The first diplomatic contacts between Türkiye and Ethiopia date back to 1896 with the exchange of delegations during the rule of Sultan Abdülhamid II and Emperor Menelik II. Following the opening of the first Ottoman-Turkish Consulate General in Harar in 1912, the first Embassy of the Republic of Türkiye in Sub-Saharan Africa was opened in Addis Ababa in 1926. Ethiopia opened its Embassy in Türkiye in 1933. The Ethiopian Embassy in Ankara was closed in 1984 during the Communist Derg regime and was re-opened in 2006.

Mutual high-level visits, the inauguration of Turkish Airlines’ direct flights to Addis Ababa as of April 2006; the establishment of the first TIKA (Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency) Office in Addis Ababa in 2005, first in Africa and development aid programs towards Ethiopia have been significant steps which have contributed to the development of our bilateral relations.

H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, paid an official visit to Ethiopia on 21-23 January 2015. H.E. Mulatu Teshome Wirtu, former President of Ethiopia, who was also the former Ethiopian Ambassador to Ankara paid a state visit to Türkiye on 6-10 February 2017 and attended to the II. Türkiye- Africa Economy and Business Forum on 10-11 October 2018.

While the number of Turkish companies investing in Ethiopia in 2003 was only 1 and the number of employed people was 5, yet Turkish business people have become one of the largest private sector employers in Ethiopia by employing more than 20,000 Ethiopians with approximately 200 Turkish companies. Total investment volume surpassed 2 billion dollars, 13 projects have been completed so far.

Bilateral trade volume between Türkiye and Ethiopia amounted to 398,8 million USD in 2019 (exports were 378,3 million USD and imports were 27,5 million USD), and to 272 million USD in 2020 (exports were 231 million and imports were 41 million USD).

Türkiye-Ethiopia 8th Session of the JEC was held in Ankara on 14 January 14, 2021 under the co-chairmanship of Minister of Interior H.E. Süleyman Soylu and Ethiopia Trade and Industry Minister Melaku Alebel.

Turkish Government provides undergraduate and postgraduate s cholarships for Ethiopian students. As of 2020, 632 Ethiopian students have been awarded scholarships at various Turkish universities.