Horn of Africa Finance Ministers Push for Trade, Energy, and Borderland Development
Addis Ababa, October 17, 2025 (FMC) – Finance ministers from the Horn of Africa pushed for enhanced regional trade, energy cooperation, and borderland development during the Horn of Africa Initiative Ministerial Meeting on the sidelines of the 2025 IMF and World Bank Annual Meetings in Washington, D.C., Ethiopia’s Finance Ministry told Fana Media Corporation.
Ethiopia’s Finance Minister Ahmed Shide participated alongside counterparts from other Horn of Africa countries, representatives from development partners, and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD). The session was co-chaired by Somalia’s Finance Minister Bihi Iman Egeh and Ndiame Diop, Vice President for Eastern and Southern Africa at the World Bank.
The meeting addressed key economic issues in the region, particularly borderlands development, and reviewed progress in implementing the Horn of Africa Borderlands Development Roadmap, adopted two years ago.
Minister Shide updated participants on Ethiopia’s initiatives with regional benefits, highlighting the recent completion of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which will facilitate cross-border energy trade, and the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), aimed at boosting intra-regional trade and creating opportunities for borderland communities.
He commended the progress achieved through the Initiative in promoting regional integration and emphasized the importance of further advancing economic cooperation through the Horn of Africa Initiative platform.
In his closing remarks, Minister Shide expressed appreciation for continued support from the African Development Bank, the European Union, and the World Bank, as well as collaboration with IGAD. He reaffirmed Ethiopia’s commitment to the Initiative and called on development partners to provide new multi-year funding for borderland development, scale up existing resources, and bring in additional partners to sustain momentum.