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Ethiopia and Sri Lanka to expand bilateral trade

10 Jun 2021

The Chambers of Commerce of Ethiopia and Sri Lanka will conduct studies to enable expansion of bilateral trade between the two nations, the Foreign Ministry expressed in a statement released yesterday (09). These discussions took place during Virtual Bilateral Consultations with the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia yesterday (09), and in keeping with the current policy of the Government, Foreign Minister Dinesh Gunawardena attached priority to further strengthening ties with countries in the Africa Region. This marked the first instance in which Bilateral Consultations between Sri Lanka and Ethiopia took place. Accordingly, the Foreign Ministry stated that the consultations focused on strengthening political, economic, social and cultural ties. The Sri Lanka Delegation was led by Director General of the Africa Affairs of the Foreign Ministry B. Kandeepan and Director General for Asia and the Pacific of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia Asfaw Mollalign. During the discussions, it was noted that currently 03 Sri Lankan apparel manufacturing companies and 01 chemical manufacturing company have operations in Ethiopia with a combined investment of over USD 15 Million which provides employment to over 5,000 Ethiopians. I t was further noted that there is potential for further investment by Sri Lankan companies in other sectors such as agro processing, hydro power generation and manufacture of apparel and chemicals. It was revealed that over 400 Sri Lankan professionals are currently employed in the hospitality and apparel manufacturing sectors in Ethiopia and there are opportunities for skilled employment for Sri Lankans in private sector companies in Ethiopia. Ethiopia expressed keen interest to continue bilateral cooperation in the education and health sectors. Both countries discussed closer cooperation at the multilateral level on areas of mutual interest including Environment and Climate change and implementing SDGs and to intensify cooperation through the African Union. The two countries agreed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Diplomatic Relations in a fitting manner next year. Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Ethiopia Sugeeshwara Gunaratna, senior officials of the Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry and Department of Commerce also participated in the meeting.


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