The 3rd French-Ethiopian General Committee of the Joint Declaration of Intent on the Promotion of Economic Development in Ethiopia opens today in Addis Ababa at Radisson Blu Hotel.
The committee, organized by the Ministry of Finance and the Embassy of France, aims to foster economic cooperation between Ethiopia and France. It will feature a series of sessions focusing on various aspects of the partnership, including discussions on investment challenges and solutions, the role of French companies in supporting Ethiopia’s economic transformation, and a presentation of the Ethio-French Business Club’s (CAFÉ) latest Business Climate Report.
Various key institutions from both countries are represented on this committee. Among the guests on the Ethiopian side including Amb. Girma Birru, Economic Affairs Advisor to the Prime Minister, H.E. Mr. Ahmed Shide, Minister of Finance, Mrs. Aynalem Nigusie, Minister of Revenue, Dr. Eyob Tekalign, State Minister for Fiscal Policy and Public Finance and Ms. Semereta Sewasew, State Minister for Economic Cooperation of the Ministry of Finance.
On the French side, Mr. Olivier BECHT, Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade gives an online speech, Mr. William ROOS, Assistant Secretary for Multilateral, Development and Trade affairs of the French Treasury, Co-Chair of the Paris Club and Ms. Agathe Blanchard, Deputy Head of the Sub-Saharan Africa, Monetary Cooperation and AFD Supervision Office of the French Treasury will attend on site. The event is also attended by Mr Rémi Maréchaux, Ambassador of France to Ethiopia.
The French-Ethiopian General Committee was established following French President Macron’s State visit to Ethiopia in March 2019. The Ethiopian and French governments (Mr. Ahmed Shide, Minister of Finance and Mr. Jean-Yves Le Drian, Minister of European and Foreign Affairs) had signed the Declaration of Intent (DoI) on the promotion of economic development in Ethiopia, on March 12th 2019, in presence of the two Heads of States.
Through this DoI, both governments agreed to hold a bi-annual general committee to promote Ethiopia’s economic development and bilateral economic ties. Since then, two General Committees have been held, the first on the occasion of the visit of Mr. Bruno Le Maire, Minister of Economy and Finance, to Ethiopia in July 2019, the second in November 2020, introduced via an online speech by Mr. Franck Riester, then French Minister Delegate for Foreign Trade. “This third committee is a new demonstration of vivid bilateral relationship, following the two Heads of States working dinner in Paris, February 7th,” the French Embassy said in a statement.
The Embassy indicated that this year, the 3rd French-Ethiopian General Committee includes three sessions:
– A Closed Discussion between Ethiopian government officials and select French companies to discuss key investment challenges and solutions;
– A Panel Discussion on “How can French companies support Ethiopian economic transformation?” focusing on the Renewable Energies Sector; with special guests from French companies including Meridiam, General Electric, EDF, Technip Energies and Total Energies;and
– A Presentation of the Ethio-French Business Club’s (CAFÉ) latest Business Climate Report based on a study conducted from September to December 2022 among more than 50 French companies. This will be followed by an Open Discussion on the way to address identified issues and improve the collaboration between the public and private sectors.