Semereta Sewasew, Ethiopia's State Minister of Finance and Ben Depraetere, Chairperson of the Board of EUBFE (European Union Business Forum in Ethiopia) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) at the launch of the Business Climate Report – 2021 event that was held on April 6, 2022, at Hayat Regency Hotel, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The MoU is said to foster cooperation between Ethiopia's Ministry of Finance and the private sector, and create mechanisms to disseminate best practices and facilitate close consultation to promote mutually beneficial objectives and collaboration between the two parties.
In her opening remark at the start of the event, Ms. Semereta said the government of Ethiopia is keen to continue perusing lines of open dialogues to strengthen its longstanding partnership. She emphasized that the partnership should focus on developing investment and the private sector as a key pillar of Cooperation. In addition, she said the reform efforts have helped to build its infrastructure, including its logistics sector, develop its human capital, improve its regulatory framework and continue to build institutes that can support the work of the private sector.
Roland Kobia, Head of Delegation of the European Union to Ethiopia, for his part, noted European investment in Ethiopia has remained steady even during difficult periods and expressed his hope that the European Business Forum provides various opportunities for the private sector to address its challenges through a more constructive and open dialogue with the government of Ethiopia.
The Ambassador also pointed out that the Everything but Arms (EBA), which is an initiative of the European Union under which all imports to the EU from the Least Developed Countries are duty-free, is an opportunity that is being used by several companies based in Ethiopia. He said it is "important for Ethiopia" to achieve peace and predictability for the private sector to thrive.
EUBFE, the European Foreign Investors Association in Ethiopia, has been active since 2012. The primary goal of the forum is to provide a platform to address challenges and work toward promoting Ethiopia as an attractive business destination for EU investors and companies.
Source (Including Image): Ministry of Finance
