Ethiopia appoints new project manager for Nile dam

By Addis Getachew

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AA) - Ethiopia has appointed Kifle Horo as the new general manager of the country’s most controversial hydro-dam on the Nile -- the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) worth $4.8 billion.

The engineer was given the assignment after the mysterious death of the former GERD Project Manager Simegnew Bekele, who was found dead in his vehicle on one of the busiest streets of capital Addis Ababa on July 23.

Police later said Bekele had committed suicide by shooting himself with a pistol, although investigations were ongoing to see what led him to take his own life.

The dam was scheduled to be completed within five years, but more than seven years down the line it is nowhere near complete.

Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed this April complained of delays, blaming the military-based local contractor.