Gibe III hydro-electric dam 79% complete
The Gibe III hydro-electric dam currently under-construction on the lower course of the Omo River is nearing completion, according to the project manager.
Engineer Azeb Asnake, project manager, told WIC that the dam, whose construction is 79 percent complete, could start generating power from three of the ten turbines next year in Ethiopian calendar.
Gibe III is expected to start generating power in full potential after two years. Remaining tasks, including the installation of turbines are expected to be completed ‘soon’, according to the project manager.
“We can almost say, the complex and difficult construction phases of the dam have been successfully accomplished,” Azeb told WIC adding that remaining tasks would be finalized as per the schedule.
The project manager said considerable technological and technical skills of knowledge transfer have been gained during the construction process. She believes this would enable the country to realize such big projects by itself in the near future.
Out of the total 7,000 individuals working on the project, nearly 90 percent are Ethiopians with foreign nationals engaged mainly as consultants.
Gibe III hydro-electric project will have a total generating capacity of 1,870MW, almost twice the current electric power generating capacity of the country, and an annual energy production of 6,500 GWh.
But Azeb says the plant has benefits beyond generating power. “There will be a huge lake for fishing activities which would benefit the local community.”
“The project will also improve the life of the people living down the river by avoiding recurrent flooding of the past,” she added. A 160km road network that included bridges has also been constructed in the area which was previously largely inaccessible. With a height of 243 meters, Gibe III is tallest Roller-Compacted Concrete (RCC) dam.
http://www.waltainfo.com/index.php/editors-pick/11313-gibe-iii-hydro-electric-dam-79-complete-
Addis-Adama expressway over 82% complete
The six-lane Addis-Adama expressway, which has been under construction for the past three years, is now more than 82 per cent complete, according to the Ethiopian Roads Authority.
Authority Communications Director, Samson Wondimu said the expressway will be finalized and opened for traffic this fiscal year.
In addition to its socio–economic benefits, the road, estimated to cost over 8 billion birr, will significantly contribute to reduce traffic jam and road accident, he said.
The new expressway can handle 19,000 up to 20, 000 vehicles daily comfortably, Samson said, adding the expressway could be upgraded to an eight-lane if the need arose.
Some 43 per cent of the project cost will be covered by the government of Ethiopian, while the balance is covered by a loan obtained from Exim Bank of China.
The Addis-Adama expressway, the first toll road in Ethiopia, has been under construction since 2010.
http://www.waltainfo.com/index.php/explore/11312-addis-adama-expressway-over-82-complete-
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Over $ 135 million obtained from manufacturing sector
The Ministry of Industry said more than 135 million US dollars was obtained from manufacturing sector in the first four months of this fiscal year.
Ministry Communications Corporate Directorate Director, Melaku Taye, told WIC that the stated sum was generated from the exports of textile and garment, leather and leather products, meat and dairy products as well as food, beverage and pharmaceutical products.
The revenue earned in the reported period exceeded from the same period last fiscal year by 26.9 per cent, Melaku said.
He indicated that the government is working hard to expand the manufacturing sector with a view to making the sector the main engine of the country’s economy.
As part of the efforts to attract more investors to the sector, the government has been building various industrial zones, he said citing the Bole Lemi industrial zone a case in point.
According to Melaku, the first phase construction of the Bole Lemi industrial zone built at a cost of 671 million birr has been completed. Upon going fully operational, the industrial zone would create jobs for more than 5,000 compatriots, he added.
Ethiopia has set a target to secure 1.3 billion US dollars in revenue from the sector in this budget year, it was learnt.
http://www.waltainfo.com/index.php/explore/11299-over–135-mln-obtained-from-manufacturing-sector-
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Nation gives priority to tackle public health emergencies
Ethiopia has given priority to tackle consequences of public health emergencies in setting up strong system, the Ministry of Health said.
While opening the 5th African Field Epidemiology Network (AFENET), the Minister Dr KeseteBirhan Admasu said the system is being strengthened by training and deployment of health workers specialized in specific areas.
The Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP), started in 2009 has brought about a significant change in surveillance, responding to outbreaks, analysis and interpretation of data in the country.
The country has also implementing One Health practice which is focused on building inter-disciplinary bridges across human, animal and environmental health to tackle public health emergencies.
Ethiopian Health and Nutrition Research Institute Director-General Dr Amiha Kebede on his part said Ethiopia has developed and implemented appropriate policies and strategies to tackle health emergencies.
Training personnel that undertake surveillance, outbreak investigation and emergency management is one of the results of the interventions of the government.
