Ethiopian Delegation Visit to China will Further Advance Bilateral Ties: Amb Zhiyuan

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Ethiopian Delegation Visit to China will Further Advance Bilateral Ties: Amb Zhiyuan
Ethiopian Delegation Visit to China will Further Advance Bilateral Ties: Amb Zhiyuan

Africa-Press – Ethiopia. The recent visit of the Ethiopian delegation led by Finance Minister Ahmed Shide will further advance bilateral economic and trade relations between China and Ethiopia, China’s Ambassador to Ethiopia Zhao Zhiyuan said.

In an exclusive interview with ENA, Ambassador Zhiyuan said that the 10th Session of Economic, Scientific, Technical Cooperation and Trade Joint Commission was held with the Ministry of Commerce.

This is the first meeting of this kind between China and an African country in 2023, he stated, adding it “fully reflects the good wishes of the two governments to deepen cooperation and common development.”

The visit to China and the convening of the joint commission have injected new impetus to the relationship between the two countries, contributing to the building of China-Africa community with a shared future in the new era, the Ambassador explained.

Ambassador Zhiyuan noted “China and Ethiopia had discussions on expanding cooperation in sectors such as trade, investment, development assistance, infrastructure construction, and debt treatment, and reached a series of consensus. The two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on the establishment of an investment and economic cooperation working group, which is of great significance for strengthening the construction of bilateral economic cooperation mechanisms and increasing policy support for economic and trade cooperation.”

Furthermore, the two sides conducted in-depth discussions on boosting Chinese investment in Ethiopia’s vast market and huge development potential.

Investment in key areas has always been an important part of the economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, he pointed out, adding “China will continue to encourage and support domestic enterprises to participate in investment in Ethiopia’s agriculture, tourism, medicine, energy, mining, telecommunications and other fields.”

According to the Ambassador, the trade volume between China and Ethiopia has continued to increase in recent years and the channels for Ethiopia to export coffee and other specialty products to China have been continuously smoothed.

China wants Ethiopian companies to continue to actively participate in exhibition platforms such as the China International Import Expo, the Import and Export Fair, and the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo, he stated, and underscored “to make full use of the tariff-free treatment for 98 percent of products exported to China.”

Zhiyuan reiterated that China will work with Ethiopia to continuously optimize the trade structure between the two countries, and to develop measures to further facilitate the export of Ethiopian products to China.

The ambassador has appreciated the peace agreement reached by relevant parties under the auspices of the African Union.

“We hope that the peace agreement will be implemented smoothly and Ethiopia will restore prosperity and stability as soon as possible, and at the same time focus on economic and social construction.”

Ethiopia is the “anchor of stability” in the Horn of Africa, the ambassador said pointing out that Chine believes peace and stability in Ethiopia is also of great significance to the long-term stability of the region.

He also expressed China’s willingness to actively participate in Ethiopia’s post-war reconstruction and provide support in the fields of humanitarian aid, health and education.

At the same time, when the time is mature, we will actively promote investment and trade to help Ethiopia realize rapid economic and social development, and improve the living standards of the Ethiopian people.

“At present, I am closely following the situation in the north to make preparations for China’s participation in the reconstruction progress.”

To maintain the peace and security in the Horn of Africa as a whole, China is ready to conduct cooperation to actively implement the Outlook on Peace and Development in the Horn of Africa on the basis of the its Global Security Initiative (GSI).

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