The Ethio-Djibouti Railway has collected 7 billion birr in revenue over 11 months, according to Ethiopia’s Minister of Transport and Logistics, Alemu Sime. This marks the first full year of the railway’s operation managed by Ethiopian and Djiboutian nationals.
Out of a total 13.7 billion birr generated by the transport and logistics sector during the same period, the railway contributed roughly half. Civil aviation followed with 3.5 billion birr, while public transport added 2.5 billion birr, and insurance services brought in 450 million birr.
Despite the railway’s progress, truck transport still dominates cargo logistics, handling 84% of all cargo. Rail moves only 14%, with air transport contributing less than 2%.
The minister noted that nearly 91% of cargo was inbound, primarily through Djibouti ports. Improvements were also reported in port efficiency, with shorter vessel stays. For container cargo, average stay times dropped to 6.93 days under multimodal transport and 27.07 days for unimodal.
Construction and design works continue across the aviation sector. Airport tower projects are advancing in Assosa, Bahir Dar, and Nekemte. Design studies have been completed for future regional airports in Yabelo, Negele Borena, Gore-Metu, Debre Markos, and Mizan-Aman.
However, the Modjo Dry Port expansion is facing delays due to a nationwide cement shortage. The minister pointed to additional challenges such as limited imported construction materials and budget constraints but expressed confidence the project would be completed in four months.