Addis Ababa, November 18, 2025 (FMC) — Ethiopia and Azerbaijan are moving to strengthen their bilateral ties across investment, trade, and parliamentary diplomacy, following high-level discussions held today between House of People’s Representatives (HPR) Speaker Tagesse Chafo and Elchin Amirbayov, Special Envoy of the President of Azerbaijan.
Amirbayov led an Azerbaijani delegation to Addis Ababa for talks aimed at expanding cooperation across multiple sectors. During the meeting, Speaker Tagesse said the time is ripe to elevate the long-standing relationship between the two countries and broaden it into new areas of mutual benefit.
He emphasized the importance of enhancing parliament-to-parliament cooperation, people-to-people ties, and cultural exchanges, alongside greater economic engagement. Tagesse encouraged Azerbaijani investors to seize Ethiopia’s expanding investment opportunities, noting ongoing reforms that are making the country increasingly investor-friendly.
The Speaker recalled that Ethiopia and Azerbaijan have already been working together in the civil service and education sectors and expressed readiness to deepen this collaboration further. He also commended Azerbaijan’s preparations to host COP29 and asked the delegation to share its experience as Ethiopia prepares to host COP32 in 2027.
Special Envoy Elchin Amirbayov stated that Azerbaijan is eager to broaden cooperation with Ethiopia across a wide range of fields, including trade, education, public service, mining, manufacturing, agriculture, and tourism. He congratulated Ethiopia on securing the bid for COP32 and affirmed that Azerbaijan is willing to provide its support and expertise to ensure a successful event.
Amirbayov noted that limited public familiarity between the two nations remains a gap that must be addressed. “Our respective people do not know each other very well. The best way to strengthen our friendship is to organize cultural trips. We are ready to bring our cultural groups and to host those from Ethiopia,” he said.
The Special Envoy also announced that Azerbaijan will organize a business forum in Addis Ababa in March 2026, aimed at facilitating business-to-business and business-to-government engagement. The forum will focus on cooperation in agriculture, mining, manufacturing, education, and other key areas.
The discussions reflect both countries’ commitment to elevating their partnership and opening new channels for collaboration across multiple sectors.