New Ethiopia-Djibouti railway line begins service-Official

Copyright : APA

A new railyway line linking Ethiopia and Djibouti has begun carrying wheat from the Port of Djibouti to Adama town as of Friday 20 November.Additional wheat, which the government of Ethiopia had bought for people affected by the El Nino-driven drought, has reached Port Djibouti.

The Ethio-Djibouti railway project, linking Addis Ababa with the port of Djibouti, is being built in two sections in Ethiopia.

The first segment extends from Sebeta–Meiso, while the second is from Meiso to Dewele.

Some 93.5 percent of the project (both Sebeta–Meiso and Meiso-Dewele) has been completed, according to the Ethiopian Railways Corporation.

The Dewele-Negad section in Djibouti, which is also part of the railway route, has now achieved 91 percent completion status, including a 50 percent accomplishment of installation of power cable. Only five months are left for the railway line to go fully operational, it was noted.

However, the railway line will begin carrying the wheat procured to avert the drought from Port Djibouti beginning tomorrow.

The trains, capable of carrying 3,500 tons of wheat in one journey, will use diesel fuel as installation of power cable is not yet completed, it was noted.

Dr. Getachew Betru, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Ethiopian Railways Corporation, said the trains can carry all the wheat from the port within ten days.

According to the CEO, more than 1 million tons of food aid is arriving at the port of Djibouti and the trains will be used to transport it to Adama town.