Selamat Dehaiers:
The political discussions in Dehai have fortunately slowed down which gives me
a chance to write the following posting. Hopefully it will lead us to an
interesting discussions and exchange of ideas. The subject is, are we on the
right path in achieving technological superiority in our region?
Let me start with the technological progress that took place in Eritrea in the
last few years. After liberation every body was hoping that wealthy Eritreans
will invest in Eritrea so that wide industrial long-term activities could be
established and Eritrea once again can take a lead position in the region. We
all have seen how far the truth was. The role of Eritrean privet investors in
participating on long term industrial activities was limited and only directed
to import/export, tourism and construction. High-tech industries that would
support the export activity of the country are simply not there. As far as I
know, the only company with high tech profile capable of producing
internationally respected quality product is the Fred Hallows foundation. No
need to explain how this foundation was formed. This situation clarifies that
there is not adequate internal financial capacity nor the technical know-how
that could be used to activate the long-term industrial development in
Eritrea. What is then the solution for this dilemma? Does, as our government
advocates, investing in human resources only be the solution? Will the
privatization and free economy only get Eritrea to the desired level, or we
should try some thing else?
I believe that education is one of the key factors. But investing in education
without having adequate employment opportunity forces the educated people to
leave the country and makes Eritrea a supplier of knowledge to other
countries. Besides if there is no demand for technical skilled people then you
will have the situation that every body would want to study language or be an
accountant (BTW nothing wrong with those studies). So, some how the high-tech
industries should be established to boost the export capability and to make
the associated education attractive. The problem is if you do not have
educated people you can’t establish or manage high tech industries. You need
to have educated people. So we are back to the basic problem again. This
problem can prevent us from prospering for decades and may be centuries if we
do not take dramatic measures .
I think the role of the government is above all other aspects crucial to our
industrial development. If the government lets the privet sector decide
what our future will be then, the least to say, it will take decades before we
see any measure industrial activities. Because, every attempt made to
establish an industry will face the shortage of at least one of the key
aspects (profession or money). In my opinion to solve this problem the
government should play active role in making Eritrea industrialized country.
These are areas where I see a role for the government:
- Establishing government owned industries:
Establish industries with the help of well experienced foreign professionals.
The country should invest in hiring foreigners that are capable of
establishing and running the desired industries. The Fred Hollow foundation
and the investor from Israel are an example of how few professionals could
make a big difference for a country like Eritrea. The aim of the government
should of course be to gradually replace the foreigners by nationals and to
transfer the ownership to the private sector by selling stocks. Another known
example is countries like Libya and Iraq that have hired western companies en
professionals to set up their sophisticated industries for weapons and
chemicals.
- Investing internationally:
The government can invest (directly or indirectly) in foreign companies for
two reasons. To earn money (import of hard currency) and to import knowledge
by reaching an agreement with the companies to partially produce goods in
Eritrea. Simple example is: you become a 25% share holder of Fiat automobile
and in return you ask for a spare part production plant to be in Eritrea.
Or instead of trying to setup your own Airlines, which is a risky business,
invest in successful airlines and make money.
To summarize my point, I believe the only way to develop technology in Eritrea
is by full participation of the government and by investing in foreign
professionals to get us through the threshold. This means that government
should not only provide attractive investment codes and infrastructure but
also play an active role to be a catalyst for the industry. Because, the
privet sector in Eritrea is a way behind to deal with the speed at which we
want to progress.
Mulugheta Abraha
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