First Lady Nguyen Thi Hien, spouse of President Tran Dai Quang, visited and presented gifts to patients being provided with care by Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia, a charitable organisation dedicated to eradicating fistula in Ethiopia, on August 24.

First Lady Nguyen Thi Hien visits Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia while accompanying President Tran Dai Quang to Ethiopia. (Image: baoquocte)

Hien accompanied her husband on a state visit to Ethiopia from August 23 – 25, which aims to discuss measures to boost the relations between Vietnam and Ethiopia, particularly in economics and trade. This is the first trip to Ethiopia by a head of State of Vietnam since the two countries established diplomatic ties in 1976.

Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia is a registered charitable organisation in Ethiopia dedicated to the treatment and prevention of childbirth injuries called obstetric fistula. The foundation was established in 1974 when the country was confronting the tragic situation of thousands of Ethiopian women suffering from obstetric fistula.

On the same day, the Vietnamese Ministry of Planning and Investment, and Industry and Trade in collaboration with the Foreign Ministry of Ethiopia to host the Vietnam – Ethiopia business forum, gathering more than 300 enterprises from both sides in an effort to improve the bilateral trade and investment.

A series of meetings also took place between Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh and Ethiopian Trade Minister Melaku Alebel; Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Xuan Cuong and Ethiopian Minister of Agriculture and Livestock Shiferaw Shigute; and Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung and Deputy Ministers of Communications and Information Technology Sisay Tola Yadete and Mebra Mariam Kallo.

Since the establishment of the diplomatic ties in 1976, the two-way trade has grown continuously, hitting USD 11.3 million in 2017. Vietnam exported USD 2.2 million worth of goods to Ethiopia, mainly in textiles, leather and footwear, and chemical products.

President Quang and his wife departed for Egypt on August 25 to begin a five-day State visit at the invitation of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi./.

VNF/VNA