 10 megaprojects driving Ethiopia's economy to a new height. Ethiopia is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa that is divided by the Great Rift Valley. Ethiopia has recently completed a number of incredible projects, including airports, dams, highways, railways, tunnels, bridges, and other infrastructure. According to the IMF, Ethiopia has the largest economy in East Africa and the third largest economy in Sub-Saharan Africa after Manchuria and South Africa, with a GDP of more than $126 billion. The infrastructure networks of Ethiopia are largely disconnected from those of its neighbors. A reasonable road corridor connecting Addis Ababa and neighboring Djibouti provides access to Ethiopia's major landlocked port. The projects have not only changed the landscape of the East African country, but they have also had a positive impact on the economy by creating jobs, improving infrastructure, and improving the living conditions of the people who live there, as well as supporting the country's rapid economic growth. Stay with us today to learn about some of the major projects that are changing Ethiopia's face. Please like this video and subscribe to our channel if you are new. 10. Unity Park Unity Park, located within Ethiopia's National Palace, embodies Ethiopia's and Ethiopian's generational legacy. Since the 1870s, the Grand National Palace has housed and served as the office of successive Ethiopian leaders. The National Palace was built over a century ago by Emperor Menelik, the second and sits on 40,000 square meters of land. The park includes a banquet hall, Throne Hall, a palace complex, and a zoo, where Ethiopia's monarchs would meet to discuss local issues and make important decisions. This park's one-of-a-kind natural attraction includes a zoo with 37 mammals and 9 different types of animals. Inside the park, visitors can see giraffes, zebras, kudu, impalas, land, wild beasts, and other animals up close, as well as 13 species of fish and indigenous birds and plants. 9. Mescal Square This is a public square in Addis Abiba, Ethiopia's capital. The area is frequently used for public gatherings, demonstrations and festivals, particularly the Mescal Festival, from which it gets its name. The square took about 10 months to build and was built by China Communications Construction Company under the supervision of the Addis Ababa City Administration. The square includes cutting-edge integrated facilities such as an underground parking lot that can accommodate 1,400 vehicles at a time, 40 shops, 140 restaurants, 6 LED advertising screens, 20 washrooms and bike lanes for electric bikes. Mescal Square exists to support the government's efforts to provide modern services to city residents as well as the country's tourism sector. 8. Boll International Airport, New Airport Terminal Ethiopia opened its new passenger terminal at Boll International Airport in Addis Abiba in August 2020. The new passenger terminal is the world's first post-pandemic structure designed with biosafety and biosecurity in mind. The terminal has 60 check-in counters, 30 self-check-in kiosks, 10 self-bank drop, 16 immigration counters with more e-gate provisions, and 16 central security screening areas for departing passengers, as well as three contact gates for wide-body aircraft and 10 remote contact gates with travelators, escalators and panoramic lifts, as well as 32 arrival immigration counters, with 8 e-gate provisions on the Mezzanine IV level and 32 arrival immigration counters with 8 e-gate. Ethiopia's position as Africa's aviation hub is strengthened by the construction of a new passenger terminal at Boll International Airport. The new terminal is unique in that it is the world's first terminal to be completed after COVID-19. 7. Friendship Park Friendship Park is a landmark development within Prime Minister A.B. Ahmed's beautifying Shag Air project, which was launched in 2019. Friendship Park is an exuberant park in Addis Ababa, built as part of the beautifying Shiger Project. It is located in the heart of Africa's political capital, Addis Ababa, close to the Sheridan Addis Hotel, and the newly built magnificent state-of-the-art museum, the Ethiopia Science and Art Museum. A government-sponsored project in Ethiopia that aims to clean rivers and create public works in the capital city. The park contains an artificial lake and a plaza that can accommodate tens of thousands of people at a time, making it one of the most beautiful public parks in Africa. Restaurants, a wedding garden, a children's park, avenues of sports, amphitheaters with water fountains and flower belts fountains that move like water dancers, open spaces, bikeways, walkways, and many other amenities are provided by this park. 6. Addis Ababa Light Rail In 2015, the Ethiopian government commissioned a new urban metro designed to alleviate traffic congestion, provide an alternative mode of transportation to city residents, and reduce travel time in Africa's political capital, Addis Ababa. Sub-Saharan Africa's first light rail system, the Addis Ababa Light Rail, is an inner city tram that can transport up to 60,000 people per hour. The double-track electrified light rail system spans approximately 31.6 kilometers, with two lines in full operation, one running from the city center to industrial areas, and the other stretching from Menelik, the second square, to Kaladi. When the project is completed, Addis Light Rail will cover the majority of the city's suburbs, providing residents with a safe and modern transportation system. 