A virtual seminar commemorating half a century of diplomatic ties between China and Ethiopia was hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and the Ethiopian Embassy in China on Monday.
Ethiopian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen, Minister of Finance and Economy Ahmed Shide, Ambassador to China Teshome Toga, CPAFFC Chairman Lin Songtian and Ambassador to Ethiopia Zhao Zhiyuan were some of the notable attendants of the seminar.
Ethiopia is an active partner of China’s Belt and Road Initiative that has ramped up the country’s infrastructure and industrial sector. Ethiopian representatives at the seminar affirmed that economic relations with China have been the foundation for Ethiopia’s industrial transformation, increased participation in the global market, as well as other efforts that have led to the country’s rapid development.
The representatives also asserted that Ethiopia is capable and willing to see ties between the two countries further strengthen echoing Chairman Lin’s views that Ethiopia is an important partner in China’s Forum China-Africa Cooperation.
China is the largest source of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Ethiopia accounting for more than 25 percent of the country’s FDI inflow for the previous fiscal year. According to figures from the Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC), Ethiopia approved over 1,500 projects with a value amounting to more than 2.7 billion USD.