A Defining Moment for Building Prosperity Through Global Integration

By Ambassador Negus Kebede
Minister Plenipotentiary in Charge of WTO Affairs, Permanent Mission of Ethiopia to the United Nations Office and Other International Organizations in Geneva

In today’s interconnected global economy, few undertakings better reflect a country’s dedication to reform, transparency, and international integration than joining the World Trade Organization (WTO). Ethiopia—Africa’s second most populous nation and one of its fastest-growing economies—is now decisively reaffirming its path toward WTO membership, marking a pivotal chapter in its economic transformation and diplomatic engagement.

Since submitting its application in 2003, Ethiopia’s accession journey has been protracted and complex. Yet, in 2024, the country has taken a decisive turn. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the stewardship of the Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration, Ethiopia has renewed its determination to conclude accession in line with national development priorities, regional integration goals, and international obligations. This effort is not simply about joining a rules-based trading system—it is about securing Ethiopia’s rightful place in the global economic architecture and unlocking sustainable, inclusive growth.

A Journey of Reform and Readiness

Over the past years, Ethiopia has steadily advanced reforms in economic liberalization, infrastructure investment, and institutional modernization. The Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda, launched in 2019, laid the groundwork for transforming Ethiopia into a more open, private-sector-driven economy. Reforms in telecommunications, logistics, and finance have already sent strong signals to investors and trading partners.

Since 2020, Ethiopia has undertaken comprehensive economic reforms to align with WTO principles, focusing on market liberalization and institutional modernization. Key initiatives include the liberalization of the foreign exchange market, introducing a market-based system with broader access and improved transparency, and the creation of the Ethiopian Securities Exchange, which enhances long-term financing and investment opportunities for both the public and private sectors.

Ethiopia has also pursued sectoral liberalization in telecommunications, logistics, trade, and financial services, while professionalizing state-owned enterprises through Ethiopian Investment Holdings. Additionally, over 80 business regulatory reforms have been implemented to reduce costs, streamline procedures, and foster a predictable, investor-friendly environment. Collectively, these reforms aim to deepen financial markets, attract investment, and support sustainable economic growth.

In a congruent dovetailing, WTO accession now complements and reinforces this transformation. Ethiopia has updated its legislative action plans, services and goods offers, engaged in negotiations with key bilateral partners, and strengthened interministerial coordination to align domestic policies with WTO rules. The country has also taken notable steps to meet international standards on trade facilitation, sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) measures, and technical barriers to trade.

Central to this renewed drive is the 2024 WTO Accession Roadmap—a meticulously sequenced, time-bound framework that details legislative reforms, stakeholder consultations, negotiating rounds, and capacity-building initiatives. Endorsed at the highest levels of government, the roadmap provides for regular performance monitoring and policy oversight to maintain coherence, discipline, and momentum.

In this context, WTO accession has been repositioned not as a symbolic milestone, but as a strategic anchor for Ethiopia’s domestic transformation and deeper integration into the global economy.

Strategic Imperatives and the Global Context

Ethiopia views WTO accession not as an end in itself but as a means to build an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable economy. The government’s strategy emphasizes special and differential treatment, policy flexibility for Least Developed Countries (LDCs), and the safeguarding of national interests. Accession, in Ethiopia’s perspective, must reinforce—rather than undermine—its development priorities, including food sovereignty, employment creation, and structural transformation.

This approach is consistent with Ethiopia’s broader commitments under the African Union’s Agenda 2063, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and regional trade frameworks. A successful accession would enhance investor confidence and consolidate Ethiopia’s standing as a reliable, rules-based trade partner. It would also strengthen Ethiopia’s role in advancing regional integration, particularly through the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

For Ethiopia, WTO membership is a strategic imperative to accelerate industrialization, enhance the competitiveness of local firms, and achieve deeper integration into global value chains. In an era of fragmented trade regimes and shifting geopolitical alliances, Ethiopia regards multilateralism as an anchor of stability, predictability, and legitimacy. Accession is expected to improve Ethiopia’s trade and investment climate by fostering transparency, predictability, and enforceability of trade rules. It will help create a more level playing field for domestic and foreign enterprises, encourage export diversification, and generate employment—especially for the country’s large and youthful population.

Moreover, WTO membership offers Ethiopia the opportunity to consolidate trade and investment reforms, enhance the transparency of its trade regime, and gain access to binding dispute settlement mechanisms. As the country advances its Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda—including liberalization in telecommunications, finance, logistics, and manufacturing—WTO accession can serve as a vital anchor for sustained economic transformation, diversification, and competitiveness.

Ethiopia’s accession also reinforces the WTO’s role as a universal and inclusive institution. At a time when the multilateral trading system faces growing challenges to its relevance and effectiveness, Ethiopia’s pursuit of membership sends a powerful signal that developing and least-developed countries continue to recognize the value of rules-based trade, non-discrimination, and transparent, binding commitments. As WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala observed, although the world is passing through turbulence, the WTO is probably even more necessary today than when it was established in 1995. The fact that large economies such as Ethiopia wish to join the WTO is a testament to the continued importance of the multilateral trading system and the stability and transparency it offers.

