Signing of two agreements in support of reconstruction on the sidelines of Catherine Colonna’s visit to Addis Ababa (13 Jan. 2023)

During her visit to Ethiopia with her German counterpart Ms Annalena Baerbock, Mme Catherine Colonna, Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs, signed two French Development Agency (AFD) agreements today in the presence of State Minister for Economic Cooperation Ms Semereta Sewasew, CEO of Ethiopian Electric Power (EEP) Dr Ashebir Balcha and the European Union’s Ambassador to Ethiopia, Mr Roland Kobia.

These agreements concern two projects to rehabilitate electricity infrastructure in northern Ethiopia and increase food security in the country. They meet needs expressed by the local authorities and will help improve the well-being and daily lives of 12 million Ethiopians in the three regions affected by the conflict: Amhara, Tigray and Afar.

• The first project concerns the provision of electricity equipment such as transformers and high-voltage power lines. Ten million people will benefit from stable access to electricity in two northern regions.

• The second project, funded jointly with the EU, aims to increase the country’s food security. In the short term, the goal is to help the agricultural recovery through the distribution of seeds, livestock and equipment in Amhara, Tigray and Afar. It will benefit 400,000 farmers, including women farmers who are victims of the conflict. In the longer term, the second phase of the project will improve the structure of the fertilizer industry in Ethiopia in order to increase national agricultural production.