[ad_1]
Ethiopia will open just six borders by the end of this month
borkena
September 21, 2020
The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia’s Vital Events and Nationality Agency for Immigration announced on Monday that it will reopen six borders to neighboring countries.
Those that open this month are in the west, south, southeast and southwest of Ethiopia, according to state media Fana Broadcasting Corporate (FBC).
The Director of the Tamiru Ubetu Agency said that the borders in Somali, Gambella, Benishangul and southern Ethiopia will be opened from this month. The decision to open the six borders is reported to have come after a joint study with other stakeholders. It is implied that the northern border of Ethiopia will remain closed.
Borders were closed as part of preventing the spread of the Coronavirus pandemic in March 2020. At the time, there were reports of the illegal entry of people infected with Coronavirus, especially in the southeastern parts of the country.
Increasing the number of borders
The Director of the immigration agency said that the number of border checkpoints that Ethiopia currently has is not enough given the length of Ethiopia’s border areas.
And the Ethiopian government is working to increase the number to twelve. Some of the new checkpoints are already operational although they have not been officially opened, according to FBC.
Additionally, Mr. Tamiru is quoted as saying that work is underway to finalize the need for infrastructure to ensure that checkpoints meet international standards.
For the director, the reopening of the borders is essential to control illegal entry into the country.
Last week, Ethiopia announced that it will have strict border control in relation to the newly introduced new banknotes to control billions of Ethiopian birr that are said to be available in neighboring countries.
Join the conversation. Like borkena on Facebook and get regular updates from Ethiopian News. Also, you can receive news from Ethiopia by following us on Twitter @zborkena
[ad_2]
