Genet Gemchu, who is in her early '30s, did not find raising her youngest child as easy as her experience raising her four-year-old.

Genet, who has worked at East Africa Pharmaceuticals Plc since 2014 and lives in the Goro area, finds diapers to be one of the major expenses of her family.

Genet changes her 10-month-old baby's diapers four times a day. She buys diapers every other week, spending 840 Br a month at a pharmacy in her neighbourhood.

While buying diapers, Genet, who got married six years ago, considers its absorbency and softness.

"Since baby skin is sensitive," said Genet. "I have to be very careful when I buy diapers."

Though baby diapers were invented in the 1930s, the product has continuously improved. Today’s disposable diaper is light, compact, very absorbent, resistant to leaks and easy to use. In Ethiopia, too, the trend of using mass-produced diapers for babies is becoming common.

However, the percentage of diaper users stands at only five percent in Ethiopia, while in Kenya, diaper users are more than 70pc of the population.

Different types of diapers manufactured around the globe include cloth diapers, disposable diapers, training nappies, swim pants and biodegradable diapers.

The value of the baby diaper market is estimated to be worth approximately 70.4 billion dollars worldwide by 2024. This is an increase of over 20 billion dollars over the eight-year forecast period. Disposable baby diapers lead the diaper market, holding around 65pc of market share. North America and Europe together account for more than 50pc of global baby diaper production.

Previously, many local families have been using imported diapers, but these days they are starting to use locally-produced items. In 2017 Ethiopia imported 4.9 million kilograms of diapers from China, Turkey and Egypt.

Kedeme Gebere, a father of four kids and an employee of the African Union who lives in Gerjji, is one of them. He recently shifted to locally-produced products.

He uses Canbebe diapers for his newborn baby. Three of his older children used Pampers until they were two and a half years old.

Kedeme buys a pack of Canbebe diapers containing 44 pieces for 306 Br, which lasts him up to ten days, from All-Mart Supermarket located in his neighbourhood.

Manufactured by ONTEX Hygienic Disposables Plc, Canbebe has been distributed in Ethiopia since 2010. But the company started production locally in 2017 at a plant located at Hawassa Industrial Park in which it invested a quarter of a billion Br.

The Turkish company manufactures the product in partnership with an Ethiopian firm, Tracon Trading Plc.

ONTEX supplies 40pc of its product to the local market while exporting 60pc to the East African market and sub-Saharan countries that are members of the Common Market for Eastern & Southern Africa (COMESA).

The company's products are produced under five categories using different raw materials, according to Feven Gutu, trade marketing specialist at Ontex Global.

Leakage protection baby diapers, which prevent leaks around the waist and the legs; stay dry  baby diapers designed to offer up to 12 hours of wetness protection; soft baby diapers for babies with sensitive skin; thin and flexible diapers for babies who are active and love to move around; and perfect fit diapers that focus on comfort are the types of products produced by Canbebe.