On Tuesday, Ethiopia officially launched Africa’s largest dam, with the aim of boosting the economy, fighting frequent power outages, and supporting the country’s development into electric vehicles after banning the import of gasoline powered cars.
As water from the reservoir powered the turbines of the Grand Renaissance Dam, crowds of Ethiopians dressed in vibrant traditional attire gathered in Addis Ababa to watch the ceremony on giant screens, celebrating with music and dance.
Built at an estimated price of $5 billion, the mighty hydroelectric dam sits on a location on the Nile River in northwestern Ethiopia, close to the Sudanese border. Once it starts working fully, it is expected to generate over 5,000 megawatts of electricity, effectively doubling the country’s current power supply.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, speaking at the inauguration, said the dam is a“great achievement,” emphasizing that it stands as proof of what Africans can accomplish independently on their own.
