The UN Office for Project Services will rebuild infrastructure in the region, which is still mostly under the control of Tigrayan forces.

The project is being financed by the World Bank, which in April became the first major financial institution to unblock funds to Ethiopia, following a ceasefire.

Since then, fighting has largely stopped and the government has allowed the resumption of aid convoys.

But Tigray remains deprived of essential services such as electricity, communications and banking, and the UN says hundreds of thousands are on the brink of famine.