Ambassador Berhane meets the Parliamentary Secretary of Foreign Ministry of Canada

State Minister Ambassador Berhane met on Monday (January 27) with Mr. Deepak Obhrai, Parliamentary Secretary of the Foreign Ministry of Canada. Their discussions focused on strengthening the bilateral relations between Ethiopia and Canada. Mr. Obhrai said he appreciated the growing relationship between the two countries and was looking for additional ways to expand the relationship. He mentioned Canada’s interest in signing a Foreign Investment Protection Agreement with Ethiopia.  Ambassador Berhane said Ethiopia valued its relations with Canada and appreciated Canada’s role in assisting the peace efforts in the region. He described the political relations between the two countries as excellent but suggested economic ties could be improved. He pointed out that that Africa was set to become the next growth pole of the world economy and Ethiopia was one of the countries on the continent registering fastest economic growth. He urged Canadian companies to do more business in Ethiopia. Ambassador Berhane welcomed Canadian interest in a Foreign Investment Protection Agreement but he also requested the Canadian government to sign a more comprehensive business agreement that included avoidance of double taxation as well as trade and tourism agreements. He asked for an increase in the number of flights for Ethiopian Airlines to Canada, pointing out that it was the only African airline to fly there. He said an increase in flights would provide the opportunity to increase economic ties between the two countries. Ambassador Berhane also briefed Mr. Obhrai on Ethiopia’s efforts to encourage lasting peace and security in the region, in Somalia, between Sudan and South Sudan and in South Sudan itself.