Ethiopia, Finland Reaffirm Strong Partnership 

Ethiopia and Finland reaffirmed their long-standing bilateral cooperation and commitment to expanded political, economic and development partnership during the celebration of Finland’s 108th Independence Day held in Addis Ababa on Thursday evening.

Speaking at the ceremony, Ambassador of Finland to Ethiopia Sinikka Antila said Ethiopia–Finland relations continue to grow stronger through sustained cooperation in key development sectors.

“Ethiopia-Finland long-term cooperation has continued strongly. Our new country programme was endorsed last week extending our support in education, water and sanitation, humanitarian assistance and cooperation with the civil society contributing to peace and resilience in Ethiopia,” she stated.

 

“We want to build more business partnerships. Finland is a high technology and knowledge-based society, and I am happy that we have top-of-the-art technology providers Nokia and Vaisala as well as NIRAS Finland here tonight celebrating with us,” she said.

She further indicated that Finland is keen to strengthen business and technology cooperation with Ethiopia.

On his part, Ambassador Mulie Tarekegn, Deputy Director General for Europe and America Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, said the relationship between Ethiopia and Finland is rooted in mutual respect and long-standing cooperation dating back to the 1950s.

“The relationship between Ethiopia and Finland has been nurtured by mutual respect, cooperation and shared values. This bond can be traced back to the 1950s when Finnish missionaries first arrived in Ethiopia. On July 17, 1959, both countries established official diplomatic relations, with Finland opening its Embassy in Addis Ababa,” he said.

Ambassador Mulie noted that high-level political dialogue and technical cooperation have significantly strengthened bilateral ties over the decades.

“Over the years, various high-level officials have visited each other, fostering stronger ties. Technical cooperation has been signed and few large and small companies have invested in projects in Ethiopia,” he added.

He also highlighted growing trade relations between the two countries, stating that Ethiopia exports textiles, vegetables and food products to Finland worth about 6.5 million US dollars annually, while imports from Finland exceed 14 million dollars mainly in machinery, instruments and chemicals.

Regarding future cooperation, the Ethiopian official emphasized the importance of increased Finnish investment in Ethiopia.

“With Ethiopia’s recent economic reform and the establishment of special economic zones, I hope that more Finnish companies would invest in my country and contribute to the development of the nation,” he said.

Ambassador Mulie further noted that there remains significant untapped potential for expanding cooperation.

“We should however note that there is still room for uplifting the existing relations to the level it deserves. I believe new avenues of cooperation needs to be identified for mutual benefit of the two countries,” he stressed.

He also expressed appreciation to the Finnish government and people for their unwavering support to Ethiopia’s development efforts, particularly in education, water management, energy and humanitarian sectors.

The celebration brought together senior government officials, diplomats, representatives of the African Union and international organizations, the private sector and members of the Finnish community in Ethiopia.

Finland’s National Day commemorates the country’s declaration of independence in 1917 and this year marks the 108th anniversary of its independence.