Mojo-Meki-Batu Expressway Becomes Operational
The Mojo-Meki-Batu Expressway constructed with a cost of some 6.3 billion Birr has officially commenced operation today.
Officials from Ministry of Transport, Ethiopian Roads Authority and Ethiopian Payment Roads Enterprise attended the ceremony organized to officially announce operation of Mojo-Meki-Batu Expressway.
The Mojo-Meki-Batu expressway, which has 92-kilometer length and 32-meter width with five international standard tolling stations, is the third toll road next to Addis Ababa-Adama and Diredawa–Dewele Expressways.
The finance for the construction of the project has been covered by the government of Ethiopia and loan obtained from the Korea EXIM and Development Bank.
The Mojo-Meki-Batu expressway is part of the Addis Ababa-Adama-Moyale-Mombassa road corridor that connects four countries of African great toll road.
It is to be recalled that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed recently inaugurated the Mojo-Meki-Batu expressway.
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Ethiopia, Kenya Sign One Stop Border Post Operational Procedure Manual
Ethiopia and Kenya have signed Moyale-Moyale One Stop Border Post (OSBP) operational procedure manual in a ceremony held in Addis Ababa.
This follows the inauguration launch by the heads of both governments and the subsequent commencement of One Stop Border Post (OSBP) Operations on 8th June 2021.
The OSBP operational procedure manual was signed between Ethiopian Customs Commissioner Debele Kabeta and Kenyan Internal Security Secretary Wilson Njega.
The operation manual is meant to guide government officers of the border regulatory agencies to successful implement coordinated border management operations, it was learned.
It would also help improve border crossing efficiencies by making the border clearance process easier, faster and cheaper for traders, transporters and travelers without compromise to the border regulatory requirements.
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Mojo – Batu Expressway Tariff No Different from Other Tolls
Officials of the Ministry of Transport have approved a toll tariff for the Modjo-Batu Expressway. The approval comes after the Ethiopian Toll Roads Enterprise proposed the toll fees for the expressway two weeks ago, built at the cost of 78.8 million Br a kilometre.
Drivers will be charged 0.77 Br a kilometre, while heavy trucks are to pay 1.05 Br. It is similar to the fees charged by toll stations on the Addis Abeba-Adama Expressway, a flagship project launched seven years ago after being constructed for 11.2 billion Br (132 million Br a kilometre).
It will bring an economic benefit to all actors on the corridor, according to Matiwos Ensermu (PhD), professor of logistics and supply chain management at Addis Abeba University. It would also make logistical work for the factories at Hawassa Industrial Park more efficient.
“Time is one key factor in logistics,” said Matiwos.
Chinese Railway, one of the subsidiaries of the state-owned China Railway Engineering Corporation (CREC), constructed the first segment extending from Modjo to Meqi for 126 million dollars. This was financed by the African Development Bank (AfDB), while the second lot, connecting Meqi with Batu, was financed by the Export-Import Bank of Korea, which provided a 228 million dollars loan to be repaid in 40 years, with a 15-year grace period.
The third section, stretching 57Km from Ziway to Arsi Negele, received 370 million dollars from the World Bank Group in a concessional loan with a maturity period of 38 years and a grace period of six years. The last segment of 57Km from Arsi Negele to Hawassa is under construction by the Chinese Railway with 196 million dollars in financing secured from the Export-Import Bank of China.
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Seamless boarders: Ethiopia eyes more OSBP following success with Kenya
Ethiopia has expressed its keenness to see more One Stop Border Posts (OSBP) with neighboring countries soon, while Ethiopia and Kenya signed operational procedure manual to accelerate the activity of Moyale OSBP.
Debele Kabeta, Commissioner of the Ethiopian Customs Commission, said that Ethiopia has interest to expand OSBP that it established with Kenya this year.
“We are on the process to establish OSBP with Djibouti, which is the major outlet for Ethiopian cargos, on two directions via Galafi and Galafi” he said.
“Regarding Galafi, the two countries have reached an agreement and Trademark East Africa (TMEA), which provided technical support on the realization of Moyale OSBP from inception, is expected to handle the facilitation of the required process,” Debele added.
