Saudi Fund, Bank of Arab to finance Ethio-Sudan corridor

By Tamiru Geda

 An asphalted and standardized road between Azezo and Metema connecting the north western part of the country to neighboring Sudan seems to be an inevitable issue for the Ethiopian Road Authority [ERA], responsible for the development of the road sector in the country.
According to our sources, the Saudi Fund for Development [SFD] and the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa [BADEA] have shown keen interest in financing the asphalting of the 185 Km Azezo- Metema gravel road.
Delegates from SFD and BADEA are expected to arrive in Addis tomorrow, January 12th, 2004. They will hold discussion with officials from the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development and ERA on the project document prepared by ERA’s engineers. They intend to stay a few days to work out an agreement on how to tackle the practical issues of the road upgrade, say sources.
According to the information obtained from ERA, the Azezo-Metema road is an important connection and an outlet to the port of Sudan, through which goods, and especially petroleum imports to the western part of the country is channeled.
On the other hand agricultural products such as oil seeds produced in the vicinity can be exported to the outside market.
One official from ERA pointed out “since heavy vehicles in large number operates on this road, special attention must be given to its construction.”
SFD and BAEAD have already financed various infrastructure development projects in different parts of the country.