Kathmandu. Ethiopia on Saturday officially began construction of a new international airport in the city of Bishoftu, southeast of Addis Ababa, in a bid to become Africa’s largest. Once completed, the airport will be the largest air transport hub in the continent.

The total cost of the ambitious project is estimated to be around $12.7 billion. Once fully operational, the airport will be able to handle 110 million passengers annually. The project is expected to take five years to complete.

The Bishoftu hub, which will be partially funded by national flag carrier Ethiopian Airlines, is expected to replace the Bo International Airport in the capital. The airport currently has the capacity to handle only about 25 million passengers annually.

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced on Saturday the start of construction of the project, describing it as “the biggest infrastructure project in Africa’s aviation history”. In a message posted via X, he said the multi-airport strategy aims to position Ethiopia as Africa’s leading air transport gateway in the future.

According to him, this project will further strengthen Ethiopian Airlines’ global competitiveness. It will also expand air connectivity between African countries and further strengthen trade and tourism routes. The government believes that in the long run, Ethiopia will emerge as a major intercontinental hub.

The mega airport project will include a multi-lane motorway connecting the new airport to the capital, as well as a 38-kilometer-long high-speed railway. The railway could reach speeds of up to 200 kilometres (124 mph), Ahmad said.

The African Development Bank (ADB) has provided $500 million to finance the project. Ethiopian officials are also in talks with the Asian Development Bank, the European Investment Bank and the U.S. Development Finance Corporation to find more investment.

Despite the ongoing armed conflict in the Amhara and Oromia regions, Ethiopia hopes to attract foreign tourism through the project. The future airport to be built in the Bishoftu region will be spread over an area of 35 square kilometers.

Ethiopian Airlines CEO Mesfin Tassev Bekelle said in November that the project had displaced about 2,500 farmers, which the government spent $350 million to rehabilitate last year.

With a population of about 130 million, Ethiopia is Africa’s second most populous country. In recent years, the country has been carrying out major infrastructure projects. Last year, Ethiopia officially inaugurated the continent’s largest dam, and massive urban renewal projects are also gaining momentum in Addis Ababa and other major cities.