Ethiopia plans to build navy, says PM Abiy

 "Ethiopia currently has a civilian Ethiopian Maritime Training Institute on Lake Tana."

- With no way out to sea, Ethiopia plans to build navy, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said during a briefing with the heads of the country's National Defense Force.

As a result of efforts to build the capacity of our national defense, we have built one of the most powerful lands and air forces in Africa," Abiy said on Friday. "We must strengthen our capacity for naval force in the future.

Ethiopia currently has a civilian Ethiopian Maritime Training Institute on Lake Tana. It trains more than 500 electromechanical engineers and technicians each year and plans to increase this number to more than 1,000 officers a year, according to the website.

In May, the Abiy government agreed to develop Port Sudan in the Red Sea and agreed with Djibouti to exchange shares in state ports, airlines, and telecommunications.

He also agreed to acquire land in the port of Lamu in Kenya to "facilitate logistics," according to a joint statement issued after a meeting between Abiyi and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta. 

Earlier this year, Ethiopia took a stake in a port in Somaliland, a semi-autonomous region of Somalia that aspires to a state and the borders of Djibouti. Somaliland will host a naval base for the United Arab Emirates.

Source: Devdiscourse