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A Qatari business delegation is holding talks in Ethiopia to look into possible investment opportunities in the Horn of Africa country.
"We are here to explore investments in the banking, insurance, real-estate development, health and communication sectors," delegation member Jaber al-Harmi told Anadolu Agency on Wednesday.
On Wednesday, the Qatari delegation held a business meeting with a group of Ethiopian businesspeople.
"Our discussion today with Ethiopian businesspeople was focused on ways of forging joint ventures or partnerships," al-Harmi said.
One day earlier, the Qatari delegation had met with Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome and Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom.
"During our discussion with the Ethiopian president and the minister of foreign affairs, we were encouraged to invest in the country and they [Ethiopian officials] assured us of the [availability of the] necessary facilities and incentives," al-Harmi said.
"We will assess the feedback we have gathered so far and decide which areas are auspicious for us to invest in," he added.
Although Qatari investment in Ethiopia remains negligible, the Gulf country has recently shown interest in investing in it.
Eight Qatari investment projects – collectively valued at more than 1.7 billion Ethiopian Birr (roughly $84.3 million) – remain in the pipeline in Ethiopia, only one of which has become operational, according to the Ethiopian Investment Agency.
"There have been no direct exports of agriculture products – the country's main export – from Ethiopia to Qatar to date," Ethiopian Trade Ministry spokesman Abdurahman Sa'id told AA.
"But we have been receiving lists of requests and inquiries from Qatar as of late," he said.
In November 2012, Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al-Thani visited Addis Ababa, kick-starting bilateral relations after a four-year hiatus. Addis Ababa had severed diplomatic ties with Qatar over Doha-based media outlets' perceived support for terrorism in Ethiopia.
The two countries re-established ties following a 2012 meeting between late Ethiopian prime minister Meles Zenawi and his Qatari counterpart on the sidelines of a conference in London devoted to Somalia.
By Addis Getachew
englishnews@aa.com.tr
www.aa.com.tr/en - Addis Ababa
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