Technology choice and economic efficiency in the production of cotton textiles : an Ethiopian case study

Abstract

Central to the issue of industrialization in developing countries is the relationship between technology and economic efficiency. In this paper, this relationship is specifically defined and discussed for the production of gray cotton cloth in terms of machinery characteristics - namely price, capacity specifications, and manning skills, energy and floor space requirements. The technology alternatives at each of the 11 stages of production are explored; and the case of a technology adopted for an integrated textile mill in Ethiopia is compared with the most labor intensive, the most capital intensive, the least cost and the 'second best' options. It is shown that the Ethiopian choice was poorly determined both in terms of technology and scale specification

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