Addis Ababa, January 15, 2026 (FMC) — Senior government officials outlined Ethiopia’s achievements in macroeconomic and institutional reforms and discussed priorities for the coming years during the Finance Forward Ethiopia conference held yesterday at the Adwa Victory Memorial in Addis Ababa in the presence of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
On the occasion, Mr. Ahmed Shide, Minister of Finance, said seven years ago Ethiopia faced severe macroeconomic challenges, including imbalances, a heavy debt burden, foreign exchange shortages, and market instability.
He said government reforms have produced tangible results, enabling Ethiopia to become one of Africa’s fastest-growing economies. Mr. Ahmed highlighted that government revenue, including external inflows, has increased fivefold since the reforms, with tax revenue rising by 400 percent and overall revenue up 446 percent compared to 2010.
External resource mobilization reached 25 billion US dollars, the budget allocated to poverty-focused sectors quadrupled, and the fiscal deficit fell from 2.5 percent in 2010 to 0.9 percent in 2017, the Minister added.
For her part, Ms. Aynalem Niguse, Minister of Revenues, discussed efforts to modernize the tax system, build institutional capacity, and ensure sustainable revenue growth.
She said that while only 10.1 percent of taxpayers filed electronically in 2011, by 2017, 94 percent of taxpayers submitted returns through e-filing, and 64 percent paid their taxes electronically. In the first half of 2018, revenue collection reached 709 billion birr, an increase of 258 billion birr compared to the same period the previous year, with a total target of 2.1 trillion birr for the year.
Minister Aynalem said work will continue to expand technology-driven tax administration, prevent tax evasion, and strengthen trust between taxpayers and the administration.
Eyob Tekalign, Governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia, outlined reforms in monetary policy, the foreign exchange system, and the financial sector.
He said inflation has been reduced from over 30 percent in June 2019 to 9.7 percent by December 2025, and foreign exchange reforms have narrowed the gap between official and parallel markets.
Governor Eyob noted that private sector credit now accounts for 77 percent of total lending and 254 million digital accounts have been established. He said priority areas going forward include maintaining single-digit inflation, stabilizing the foreign exchange market, implementing bank mergers, establishing a regulatory institution for insurance, and strengthening the interest-free (Islamic) banking system.
Ms. Hana Tekulku, Director General of the Ethiopian Capital Market Authority, described progress in Ethiopia’s capital market system, first introduced in 2011 E.C. as part of the home-grown economic reforms.
She said three institutions have been established — the Capital Market Authority, the Ethiopian Securities Exchange, and the Central Securities Depository — with 15 service providers licensed and 10 companies in the process of listing. Paid-up capital has reached 1.5 billion birr, and interbank money trading is expanding.
Hana said reform efforts will continue to enable the sector to support innovation, job creation, and national development.
Meanwhile, Brook Taye, CEO of Ethiopian Investment Holdings, discussed consolidation of 41 state-owned development enterprises under one umbrella, equipping them with modern management and governance frameworks.
He said the enterprises have transitioned from losses to profitability, with total revenue increasing from 704 billion birr to 6.1 trillion birr over four years, total assets reaching 8.2 trillion birr, and participation in 36 major projects. Brook emphasized efforts to further strengthen the contribution of state-owned enterprises to Ethiopia’s economy and to position them competitively within the African market.
Balcha Reba, Director General of the Ethiopian Communications Authority, said the telecommunications sector has been reformed to enable growth and serve as a driver for other sectors. He highlighted the introduction of new operators, expansion of network coverage, and a significant increase in mobile subscribers.
Balcha noted that the sector plays a key role in enhancing financial inclusion, efficiency, and access to modern services.
The conference provided a platform for officials to showcase the results of Ethiopia’s reform programs and outline priorities across fiscal management, financial sector development, revenue administration, capital markets, investment governance, and public enterprise reform, emphasizing the importance of coordination and institutional readiness in sustaining the country’s reform momentum.