Gibe II Resumes Operation

The Gilgel Gibe II hydroelectric power station resumed service following maintenance work after it suspended operations for 11 months, according to the Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation (EEPCo). The resumption of the power station will alleviate the shortage of power supply in the country, according to Miskir Negash, head of public relations with the corporation. Gibe II has the capacity to produce 420MW of electricity, he said.

Gov’t Completes Koga Dam

The construction of the main dam for the Koga Irrigation and Watershed Management Project has been completed, according to the Ministry of Water and Energy (MoWE). The 21-metre high and 1.73km long dam has the capacity to hold 83.1 million cubic metres of water, according to Bizuneh Tolcha, director of public relations and communications for the ministry. A total of 78.4pc of the implementation of the Koga irrigation and watershed management project has been completed to date, he said. The project, which is expected to be finalised by the end of this fiscal year, is estimated to cost 600 million Br and benefit 67,750 farmers.

Awi Puts 7.8m Br into Safe Water

The construction of safe water projects at a cost of 7.8 million Br is underway in Dangela Wereda of Awi Zone, Amhara Regional State, according to the wereda water resources development office. The projects are underway in 27 rural localities and will have the capacity to render service to over 22,000 people, according to Demelash Chanyalew, coordinator of the water supply work process. The projects are expected to raise the wereda’s safe water coverage from 70.2pc to 80pc.

Gujji Opens Cattle Marketing Centre

A livestock marketing centre that was constructed at a cost of 1.5 million Br in Wadera Wereda of Gujji Zone, Oromia Regional State, has gone operational, according to the wereda administration. The centre has the capacity to hold over 2,500 animals at a time and boasts a vaccination centre, drug store, and veterinary health services, according to Birbirsa Bulala, wereda chief. The cost for the centre’s construction was fully covered by the state government, he said. Half a million domestic animals are estimated to live in the wereda.

Meat, Animals Secure $90m

The country secured over 90 million dollars from the export of live animals and meat over the past five months, according to the Ethiopian Meat and Dairy Technology Institute (EMDTI) under the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA). The stated amount was secured from the export of 207,943 live animals and 6,503 metric tonnes of meat, according to Gidey G. Medhin, director general of the institute. The country obtained 120 million dollars from live animals and meat during the previous year, he said.

North Gonder to Educate 24,300 Adults

Preparations are nearing completion to enable 24,300 adults to attend basic alternative education programmes as of next month in North Gonder Zone, Amhara Regional State, according to the zonal education department. The programme will be carried out by 244 facilitators in 24 rural and urban weredas of the zone, according to the department. Around 15,500 adults benefited from a similar programme that was carried out in 163 centres last year.

Model MSEs Get Loans of 2.9m Br

The Micro and Small Scale Enterprises (MSE)Development Agency of the Addis Abeba City Administration loaned 2.9 million Br to 23 model enterprises during the first quarter, according to Getachew Tadesse, deputy director of the agency. It also created 159 enterprises in addition to the training it offered over 200 enterprises and the 1,700sqm of land it provided to 21 enterprises with 100 members, Getachew said. The agency also plans to provide over half a million Birr in loans to the enterprises in collaboration with the Addis Abeba Credit and Savings Co, he said.

Investors Put 20m Br into North Wollo

Investors worth over 20 million Br in combined capital have been engaged in the agriculture sector in Raya Qobo Wereda in North Wollo Zone, Amhara Regional State, according to the wereda Trade and Industry Office. The investors have been engaged in crops and fruit and vegetable development as well as animal fattening on 350ht since the previous fiscal year, said Abdu Mengesha, trade and investment expert of the office. The projects have created many jobs for people in the wereda, he said. An additional 1,800ht of land has been allotted for agriculture.

Embassy to Inaugurate Chancery, Residence

The Ethiopian Embassy in Khartoum, Sudan is going to inaugurate a complex built with an outlay of over 80 million Br. The Ethiopian Government decided to create an asset in Sudan by constructing a chancery and embassy residence building, according to Ali Abdo, Ethiopia's ambassador to Sudan. The complex will also undergo a facelift.