Land clearance to begin ahead of GERD water filling

Addis Ababa, May 29, 2020 (FBC) – Benshangul Gumuz Regional State Job Creation and Enterprises Development Agency announced preparedness to deploy more than 2,000 youths to clear the land behind the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance.

Director General of the agency, Beshir Abdurahim told Addis Zemen News Paper that more than 2,000 youths will be engaged in clearing trees, bushes and stones from the land behind the grand dam.

A total of 1,000 hectare of land will be cleared within 45 days for the first phase of water filling operation to be commenced by the coming July, 2020, Beshir explained.

According to Beshir, 29,000 Birr is appropriated for clearance operation per a hectare of land.

He said forty percent of the land clearance operation will be carried out youths from localities around the dam while the remaining 60 percent of the work is left for other job seeking communities from the region.

The clearance work will be carried out taking COVID 19 precautions in to consideration, the director general stated.

GERD will store a maximum of 74 billion cubic meters of water when filling operation is completed.

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