ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA — The Federal Cooperative Agency (FCA) recently signed a memorandum of understanding with regional cooperatives in Ethiopia to build 25 grain silos at a cost of $800,000, according to AllAfrica.

The grain silos will be used by agricultural cooperative unions involved in the teff and wheat value chain in Tigray, Amhara, Oromia and Southern regional states.

The FCA and the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) have begun construction of the silos, which are expected to be completed by 12 contractors in three months before AGRA’s three-year project in Ethiopia is phased out, AllAfrica said.

According to AllAfrica, the Oromia regional state will have 10 silos, Tigray will have six, Southern will have five and Amhara will have four.

Abdi Mumed, deputy director of the FCA, told AllAfrica that the silos will help alleviate the shortage of warehouses in Ethiopia and also help cooperative unions by providing a reliable and effective market outlet.

“To create a sense of ownership, the cooperative unions will contribute equity to the construction,” Mumed said. “The cooperative unions will cover differences from actual and estimated costs and price differences due to inflation.”