Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said his country will abolish trade barriers with neighbor Somalia as part of an effort to create a single market in the Horn of Africa region.
Abiy, the first Ethiopian leader to visit in more than 40 years, made the comments Saturday at a joint media briefing with Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo in the capital, Mogadishu. The two leaders held talks on business, security, peace efforts and integration during Abiy’s four-hour stay in the city.
Landlocked Ethiopia, Africa’s second-most populous nation and its fastest-growing economy, plans investment in four Somalian ports and in road networks that would link the countries, according to a statement issued by the two leaders.