Ethiopia, South Korea Sign $20 Million Grant Agreement
ADDIS ABABA – Ethiopia and Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) signed a $20 million grant agreement that will fund two development projects in the East African nation.
State Minister of Finance Semereta Sewasew and Country Director of KOICA Ethiopia Office Lee Byunghwa signed the memorandum of understanding on Tuesday.
The Ministry of Finance said the MoU was signed with an objective of setting a framework for the implementation of KOICA’s 2022 grant program, which will contribute to Ethiopia’s development push via its Ten-Year Prospective Plan.
As per KOICA, the grant program will initiate two projects with a $10 million budget each, beginning 2022.
The first project will help enhance the competitiveness of the Leather and Leather products sector by establishing a well developed business incubation center.
The center will provide full fledged support to emerging and existing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the sector to increase their productivity, competitiveness and market link, thereby improving the sector’s export performance.
The second project is intended for a community-led solution for inclusive socio-economic resilience towards sustainable peace in conflict-affected areas in the country, according to the finance ministry.
The project contributes to enhancing social cohesion and economic resilience of displacement-affected communities.