According to ENA, the program, FETP, helped the country to strengthen its disease surveillance and response system and retain highly skilled professionals of epidemiology into the system. The 5th AFENET conference is being held here under the theme: “Addressing Public Health Priorities in Africa through FELTPs”.
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A NON-PULSATING ECONOMIC MOMENT
Trade competitiveness is one facet that Ethiopian policymakers have failed to bring significant change to, despite their profound desire. The complex linkage between the economic factors that affect competitiveness – from access to finance to logistic integration – made the task of streamlining change all the more difficult. As change stays elusive, a mixed feeling of eagerness and hopelessness seems to sweep through the administration, as could be seen from the body language of Debretsion Gebremichael, centre, deputy prime minister for the economic cluster and minister of Communications & Information Technology (MoCIT). If there is one sector that continues to feel the heat of the high cost of transactions and prolonged logistics, and hence poor competitiveness, it is the pulses, oilseeds and spices sector. No doubt that Debretsion and his colleague, Kebede Chane, left, the minister of Trade (MoT), rightly understand this problem. Their presence at the third International Conference on Pulses, Oilseeds & Spices, held last week at the United Nations Conference Centre, clearly displays this. Both seem keen to see a push in exports in the sector, in order to meet the ambitious export target of the government. Much is expected from financial moguls, such as Bekalu Zeleke, right, president of the largest bank in the nation, the Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE), in terms of facilitating enhanced trade financing. As the demand for the commodities increases in the global market, much of their future performance is dependent on what suppliers, like Ethiopia, do to boost their supply.
[PLEASE SEE THE FULL FEATURE STORY ON FEATURE PAGE]
http://addisfortune.net/articles/a-non-pulsating-economic-moment-2/
OnPoint Agreement Signed by GE and Ethiopian Airlines
Ethiopian Airlines signed a 10-year “OnPoint” maintenance agreement with GE Aviation for its GE90 engines. Under the agreement, GE (Pavilion A9) will maintain GE90 engines on 16 Ethiopian Boeing 777s. OnPoint agreements are customized service agreements tailored to the operational and financial needs of airline customers, GE said. The agreements are designed to help lower customers’ cost of ownership and maximize their use of assets.
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China’s CNR to produce Ethiopia train coaches
Changchun Railway Vehicles Co. Ltd. of CNR has signed contracts with Ethiopian authorities to produce 30 25G coaches, including 20 hard-seat, four hard-sleeper, four soft-sleeper and two dinning carriages with a designed speed of 120 km per hour, according to the company.
The coaches will run on the Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway, which was built in 1917 by France and is the only trunk railway line in Ethiopia. The east African country relies on the Djibouti port to trade goods.
The Ethiopian government is building new railway lines to replace the 96-year-old railway, which is outdated and has been suspended from operation.
Ethiopia plans to expand its length of railway to 2,600 km by 2015, which poses great market prospects.
The airline can now perform line and heavy maintenance on Q400 and Q400* NextGen* turboprop aircraft under the Bombardier ASF banner.
Ethiopian Airlines operates a fleet of modern aircraft, and performs complete aircraft, as well as engine and component overhaul and repair services from facilities at Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa. The facility employs an all-Ethiopian workforce of over 750 licensed technicians and support staff.
“Ethiopian Airlines is one of Africa’s most respected airlines and a valued Bombardier customer. Their commitment to excellence both in operations and maintenance services will benefit our operator base in the region and beyond, as a part of our network,” said Éric Martel, President, Customer Services and Specialized and Amphibious Aircraft, Bombardier Aerospace. “Through sustained investment and focus, we continue to expand our support services in Africa and are looking forward to this new chapter of our relationship with Ethiopian.”
“Ethiopian Airlines’ NextGen turboprops are proving their high value by delivering excellent passenger experience, operational flexibility and economics — confirming that they are excellent aircraft for operations in Africa,” said Tewolde Gebremariam, Chief Executive Officer, Ethiopian Airlines. “As a newly appointed Authorized Service Facility for Q400 and Q400* NextGen* aircraft, we welcome the opportunity to expand our relationship with Bombardier, and to provide maintenance services to other carriers as an increasing number of these modern turboprops take to the skies in our geographically diverse continent.”
Established in 1945, award-winning Ethiopian Airlines is the flagship carrier of Ethiopia. In 2012, the airline received one of Bombardier’s top honours – an Airline Reliability Performance Award – for outstanding dispatch reliability on its Q400 aircraft fleet. Last September, the airline became the first to take delivery of the NextGen version of the Q400 turboprop airliners outfitted with a dual-class configuration on Bombardier’s production line. These five dual-class aircraft are currently in service with the airline and its affiliate, ASKY Airlines of Togo. In total, the carriers operate a fleet of 13 Q400 NextGen airliners as well as the first full-flight simulator for Q400 turboprops installed in Africa. Ethiopian also recently announced a new strategic partnership with Malawian Airlines that will see the upstart airline leverage Ethiopian-sourced aircraft, including the NextGen turboprop.
