For too long Westerners have thought of Africa as “The Dark Continent”. Ethiopia and its capitol, Addis Ababa, remind us of Black Hawk Down, of drug lords and pirates.
Take the Hollywood spin away and you’ll find a new Africa and an Africa finding a new path away from it’s colonial past and tribal conflicts. It is a path laid with the sturdy fabric of bamboo.
The new millennium has given birth to new attitudes among Africans. Governments began to make themselves conduits between local farmers and experts in the growth of bamboo. The Ethiopian government also has reached out to Chinese and Indian with top flight skills in the use of bamboo for everything from flooring, rugs, furniture and housing to bamboo clothing, bamboo sheets and even food.
The coordination and support given by the government of Ethiopia is fast becoming a model for other countries in Africa. It could be an example for us in the USA as well.
The Eastern Africa Bamboo Project under national coordinator, Melaku Tadesse, has reportedly undertaken various tasks to generate foreign currency by developing the bamboo resource.
Though it is a federal program, the Project stresses the development of bamboo growth and production using micro and small-scale enterprise. This focus on developing the little farmers and manufacturer is a break from colonial models that dominated Africa’s past.
Handing over certificates to 50 farmers, trained in making modern furniture from bamboo plant, Tadesse said local and foreign demand for furniture made of bamboo plant has been steadily increasing.
Training has begun for 33 Ethiopian and 10 Kenyan trainees by veteran professionals from Latin America and Asia in the production of bamboo products in Addis. Bamboo products of the trainees are also being demonstrated at an exhibition, Tadesse added.
Provisions are being made for technical and material assistance to farmers so as to enable them benefit from the resource. The first success, a bamboo furniture manufacturing company being established in Assosa Town, helped to increase interest of farmers to participate in bamboo development.
One of the most promising products involves bicycle travel – still the chief means of travel for most Africans. Bamboo contains tensile strength greater than steel and makes excellent bicycle frames. That’s why Columbia University’s Earth Institute’s Bamboo Bike Project thinks introducing bicycles built out of African-grown bamboo could solve many of the region’s transportation problems.
Human creativity and government support married to one of the most versatile, hardy plants on Earth are painting a brighter future on Africa’s canvas.
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