Ethiopia Calls Chinese to Increase Investment in Health, Pharmaceutical Sector

Ethiopian Embassy in Beijing, in collaboration with Beijing Beimao Jingyuan Health consulting Inc., organized a forum promoting trade and investment in the Medical, Health, and Pharmaceutical sector.

More than 40 companies in the sector, representatives from the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, Ethiopian Investment Commission, and partner institutions were in attendance in the virtually and physically held forum.

In his opening remarks, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ethiopia to the Republic of China, Teshome Toga, noted the importance of the health investment forum at this critical time.

Despite the effects of Covid-19 on the global economy, “FDI in Ethiopia in the past nine months registered growth by 18.33 % in 2022 compared to the same period last year,” he said adding that the growth showed increment from 2.05 billion USD in 2021 to 2.43 billion USD in 2022.

The fact that 2/3 of all the Chinese firms in Ethiopia are engaged in the manufacturing sector is a testimony of the enduring confidence of investors in the Ethiopian market and potential, he underlined.

Assuring the priority given by the government to the sector, Ambassador Teshome affirmed that “the health and medical sector in Ethiopia is the priority of the government of Ethiopia as laid out in its 10-year development plan that aims to increase its local production capacity.”

The Director-General of the Middle East, Asia, and Pacific Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, H.E Ambassador Gebeyehu Ganga (Ph.D.), on his part, briefed the strategic China-Ethiopia ties and the bilateral trade and investment between the two countries.

Infrastructure development, investment, and bilateral trade cooperation have been growing since the two countries started diplomatic relationships 50 years ago, he said.

Mentioning the vast potential in the Medical, Health, and Pharmaceutical sector, he indicated local production only covers 5% of the demand from the sector, which gives investors a wide opportunity to engage in the sector.

Ambassador Gebeyehu reiterated the enabling environment created in Ethiopia for foreign investors and re-assured the government’s commitment to helping the Chinese Investors, given the strategic partnership and cooperation between Ethiopia and China.

The CEO of Beijing Beimao Jingyuan Health Consulting Inc., Mrs. Shi Lili, remarked that Ethiopia as a member of the African Union and the seat of its headquarters provides a huge potential for partnership, including in the health and medical services.

Mentioning the long-standing friendship and the increasing volume of trade between the two countries, she noted that China has become Ethiopia’s largest trade partner.

She also recalled the joint trade and investment cooperation agreements signed between the two countries, including the Belt and Road initiative, as an opportunity to expand trade and investment ties.

The forum also included presentations from the Ethiopian Ministry of Health, the Ethiopian food and drug Authority, Chinese Medical companies, and the Ethiopian Investment Commission, among others.