The African Development Bank (AfDB) has signed a contract to provide $500 million to Ethiopian Airlines for the construction of the Bishoftu Airport, just days after being appointed as the project’s lead arranger.
According to Mesfin Tasew, CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, the new airport will cost an estimated $10 billion, with the airline funding 20% and seeking the remaining $7.8 billion from creditors.
The state-owned airline, scheduled for completion in 2029, will have an annual passenger capacity of 60 million, which will eventually expand to 110 million at full capacity.
This development would make the airline Africa’s largest airport, overtaking the 25 million capacity of Bole International Airport, Ethiopia’s current aviation hub.
In 2014, Bole was Africa’s third-busiest airport, handling 12.1 million passengers, according to OAG data, a global travel data provider. The new facility, located 45 km southeast of the capital, will feature four runways and be designed by Dubai-based engineering and consulting firm Sidara, under an agreement signed in August 2024.
“The bank has itself earmarked up to $500 million, subject to board approval, to anchor the funding of this transformational regional integration project,” the AfDB said in a statement published on Monday.
The Bishoftu Airport project cements Ethiopia’s ambitions to strengthen its position as Africa’s aviation hub, building on Ethiopian Airlines’ extensive route network across the continent, the Middle East, Europe, Asia, and the Americas.
The AfDB remains one of Ethiopia’s most significant development financiers. In July 2025, it approved a $50 million trade facility for Awash Bank, the country’s largest private lender, aimed at boosting access to finance for more than 2.5 million micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises.
The bank has also played a central role in shaping Ethiopia’s capital market. It supported the drafting of the country’s Capital Market Proclamation and provided a $400,000 grant to help liberalise the financial system — part of broader reforms to attract foreign investment and deepen market participation.
With its size, capacity, and strategic location, Bishoftu Airport is expected to overtake existing African hubs, enhancing Ethiopia’s role in connecting intra-African and global travel. The AfDB’s involvement is critical in attracting further investment to complete one of the continent’s largest infrastructure projects.