This announcement follows earlier news that Bombardier established a full service Regional Support Office and Parts Depot in Johannesburg, South Africa. The additions are the latest in Bombardier’s accelerated service and support deployment throughout Africa. In 2012, Bombardier appointed its first commercial aircraft ASF on the continent, as well as another serving business aircraft operators.
More than 240 Bombardier business and commercial aircraft are based in Africa. Ethiopian Airlines will join a network of more than 60 ASF and Line Maintenance Facilities (LMF) that serve operators of Bombardier business and commercial aircraft spanning across more than 25 countries worldwide. The new Ethiopian Airlines ASF will work in close collaboration with Bombardier’s maintenance network of wholly-owned service centres and ASFs in the same time zone, as well as its network of parts hubs and depots, including the newly announced Johannesburg parts depot, which will be operational 24/7.
State Earned over 192.3M Birr ($8.5 million) from Tourism during Q1
Amhara State has earned over 192.3 million birr revenue from tourism during the first quarter of the current fiscal year, Ethiopian News Agency reported citing the state culture, tourism and parks bureau.
Simeneh Anteneh, public relation expert with the bureau, told Ethiopian News Agency that the state earned the revenue from 1.3 million tourists who visited tourist attractions in the state.
The revenue and number of tourists has increased by 12.2 million birr and 179,000, respectively compared to the same period in the previous year, he said.
The State earned over 933.6 million birr revenue from 6.6 million tourists who visited the sites during the 2005 Ethiopian Fiscal Year.
Tourists attractions visited include, the Blue Nile fountain, Semien Mountains National Park, Lake Tana and its monasteries, Fasil Ghibi as well as the rock-hewn churches of Lalibela, among others.
Ethiopia – Time to Discover It for Yourself
The first record I ever owned was ‘Do they know it’s Christmas?’. I clearly remember the pictures of the starving African children on the cover, contrasting with the happy Victorian festive scene. It was too much to comprehend back then as a small child myself, but I knew it made me sad. Many people feel sad when they think of Ethiopia; they think of the news reports, the aid work, the conflict – but they generally think of Ethiopia as it was in 1984 when Geldof and Ure amplified the world’s attention to its plight.
This year marks 30 years since the start of the famine that lead to that song, and then Live Aid, and I’ve just got back from seeing the country for myself, discovering how it’s changing. With three old friends from university, we spent a weekend in Addis Ababa where we impressed the locals with our dancing skills, first honed at the Birmingham Student Union 18 years before. We then took the short flight north to the highlands, where we undertook a 100km hike, which included the 4,300m peak of Abuna Yosef; the country’s second highest mountain.
The days were filled with challenging walking as our legs and lungs searched for the energy and oxygen to keep ascending but they were also filled with the most breathtaking scenery I have ever seen – the landscape was vast, it seemed to go on forever. At dusk the sky would melt into a golden pool that would illuminate the industry in every corner of the land. As we had arrived just as the rains stopped, farmers were in their fields in numbers, gathering their crops and driving their livestock to market. Every impossible inch that could be cultivated was being worked by hand.
From one peak we spotted a group of around 500 of the endemic gelada baboons and from another, bearded vultures enjoying the full soaring powers of a 9ft wingspan. It seemed the perfect vantage point from which to reflect on how our own species had first evolved in these valleys.
As we passed through and stayed in tiny settlements, eating the local enjera bread, coffee and honey, people would come and sit with us and proudly discuss the new school being built and their hopes for the next generation. (Invariably, they also wanted to know if we preferred Arsenal or Manchester United…) By night, we’d talk about university days and where life had taken us all since then. People and places all grow up.
The heavy NGO and charity presence in Ethiopia (including the significant investment being made by the British government) reflects the work that is still needed and it has not been without its recent conflicts, but the country is now a hub in the region for business and is the permanent home of the African Union.
The trek finished at Lalibella – home to 11 UNESCO-protected monolithic rock-hewn churches, dating from the 12th and 13th Centuries. When you stand inside one, you get dizzy with the scale of the achievement. You try to imagine how they went about carving them, but it’s impossible – it’s too much to comprehend. But, just as with your reaction to the people you meet, you feel in awe.
Ethiopia has a history of confusing me, but at least my emotional attachment to this place is now more reflective of where the country is today, and where it is going.
http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/adam-stones/ethiopia-travel_b_4291166.html
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