Addis Ababa — The 6th Session of Ethiopia - India Joint Trade Committee (JTC) was conducted in Addis Ababa by reaching an agreement to further enhance bilateral trade and facilitate trade promotion between the two countries.

The deliberations of the 6th Sessions of India-Ethiopia JTC were cordial and forward-looking, reflecting the traditionally friendly and special relations between the two countries, according to Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Both sides undertook a detailed review of recent developments in bilateral trade and investment ties and noted that the relationship has a huge potential to be scaled up even further.

To this effect, both sides identified several areas of focus for enhancing both bilateral trade as well as mutually beneficial investments.

These include health and pharmaceuticals, automobiles, textiles, infrastructure projects, food and agro processing and so on.

Both sides also reviewed the progress of ongoing discussions for Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) in the field of Standardization and Quality assurance and Customs procedure and agreed to conclude them expeditiously.

Ethiopia is one of the fastest growing economies in the African region, with an estimated growth of 6.4 percent in the year 2021-22.

Indian companies are among the top three foreign investors in Ethiopia with existing Indian investment of 5 billion USD of which, about 3-4 billion USD is estimated to be on the ground.

India is the second largest foreign investment in Ethiopia and Ethiopia has been a favorite destination for Indian companies.

More than 650 Indian companies are registered with Ethiopian Investment Commission (EIC).

Indian companies have invested in various sectors like agriculture and floriculture, engineering, plastics, manufacturing, cotton and textiles, water management, pharmaceuticals and healthcare.