ADDIS ABABA - China Jiangsu International and the Addis Ababa Education Bureau on Tuesday signed an agreement to construct two schools in the Ethiopian capital.

The China-Africa Friendship Schools Project will cost 60 million yuan ($9.6 million).

Signing the contract, Xie Wei, deputy general manager of China Jiangsu International, said his company would complete the project as per the agreement to contribute to deepening the existing relations and friendship between China and Ethiopia.

The deputy general manager told reporters that the schools, which will be constructed by international standards, will each have 26 classrooms and be completed within 20 months.

Xie said his company has been in Ethiopia for more than a decade carrying out various projects in the African country.

China Jiangsu has successfully completed the projects of Hawassa University in southern Ethiopia and Hope University in Addis Ababa, he said with confidence.

The China-Africa Friendship School Project "is another landmark for the relations between China and Ethiopia. We will carry out the project strictly as per the agreement to make our contribution to deepen the friendship," he noted.

Dilamo Otore, head of the Addis Ababa Education Bureau, said the project would contribute to the development of the education sector in Ethiopia, as part of efforts by the Chinese government to help the country over the past decade.

"The Chinese government has made major contribution to attain the millennium development goal (MDG), which means achieving universal primary education for girls and boys," he said.