Abiy Ahmed, the Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia has laid the foundation stone to mark the start of construction of the first section of the Adama-Awash Expressway project along the Ethiopia-Djibouti transport corridor.

The project mainly involves the construction of a 4 lane 60km road that connects Adama city, the capital of the East African country’s largest Oromia regional state, to Nura Era and Wolenchiti. The project, which will be undertaken by a JMC and LRBCL joint venture, also includes the construction of a One-Stop Border Post (OSBP) at Gaulile.

The project is expected to be completed in a period of four years.

Benefits of the project

Generally, the Expressway is expected to help alleviate challenges related to traffic congestion and ease traffic flow and consequently ease the burden on the economy caused by traffic disruptions and high transport costs.

According to Dagmawit Moges, Ethiopia’s Transport Minister, the current road is playing a crucial role in the country’s economy. It is however not up to the required standards and experiences high traffic congestion.

“On average, motorists take up to an hour to travel from Adama to Awash and vice versa. However when completed, driving between Adama and Awash through the Expressway will only take 30 minutes at the most,” said Dagmawit.

During the construction phase, the project is also expected to benefit youths, who will receive over 95% of the job opportunities.

Funding for the project

According to the Ethiopian Roads Authority, the construction cost of the Adama-Awash Expressway is estimated to be close to US$ 154M, and it will be covered by the government of the East African country and the Africa Development Bank (AfDB).

The AfDB through the African Development Fund (ADF) has already committed a US$ 98M grant for the project.