China and Ethiopia reaffirm alliance at meeting on sidelies of BRICS summit

At a meeting with his Ethiopian counterpart Abiy Ahmed, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said the two countries are ready to work together to expand bilateral trade and investment and promote the sustainable development of the Addis-Ababa-Djibouti Railway.  

The two men met on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Brazil on Sunday. Li said the two countries have consistently supported each other since they established diplomatic relations 55 years ago and said their alliance has long been at the forefront of China-Africa cooperation.

Li said Ethiopia and China are both important countries in the Global South and he vowed to strengthen cooperation between the nations within multilateral groups such as the United Nations and BRICS.  

Abiy thanked Beijing for its consistent support and said with he is looking forward to working with China to bolster cooperation in trade, industry, communications,  tourism and other areas.  

Bilateral trade between the two countries reached just under $5 billion last year, up from $3 billion in 2014.  

Zero tariffs

Chinese exports to Ethiopia totalled more than $4.3 billion in 2024, up by 21 percent on the previous year. Major exports include trucks and light industrial goods, high-tech products, pharmaceutical and chemical products.  

Ethiopia’s exports to China were down last year to just $564 million, leaving a major trade surplus in China’s favour. Ethiopia’s key exports include leather, cotton and coffee. It’s also China’s top source of sesame imports. 

Last month, China announced a zero-tariff policy for all African countries with which it maintains diplomatic relations. It’s part of Beijing’s efforts to strengthen trade ties and open the Chinese market to a wide range of African goods.