ADDIS ABABA -The Ministry of Trade and Regional Integration (MoTRI) has disclosed that Ethiopia is striving to become a World Trade Organization (WTO) member by 2026.
Briefing the media on Ethiopia's WTO negotiating team's activities in Geneva Switzerland, during the 5th WTO Working Group Meeting, MoTRI's Minister and Chief Negotiator, Kassahun Gofe (PhD), stated that his delegation had conducted successful negotiations. The team presented Ethiopia's progress while expressing ambitions to finalize the accession process next year, he noted.
According to him, Ethiopia is working diligently with relevant stakeholders to attain full WTO membership by next year, when the organization will hold its 14th Ministerial Conference (MC14) in March 2026 in Cameroon.
Ethiopia's accession to the WTO will be a significant achievement for the country, the continent, and the organization itself, he noted.
Currently, 166 countries are WTO members, Kassahun said, adding that these nations collectively represent 95% of the world's population and 98% of global imports and exports. The remaining 22 countries, including eight African nations such as Ethiopia, are in the process of negotiating their accession to the organization, he indicated.
He explained that Ethiopia has long awaited WTO accession and has been listed among observer nations for many years while actively participating in negotiation meetings for the fifth time. A total of 44 member countries in the WTO's working party are engaged in multilateral negotiations with Ethiopia.
Once Ethiopia joins the WTO, any member will be able to engage in bilateral trade agreements with the country in accordance with the organization's principles, he stated.
"In the recent 5th WTO meeting, Ethiopia held fruitful discussions on bilateral and multilateral market access agreements. For instance, 17 countries requested bilateral trade negotiations with Ethiopia. Of these, 12 have already engaged in discussions on bilateral market access agreements," he added.
Kassahun pointed out that Ethiopia has successfully negotiated bilateral market access agreements with the U.S. and the European Union, which serve as a strong foundation for further multilateral agreements. He further stated that 19 countries, along with the World Bank (WB), have supported Ethiopia's WTO membership efforts. This level of support is unprecedented in WTO history, as no country had previously received backing from more than 12 nations in the accession process.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
Ethiopia's homegrown economic reform is designed to ensure that its regulatory framework fully complies with WTO rules. This reform has been instrumental in driving structural changes to enhance economic resilience, promote private sector-led growth, and create a business environment aligned with WTO principles, Kassahun explained.
The first and second phases of Ethiopia's homegrown economic reform have contributed to reducing the number of questions from WTO members, decreasing from 181 in the fourth meeting to 110 in the fifth meeting. Ethiopia will provide written responses to the remaining 110 questions in the coming months.
Given Ethiopia's goal of finalizing the accession process by MC14, WTO Deputy Director-General Xiangchen Zhang invited Ethiopia and WTO members to intensify market access negotiations, based on its revised market access offers, with the aim of concluding agreements as soon as possible.
Against the backdrop of the increasing significance of the WTO and the globalization of world economies, Ethiopia formally applied for WTO membership in 2003.
