The Ethiopian government is looking to sign more trade agreements with Egypt in the upcoming period, since Egypt is an important trade partner in the region, said the Ethiopian Minister of Industry. The minister told Daily News Egypt, on the sidelines of the fifth Ethiopia Summit, that they are looking to increase the value-added to exports, rather than exporting raw materials. Egyptian companies addressed the Ethiopian cabinet more than once to express their willingness to pump investments into the infrastructure, agricultural products and petrochemicals sectors, he said. There are not enough current investments in Ethiopia, but there will be more pumped in the upcoming period after studying the Egyptian market. He said Egypt-Ethiopia economic relations are limited and must be developed during the upcoming period, especially after signing the Tripartite Free Trade Agreement between the three African economic blocs; the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), the Southern African Development Community (SADC), and the East African Community (EAC). Negotiations on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam will not affect economic relations between both countries, especially since Ethiopia wishes to increase economic cooperation with Egypt, he noted. He said the Ethiopian government is considering granting more incentives for Egyptian investors to increase economic ties between them and encourage them to pump more investments.
