Shocked by the escalating price of cement, authorities at the Ministry of Trade & Industry have begun to take a series of measures hoping to discipline the battered cement industry and supply chain. A quintal of cement sold for as high as 750 Br last week.

One of these measures will be legal action against individuals found hoarding cement and facilitating the redistribution of any cement that is confiscated from the hoarders, according to Melaku Alebel, minister of Trade. Officials from the Ministry are to be assigned to factories to monitor and oversee production and distribution.

The announcements come a week after the Construction Contractors Association put out a call of distress about the ever-climbing prices and decried chronic shortages of cement in the market. Leaders of the Association welcome these measures, together with the reopening of Messebo Cement Factory in Tigray Regional State, as positive steps toward steadying the market.

Messebo's resumption of production increases the amount of cement available in the market, but since the problem circled around distribution, the authorities should work more on regulating the supply chain, according to Girma Habtemariam, president of the Association.

Messebo restarted partial production on March 20, 2021, following a 130-day shutdown due to the interruption of electricity as a result of the war in the Regional State. The cement plant, which was established in 1997, is located on the outskirts of Meqelle, the regional capital. The plant did not incur significant damage during the conflict; however, after the conflict eased, most of its equipment was looted, lost or damaged.

"Cement production machinery hasn’t been damaged," Robel Legesse, communications manager at Messebo, confirmed to Fortune. "However, operational materials such as office equipment, spare parts, computers and vehicles have been damaged or lost."