Ethiopia Becomes China’s China in Global Search for Cheap Labor

Chinese factories are outsourcing work to Ethiopia as costs become too high in China and the Ethiopian government encourages foreign investment. Costs may be cheaper, but factory owners and workers have other problems to deal with, mainly transportation costs and language barriers.

These roadblocks are not stopping people like Zhang Huarong, president of Dongguan Huajian Shoes Industry Co., from relocating to Ethiopia. In fact, in the coming years, China is expected to lose 80 million factory worker jobs and African counties are likely to gain them. Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn is vying for Ethiopia to be a "manufacturing powerhouse."