Rail line between Djibouti and Ethiopia closer to inauguration

Djibouti’s President Ismail Omar Guelleh and Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn have attended the ceremonial laying of the last track in the 752-kilometre (481-mile) railway linking the port capital of Djibouti with Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa. The project is financed and built by China.
The first trains are expected to enter operation in October, reducing transport time between the capitals to less than 10 hours, rather than the two days at present. With a capacity of 3,500 tonnes, the new electrified line will mainly be used for transporting goods to Africa’s second-most populous nation.