5. Intodo Natural Park This is a natural park that exudes serenity and joy. The park is located on the southeastern slopes of Mount Intodo, with its trail running along the mountain ridge at an elevation of approximately 3,200 meters above sea level. To provide tourists with a world-class experience, the Ethiopian government initiated a mega-development project that will introduce several infrastructure into the park. Intodo Natural Park is home to a paintball arena, outdoor archery, an adult and child horse backriding ranch, a large outdoor amphitheater, and other supporting infrastructure. 4. Science and Art Museum A few miles from Ethiopia's capital, Addis, Ababa's central business district, two cutting-edge structures house a Science and Art Museum, the first of its kind in Africa. The circular shape of the two architectural design buildings represents perpetual development, human wisdom, and Ethiopia's commitment to the future of technology. The two massive buildings have over 4,000 indigenous trees, plants, and colorful flowers on 80% of their land. The Art Museum occupies a 50,000 square meter plot of land. Its main building stands 9 meters tall and has two floors, with the first housing a visitor center and two large exhibition centers, an amphitheater, offices, cafeterias, and a VIP lounge, and the second housing solar panels, a roof garden, library, designed laboratory, shops, and sound studios. The dorm theater, located next to the main museum building, is a three-dimensional cinema with a height of 24 meters and 450 square meters of square space that can accommodate up to 200 people at a time. 3. Abrahat Grand Library Abrahat Library is an Ethiopian public library in Addis, Ababa. On January 1, 2022, Prime Minister Abi Ahmed and other Ethiopian officials dedicated a new library. The city administration first unveiled the library construction plan in 2019, which included the construction of a new library on 386787 square meters of land in the parliament building, about 3 kilometers from the city center. The facility is designed to meet Ethiopia's political capital's critical need for libraries and related resources, and it is a testament to the government's efforts to make the capital more appealing. Prime Minister Abi Ahmed initiated the project as part of his efforts to improve the education sector. The cutting-edge library has separate sections for adults and children, as well as three meeting rooms. There are halls, theaters, a parking lot that can hold up to 115 cars, an amphitheater, shops, cafes, reading, and play areas for children. It has a capacity of up to 4,000 people and over 1.4 million books. The library also has infrastructure for the development of digital libraries, allowing up to 30,000 people to access library materials at the same time. This library is one of the largest in Africa. 2. Addis Ababa Djibouti Railway Africa's first cross-border electrified railway. The Addis Ababa Djibouti railway line connects Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa, and the port of Djibouti over a distance of 753 kilometers. The SDR railway has 45 train stations and runs parallel to the old abandoned one-meter gauge railway, which was built over a century ago. As a landlocked country, the line serves as Ethiopia's main transport corridor to its gateway port of Djibouti, which handles more than 90% of Ethiopia's international trade. The project has a budget of $5.1 billion. 1. Grand Ethiopia Renaissance Dam The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam is Ethiopia's largest dam currently under construction. Located on the Blue Nile, about 15 kilometers east of the Sudanese border. When completed, the dam will be the largest hydroelectric power plant in Africa and one of the largest in the world, with a capacity of 6.5 gigatomes. After the first and second Francis turbines were installed, the dam began semi-scale operations in 2021. The dam's primary purpose is to generate electricity to alleviate Ethiopia's acute energy shortage and to export electricity to neighboring East African countries. These are just a few of the major projects in Ethiopia that when completed will not only change the face of Ethiopia positively, but will also foster economic growth and improve standards of living for Ethiopians and East Africans. Thanks for watching all the way to the end. Tell us in the comments section what you think of these projects and do not leave without subscribing to our channel. Also, remember to like this video and turn on the notification icon to get notified of our new videos.