Ethiopia Envisions Maritime Access for Common Regional Benefit, Global Trade Integration: President Taye

Addis Ababa, September 24, 2026 (FMC) — Ethiopia believes maritime access can be managed for the common benefit and progress of all countries in the region as it pursues reliable and dependable access to the sea to sustain its economic development and deepen integration into the global trading system, President Taye Atske-Selassie said.

Addressing the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, President Taye said Ethiopia’s efforts to build a strong economy cannot generate sustained development without reliable and dependable access to the sea.

“We believe that maritime access can be managed for the common benefit and progress of all countries in the region,” he said.

“It is upon this unwavering aspiration that we are pursuing all possible diplomatic avenues to secure access to and from the sea to ensure Ethiopia’s integration into a global trading system,” the President added.

President Taye raised the issue while outlining Ethiopia’s progress in renewable energy, connectivity, food security, manufacturing and urban development, saying the country is seeking genuine and sustained regional and international cooperation to sustain and scale up these achievements.

He highlighted Ethiopia’s clean-energy potential, food-security gains and major connectivity investments as part of the country’s broader development trajectory.

The President said Ethiopia has transitioned from a wheat importer to one of the largest wheat producers in Africa and is working to expand renewable-energy generation, while also investing in major infrastructure projects intended to strengthen connectivity and continental trade.

He cited the planned 12.5-billion-US-dollar international airport, which he said will handle 110 million passengers and about 4 million tons of cargo annually, describing the project as catalytic to the African Continental Free Trade Area.

President Taye said Ethiopia’s development efforts require sustained regional and international cooperation, linking the country’s maritime-access agenda to its wider objective of strengthening economic connectivity and participation in global trade.

He further emphasized Ethiopia’s commitment to diplomatic engagement, presenting maritime access as an issue that can advance both Ethiopia’s economic interests and the common progress of countries in the region.