President Mulatu Teshome today met on 8 May with his Polish counterpart, Andrzej Duda at the National Palace in Addis Ababa. President Duda and First Lady Agata Kornhauser-Duda arrived in Addis Ababa the day before as part of his country’s commitment to strengthen the Ethio-Polish trade and investment ties.
In the meeting, the two presidents shared views on various issues, including on ways to improve trade between them, which currently stands only at 36 million US dollars.
President Mulatu on the occasion said that the two countries need to boost their trade ties.
Polish President Andrzej Duda for his part voiced hope that trade between the two countries would increase to a level of hundreds of millions of dollars.
Poland is a big market in Europe, as is Ethiopia in Africa, he added. President Duda said he would like Polish business and the Polish state to contribute to the development of Ethiopia, while making a profit at the same time. He also visited a plant operated by Polish tractor manufacturer Ursus in Ethiopia, and encouraged more companies to invest in Africa.
They agreed to take practical steps to meaningfully improve cooperation in agriculture, infrastructure information technology and education, according to Krzystof Szczerski, Polish Secretary of State.
The two leaders dwelt on ways of strengthening relations on the political arena including peace and security.
President Duda said his country recognizes Ethiopia’s diplomatic importance in Africa, and expressed his county’s desire to use Ethiopia as a gateway to its relations with the rest of Africa.
