Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim Undertook Historic Africa Tour
From 18 to 25 November 2025, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim undertook a historic three-nation Africa tour. First, he returned the visit of Ethiopian PM Abiy Ali to Malaysia in October 2024. Then, from 20 to 23 November, he travelled to South Africa to attend the G20 Summit. Finally, he ended his tour in Kenya, as the two countries celebrate 60 years of diplomatic ties this year.
PM Anwar brought along an impressive 80-member-strong Malaysian delegation, including high-level government officials and captains of industry. In particular, PM Anwar was accompanied by his Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Aziz and Minister at PMO Zaliha Mustafa.
In Ethiopia, in addition to meeting with PM Ali, PM Anwar met with President Taye Atske-Selassie and African Union Commission Chair Mahamoud Youssouf. PM Anwar also delivered a keynote address at the Ethiopia-Malaysia Business Forum under the theme of ‘Bridging Civilizations, Building Futures: Strengthening Afro-Malaysia Partnership for Shared Prosperity.’ Some 200 delegates took part in the Forum, coming mostly from the manufacturing and services sectors. Ethiopian PM Ali commended Malaysia’s for the success in its #industrialization, in particular in the electronics sector, and believes Ethiopia can indeed benefit from Malaysia’s experience.
On the other hand, PM Anwar noted that Ethiopia stands out as one of the largest markets that is experiencing vigorous growth. Due to its central role in Panafricanism, Ethiopia was chosen to host the African Union (#AU) headquarters in the capital, Addis Ababa. It thus comes as no surprise that there is already a significant Malaysian presence in Ethiopia. PM Anwar believes that Ethiopia can act as the gateway into the African Union for Malaysia, just as Malaysia can act as the gateway for the African Union into ASEAN. In September 2025, Malaysia reopened its embassy in Addis Ababa, underscoring Malaysia’s renewed commitment to reinforcing ties with Ethiopia.
Several Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) were signed in the fields of Green Economy, Tourism, Health, Aviation, to name a few. The cities of Kuala Lumpur and Addis Ababa also inked a collaboration agreement. PM Ali also highlighted that Ethiopia will be hosting #COP32 in 2027 and welcomes the cooperation on #ClimateChange with Malaysia.
“For too long, unfair trading practices and the exploitation of poorer countries’ resources have gone unaddressed. We no longer want hectoring and lectures or pious platitudes. We want concrete action.”
Malaysia PM Anwar Ibrahim
In South Africa, PM Anwar attended the G20 Summit (#G20Summit2025) in his capacity as #ASEAN Chair in 2025. During his speech, Anwar underlined that the G20 must strive to reduce the systemic inequities in the current world order. In addition to attending the Summit, PM Anwar had the opportunity to have bilateral meetings with several leaders on the sidelines of the Summit.
During his meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, he explored cooperation in Defense, Science, and Innovation. Both countries signed several MoU in the fields of agriculture, green energy, technical training, and #halal cooperation.
In Kenya, PM Anwar’s visit followed more or less the same pattern as in Ethiopia. After meeting with Kenyan President William Ruto, he attended the Malaysia-Kenya Business Forum on 24 November 2025.
PM Anwar sees great potential for Malaysia and Kenya to create win-win cooperation in the fields of digital technology, renewable energy, automotive, agro-industry, and the halal industry. Like the AU, PM Anwar has put #RegionalIntegration as one of the top items on his agenda while heading ASEAN.