Ethiopia, Djibouti Chamber Officials Hold Talks

President of the International Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Djibouti, Sadid Omar Mussa held talks with members of the Addis Abeba Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral Association (AACCSA) last week. The discussion was on warehouse fees and other related services for the transit and import of items at the Port of Djibouti. The president expressed his organization's keenness to work with Ethiopian businesspeople based on mutual interest. His organization provides port services including warehouse and cargo loading and unloading to Ethiopia. Sadid Omar Mussa also had discussions with officials at the Ministry of Trade and Industry and the Ethiopian Shipping Lines.

Company Earns 24.4 m Br from Textile, Thread Products

The Kombolcha Textile Factory in the Amhara National Regional State has reportedly earned over 24.4 million Br revenues over the past three months from the sale of textile and thread. The products were supplied to the local and international markets. Over 4.9 million Br of the total revenue was secured from products supplied to the overseas market while more than 19 million Br was obtained from products consumed locally. The income obtained by the reported period was greater than the initial target and that of the previous year by 1.6 million Br and 3.3 million Br, respectively.

Investment Projects Worth 292m Br Launched

About 126 investors licensed with over 292 million Br registered capital have been engaged in various investment activities in the East Shewa Zone of the Oromia Regional State. The areas of investment that the investors are engaged in include manufacturing, agriculture, hotels and tourism among others. The investment project being carried out in 11 weredas of the zone are expected to create about 4,731 job opportunities.                                                          

Bench Maji Supplied 1,773tn of Coffee to Central Market

The Bench Maji Zone of the Southern Nations, Nationalities and People’s Region State brought close to 1,773tn of coffee to the national market over the past three months. The stated amount of coffee supplied exceeds the previous year by 50pc, according to a zone official who added that the zone, which is one of the various coffee growing regions in Ethiopia, planned to supply over 15,000tn of coffee this fiscal year.

Molalle-Seladingai Road Inaugurated

The construction of the Molalle-Seladingai Road was inaugurated recently in the North Shewa Zone of the Amhara National Regional State at a cost of 140 million Br. The construction of the roads is helping local farmers pring their produce to markets, according to the wereda's information head. The regional state's rural roads authority has plans to further construct a 35km gravel road to link the new asphalt with other rural roads. The roads also contribute to further interlink other rural roads in the area.

ERA Constructs, Renovates 286Km Road

The Ethiopian Roads Authority (ERA) has carried out the upgrading and construction of a 270Km road at a cost of 1.4 billion Br over the past three months, it said. It has also undertaken seasonal and regular maintenances. The Authority has plans to construct and renovate roads at a cost of 12.4 billion Br this Ethiopian fiscal year.

Ethiopia to Develop Biofuels to Cut Oil Imports

Ethiopia wants to emulate Brazil by developing biofuels to cut its dependence on oil imports that cost the nation more than a billion dollars a year, the government official at the Ministry of Mines and Energy said. Ethiopia was developing biofuel crops on more than half a million hectares of arid land, he continued. Castor oil plants, jatropha and palm oil plants are being developed on over 500,000ht of arid and barren lands in the country to reduce Ethiopia's dependence on imported oil, elaborated the official.

Authority Executing Traffic Complex Development Project

The Amhara Regional State Road Authority has launched a 45 million Br road traffic project to ensure road safety in the region, it said. The project aims at minimizing traffic accidents by applying various measures and controlling the use of forged driving licences. The project also aims to offer 'awareness raising training' for vehicle drivers across the state.