Addis Ababa, August 8, 2026 (FMC) — Ethiopia’s expanding development experience is attracting growing interest from across Africa, with a high-level Beninese delegation spending the week in Addis Ababa exploring a wide range of Ethiopian experiences spanning public services, urban development, technology and innovation, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, aviation and defense.
Led by Benin’s Minister of Digital Transformation and Innovation, Mahuna Akplogan, the delegation arrived in Addis Ababa on August 4 for a five-day official working visit aimed at expanding cooperation and sharing experiences between the two countries.
The breadth of the delegation’s engagements has taken the visit well beyond a conventional technology mission, bringing the Beninese side into direct contact with Ethiopian institutions involved in public-service delivery, national digital identity, smart-city development, technological innovation, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence and air-power capabilities.
The engagements point to an increasingly important dimension of intra-African cooperation: African countries looking increasingly to one another for practical experience, institutional knowledge and homegrown solutions to development and security challenges.
One of the delegation’s early engagements was at Ethiopia’s MESOB One-Stop service Center, where officials examined the country’s integrated approach to public-service delivery.
The Beninese delegation showed particular interest in MESOB’s institutional integration model and Ethiopia’s experience in building digital systems capable of connecting citizens with multiple government services.
The visit also provided an opportunity to examine the role of national digital identity in strengthening service delivery and building interoperable public infrastructure.
The delegation also explored Addis Ababa’s experience in smart-city development and digitalized urban services, gaining insight into efforts to use technology and innovation to improve the management of a rapidly expanding African capital.
The visit subsequently extended into strategic technology and national cybersecurity.
At the Information Network Security Administration (INSA), the Beninese officials were briefed on Ethiopia’s cybersecurity capabilities, institutional development and efforts to strengthen the security of its expanding digital ecosystem.
The delegation also visited the AeroAbay Drone Manufacturing Center, examining Ethiopia’s efforts to develop indigenous technological capabilities and locally produced technologies.
Artificial intelligence constituted another major area of engagement.
At the Ethiopian Artificial Intelligence Institute, the delegation explored Ethiopia’s AI research and development capabilities and discussed potential avenues for cooperation in artificial intelligence, technological capacity building and knowledge exchange.
The Beninese delegation’s program also extended into the strategic and defense sector, with the minister visiting the Ethiopian Air Force.
The Air Force engagement added an important security and aviation dimension to the multi-sector visit, giving the Beninese side an opportunity to learn from Ethiopia’s experience in building and developing its air-power capabilities. The engagement places defense and aviation alongside the delegation’s civilian-sector visits, further underscoring the breadth of the Ethiopia-Benin experience-sharing agenda.
The visit to the Ethiopian Air Force is particularly significant within the wider context of African capacity building, as countries across the continent seek to strengthen national institutions and develop indigenous capabilities in strategic sectors.
The engagements were complemented by discussions with Ethiopia’s Ministry of Innovation and Technology, where the two sides examined Ethiopia’s experience under the Digital Ethiopia 2025 agenda and the direction set by Digital Ethiopia 2030.
The discussions explored opportunities for strengthening bilateral cooperation in technological development, knowledge exchange, innovation and institutional capacity building.
Taken together, the delegation’s activities demonstrate that its Ethiopia visit is not centered on a single sector.
From integrated public services and digital identity to urban modernization, cybersecurity, AI, indigenous technology, aviation and defense, the Beninese side has been exposed to a broad spectrum of Ethiopia’s institutional and development experience.
For Benin, the visit provides an opportunity to examine practical approaches developed by another African country and identify experiences that could inform its own national transformation priorities.
For Ethiopia, the engagement creates another avenue for sharing its experiences and strengthening partnerships with an African country while contributing to a wider continental exchange of knowledge and expertise.
The significance of the visit extends beyond bilateral relations.
Across Africa, governments are increasingly seeking to build domestic technological and institutional capabilities, strengthen strategic autonomy and develop solutions that reflect their own economic, social and security realities.
The exchange between Ethiopia and Benin therefore illustrates a broader shift in African cooperation—from conventional diplomatic engagement toward practical experience-sharing across multiple sectors.
Ethiopia’s Digital Ethiopia 2030 strategy forms one component of this wider transformation, emphasizing digital infrastructure, innovation, human-capital development and the digital economy. But the Beninese delegation’s program demonstrates that Ethiopia’s experience extends beyond the digital sphere into urban development, technological manufacturing, cybersecurity, aviation and defense.
The week-long engagement consequently places Ethiopia’s broader transformation experience within an increasingly continental conversation over how African countries can learn from one another, build domestic capabilities and develop homegrown solutions.
It also highlights the potential of intra-African partnerships to turn national experiences into shared continental assets.
As Ethiopia and Benin explore further avenues for cooperation, the multi-sector engagement could provide a foundation for expanded institutional partnerships, knowledge-sharing and capacity building, while contributing to Africa’s broader drive to harness its own expertise and experiences for shared development and strategic advancement.