During the Africa Human Capital Heads of State Summit in Tanzania, President Julius Maada Bio of Sierra Leone engaged in several bilateral meetings, one of which was with Mr. Demeke Mekonnen Hassen, the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia.
Mr. Hassen warmly congratulated President Bio on his successful re-election in the June 24th, 2023 elections, where he secured victory in the first ballot. Additionally, Mr. Hassen extended his felicitations to Sierra Leone for securing a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council, recognizing these achievements as significant for the small West African nation.
During their meeting, Mr. Hassen highlighted some of Ethiopia's noteworthy programs. He spoke about the impressive progress of the Green Legacy initiative, which resulted in the planting of an astounding 25 billion trees over the last five years. He also mentioned the 'Basket of Abundance' project, which focuses on promoting household agriculture and vegetable planting. Furthermore, Mr. Hassen mentioned Ethiopia's commitment to providing 'Quality Education' for the new generation and the successful implementation of Health Insurance programs.
President Bio, in turn, expressed Sierra Leone's continued support and friendship towards Ethiopia. He commended Ethiopia's achievements in wheat production, considering it as an excellent example of successful agricultural practices from which Sierra Leone could learn, especially given their shared focus on agriculture and food security as part of the Big Five Manifesto priorities.
The two leaders recalled their discussions from 2019 when Mr. Hassen led a high-powered delegation on a two-day working state visit to Sierra Leone. During this visit, they engaged in a high-level inter-ministerial meeting to explore bilateral cooperation between their respective countries.
As the meeting concluded, President Bio expressed interest in drawing lessons from Ethiopia's effective health insurance scheme and proposed the expansion of Ethiopian Airlines' services to Freetown, which would further enhance connectivity and cooperation between the two nations. Both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to maintaining and strengthening their friendly relations in the future.