Abstract
Ethiopia has one of the fastest growing economies in the world, and by 2025 Ethiopia aims to become the manufacturing hub of Africa. To maintain growth, the Ethiopian government heavily supports industrial development in different industry sectors. However, Ethiopia is still a developing, low-income country that has to overcome several barriers in order to attract foreign companies to become a middle-income country. Therefore, efficient intermodal transport is seen as one of the key contributors to facilitating export-led growth. This study seeks to map the current state of intermodal transport in Ethiopia by synthesizing a holistic picture of current challenges and to propose strategies for dealing with them. A moderated nominal group technique (NGT) exercise was applied among 38 experts from local manufacturing industries, domestic and international logistics services, academia, and associations as well as governmental and non-governmental institutions. Through the NGT process, the study condenses 19 challenges for intermodal transport in Ethiopia that are grouped into eight different clusters and assesses the importance of resolving those challenges in order to facilitate logistics performance. Moreover, strategies are proposed to improve the current state of intermodal transport and assessed according to their effectiveness and complexity. Consequently, recommendations and implications for four stakeholder groups are given: (1) governmental institutions; (2) non-governmental institutions; (3) foreign investors/manufacturers and local manufacturers; as well as (4) local and international logistics service providers.
Highlights
The development of intermodal freight transport systems can contribute to lower transportation costs and more sustainable logistics networks [1,2,3] and has been discussed by an increasing number of researchers [4]
Research often focuses on technology improvements and the contribution of intermodal transport to more sustainable transport solutions [5,6,7]; developing countries, for example, in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), first need to implement a more efficient logistics environment, e.g., through intermodal transport systems, in order to participate in global trade [8]
To contribute to the above-mentioned research objectives (RO), an nominal group technique (NGT) group exercise was performed among 38 logistics and supply chain management (LSCM) professionals from Ethiopian manufacturing industries, global and domestic logistics services, and academia, as well as governmental and non-governmental institutions
Summary
The development of intermodal freight transport systems can contribute to lower transportation costs and more sustainable logistics networks [1,2,3] and has been discussed by an increasing number of researchers [4]. The role of logistics performance on a national level in contributing to increased global trade and sustainable economic development is widely accepted but still needs to be strengthened by many developing countries [12] Acknowledging this circumstance, several SSA countries are aiming to facilitate more efficient intermodal transport, and some researchers have contributed with studies focusing on South Africa [13,14], and on low-income countries in East [15,16]. Sustainability 2021, 13, 2208 annual GDP growth rates in SSA (around 10%) over the past decade [19] This economic development is heavily supported by the government, which set itself the goal of becoming the manufacturing hub of Africa by 2025 and has defined several projects and strategies to promote intermodal transport and other logistics-related initiatives [20]. Implications for research and practice as well as research limitations are discussed
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