Ethiopia has also targeted to establish OSBP with Eritrea through Asab, “so far Ethiopia has prepared required customs precondition to form relationship with Eritrea and customs protocol and structure have developed and provided for Eritrean Foreign Ministry.”
“Similar relation with Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan is expected to be realized as per the government decision, while under the ten years plan the Customs Commission has set to make similar OSBP platforms shall be realized through the support of TMEA and other nongovernment organizations,” he added.
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DMP Expands Transshipment
Doraleh Multipurpose Port (DMP), the modern logistics facility of Djibouti becomes regional transshipment hub. The facility has received two vessels early last week on the transshipment modality.
According to a statement received from DMP CEO, Mr. Djama Ibrahim DARAR, it simultaneously welcomed two vessels. One of them is MV Figaro, a ship of Eukor, a global RoRo shipping company that specializes in port-to-port deep-sea transportation of automobiles, rolling equipment and breakbulk cargo, which unloaded 155 vehicles in transit to Ethiopia and the second vessel of MV PrimRose, a ship of the MOL line which loaded 601 vehicles in transshipment.
DMP has succeeded in strengthening its position as a key regional, industrial and logistic platform. Benefiting from a geographically strategic position on the Bab el Mandeb, this port allows to strengthen the international connectivity of Djibouti, and consequently to reinforce Djibouti’s competitiveness at the international level
Recently, DMP made available exclusive livestock terminal for Ethiopian animal exports facility with a capacity to handle 2.5 million heads of animal per annum.
DMP accommodates vessels with up to 100,000 DWT and boasts some of the most modern facilities in Africa.
The facility that cost millions of dollars in investment has a range of terminals that including bulk, break, container and RoRo, and it has 1,200 meters of quay line, accommodating 6 berths with a depth of 15.3 meter.
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AFREXIMBANK Approves 500 Mil USD in Support of Ethiopian Banks
African Export-Import Bank (AFREXIMBANK) has approved 500 million USD to support Ethiopian Banks in the form of credit.
AFREXIMBANK was established in Abuja, Nigeria in October, 1993 by African Governments, African private and institutional investors as well as non-African financial institutions and private investors for the purpose of financing, promoting and expanding intra-African and extra-African trade. Ethiopia is one of the founders and shareholders of the AFREXIM Bank. Innovation, capacity building, financial support and designing policy were stated among the major areas of cooperation between the bank and African governments, it was indicated.
Director and Global Head Client Relations at AFREXIMBANK, Rene Awambeng said that despite the global impact of COVID-19, Ethiopian Banks are in good shape. According to the Director, Ethiopia with a population of over 110 million people has ample market opportunities in the Horn Africa in the sector.
The bank will continue providing supports in the framework of pan-Africanism so as to transform the trade exchange among the African countries, he indicated.
Governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia, Yinager Dessie said for his part that the AFREXIMBANK established in a view to transform trades within Africa and creating trade ties globally.
Stating that plenty of African countries have been benefited from the AFREXIMBANK, however, he said that Ethiopia has not been benefited much despite being one of the founders of the bank.
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Africa Navigates the COVID Era’s Shipping Challenges
African shippers are currently experiencing a tragedy in liner services, with historic port bottlenecks now compounded by a surge in freight rates, making shipping operations difficult for many. This has a significant impact on African shippers. For instance, Nigeria – sub-Saharan Africa’s largest economy – has been unable to overcome persistent inefficiencies in port operations. As a result, exporters have lost about $218 million in perishables and other damaged products over the last one year due to gridlock at Apapa Port.
In an interview with The Guardian Nigeria, Shippers Association of Lagos President Jonathan Nicol said that some trucks took three months to access the filled-up terminals, as there was no space to drop export containers.
In Kenya, the manufacturing sector is most hit by the rise in sea freight rates, as costs of imported raw materials from international markets have soared.
On average, one-way China-to-Africa container prices were in the range of $2000-2500 last year, but they have doubled to $4000-5000.
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