Rivlin Lands in Ethiopia

President Reuven Rivlin arrived in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Tuesday in the first visit of an Israeli head of state to that country.

During his two-day visit, Pres. Rivlin is scheduled to meet with his counterpart Mulatu Teshome, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, the Ethiopian Patriarch Abuna Mathias, and other senior officials.

Pres. Rivlin leads a delegation of Israeli politicians and business leaders, including two MKs of Ethiopian extraction — Avraham Neguise (Likud), chair of the Knesset Immigration and Absorption Committee and a member of the Caucus for the Jewish Community in Ethiopia, and Penina Tamanu-Shatahair (Yesh Atid), chair of the Caucus to Promote the Status of Jews From Ethiopia. He is to meet on Tuesday night with representatives of the Ethiopian Falash Mura community waiting to emigrate to Israel.

Shraga Brosh, President of the Manufacturers Association of Israel, in the entourage, said that “Ethiopia is experiencing huge growth, and we want to be part of it.”

Gadi Arieli, Director General of the Israel Export Institute, said he was heading a delegation of 35 representatives of firms in the fields of water, health, agriculture, energy, homeland security, and cybertechnology.