Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn is scheduled to pay an official visit to China from June 12-15, 2013 upon the invitation of the Chinese Government.

He will hold separate meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping, and Zhang Dejiang, Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress.

The Ethiopian prime minister and his Chinese counterpart Premier Li Keqiang will lead their respective delegations for official bilateral talks on issues of mutual, regional and global significance.

Hailemariam Desalegn, in his capacity as the current chairperson of the African Union (AU), will brief the leadership of the Chinese Government on the outcome of the recent Summit of the Assembly convened at the Headquarters of the AU in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

He is scheduled to deliver a speech at the Beijing Foreign Studies University on Friday, June 14. The theme of his speech will be "China-Africa New Strategic Partnership and Friendship for Development and Transformation." African Group of Ambassadors to China, the university community, Chinese think-tanks and research institutes, the media and other stakeholders are expected to attend this event.

During his visit, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn will also hold various meetings with high-level government and Party officials and business executives, with a view to further strengthen the all-rounded economic and business ties between Ethiopia and China.

The prime minister visits China for the first time since he took office last year.

He met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in March this year, on the occasion of the BRICS meeting in Durban, South Africa, and exchanged views on intensifying bilateral cooperation on issues of regional and global significance.

November of this year marks the 43rd Anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Ethiopia and China. The two countries have always enjoyed a flourishing relationship based on the principles of equality, mutual respect and understanding. They have shared common positions on crosscutting global issues such as South-South and North-South cooperation, international trade, climate change, terrorism, peace and security, the rule of law and democratization of international relations.

Several agreements on economic, business, cultural and political cooperation have been signed during the last 20 years, but the cooperation between the two countries, particularly in infrastructure development, trade, investment, capacity building and technology transfer, had shown a significant increase in the later decade. The overall cooperation between the two countries is marked by common interest, mutual trust and understanding.

The Ethiopian Government, aiming to further strengthen the overall relations between the two countries, has opened Consulates General in Guangzhou, Chongqing and Shanghai.

The Ethiopian Airlines, with 40 years of uninterrupted service to China, flies to Beijing, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and Hong Kong with a total of 28 weekly flights. Ethiopian is the first African and the fourth world carrier to fly to China.

Ethiopia stands out to be one of the 10 fastest growing economies in the world and the fastest growing non-oil economy in Africa, with its GDP growing at an average of 11 percent for the last 10 consecutive years. The economic indicators are showing that the economy will continue to grow at the same pace in the coming years.

For more info, contact:

Adam Tesfaye, Counsellor I   

Email: adamtesfaye@gmail.com   Cell phone:18710144245

(Source: Ethiopian Embassy in China)