Ethiopia: USAID Fuels Ethiopian Bamboo Sector With U.S.$1.75 Million Grant
USAID awarded a total grant of 1.75 million dollars to African Bamboo Plc on Friday, January 31, 2014, at the latter's headquarters, in the Vatican area of Mekanisa road. One million dollars of the grant is for developing and testing a heating process to make industrial and commercial quality bamboo using biofuels from organic waste, such as coffee husks and residue from processing the bamboo. The second grant of 750,ooo dollars is said to help the Company prepare feasibility studies and market analyses to attract investment capital and to meet requirements for exports to the United States and the European Union. African bamboo is one out of a total 475 organisations that applied for the award, which targets supporting innovative projects and integrating clean energy technology into the agriculture sectors of developing countries to improve production. The Company wants to engage more aggressively in its innovative work in renewable energy and agro-forestry processing now