Challenges on the Path Ahead

The path to WTO accession is complex and demanding. It entails rigorous bilateral market access negotiations, alignment of domestic policies with WTO agreements, and institutional strengthening. Certain domestic policy sensitivities—particularly in agriculture, state-owned enterprises, and services liberalization—require careful calibration to balance competitiveness with development objectives.

At the same time, Ethiopia must navigate complex bilateral demands, including issues related to investment rules, intellectual property, subsidies, and national treatment. While the special and differential treatment provisions for least-developed countries (LDCs) provide some flexibility, achieving a fair and development-friendly accession package remains a top priority.

Dr. Kassahun Gofe, Minister of Trade, Regional Integration, and Ethiopia’s Chief Trade Negotiator, has consistently emphasized Ethiopia’s readiness to engage constructively with all WTO Members. The country is committed to addressing outstanding issues in a business-like and time-sensitive manner and to finalizing the remaining elements of the accession package efficiently. Ethiopia calls upon WTO Members to exercise pragmatism, solidarity, and respect for national policy space. Accession should not impose unrealistic or excessive obligations; rather, it should foster domestic reform through partnership, dialogue, and targeted technical assistance, ensuring that accession is a mutually beneficial process.

A Whole-of-Government, Whole-of-Society Effort

Successfully concluding Ethiopia’s WTO accession requires far more than formal negotiations—it calls for sustained engagement across government, business, civil society, and development partners. To this end, Ethiopia has institutionalized inter-agency coordination and expanded awareness campaigns, technical training, and private sector consultations.

Beyond the executive branch, the Ethiopian Parliament, judiciary, and regional administrations are increasingly involved to ensure the enactment and enforcement of WTO-consistent legislation. Guided by strong leadership from the Prime Minister’s Office and coordinated through the National WTO Steering Committee, the process exemplifies a genuine whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach.

The government recognizes that accession is not merely a procedural milestone but a long-term commitment to a complex framework of global rules, obligations, and institutional norms. What sets the current phase apart is the unequivocal political will at the highest level to see the process through to completion.

The fifth meeting of the Working Party on the Accession of Ethiopia, held in March 2025, marked a strategic turning point. Ethiopia submitted key documents, including updated goods and services offers, detailed responses to WTO Members’ questions, and questionnaires on import licensing and state trading enterprises. Bilateral negotiations with dozens of WTO Members are now underway, reflecting Ethiopia’s readiness to address both technical and political dimensions of the process in a transparent, results-oriented manner.

Notably, Ethiopia’s revised services offer includes commitments in priority sectors such as finance, telecommunications, education, transportation, and tourism. In goods, Ethiopia has made bold commitments, with tariff bindings aligned with the benchmark levels typically required of least-developed countries (LDCs). This demonstrates both a determination to meet WTO Members’ expectations and a commitment to preserving necessary policy space for development.

Looking ahead, Ethiopia is preparing intensively for the sixth Working Party meeting, scheduled for the last week of September 2025, which will be a critical step in advancing the accession process.

A Call for Strategic Partnership

Ethiopia’s accession to the WTO is not merely a national aspiration; it reflects the country’s long-standing commitment to multilateralism and regional integration. The government’s goal of completing the accession process ahead of the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference in Yaoundé, Cameroon, carries both symbolic and strategic significance.

Ethiopia has played a tenaciously pivotal role in the African Union, consistently contributed to regional and global peace and security, emerged as a continental hub for the aviation industry, and demonstrated a steadfast commitment to multilateralism. Ethiopia is not seeking shortcuts; rather, it is calling for fairness, understanding, and constructive support. As a committed development partner, the country invites WTO members and international institutions to accompany its journey through active engagement, capacity-building, and mutually beneficial cooperation.

Ethiopia’s accession will represent a milestone for Africa, marking the first least-developed country (LDC) accession in Sub-Saharan Africa since 2016. It will serve as both a precedent and an inspiration for other African countries pursuing WTO membership. Moreover, it will strengthen the integration of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) with the global economy, leveraging WTO principles to enhance regional cooperation and trade opportunities.

Conclusion: A Transformative Opportunity

Ethiopia’s renewed drive toward WTO membership goes beyond procedural formalities—it is a political and economic choice: a choice to open its markets, modernize its economy, and engage confidently with the global trading system. It reflects a vote of confidence in multilateralism, the rules-based system, and Ethiopia’s capacity to compete and thrive in an increasingly complex global economy.

Ethiopia looks to its partners to continue supporting its accession by recognizing the scope of domestic reforms, applying the Guidelines on LDC Accession in a spirit of solidarity, and contributing to the successful conclusion of the accession process in the near future.

This accession effort is emblematic of a broader transformation in Ethiopia’s economic governance and global engagement strategy. Guided by reform-minded leadership, backed by broad institutional commitment, and supported by international partners, Ethiopia is on a credible path toward WTO membership.

The time is ripe. With sustained commitment, coordinated action, strategic diplomacy, and international goodwill, the conclusion of Ethiopia’s WTO accession is within reach, ushering in a new era of prosperity, partnership, and peace.

This article originally appreared on The Brief on 01 Septmeber 2025.