Prez Taye Bids Farewell to Outgoing Ambassadors of Kenya, New Zealand

Addis Ababa, December 4, 2025— President Taye Atske Selassie today bid farewell to the outgoing Ambassador of Kenya to Ethiopia, George Morara Orina, and New Zealand’s Ambassador, Michael Upton.

n the occasion, the President expressed his deep appreciation for the ambassadors’ commendable efforts in advancing and strengthening bilateral relations with Ethiopia across multiple sectors throughout their tenure.

 He highlighted their contributions to expanding cooperation in development, trade, investment, capacity building, and people-to-people ties, as well as enhancing engagement in both bilateral and multilateral arenas.

President Taye particularly praised the flourishing multisectoral partnership between Ethiopia and Kenya, noting its strong upward trajectory in recent years.

The outgoing ambassadors, reflecting on their time in Ethiopia, affirmed that their countries had undertaken wide-ranging efforts to elevate relations with Ethiopia to new heights.

They emphasized that bilateral cooperation has continued to gain momentum across various fields and that their joint efforts had produced meaningful and tangible results.

Ambassador George Morara Orina noted that Ethiopia and Kenya have long enjoyed strong ties dating back to the era of Kenya’s founding father, Jomo Kenyatta.

He underscored the growing cooperation between the two nations in trade, infrastructure development, people-to-people exchanges, and security collaboration — describing it as a model partnership for the East African region.

New Zealand’s Ambassador Michael Upton highlighted his country’s focus on strengthening cooperation with Ethiopia in the areas of trade, technology, and capacity building during his tenure.