Ethiopia, Lebanon mull over finalizing labor agreement

Addis Ababa, March 15, 2022 (FBC) – Consul General of Ethiopia Temesgen Oumer conferred with Abdullah Bou Habib, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emmigrants of the Republic of Lebanon regarding the current situation in Ethiopia, ways to strengthen bilateral ties between the two sides as well as regional issues.

During the meeting, Temesgen Oumer briefed the Minister about the security challenges in Northern Ethiopia. He briefed that the Government of Ethiopia, after neutralizing the threat posed by the terrorist Tigray People Liberation Front to the unity and sovereignty of the country, has declared cease fire, ordered the national defense forces to stop from entering Tigray, released prisoners, and established institutional and legal mechanism for comprehensive National Dialogue.

The Consul General also took the occasion to explain about the commencement of initial power generation of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam; and noted his government’s dedication to work with downstream countries based on equitable utilization of the waters of the Nile and through the ongoing AU facilitation on the tripartite negotiation.

Besides this, Temesgen has recalled to set up a mechanism to finalize the draft labour agreement submitted by the Ethiopian side aimed to make smooth labour transfer between the two countries.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants of the Republic of Lebanon, on his side; stressed his firm belief on patience and dialogue to avoid war regardless of multiple causes for it; and appreciated the Ethiopian Government’s endeavor and current signals for peace and stability in Ethiopia in this regard.

He also stressed the need to continuing the current process of negotiation on the filling of the Dam, taking the concerns of the three countries into consideration. Finally, he also confirmed the need to expedite the process of negotiation to finalize the labour agreement between the two countries.