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Ethiopia: Railway to Djibouti to Go Operational in 2016

The railway which links Ethiopia’s capital with Djibouti is going to be open on early 2016, Head of Ethiopian Railways Corporation, Getachew Betru, disclosed.

The 700 Kilometers is a project is at the center of plans to set up new manufacturing industries, it is being built at an outlay of USD 4 Billion and the contractors are China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC) and China Civil Engineering Construction (CCECC).

Getachew explained by October 2015 most of the Addis Ababa – Djibouti project is going to be finalized and soon after that there will be trains running over it. "We will start early 2016," he furthered.

Ethiopia is also conducting two other railway projects that are part of the big infrastructure investments which includes constructions of new roads and dams that are meant for hydro-power electric power production.

Railway that connects the Afar State with Djibouti is also among the new national railway lines. Ethiopia is encouraging investors to engage in the mining of potash in Afar for fertilizer. Among other companies, the Canadian Allana Potash Corp is already developing mines in the State.

Ethiopia is doing this in the aim of keeping its economy growing by eight percent or more, which it already is achieving, in order to attract investors with efficient transport, plentiful labour and cheap power.

Another new railway, a light railway, which costed USD 475 Million is expected to start services. Upon commencing service it is going to be the first city metro to operate in Sub-Sharan Africa.

Currently transporting goods from Djibouti to Ethiopia’s capital take days because of logistical difficulties such as poor roads and an old fleet of trucks. However, the new railway line is expected to take the journey time to eight hours.

Getachew praised it as “the game changer” and added, “It will be one of the most vibrant economic corridors in the world."

Source: Reuters