Regional Africa Leather and Footwear Industry Scheme
Project / Programme summary

1. Objectives
   The objective is to develop the agro-based indigenous, renewable raw material source - hides and skins - to a higher value added stage and increase the significance of the leather industry sector on the country and sub-regional level. To strengthen the national economies of the participating countries and increase the subregion's contribution to the world markets supply of leather and leather products.
2. Activities / contents
   Good results were obtained particularly in the rehabilitation of 30 tanneries and a number of 30 footwear manufacturing plants, as well as in the establishment of the Training and Production Centre for the Shoe Industry (TPCSI) at Thika, Kenya, which trained more than 500 operators and 17 effluent treatment plants.
3. Expected outcomes / impacts
   Significant impact is being achieved in pollution control in the tanning industry particularly in the elimination of effluent. Another impact is demonstrated in increased availability of locally produced finished leather of good quality and the upgraded quality of shoes produced in some companies supported by the Programme. A few companies managed to establish themselves in export markets in Europe and Japan.
   One of the unique features of the Programme has been the creation of a repayment fund known as the "Revolving Fund Operations" (RFO). This mechanism was developed to channel assistance to the private industry. It was agreed between the government authorities concerned, UNDP and the project management that such assistance can be provided if these companies pay the value of the machinery supplied by the project in local currency to a fund under the control of a suitable non-profit organization, such as a leather institute or tanners association, which will use these funds for further work in hides and skins improvement and/or similar activities in the interest of the country's leather and allied industries sector.
   Another significant feature of this Programme has been the establishment of leather and leather products associations. These have become a real focal point in Phase 2 of the Programme as they are the ones which administrate the RFO operations. The Eastern and Southern Africa Leather Industries Association (ESALIA) was established and registered in 1995. The objective is to promote the interests of the Regional Leather and Footwear Leather Products Industry in the countries of Eastern and Southern Africa.
4. Features in line with the Agenda for Action
   Regional cooperation, capacity building, environment management, gender mainstreaming.

Director, Agro-Industries Branch, Sectoral Support and Environmental Sustainability Division
United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO)
P.O. Box 300, A-1400 Vienna, Austria Tel: 0043-1-26026-3853 / Fax: 0043-1-26026-6849