ADDIS ABABA, Feb. 9 (Xinhua) -- Senior Ethiopian government officials have met to discuss the country's integration into the BRICS grouping and to ensure mutual benefits within the BRICS mechanism. This came as Ethiopia's BRICS Senior Officials Committee, which brings together senior government officials from various federal institutions, held its second session on Thursday, the Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement issued Friday. The committee discussed, among other things, how best to serve the East African country's national interest within the BRICS framework, according to the statement. In its membership, Ethiopia will actively participate in BRICS, with a primary focus on fostering partnerships and collaboration for development, people-to-people relations, and strengthening the multilateral system, the ministry said. Upon its membership in the BRICS mechanism, the Ethiopian government established a national ministerial committee and a senior officials committee with a view to ensuring the country's active participation in the grouping. The senior officials committee reports to the national ministerial committee. Meles Alem, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, on Thursday hailed the country's maiden participation as the group's member at the BRICS Sherpas and Sous-Sherpas Meeting, recently held in Moscow, Russia. Alem, while briefing the media, described Ethiopian participation in the meeting as the country's biggest diplomatic victory of the week. The BRICS is the acronym for the emerging-market cooperative mechanism that initially included Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. During the 15th BRICS Summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa, in August 2023, countries including Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates were invited to join the group. The membership of these countries took effect on Jan. 1, 2024. Upon its official membership into the group, Ethiopia, Africa's second most populous country, expressed its readiness to play a constructive role in the BRICS family, with particular emphasis on fostering South-South cooperation.
