Ethiopia and Egypt working to boost economic ties as Nile row eases
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By Tesfa-Alem Tekle
May 29, 2011 (ADDIS ABABA) - As Ethiopia and Egypt ease their long
standing dispute over the use of the Nile waters, the two countries
are pushing the new chapter of relationships to boost trade and
investment ties, officials from the two countries have said.
According to the Egyptian Gazette, Ethiopia business and government
officials and their Egyptian counterparts gathered in Cairo on Sunday
to discuss and design a strategy for a new flow of trade and
investment.
The latest meeting between the two sides comes following the recent
visit by Egyptian Prime Minister Esssam Sharaf to Ethiopia which was
described as a new chapter of cooperation between the two countries.
The visit was also seen as a major step towards healing their decades
long dispute over usage of the Nile’s water.
"At today’s meeting, Egyptian officials will explain to Ethiopian
businessmen the incentives that are being offered by the Cairo
Government to lure capital owners into launching joint ventures hers,"
the Egyptian Gazette reported Ayman Eissa, Ethiopian-Egyptian Business
Council Association Chairman, as saying.
The joint meeting is expected to launch joint ventures in enhancing
bilateral ties in various trade and investment sectors.
Recently Egyptian businessmen visited Ethiopia where they pledged to
engage in various businesses and investment in Ethiopia in support of
the new atmosphere of relationships opened between the two countries
since the North African country saw the downfall of Hosni Mubarak’s
regime in a popular uprising earlier this year.
Cairo has been at odds other Nile riparian nations over their efforts
to overturn colonial era-treaties which grants 55.5 billion cubic
meters a year of the Nile’s flow to Egypt out of around 84 billion
cubic meters.
Egyptians are currently executing more than 400 projects worth over 1
billion USD in Ethiopia. The trade volume during the past two years is
only between 130 and 250 million USD, according to data from the
Ethiopian Investment Agency,
Over 30 Egyptian companies have also asked to import meat from
Ethiopia. This will also allow Egypt to import a large number of
livestock from Ethiopia.
(ST)
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