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Ethiopia to Inaugurate 2 Industrial Parks

Ethiopia’s Industrial Parks Development Corporation (IPDC) disclosed it is set to inaugurate 2 new industrial parks. The industrial parks are built by Chinese companies. The industrial parks are Mekelle Industrial Park and Kombolcha Industrial Park that are being built by China Communications Construction Company (CCCC) and China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) respectively.

The 2 industrial parks are said to have a combined construction cost of 250 million USD. They are both expected house textile and apparel manufacturing industries.

By the end of the Second Growth and Transformation Period (GTP II), Ethiopia aims to generate 1 billion USD from textile and apparel sector. By the end of the same period the country intends that the sector will create job opportunities for 45 million people.

Commenting on the development, IPDC’s CEO, Sisay Gemechu, said "There are about 10 ongoing or completed industrial park projects with plans to inaugurate four other industrial parks by end of 2017".
Source: Xinhua

Djibouti Inaugurated New Port for Potash Export from Ethiopia

Djibouti inaugurated a new port intended mainly for exporting potash from another Horn of Africa nation, Ethiopia. The port is the second of 4 new ports that Djibouti has been constructing in the aim of bolstering its position as a continental hub.

The newly inaugurated port, built at an outlay of 90 million USD, is located in a small fishing town known as Todjourah in the northern part of the country. The port is near to Afar and Tigray states of Ethiopia, where a number of foreign companies are developing potash mines.

"Ultimately, 35 percent of the volume of goods destined for Ethiopia can be unloaded here," the Chairman of Ports and Free Trade Zones, Aboubaker Hadi, explained. "It is, therefore, a major port for the entire region."

A month back, Djibouti upgraded and inaugurated Doraleh multipurpose port. The port is part of a Chinese backed plan to establish Africa’s largest free trade zone that has the capacity to handle goods worth 7 billion USD per year.

According to Reuters, Doraleh’s bulk terminal can handle 2 million tons of cargo a year and offers space to store 100,000 tons of fertilizer and 100,000 tons of grain, plus warehouses for other goods.
In addition to these 2 ports, Djibouti will open a new port, designed for salt export, this month.
Source: Reuters

First ever Nile Basin Heads of State summit held in Entebbe, Uganda

The first ever Nile Basin Heads of State summit was held in Entebbe, Uganda today.
The summit was attended by Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi , South Sudan Vice President Joseph Wani, Burundi’s 2nd Vice President Joseph Butore and Sudan’s Vice President Hasabo Mohammed Abdul Rahman. Kenya, Rwanda, DR Congo and Tanzania were represented by different ministers.

Addressing the summit, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni said prosperity for Nile Basin countries is the best way to protect River Nile and other water systems in Africa.
Museveni also challenged other leaders present to work for the social transformation of their people as the ultimate guarantor of the Nile’s security.

“All Nile Valley countries should be assisted to develop and become first world countries. It is why we called this strategic conference,” he said.

Ethiopian Wins SKYTRAX World Airline Award for Best Airline in Africa

Africa’s largest airline group, Ethiopian Airlines, is pleased to announce that it has won SKYTRAX World Airline Award for The Best Airlines in Africa on June 20, 2017 at the Paris Air Show.

Skytrax is the most respected global air transport rating organization that conducts the world’s largest annual airline passenger satisfaction survey where customers make their own personal choices as to which airline they consider to be the best.

While receiving the award, Group CEO Ethiopian Airlines, Mr. Tewolde GebreMariam, remarked; “We are thrilled that Skytrax, the most reputed global airline rating organization, has honoured Ethiopian Airlines with The Best Airline in Africa award. I am very happy that Ethiopian has won the award as the Best Airline in Africa based on customer survey. This is a very strong testimony that in line with our vision 2025, our heavy investment in customer service, Human Resource Development, modern fleet, infrastructure and ICT has resulted in the desired customer delight which is expressed by the strong vote of confidence in the global survey. It will motivate us to continue to invest time, energy and money on the four pillars of our vision 2025 with sharp focus in customer service across the value chain.

I would like to thank Skytrax for this recognition and our valued customers for their strong vote of confidence. As always, we shall continue to work hard to exceed your expectations and provide you the best possible travel experience every time you fly with us. I wish to take this opportunity to congratulate my colleagues at Ethiopian for their exceptional commitment and hard work to keep our airline flying high in the skies. “

Ethiopian Airlines is a multi-award winning airline and has previously received SKYTRAX World Airline Award for Best Airline Staff in Africa, two times.