Prime Minister Abiy made a three-day working visit to Europe
Prime Minister of the FDRE H.E. Abiy Ahmed (PhD) made a three day long working visit to Italy, Malta and France from 6 – 8 February 2023. The premiere and his-high-level delegation was accorded a very warm welcome by the President of Italy H.E. Sergio Mattarella upon arrival in the Italian Capital, Rome.
The Premier and his delegation which is consisted of the Ministers of Finance, of Labor and Skills Development, Government Communication Services, the PM’s National Security Advisor, and State Minister of Foreign Affairs held bilateral discussions with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and President Mattarella on the various facets of Ethio-Italian cooperation and partnership
Later on, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also signed the ‘Ethiopian-Italian Cooperation Framework 2023-2025 agreement which contains a financial commitment amounting to 180mil euros which will be applied towards key activities within the scope of economic development and job creation in the agriculture and industry sectors and basic services delivery in health and education.
Speaking at the end of the agreement Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said:
“Productive meeting with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni today where we discussed the multifaceted ties and cooperation between our two countries. The signing of a cooperation framework agreement which includes 180mil Euros in grants and soft loans is essential to forging ahead with activities in our home-grown economic reform program and our ten-year perspective development plan”.
The premiere then headed to Malta on the 7th of February 2023 where he and first Lady Zinash Tayachew were welcomed in an official welcoming ceremony by the Prime Minister of Malta H.E. Robert Abela and the First Lady.
The two leaders and their respective delegations held bilateral meetings in which bilateral relations were explored, including enhancing cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, maritime, logistics and security.
“My gratitude to the Prime Minister of Malta and his government for the warm welcome. Our two countries have a lot to learn from one another in a multitude of areas and today’s discussions have further cemented areas of cooperation for mutual benefit”. Said Prime Minister Abiy at the end of the visit.
Prime Minister Abiy concluded his working visit on the 8th of March 2023 by heading to France where he was warmly welcomed by the French president H.E. Emanuel Macron.
Office of the Prime Minister stated that, following the conclusion of the Malta leg of the Europe trip, PM Abiy Ahmed arrived in Paris for a meeting with President Macron. The two leaders discussed strengthened relations including increasing private sector investments in strategic & priority sectors.
Following the conclusion of the bilateral meeting with the Frence President, Prime Minister Abiy in his tweets stated:
Always good to meet my friend President Emanuel Macron, Thank you for the warm welcome to Paris. As the relations b/n our two countries’ progress, I’m very confident that it will translate into strengthened economic outcomes. We very much welcome investments by French companies in Ethiopia.
France and Ethiopia have a long history of bilateral cooperation in Culture, Tourism , Economy, Security and business among others.
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Met with UNHCR Head
H.E. Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen received to his office H.E. Filippo Grandi, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on February 8, 2023.
During their discussion, the two sides have emphasized on the need to continue working together to address the needs of refugees and internally displaced people in Ethiopia.
Deputy Prime Minister Demeke regarded the Commissioner’s visit “timely and significant” and “is in line with the government’s efforts to restore relations with partners following the Pretoria Peace Treaty”.
He also underlined that as a result of its generous refugee-hosting policies, Ethiopia now has 800,000 refugees that require ongoing financial and material support from partners like UNHCR to sustain these refugees.
Mr. Grandi, for his part, praised Ethiopia’s treatment of refugees and promised to assist some of the country’s refugee-related initiatives.
Finally, the Commissioner extended his invitations to the Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister to participate in the 2023 Global Refugee Forum.
Director General of Refugees and Returnees Services (RRS), Tesfahun Gobezay was also present at the meeting and clarified protocols relating to refugee repatriation and IDP return.
CBE Resumes Full Services in Tigray Region
Commercial Bank of Ethiopia announced full banking services in Tigray region as the peace agreement continues to pay off.
CBE’s Corporate Communications Director, Alsen Asefa in his media address stated that the bank has distributed the money sent from the National Bank of Ethiopia to its branches in the Tigray region.
The bank has started providing full banking services in all branches in Mekelle City as well as in 31 branches located in Abiy Adi, Mai Lamin, Samre, Gijet, Haiqi Meshal, Work Amba, Atsbi and Agula, according to the Corporate Communication Director.
The director also added that the bank will soon expand its full services to branches located in Adigrat, Wukro, Frewoyni, Hawzen, Adigudom, Hiwane, Addishhu, Mehoni, Maichew and the surrounding areas.
It is to be recalled that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has given orders to the National bank to send 5 billion birr to Tigray region on the meeting he held with all members of the Pretoria Peace Agreement.
