Ethiopian Airlines has signed an agreement with South African aerospace company Aerosud to establish a joint-venture manufacturing company that will manufacture and supply various aircraft parts to Boeing, Airbus and other aerospace companies.
The manufacturing facilities are expected to be set up in the vicinity of Bole International Airport just outside of the capital Addis Ababa.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Tewolde GebreMariam, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines noted:
“Pursuant to our government’s industrialization policy embedded in the five years Growth and Transformation Plan (GTPII), we have reached into an agreement with Aerosud Group to establish and develop labour-intensive Aerospace manufacturing Industry….The establishment will create significant job opportunities for the young, educated task force and be another face of the industrial park development task that is being carried out in the Country.”
The manufacturing facilities, that will be set up in due course, are expected to be located in the vicinity of Bole International airport for good reasons of economy of scale and ease of import/export transportations.
Ethiopia has been keen on establishing an aerospace industry under its 15-year strategic plan called Vision 2025, which will see it become the leading aviation group in Africa. In feasibility studies conducted prior to the agreement, the East African country consulted aircraft manufacturing companies such as Boeing and Bombardier among other firms.
Ethiopian Airlines is Africa’s most successful airline, flying to 93 international destinations across five continents.
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