Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh on Monday (January 19th) laid the foundation stone for a new airport in Ali-Sabieh, according to the Djiboutian Information Agency.

“The project, its scope and the ripple effect on other areas of activity, is an historic opportunity to jump-start the economy of the entire region,” Guelleh said during the ceremony.

The $599-million project is expected to be completed by 2018, according to Djibouti’s La Nation.

The new El-Hajj Hassan Gouled Airport will be able to serve 1.5 million passengers annually, with runways scaled for modern commercial jets. It also will be equipped to process 100,000 tonnes of cargo annually and is expected to create around 500 jobs.

The budget will also cover the construction of a smaller, 350,000-passenger airport near Seven Brothers islands, which will be completed by 2016.

Source: Sabahi Online