The Delegation of the European Union to Ethiopia was opened in Addis Ababa in February 1975. Starting from 1 December 2009 with the Lisbon Treaty entering into force, the Delegation of the European Commission was transformed into the Delegation of the European Union to Ethiopia. The Delegation in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia is one of over 130 European Union Delegations around the world and is partnered in Addis Ababa by the Delegation of the European Union to the African Union. The new office of the European Investment Bank in Ethiopia, and with links to the African Union, is collocated with the Delegation.
The Delegation has the status of a diplomatic mission and officially represents the European Union in Ethiopia. The institutions of the European Union are the European Commission, the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union, the Court of Justice and the Court of Auditors. Today the European Union is made up of 27 Member States, has a population of around 500 million and is the largest trading bloc in the world.
The Delegation's mandate includes the following:
- To promote the political and economic relations between Ethiopia and the European Union by maintaining extensive relations with governmental institutions and by increasing awareness of the EU, it’s institutions and its programmes;
- To monitor the implementation of the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and Ethiopia;
- To inform the public of the development of the EU and to explain and defend individual EU policies;
- To participate in the implementation of the European Union's assistance programmes
