Emmanuel Macron sets sail for Ethiopia

In conflict for almost half a century, Eritrea and Ethiopia have just buried the hatchet. On an official visit to the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Monday (July 16th), Eritrean President Isaias Afeworki reopened his embbady and signed with his counterpart a "joint declaration of peace and friendship". On the 18th, a first commercial flight connected for the first time the capitals of the two border countries in the spotlight. This unexpected reconciliation was provoked by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed who last month accepted a draft resolution of the old territorial dispute.

On July 13, Emmanuel Macron called him to congratulate him on this "historic gesture" and the "new page" that opens up in relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea. The call from Franais was an opportunity to show a keen interest for this country with great potential.

An African giant, two France, with a population of nearly 100 million, half a million young graduates each year and an annual growth rate of 9%, is often cited as one of the most promising countries in the world. from the continent. Its GDP per capita has doubled in ten years. The Chinese invest heavily in the construction of a railway line and that of the great dam of the Renaissance, which should provide 6000 megawatts per year.

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President Macron invited the Prime Minister of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed in Paris in the autumn

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Last March, a delegation of French business leaders was taken to Addis Ababa by the Medef. Then, former Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn had just resigned to protest the slow pace of reform and clan management of resources. The situation lacked stability with regard to entrepreneurs. "It needed deep and rapid reforms. We had to move quickly, otherwise we risked the disintegration of our country, "said the former prime minister last April at a forum in Kigali. "This is the first time in 3000 years of history that an Ethiopian leader leaves power deliberately (..) He put the other policies in the face of their responsibility, it is remarkable," commented the philanthropist Mo Ibrahim.

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The results were not long in coming. The new government has resumed the reform agenda and proved its good will in ending the conflict with Eritrea. Would it be time to take a real interest in what is happening in Ethiopia? This is obviously the view of President Macron. During his telephone conversation with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, he recalled "the availability of France and French companies to support reforms," ​​we are told at the Elysee. He also expressed the desire to "consolidate partnerships with the African Union" whose headquarters are in Addis Ababa and whose President Paul Kagame was recently received at the Elysee Palace. Finally Macron went further by inviting his Ethiopian counterpart in Paris next autumn and also expressed his "willingness to travel to Ethiopia, which he praised the cultural, intellectual and sports."

The choice of Ethiopia, like that of Nigeria, where the president visited early July also reflects the desire to create new balances. A strategy badumed at the Quai d'Orsay, where some believe that France would have everything to gain by privileging relations with the middle powers and to distance himself from the great powers.

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