Ethiopia and Japan have signed a US $4.8m grant agreement to support efforts aimed at providing enhanced road operation and maintenance. The agreement was signed by State Minister of Finance, Yasmin Wohabrebbi and Japanese Ambassador to Ethiopia Ito Takako.
According to the State Minister, due to the rapid urbanization and increase in the number of vehicles in Ethiopia, the main roads have been severely congested. Such support would help improve traffic flow, save time, reduce the cost of fuel and road maintenance as well as travel expenses.
“We will further work to establish various cooperation between our two countries in order to develop the capacity to use sustainable and better asphalt road technologies in Ethiopia,” the state minister said during the occasion.
Also Read: Obajana-Kabba road: Nigeria’s longest concrete road construction complete
Supporting Ethiopia’s economic development
Japanese Ambassador to Ethiopia, Ito Takako said that the infrastructure sector is one of Japan’s priorities in terms of supporting Ethiopia’s economic development. “The government of Japan has been actively supporting Ethiopia with a view to improve the lives of its people through various development schemes particularly in the fields of infrastructure, agriculture, industry, education and health among others,” he said.
He further added that Japan will continue to support Ethiopia’s development efforts through different Japanese Assistance Projects, as well as other modalities.
The grant will be used to improve road condition by providing asphalt materials for road construction and maintenance activities thereby contributing to improve the economy and access to social services in Ethiopia.
Japan is currently playing a significant role in Ethiopia’s infrastructure development. On March 30, 2020 the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed a loan agreement with Ethiopia to provide a Japanese ODA loan of up to US $92.6m for the Ethiopia Integrated Transport Program Phase 1: Jimma-Chida and Sodo-Sawla Road Upgrading Project
