Keynote Address by H.E. Dr. Gedion Timothewos Minister of Foreign Affairs of the F.D.R.E At the Chatham House Conference on “Africa’s Rising Influence: Advancing Agency in Foreign Policy and Global Governance” 5 November 2025

Excellencies, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure to welcome you all to Addis Ababa, the diplomatic capital of Africa and the home of our continental union. This city has been the site for some of the most consequential moments in modern Africa’s political history. Therefore, it is a fitting venue for a collective reflection on how our continent can shape the global order during this time of profound change.

Only a few days ago, a convoy of trucks as well as cargo planes left Ethiopia carrying the first shipment of goods traded under the African Continental Free Trade Area. They were bound for Kenya, Somalia, and South Africa, filled with coffee, fruits, and processed foods. It was a modest start, yet deeply symbolic.

Those trucks and planes carried more than merchandise — they carried the promise of a continent trading with itself, investing in itself, and believing in its own capacity.

Such seemingly simple acts capture the essence of what this gathering seeks to advance: African agency, solidarity and cooperation as the foundations of our rising collective influence.

We are meeting at a moment when global power is dispersing and the old assumptions of international politics are being redefined. As the world transits toward multipolarity, Africa must not be a bystander or a prize in someone else’s contest for influence.

In a continent that is obsessed with football, I hope you will forgive me if I use a soccer metaphor to illustrate the reality of multipolarity.

If we were to use a football analogy to provide a simple depiction of the Cold War era, the best parallel would be with the Spanish La Liga. As most of those who follow the European football leagues understand, in the Spanish La Liga, the main contenders for the championship are Barcelona and Real Madrid. The real competition is between these two clubs.

Of course, there are other clubs in the league, but it is these two clubs are more often than not, the most likely to finish at the top of the league. During the Cold War, just like the Spanish La Liga, there were two contenders for global supremacy. There were two superpowers, and everybody else was playing second fiddle.

Then, the Cold War came to an end. The world witnessed a unique unipolar moment that is very similar to the French Ligue 1, where PSG is the sole dominant force. Year after year, one entity takes the top position without much difficulty or serious challenge.

But this era of unipolarity seems to be coming to an end. Right now, international relations are more akin to the English Premier League, where several clubs compete fiercely to finish in the top five. In this League, competition is intense and outcomes cannot be predicted with confidence.

Today, we find ourselves in such a context. We live in a world where competition is becoming more salient than cooperation. The entities engaged in this competition are not just the big powers. There are also middle powers in intense competition with one another as they each try to carve out a sphere of influence for themselves.

The scope of competition includes the economic, technological, and military spheres. It is rife with transient alliances, pragmatic transactions, and a complex web of considerations that are difficult to pin down.

Normative frameworks, established national doctrines, multilateral institutions and procedures seem to be having a diminished effectiveness.

The question we need to consider is how the African continent should approach this situation.

What are the opportunities and risks this multipolar world present to Africa?

In this context, is there room for collective continental action?

Will Africa be subject to another scramble or would it emerge as a rising power in its own right?

How can we expand and consolidate our influence?

This and many other related questions require serious deliberation. We need to reflect deeply and critically on these questions.

If Africa is to be a co-author of the evolving global order, we need to be conscious of the new reality and wide awake to its implications.

The African Union’s accession to the G20 is a recognition that the world’s challenges — from equitable growth to climate resilience — cannot be solved without African participation and leadership.

Yet participation alone is not enough. Our task now is to turn presence into influence, and influence into tangible outcomes for our people.

For Ethiopia, the key lies in synergetic unity of purpose, institutional strength, and shared prosperity. Our continental frameworks already provide the tools we need — the African Union, the Regional Economic Communities, and the AfCFTA.

What we must do now is make them work in harmony and effectively. The existence of the institutions should not be an end in itself.

Regional organizations such as IGAD, ECOWAS, and SADC should serve as operational engines of continental integration. When these regional blocks are better aligned with the AU Commission and the AfCFTA Secretariat, Africa can act with one voice — in trade negotiations, in peace initiatives, and in shaping global norms.

Ethiopia’s own experience shows that regional cooperation is not a choice but a necessity. In the Horn of Africa, we are working with our neighbours to expand cross-border infrastructure, trade corridors, and power interconnections.

This imperative of interdependence is a principle that should guide our thinking and action.

The reform of global governance structures is another pillar of our collective aspiration. Institutions created eight decades ago no longer reflect today’s realities. The United Nations Security Council, for instance, should include full permanent African representation.

This is not a demand for privilege but for fairness — a recognition that Africa contributes the most to peacekeeping, bears the greatest cost of global instability, and deserves to have a meaningful voice in global decision making.

Similarly, the international financial architecture must also be reformed to reflect our economic realities. Ethiopia supports the establishment of a regional credit rating agency that captures the real dynamism of African economies, free from outdated perceptions.

We also advocate for reforms that expand access to development finance, climate adaptation resources, and debt restructuring mechanisms that enable countries to invest in their future.

Peace and prosperity are inseparable. Our continent’s security challenges cannot be outsourced; they must be met through African-led solutions that prioritize prevention, dialogue, and regional solidarity. Ethiopia continues to support the African Peace and Security Architecture and efforts to secure predictable financing for peace operations.

Africa’s influence, however, will not be defined only by political and economic factors. It will also be shaped by its culture, its creativity, and its people.

From music to innovation, from fashion to technology, our youth are reshaping global perceptions of Africa continent. This soft power — the power of ideas and identity — must become an integral part of our foreign policy.

It is through telling our own stories, in our own voices, that we will secure a rightful place in global discourse.

Excellencies,

the world is watching Africa with renewed attention. The question is no longer whether Africa matters — but how Africa will choose to lead.

From the AfCFTA trucks crossing our borders to the African Union’s seat at the G20 table, from our peace missions to our green energy ambitions, every initiative signals a continent asserting its voice and shaping its own destiny.

Nevertheless, we need to bear in mind the fact that progress is not linear and that we still face many challenges. Our rise should not be a short-term phenomenon. Africa’s rise should not be seen as a transient illusion built on fashionable platitudes.

In this vein, we should remind ourselves, we are still very far from the Africa we want. We are still not close to an African century.

Excellencies,

We need to look at the longue duree and imagine a future where we have not just influence but decisive impact. We need to lay the foundations for an African century.

If demographic trends are anything to go by, the 22^nd century is bound to be the African century. For that to be a reality, the choices we make, the commitments we enter into and the priorities we adopt today make all the difference.

Preserving our sovereignty over our resources, channelling the energy and dynamism of the youth in more constructive and productive directions are among the paramount duties of our generation.

Ethiopia stands ready to work with all African nations and our international partners to ensure that this moment of possibility becomes a sustained era of progress.

The future we seek — one of dignity, solidarity, and prosperity — depends on how we deploy our collective capacity as a continent with bold strategic foresight.

Thank you.