Eritrea's Quiet Construction Boom

Eritrea's Quiet Construction Boom

In a telling sign the economy is gaining momentum, Eritrea has been quietly building a number of multimillion dollar infrastructure projects. From luxury resorts to colleges to modern homes and dams, Eritrea is witnessing an unprecedented development boom. With so many projects under construction or slated to be developed, it's safe to say the camel (Eritrea) is no longer marching towards its goals; it's briskly jogging.

Here are a few of the projects under construction or slated for development:

Asmara Housing Project

The 2013 Asmara Housing Project is a pilot project that is being developed in Sembel, Halibet and Space 2001 districts of Asmara. The project consists of 1,680 homes and shops, and is the largest modern housing infrastructure project in the Horn of Africa. Due to the large scale of the project, the government has reorganized construction companies into three groups. In order to master the technologies and improve their skill set, all three companies are working on the pilot project as a single unit. Once they complete their task, they will be split back into three companies to head the construction programs in the eastern lowlands, highlands, and western lowlands.


                                                 (Click on images to enlarge)

                              Modern apartments being developed in Asmara - Credit: Aba Tirreg

                               Modern apartments being developed in Asmara - Credit: Aba Tirreg

                                        Renders of the project

                                         Renders of the project

Visit here to see more renders of the Asmara pilot project.

Massawa Resort Project

The Massawa project appears to be a mix of luxurious resorts, hotels and residential buildings. Currently, construction of the project has been postponed, presumably, due to Asmara pilot project taking a priority (it will be developed!). Although little information has been provided of this massive project, observation of the renders provided by the government seem to indicate the models were designed by Piccini, an engineering and machinery producing company based in Milano, Italy.

Established in 1949, Piccini is owned by Eritrean businessman Asmerom Mekonen.

                      Eritrean officials showing Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir the
                                                  Massawa project. June 15, 2013

Other Projects

Other projects under construction include:

• Construction of two modern colleges in Mai Nefhi and Hamellamo
• Construction of a large cold store in Alebu area, 
• Development of Gergera Dam, 
• Construction of Massawa-Qrora road, 
• Construction of Dahlak Master Plan 

Projects in the pipeline:

• Massawa-Asmara Cableway 
• Eritrea-Sudan 340‑km Electricity Transmission line 
• 20 Million Cubic Tekera Dam
• Housing development in Aligeder (west of Teseney)

Gergera Dam (no date was provided - could be from a while ago)

                                Construction of Massawa-Qrora road


In an interview with state media in February, President Isaias Afwerki said, "The pilot housing project in Asmara is a precursor of a comprehensive urban and rural national housing scheme for the years to come." What this means is Eritrea is just getting started with the building boom.Urban areas such as Mendefera, Teseney, Assab, Dekemhare and Keren should expect to see housing development projects of their own.

                                                              Keren

                                                              Teseney

                                                              Mendefera

                                                              Dekemhare

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