A Giant Railway Company to be Formed at National level to Shelter All Railway Operators
A study conducted by the interest of the government indicated that, there is a need for a big railway company to run the sector at the national level. The company will be named as Ethio-Rail and will have a similar structure with Ethiopian Airlines Group.
The idea which was analyzed by Ministry of Transport, Ministry of Finance and other stakeholders will bring the Ethiopian Railways Corporation, Ethio-Djibouti Standard Gauge Railway S.C, the former Chemin de fer, Awash-Kombolcha & Hara Gebeya-Mekelle railway projects (which will be launched in the future) together. The company is expected to handle both passenger and freight services in an efficient and effective way.
“Only the decision of senior macroeconomics advisors is left to proceed the project.” ” said Ato Awol Wogris, state minister, Ministry of Transport.
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How Djibouti is Maximizing its Strategic Position in Maritime Trade
The high headline growth rate of Djibouti’s major trading partner, Ethiopia, will see the country reap a relatively higher return on investment on port expansion as demand for export and import soars. According to estimates by World Bank, 85 percent of Djibouti port throughput is either going to or coming from Ethiopia. From 2010 to 2019, Ethiopia’s real GDP growth has averaged 9.5 percent – one of the highest rates in the world – and it’s expected to have a knock-on effect to Djibouti’s economy.
To this effect, Djibouti has crafted an ambitious national strategy towards its socio-economic transformation, dubbed Vision Djibouti 2035, which aims to position the country as a global trade, logistics and industrial hub. This centers on ports and intermodal infrastructure development to increase the size of the hinterland served in East Africa and the Horn of Africa. The key component of this strategy includes development of a network of specialized ports: one for containers, one for dry-bulk cargo and another for liquid bulk.
Djibouti so far has two operational bulk ports, Tadjourah and Ghoubet, specialized in potash and salt respectively. Tadjourah Port can handle 2000 tons of potash per hour while Ghoubet port can handle 5 million tons of salt annually, sourced from the world’s largest salt deposit at Lake Assal in Djibouti.
Djibouti’s geographical position near world’s busiest shipping routes creates a strong imperative for China’s Belt and Road Economic Initiative, which explains colossal investments by China in Djibouti’s port facilities. This China-Djibouti nexus has created Africa’s largest free zone, the Djibouti International Free Trade zone (DIFTZ) and the world-class Port of Dolareh. However, there are a few bottlenecks that could hinder Djibouti ports transformation into a hub – key among them its smaller hinterland access due to an over-reliance on serving Ethiopia, and (as a result) its lower liner connectivity.
Read More at: https://www.maritime-executive.com/editorials/how-djibouti-is-maximizing-its-strategic-position-in-maritime-trade
Plans on the Construction of Railways in Ethiopia
Ministry of Transport planned to increase rail transport from its current 609 km to 4000 km in 10 years.
“Unlike previous experiences on the matter, only economically profitable projects will be approved for construction.” said Dagmawit Moges, Minister-Ministry of Transport
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Read More at: https://www.ethiopianreporter.com/article/20117
IGAD Issues Alert Over Ageing Tanker Abandoned in the Red Sea
The Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has expressed concern over the potential environmental disaster posed to the Red Sea by the FSO Safer, an aging oil tanker moored off the western coast of Yemen.
The oil vessel was abandoned off the Yemeni coast after the outbreak of Yemen’s civil war in early 2015 and has since been there without maintenance.
According to international experts, the Red Sea ecosystem will severely be affected if the rusting oil tanker, loaded with over a million barrels of crude oil, breaks up or explodes and catches fire.
A possible oil spill from the dilapidated tanker would occasion a massive environmental catastrophe in the Red Sea which more than 30 million livelihoods rely on.
Read More at: https://nation.africa/kenya/news/africa/igad-issues-alert-over-ageing-tanker-abandoned-in-the-red-sea-2719174?view=htmlamp
