which will run from 2020/21 to 2029/30. The plan aims to sustain the remarkable economic growth achieved under the Growth and Transformation Plans, while putting more emphasis on the private sector. In doing so, through ten years perspective plan, transforming the leather to have great contribution to the export market would be model through implementing sustainable leather clusters.

1.2.2. Sector Background

The leather sector is one of the industrial sub-sectors accorded high priority by the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, based on its vast potential for development taking into consideration (a) its backward linkage with animal farming in view of the large population of livestock as well as sheep and goats in the country, which supplies hides and skins as inputs, (b) forward linkage with the footwear as well as other leather product, (c) employment creation, (d) and export revenue generation. The tanning industry has the characteristic of disposing of solid, liquid, gaseous waste and sludge into the environment. Hence, the waste management of the tanneries is a major environmental concern. MLIP (Modjo Leather City Industrial Park) provides an opportunity to set up an environmentally friendly leather tanning cluster based on agglomeration of tanneries and other businesses located in Modjo town, plus other entities that will be relocated from Addis Ababa region. The objective is to prioritize the provision of a CETP (Common Effluent treatment Plant) 5 to reduce the environmental impact of leather processing. It will be recalled that an Environmental and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA) was conducted in 2016. However, according to the Ethiopian Environmental law, the ESIA document is valid only for two years starting from the date of approval by the relevant Environmental office. Thus, at present the document is needs to be revised since it can no longer be used as it does not reflect the current situation. Consequently, a new ESIA Document needs to be prepared in line with Ethiopian standards.