China-Ethiopia bilateral cooperation poised to get stronger: Minister Counselor

Addis Ababa, June 9, 2023 (FBC) – Over the last ten years, the bilateral relationship between Ethiopia and China has been growing fast in multifaceted areas of cooperation, Shen Qinmin, Minister Counselor at the Chinese Embassy in Addis Ababa, told Fana Broadcasting Corporate.

“China and Ethiopia have always been good friends. They have many things in common. Ethiopia has a great ancient civilization as China does. And, the two nations also have similar development aspirations. These enable Ethiopia and China forge strong cooperation in various social and economic areas based on mutual benefit,” Shen Qinmin noted.

President Xi Jinping has so far announced 9 projects that China has been implementing to help African countries including Ethiopia to grow economically. This is a roadmap for China’s further collaboration with Ethiopia, he said.

“In their recent discussion, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister of Ethiopia and the Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang have explored ways of deepening the burgeoning multifaceted cooperation between their respective countries.”

The Counselor Minister appreciated the efforts being made by the Ethiopian government is working to attract more Chinese investors to the country, pledging commitment to make the endeavors fruitful.

If you walk across Addis Ababa, you can see a lot of development projects being built by the Chinese contractors. This shows how the two countries are working together to strengthen their collaboration.

China always supports Ethiopia’s pursuit for development and prosperity, as evidenced by the many joint projects all around Ethiopia that are mutually beneficial to both sides.

There are several projects in Addis Ababa that have been built with the assistance of the Chinese government. This clearly shows how the socio-economic ties between the two countries are transforming to a higher level.

“I am very confident that our relationship will become stronger and stronger in multifaceted areas of cooperation,” he underscored.

Regarding China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the Minister Counselor stated that the initiative is witnessing a smooth progress in the African continent and particularity in Ethiopia.

“This year marks the 10 Anniversary of the launch of the Belt and Road Initiative. Our Embassy has finalized preparations to mark the Anniversary of this great initiative with various events in the coming days. This event will help up celebrate our mutual success.”

“In the past ten years, you can feel the fruits of the BRI everywhere in the continent and in Ethiopia. The roads, the bridges and the city projects are visible manifestations of the success of the initiative which is based mutual cooperation. This cooperation will be promoted and deepened in the years to come,” the Minister Counselor pointed out.

“Now the Belt and Road initiative, guided by mutual benefit, has already yielded enormous fruits in Ethiopia. And it will certainly help enhance socio-economic development of Ethiopia and strengthen the cooperation between the two countries,” he added.

“China always wants this initiative to be a cooperative project rather than a unilateral project. That’s why we want the full participation of all the African countries like Ethiopia that are striving hard to achieve their socio economic development goals,” he said.

“We hope that in the future, we want to focus on the particular needs of Ethiopia. We will focus on strengthening the projects of the BRI initiative based on particular needs of Ethiopians. That is why we are working together with the government and actors of the economic sector.”

Concerning the activities underway to help young Africans achieve their aspirations in the science and technology sectors, Shen Qinmin said that the Secretariat of the Chinese Follow-up Committee of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) and the China Manned Space Engineering Office have co-hosted a painting competition on the theme “My Dream”.

The “My Dream” Competition is aimed to inspire African young students, he noted, adding “Our goal through the competition is supporting development and prosperity in Ethiopia and Africa at large by investing on the talents of the new generation.”

The painting completion which is focused on Space Science gives the African students a chance to peruse their dreams and cultivate their abilities, he explained.

He cited the Ethiopian teenager Abigail Birhanemeskel, who completed the completion with a second rank as a model for other young Ethiopian students interested in space science. Shen Qinmin reaffirmed China’s continued support to Ethiopian young students to help them make their dream a reality particularly in space science and related fields.

By: Wondesen Aregahegn