Pakistan, Ethiopia to explore trilateral maritime alliance involving Djibouti

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Ethiopia have agreed to explore the establishment of a trilateral maritime alliance, potentially involving Djibouti, aimed at enhancing trade connectivity between Asia and Africa.

The understanding was reached during a meeting between Federal Minister for Maritime Affairs Muhammad Junaid Anwar Chaudhry and Ethiopian Ambassador Dr Oumer Hussien, who called on the minister here on Thursday. Both the sides reviewed proposals and measures to expand bilateral trade and economic engagement.

Chaudhry underscored Pakistan’s growing focus on expanding maritime links with African nations and proposed the formation of a three-country alliance comprising Pakistan, Djibouti and Ethiopia. He noted that the framework could be expanded to include additional countries based on mutual consultations.

The minister shared the plan with the Ethiopian Ambassador and said that, in April 2025, Pakistan started working on a new maritime trade corridor connecting Karachi Port with Djibouti, a key gateway to East Africa to enhance trade with the East African Community (EAC).

The East African Community, comprising countries such as Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania, and Uganda is home to over 500 million people, and has a collective gross domestic product (GDP) of approximately USD 600 billion.

To ensure the successful implementation of this plan, an inter-ministerial consortium is under consideration from relevant ministries and other stakeholders, Chaudhry said.

The minister highlighted that despite being a landlocked country, Ethiopia could significantly enhance its trade capacity by utilising the Port of Djibouti under a structured maritime arrangement. He added that a formal agreement could be signed following the completion of necessary groundwork, with a ceremony planned to mark the occasion.

Ambassador Dr Oumer welcomed the proposal and emphasised the need for technical consultations between experts from both sides and both sides designated focal persons to deliberate on operational modalities and develop a practical framework for the proposed alliance.

Junaid Chaudhry also briefed the ambassador on the performance and capacity of Pakistani ports, stating that recent cargo handling figures reflected a substantial increase in operational efficiency. He noted that port activity in recent weeks had demonstrated throughput levels comparable to those typically achieved over a much longer period.

Highlighting efforts to strengthen economic engagement with Africa, the minister referred to a business facilitation initiative titled “Africa House”, aimed at providing a one-window platform for African traders to access Pakistani goods and services.

The Ethiopian envoy appreciated Pakistan’s outreach under its “Look Africa” and “Engage Africa” policies, describing them as reflective of a strong commitment to building enduring partnerships with East African nations. He noted that Ethiopia imports pharmaceuticals, surgical instruments, garments, fertilizers, rice and food products and expressed optimism about further expanding bilateral and regional cooperation under the proposed maritime framework.

Concluding the meeting, the both sides agreed to maintain close coordination to translate the proposal into a practical initiative at the earliest.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026