State Minister of Foreign Affairs Vasantha Senanayake undertook an official visit to Ethiopia from 13 to 17 September 2018.  Sri Lanka established formal diplomatic relations with Ethiopia in 1972, and the Sri Lankan resident Embassy in Addis Ababa was officially opened in February 2017, jointly by the Foreign Ministers of Sri Lanka and Ethiopia.

In honour of State Minister Senanayake, State Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia Hirut Zemene hosted a breakfast meeting attended by senior officials of the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The discussion centered on further consolidating bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and  Ethiopia and diversifying the areas of cooperation.  Exchange of business delegations between the two countries was also discussed and State Minister Senanayake extended an invitation to his Ethiopian counterpart  to lead a trade delegation to Sri Lanka.

State Minister Senanayake also  paid a courtesy call on Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome.

During the visit, State Minister Senanayake also visited the Headquarters of the African Union Commission and had a meeting with Dr. Smail Chergui, Commissioner for Peace and Security and the Acting Chairperson of the African Union Commission. The discussion focused on promoting  relations between the African and Asian continents.  Sri Lanka obtained accreditation status of the African Union in April 2014 as a Non-African State and Sri Lanka’s first resident Ambassador in Addis Ababa presented his credentials to the African Union Commission in December 2016 as Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka.

Further, the State Minister had meetings with senior officials of the Ethiopian Investment Commission and the Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce, and exchanged information on trade and investment opportunities available in Sri Lanka and Ethiopia for promoting bilateral economic relations. State Minister Senanayake also visited the UNESCO Office in Addis Ababa.

Ambassador of Sri Lanka to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union Commission Sumith Dassanayake accompanied the State Minister to the meetings.

Embassy of Sri Lanka

Addis Ababa

18 September 2018

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