A Thesis Submitted to the School of Graduate Studies of St. Mary’s University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master’s of Business Administration (MBA)

Abstract

The manufacturing sector in Ethiopia operates at very low technological level well behind world technological standards even in the activities in which it specializes. Imports of licensed technology are negligible with no sign of increase. The world market for soaps and detergents is valued at $38 billion, the equivalent of 35 million tons of products. It is a highly concentrated business with 50 companies holding 90 percent of the market. Whereas the sector is not characterized by double digit growth rates, it continues to expand in both industrialized and developing nations at steady 1-3 percent annually. The contribution of industry, particularly manufacturing to the overall GDP of Ethiopia is one of the lowest in the world. The general objective of this research is to assess challenges on the growths of industrial manufacturing assessment specifically on the soap and detergent industries y applying descriptive analysis using frequency tables and bar charts to identify the major challenges of the industrial growth of Soap and Detergent industry in Ethiopia and The study found out that the foreign currency shortage, section dependency of imported raw materials, lack of reliable energy, inaccessibility of external finance and less environmentally friendly relations are the basic challenges of the soap and detergent industry in Ethiopia.