The Ambassador of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to the Kingdom of Lesotho, His Excellency Dr. Shiferaw Teklemariam Menbacho briefed the media on his letters of credence on the bilateral relations and possible collaboration between the Republic of Ethiopia and the Kingdom of Lesotho on Wednesday.
The Ambassador had previously represented his credentials to His Majesty King Letsie III, at the Royal Palace on the same day, where he had stated the diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and the Kingdom of Lesotho and that their bilateral relations have developed smoothly. “The two countries have also cooperated in the spirit of mutual understanding and trust in various multilateral forums and particularly at the African Union. While the Ethiopian Government highly cherishes the historical friendship between our two nations we, however, understand that there is a big opportunity to further our mutually beneficial cooperation to a new level,” he stated.
He further said the two countries can forge strong cooperation in areas such as investment, trade and air transport. Human resource development and exchange could also be another potential area of cooperation where a sizable group of Ethiopian professionals and experts are already engaged in different sectors in Lesotho. He also conveyed a message of gratitude and satisfaction of the Ethiopians in Lesotho to the government and the people of the Kingdom of Lesotho.
Dr. Menbacho also said they will be working and following up on their counterparts in the Kingdom of Lesotho. “While our government was dealing with the law enforcement measures internally, the Sudanese government invaded the western part of Ethiopia against the long standing fraternal relations of Ethiopia and Sudan against international law principles. Ethiopia has so far vowed to be patient until the Sudanese brothers come to their senses and chose to resolve the problem peacefully. On the other hand, Ethiopia is concluding the building of the biggest hydroelectric dam in Africa called the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam,” he noted.
He said the scientific community of the three countries agreed and underlined the benefit of the GERD in terms of power reserve, climate and shared prosperity. It is built to serve every one with no significant harm to anyone. The dam is a flagship project that the Ethiopians are building with their own resources without any external assistance.
“As Ethiopia’s Ambassador to the Kingdom of Lesotho, I would like to express my conviction that I will exert my efforts to further the cooperation between our two countries and the friendship between our people. I am also confident that I will receive assistance and support from Your Majesty and Your government,” he concluded.