The African Development Bank has approved a loan of $234.5 million for the construction of roads in Ethiopia, which will link the country to South Sudan and Kenya. The loan has been procured by Ethiopia’s Ministry of Finance and Economic Development. The funds will be used to develop two roads in the country namely, Bedele-Metu highway and Hawassa-Ageremariam road.
The Bedele-Metu highway will be 112km long road, which will form part of a larger network designed to join Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa to Juba, the capitol of Sudan. The Hawassa-Ageremariam highway will be 197km long road, which will be a part of Addis Ababa-Nairobi-Mombassa road.
The total loan amount has two components. The $64 million loan is for the construction of Bedele-Metu, while $168 million will be used for a ascent and construction work on a Hawassa-Ageremariam project. The Addis Ababa-Nairobi-Mombassa Road will give Ethiopia an access to Port Mombassa that will assist the country to foray into the Southern African countries.