Ethiopia Offered Free Zone on Red Sea Coast: Report
Xinhua; Sep 26, 1999
ADDIS ABABA (Sept. 26) XINHUA -
Ethiopia, which is eager to increase its
import and export, has received an offer from neighboring Sudan to use its port
and to open business at Red Sea Free Zone, an Ethiopian weekly reported
Sunday.
Sudan, which established a 26-square-kilometer Red Sea Free Zone along the
Sudanese Red Sea Coast, is expected to attract the increasing business of
Ethiopian import and export, Sudanese officials were quoted as saying.
The free zone situated at south of Port Sudan is qualified to host infra- structure
investment projects, export processing industries, banking and insurance
activities, warehousing and other related activities, according to the report by
"the Capital" .
Since the conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea erupted last May, Ethiopia has
been forced to use the Djibouti Port, which has turned to be the only sea outlet
of Ethiopia.
Ethiopian Trade and Industry Minister Kassahun Ayele said recently that the
Ethiopian government would consider using alternative ports in neighboring
countries.
He suggested that given improved political relations with Sudan, Ethiopia will try
to use Sudanese ports as well as Kenya's Port of Mombasa and the Berbera
Port in Somalia. He stressed that "depending on only one port is dangerous."
According to Sudanese officials, the industrial, commercial and service
investment projects approved in the Sudanese Free Zone will enjoy exemptions
from all customs taxes except service charge.
The Red Sea Free Zone is currently managed by the Sudanese Free Zone and
Markets Company, a government agency established in 1993 with a 20 million
U.S. dollar working capital.
The Red Sea Free Zone is the first phase out of the 600 square kilometers of
free zone area projected to be established in different parts of the country,
Sudanese officials said.