Ethio-Kenya Road Provides Ethiopia with Better Negotiating Position in Port services

Addis Ababa December 29/2020 (ENA) The recently inaugurated Ethio-Kenya road would expand Ethiopia’s options for port services, National Logistics Transformation Council disclosed. 

It is to be recalled that this 500-kilometer road, which is also part of the Trans African Highway project, was inaugurated on December 9, 2020 by the leaders of the two countries.

In addition to its contribution to bolster trade, investment and people-to-people relations of the countries, the road will provide Ethiopia with better negotiating position in terms of port services, Logistics expert at the National Logistics Transformation Council (NLTC), Temesgen Yehune told ENA.

According to Temesgen, the road will become vital outlet for Ethiopia to use the Lamu Port - South Sudan-Ethiopia Transport Corridor, which is expected to accommodate some 32 ships at a time.

Ethiopia is also believed to immensely benefit from the Lamu Port by facilitating its export and import trade, especially through the southern part of the country, he added.

The construction of the Ethio- Kenya road will provide Ethiopia with additional alternatives to help increase the nation’s capability to effectively negotiate in the area of port services in terms of port tariffs among other things, he underlined.

In addition to enhancing Ethiopia's trade and investment ties with Kenya, it will also serve as a major corridor for exporting Ethiopia's products to the world market, according to Temesgen.

He indicated that the road is a convenient route particularly for industrial villages located in Hawassa, Yirgalem and Yabelo surroundings.

“The construction of the road has drastically reduced the time spent via land transportation. It reduced the time that used to take more than three days to 10 to 8 hours” he added.

Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, Dina Mufti said on his part that Ethiopia and Kenya are desirous to further expand their strong economic ties.

In this regard, the Ethio-Kenya road is of great importance to facilitate Ethiopia's export and import trade, he indicated.

The 500-kilometer road from Hawassa-Moyale and One-stop Border Post will make the customs system clear, easy and more efficient, he added.