Maha Zakaria, General Manager of Repro Graphics observed that remaining separate from the repercussions of Arab Spring, and the stable situation in Sudan has contributed to a large extent towards the growth of the printing sector, despite the challenges and difficulties faced by the country during last year.
In an interview to ME Printer, Maha explained that they were able to register positive growth. She said, “The positive growth rates in Sudan cannot be unseen. Many printing presses in the country have invested in the latest equipments and machinery, taking advantage of the positive results achieved over the past years.”
Maha sees the development as a result of globalization and the increase in demand for high quality printing. She said that customers are now focusing on high quality publication products, which have stimulated presses to develop tools that will help them to keep up with the trends.
Talking about the impact of Arab Spring, Maha said that it resulted in a positive way for Sudan. “In the past, Sudanese printing presses heavily relied on neighbouring countries like Egypt and Syria for fulfilling the printing needs. But unfavourable situation in these countries pushed the printing presses in Sudan to rely on its own potential and to locally meet the demands of the market.”
Speaking about the current challenges in the market, Maha said that the biggest one was the fluctuating exchange rate, especially dollar, which caused heavy losses to the industry.
She added, “There were other obstacles, such as the increase in government expenditure as well as sanctions imposed on the economy of Sudan, which we had to overcome.”
She added, “There is a growing demand for printing and packaging in Sudan. Some printing presses were seen importing consumables from abroad and re-manufacturing them in Sudan.”
Talking about the orders received last year, she said, “A large proportion of the printing orders were for advertising and promotional materials, followed by print jobs from government institutions such as the printing of textbooks.”
On the company’s future plans, Maha revealed that Repro Graphics has invested in a gluing machine for packaging materials, in order to develop packaging production lines in the company. She said, “We have invested in a gluing machine for packaging purpose and we are also in the process of developing our flexible packaging unit.”
