AMN Plus-February 02/2026
The Government of Ethiopia and the United Kingdom have reinforced their long-standing partnership with new agreements aimed at supporting economic reforms, improving public investment systems, and expanding green energy infrastructure.
On February 01, 2026 Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (PhD) has welcomed Rt. Hon. Yvette Cooper the UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs for a high-level meeting in Addis Ababa.
They have discussed ongoing collaborations and explored new avenues to further advance mutual development objectives for their nations and people.
During the meeting, three significant cooperation documents are signed:
- Memorandum of Understanding on the Ethiopia Investment Advisory Facility (EIAF) Phase II
A Memorandum of Understanding was signed to launch the second phase of the Ethiopia Investment Advisory Facility (EIAF), focusing specifically on a Public Investment and Asset Management (PIAM) Facility that will run from 2025/26 to 2028/29.
Under this agreement:
- The UK Government will provide up to £17.5 million in technical assistance.
- The programme aims to strengthen Ethiopia’s systems for public investment management and public asset management.
- The initiative supports the implementation of Ethiopia’s Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda.
- The Facility seeks to further enhance conditions for export-oriented, private sector–led, and inclusive economic growth, ensuring sustainable economic transformation.
- Two Priority Transmission Projects Joint Development Agreement (JDA) are Signed with Gridworks
The two governments also initiated to work on Energy Transmission Line projects through government – to – government economic cooperation scheme. Gridworks, the UK government-owned investor in Africa’s electricity networks, has today signed an agreement with the Government of Ethiopia to develop and invest in the country’s first two privately financed transmission projects, with a combined value of around US$400 million.
The agreement was signed today by the Ethiopian Minister of Finance Ahmed Shide and Gridworks’ CEO Chris Flavin and was witnessed by the Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed and the UK Foreign Secretary, Yvette Cooper MP, as part of her state visit to the east African nation. Gridworks is a subsidiary of British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution.
The Joint Development Agreement – signed by the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance and Ethiopian Electric Power and Gridworks applies to the development of two large-scale transmission projects:
- The 206 km, 132 kV Degehabur–Kebridehar line connecting Ethiopia’s Somali region with the country’s central and northeast grids; and
- The 198 km, 400 kV Hurso–Ayisha line enabling the development of wind and solar potential in the northeast and strengthening the interconnection with Djibouti.
The projects will increase energy provision to meet growing industrial demand, enable the uptake of more renewable energy, strengthen Ethiopia’s grid, and enable interconnection with neighbouring countries. They will also support rural electrification in the long-term across Africa’s second most populous nation.
With high industrial demand for reliable power and around half of the population without electricity access, Ethiopia urgently needs to improve electricity access for its population and strengthen its grid to fuel its growing economy.
Ahmed Shide, Minister, Ministry of Finance said; “The Government of Ethiopia has set a target to increase the number of grid-connected citizens to 96%, and the amount of power availability to almost 20GW by 2030 as a part of the Government of Ethiopia’s “Ethiopia 2030: Ten Years Development Plan”. Together, the two projects will contribute to Ethiopia’s targets, bolster industrial growth by increasing reliability of power supply, and accelerate electrification for the nearly half of households still awaiting their first connection.’’
EXPECTED BENEFITS:
- The projects will increase the reliability of the grid, connect industrial demand centres, and support regional inter-connectivity.
There is an urgent, and widely recognised, need for investment in transmission across the African continent to support economic growth, enable the integration of new generation sources and to provide access to power for the 650 million people currently living without it. Investment in transmission will also be a major boost for businesses as it will increase access to high-quality grid power. Firms on the continent currently face, on average, a week of outages per month.
The scale of the challenge is significant, and private financing is an essential part of delivering the investment needed. Gridworks and others expect the market for private financing of transmission projects will develop in a way comparable to the Independent Power Production market, which is now well established and regulated across the continent.
Chris Flavin, Gridworks’ CEO said:
“Gridworks is delighted to collaborate with the Government of Ethiopia and Ethiopian Electric Power on these important projects. The projects are a key part of Ethiopia’s national development plan and they support the Government of Ethiopia’s goal to provide low-cost reliable power to industry and universal electricity access for the people of Ethiopia.”
British Ambassador to Ethiopia & Permanent Representative to the Africa Union Darren Welch:
“Today’s agreement between Gridworks and the Government of Ethiopia signals the continuing ambition of the UK to be a strong investment partner. Transmission infrastructure is fundamental to growth, jobs and improving lives, and these projects will help unlock Ethiopia’s vast renewable energy potential. This investment shows how UK-backed partners can work with Ethiopia to deliver sustainable development, expand energy access and deepen the economic relationship between our two countries.”
Ashebir Balacha – CEO, Ethiopia Electric Power Said that
“By partnering with experienced international investors, we are strengthening our grid, unlocking renewable energy potential and delivering critical infrastructure in support of Ethiopia’s long-term development goals.”
While Abebe Gebrehiwot Yihdego, Head of PPP Unit at the Ethiopian Ministry of Finance, notes: “These projects represent the first public-private partnerships in our transmission network and mark an important step in attracting more investment to the sector.
Chris Chijiutomi, Managing Director and Head of Africa at BII, said:
“Providing access to affordable, clean energy, is an important development goal for BII, especially in the African continent. I am delighted that on completion, these projects will make a huge difference to the lives of so many Ethiopians.”
The projects announced today in Ethiopia are part of a growing portfolio of critical electricity network infrastructure that Ethiopia Electric Power is envisaging to work upon as per to meet Mission 300 targets as to Ministry of Finance Ethiopia reported it
