On November 5, 2026, in Addis Ababa, the State Minister of Finance of Ethiopia, Tijiste Fisseha, signed a grant agreement with Liu Xiaoguang, a counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Ethiopia. 15 million US dollars of Chinese aid funds will be specifically used for supporting reinforcement, equipment upgrades, and operation and maintenance capacity building of the Addis Ababa Djibouti Railway. This electrified railway connecting Addis Ababa and Djibouti Port is the most important overseas logistics channel for Ethiopia, and the signing of this contract aims to provide the underlying capacity for the long-term stable operation of this channel.

Million dollar grant secured

The grant agreement was signed on November 5, 2026, with funds from the China Foreign Aid Fund totaling 15 million US dollars. The signing parties are the Ministry of Finance of Ethiopia and the Embassy of China in Ethiopia. The purpose of the funds is clearly directed towards the practical needs of the operation of the Addis Ababa Djibouti Railway, including supporting reinforcement, equipment upgrades, and construction of operation and maintenance capabilities. For a multinational railway that has already been built and opened to traffic, this money is not invested in the construction of new lines, but in the continuous operation guarantee of existing lines.

Material reinforcement for hardware shortcomings

The funds will be used to purchase a batch of key materials and equipment, including electric locomotive mechanical and electrical spare parts, specialized track components, station supporting equipment, as well as small machinery for track inspection and daily maintenance. These materials directly correspond to high-frequency consumption and emergency needs in railway operations. After replenishing the hardware material reserves, the reliability of the line infrastructure will be improved. The Addis Ababa Djibouti Railway is the first cross-border electrified standard gauge railway in Africa, and equipment maintenance and spare parts supply have long relied on external support. This procurement will help alleviate this pressure. Key words: the Belt and Road News Network, front-line project, international, Addis Ababa Djibouti Railway

Stay locally for technical training

In addition to material supply, the project also attaches great importance to local capacity building. China will dispatch technical experts to Ethiopia to provide on-site practical guidance, conduct business training for local railway staff, and retain operational and maintenance technical experience locally. The simultaneous promotion of hardware supplementation and talent cultivation aims to help Ethiopia gradually strengthen its local railway technology team and reduce its dependence on external operation and maintenance forces. In Africa, the completion of large-scale infrastructure projects is only the starting point, and continuous operation and maintenance, as well as local talent cultivation, are the core of the long-term value of the projects. This grant agreement is a concrete practice of China Africa cooperation in the field of railway operation and maintenance, using the concept of fishing.Editor/Gao Xue