Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed on Sunday commissioned the newly expanded Addis Ababa Bole International Airport terminal, which makes it the biggest airport aviation hub in Africa.
Abiy also launched the Skylight hotel,a subsidiary of Ethiopian Airlines.
“Ethiopian Airlines is the pride of Ethiopia as it embodies the philosophy of Medemer”, Abiy was quoted as saying by the official Fana Broadcasting Agency.
The China-funded $345m expansion, which began in 2015, is projected to raise the annual passenger capacity to 22 million. Addis Ababa last year overtook Dubai as the leading gateway to Africa, according to travel intelligence agency ForwardKeys.
The country also announced that it would start granting visas on arrival to people from Africa.
The inauguration ceremony was also attended by the chairperson of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat.
According to Ethiopian Airlines, the expanded terminal has been fitted with modern amenities including automated bag drop solutions, e-gates, self-check-in kiosks, baggage handling and the latest airport security technologies.
Africanews
