Ethiopia has officially become a shareholder of the Port Of Berbera following a signing of an agreement in Dubai on Thursday with UAE company DP World and Somaliland.
DP World will have the lion share of 51% in the project , Somaliland 30% and Ethiopia 19% after almost one year of negotiations.
“The agreement will help Ethiopia secure an additional logistical gateway for its ever increasing import and export trade driven by its growing population and economy” Ethiopia Transport Minister Ahmed Shide said after the signing.
“In addition Ethiopian increased participation in the development of Port of Berbera and the Berbera Corridor will help bring increased economic development and opportunity to the people of Somaliland” Shide said.
Somaliland Foreign Affairs Minister Dr Saad Ali Shire said the extension if the port would be a boost to the country’s economy.
“This is a very important project that will address some of the problems facing Somaliland concerning employment and investment” he said.
“I am so excited about the prospects of working with the Ethiopian government. Ethiopia is home to approximately 110 million people. The ports of Berbera and Doraleh will provide significant capacity to the region” DP World CEO Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said after the signing ceremony.
“The economies of the region are growing at a pace that needs the development of Berbera supplementing Djibouti an additional gateways in the future” Sulayem.
The $1Bn deal was initially inked between Somaliland and UAE in march 2017.
