Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day state visit to Ethiopia on December 16-17 is being described as a landmark moment that will bolster bilateral ties and deepen cooperation on global issues, including United Nations reform and the BRICS agenda, India’s Ambassador to Ethiopia Anil Kumar Rai said. Speaking before the trip, Ambassador Rai emphasized the long-standing, friendly relationship between the two nations and noted that both are BRICS members.
Rai highlighted that Modi will be the first Indian prime minister to visit Ethiopia in 15 years and that the trip — his first to the country — carries a broad and substantive agenda aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation and coordinating on international and regional matters addressed within BRICS. India is set to chair the grouping in 2026, and Ethiopia, having joined BRICS in January 2024, is viewed as an important partner in that context.
Tracing BRICS’s origins, Rai recalled that the group began as BRIC after a 2006 meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and held its inaugural summit in Russia in 2009; South Africa joined in 2010. Ethiopia was among several countries admitted as full members in January 2024 following invitations issued in August 2023 under South Africa’s chairmanship — along with Egypt, Iran and the UAE.
Officials say discussions during Modi’s visit will span multiple sectors, with expected announcements to the media on the evening of December 16. The Ethiopia stop is the second leg of a three-nation tour that began in Jordan; Modi is visiting at the invitation of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali. According to India’s Ministry of External Affairs, the talks will cover wide-ranging aspects of India–Ethiopia ties and underscore both countries’ shared commitments as partners in the Global South.
