Ethiopia inaugurates $4.5B mega dam

By Sadik Kedir Abdu

ADDIS ABABA (AA) - Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Tuesday inaugurated the $4.5 billion Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, the largest hydroelectric project in Africa, in a ceremony attended by regional leaders and foreign dignitaries.

Launched in 2011 under the late Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, the project on the Blue Nile is designed to generate 5,150 megawatts of electricity to ease chronic shortages and expand exports.

Hailed as built by fully local fund, Egypt and Sudan have long raised concerns over the project’s impact on their water security.

Ethiopia asserts the dam is a symbol of national unity and a step toward regional cooperation, which will also bear great benefit for downstream countries.