Jiangsu Province, one of the economic powerhouses in East China, organized an economic and trade cooperation conference in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Thursday to promote its cooperation with Africa.
ADDIS ABABA, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Jiangsu Province, one of the economic powerhouses in East China, organized an economic and trade cooperation conference in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Thursday to promote its cooperation with Africa.
Speaking at the conference, Mesganu Arga, state minister of Ethiopia's Foreign Ministry, said the bilateral relationship between Ethiopia and China is time-tested, and Ethiopia remains committed to advancing the Ethiopia-China all-weather strategic partnership to foster greater growth in bilateral ties.
"Ethiopia's cooperation with Jiangsu Province has made significant progress, particularly in infrastructure, trade, and investment. This has contributed to Ethiopia's socioeconomic development," the state minister said.
Chinese Ambassador to Ethiopia Chen Hai said that Ethiopia is a major economy in Africa with abundant natural resources and substantial development potential.
"We are willing to work with Ethiopia and other African countries to implement the outcomes of the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and pursue broader and deeper cooperation in our modernization efforts," Chen said.
According to officials attending the conference, the trade volume between Jiangsu and Africa in 2023 reached 22.3 billion U.S. dollars, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 3.1 percent. Jiangsu has established 551 enterprises and institutions in Africa, with a cumulative contracted investment of nearly 6 billion U.S. dollars. Meanwhile, 2,238 African enterprises have been set up in Jiangsu.
The conference attracted around 300 participants, including the visiting Jiangsu delegation, Chinese diplomats in Ethiopia, African Union representatives and members of Jiangsu enterprises operating in Africa. ■