Minister of Foreign Affairs Mangala Samaraweera called on Ethiopian President Mulatu Teshome, at the Presidential Palace in Addis Ababa.
Sri Lanka is working on new policy of restoring friendship with traditional friends and allies, and building stronger relations with the African region.
The decision to set up a Sri Lankan consulate in Ethiopian was made with Ethiopia emerging as the ‘diplomatic and political capital of Africa’, with the African Union also being headquartered in Addis Ababa.
During his meeting with the Ethiopian President, Minister Samaraweera explained how the national unity government had taken the country forward during the past two years, based on the three pillars of democratization, reconciliation and development.
He further stated that Sri Lanka is in the process of finalizing a new Constitution that will celebrates the diversity of Sri Lanka, and said that the Ethiopian Constitution would be an inspiration for Sri Lanka, which is also multi-ethnic, a multi-religious and multi-lingual.
President Mulatu Teshome highlighted the importance of peace, stability and democracy for the progress in any developing country and stated that Sri Lanka and Ethiopia could do much more for each other, considering the similarities of the two countries.
President Teshome also said that Ethiopia could seek Sri Lankan expertise with regard to the apparel sector, as the island nation has proved that textiles and garment exports plays a key role in advancing the country's economy.
President Mulatu Teshom also accepted Foreign Minister Samaraweera’s invitation to visit Sri Lanka.