The Ethio-Djibouti Railway has generated seven billion Birr in revenue over the first 11 months of its first full year of operation under Ethiopian and Djiboutian nationals, according to Alemu Sime, minister of Transport and Logistics.
In an annual report of the fiscal year (ending July 7), the Minister stated that a total of 13.7 billion birr was generated by various transport and logistics organizations, with the Ethio-Djibouti Railway contributing half of that amount.
Civil aviation services brought in 3.5 billion Birr, followed by public transportation services (2.5 billion Birr), third-party insurance services (450 million Birr), according to Alemu.
Despite improvement, rail transport only accounts for 14 percent of cargo, with trucks moving 84 percent of cargo while air transport covers less than two percent.
The Minister noted that inbound goods dominated cargo transportation, accounting for close to 91 percent of all activity, almost all of which went through Djibouti’s ports.
The report noted improvements in port efficiency. The average port stay for high, medium, and low-volume vessels was recorded at 12.31 days. For containerized goods, the average stay was 6.93 days for multimodal transport and 27.07 days for unimodal transport—both showing reductions compared to the previous period.
The report noted progress on new airport towers and related infrastructure in Assosa, Bahir Dar, and Nekemte, while design studies for ffive regional airports—Yabelo, Negele Borena, Gore-Metu, Debre Markos, and Mizan-Aman—have been completed.
The report indicated that an expansion project at Modjo Dry Port is dragging due to a severe shortage of cement.
The Minister also cited imported construction material shortages, budget constraints, and other logistical issues as contributing factors. He assured lawmakers that the remaining work is expected to be completed within the next four months.
