Interview: Ethiopia keen to deepen cooperation with China under BRI -- official

ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopia stands ready to further deepen cooperation with China under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), said a senior Ethiopian official.

"Ethiopia attributes its double-digit growth in the past decades to investment from China. The kind of infrastructural development booming in Ethiopia is basically because of Chinese investment in roads, bridges and railways," Temesgen Tilahun, deputy commissioner of the Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC), told Xinhua in a recent interview.

"In relation to the Belt and Road Initiative, we are the co-beneficiaries of this global initiative in all aspects," Tilahun said.

He said cooperation with China in implementing the BRI over the past decade has contributed to the realization of various infrastructure projects and the boom in the manufacturing sector, while creating abundant job opportunities for Ethiopian youth.

"The Ethiopian government values its economic and political relations with China at a very high level. Our partnership is strategic and based on mutually beneficial manner," Tilahun said. "We have been committed to our economic and political partnerships in the past, and we will definitely continue to strengthen and further cement this particular relationship that we have with China."

Commending the past 10 years' achievements of BRI cooperation, the EIC deputy commissioner said the Ethiopian government had outlined five priority investment sectors for bilateral cooperation, including agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing, tourism, information communication technology, and the mining sectors.

"We, at the EIC, encourage Chinese investors to explore the huge opportunities and potentials that we have in these particular five sectors," Tilahun said.

Noting the need to deepen Ethiopia-China, in particular, and Africa-China BRI cooperation in general, Tilahun called on Africa and China to further cement ties to attain mutual and win-win outcomes.

"What I recommend is that the speed and magnitude of implementing the Belt and Road Initiative should be strengthened," he said. "Most countries would like to benefit from this particular initiative."

Tilahun further underscored the need to avoid unwanted distractions with regard to cooperation under the BRI.

"China and Africa should not be distracted by whatever global disruptions are happening across the world. We have to stay focused and maintain the kind of achievement that we have witnessed in the past 10 years," he said.