Ethiopian Informer
ADDIS ABABA: September 24 (ET) – The DHL-Ethiopian Airlines Logistics Services Ltd Company, a joint venture formed between DHL Global Forwarding and Ethiopian Airlines Group, on Tuesday named Berhanu Kassa as its General Manager.
Berhanu, previously director of logistics services at Ethiopian Airlines, “takes over the leadership of the joint venture company from Pramod Bagalwadi, CEO, DHL Global Forwarding, Sub-Saharan Africa, who was instrumental in the setup of the joint venture,” Ethiopian Airlines (ET) said in a statement issued on Tuesday.
“Berhanu’s appointment came at a time when the country is focused on growing its economy by building industrial parks in key locations to accelerate growth of exports from Ethiopia,” ET said.
According to ET, as the government targets to achieve 11 percent GDP growth annually under its growth plan, Ethiopia’s focus on export-led industrialization in sectors like energy, transport, and manufacturing and the expansion of physical infrastructure, will see its industrial sector expand by 20 percent.
Pramod Bagalwadi, CEO, DHL Global Forwarding, Sub-Saharan Africa, said that in order for Ethiopian businesses to seize this opportunity and expand globally, they need fast, reliable logistics connectivity to overseas markets, backed by industry expertise and high-quality transport infrastructure.
“We are making available training opportunities in the region to ensure that our colleagues are trained to the highest standards set by DHL globally, and lending our expertise to help enhance local infrastructure,” Bagalwadi said.
Since its inauguration, DHL-Ethiopian Airlines Logistics Services has scaled up its operations considerably, and now offers a range of solutions for various sectors.
In addition to air, ocean and road freight services, as well as value added services including customs brokerage, Ethiopia is also one of the key competence centers for DHL’s Industrial Projects – a unit of DHL
Global Forwarding, which manages complex logistics projects including deep sea chartering activity and heavy-lift cargo, also provides International Supply Chain solutions for customers, to link multiple suppliers from different sourcing locations to various destination markets.
The newly appointed GM also stressed that in the past twelve months, the joint company has invested in growing the team to full strength and have established three stations in Addis Ababa airport, and in the major manufacturing hubs of Hawassa Industrial Park and Bole Lemi Industrial Park.
“Our stations are strategically located for us to be close to where our customers operate, allowing us to achieve time and cost efficiency in our processes,” said Berhanu, adding “We are also planning to launch a fourth station at the Modjo Dry Port by early 2020 where 95 percent of the country’s imports and exports pass through.”
The DHL-Ethiopian Airlines Logistics Services Ltd, based in Ethiopia, was established back in 2018 as a joint venture between DHL Global Forwarding, the leading international provider of air, sea and road freight services, and Ethiopian Airlines, the largest aviation group in Africa.
