The project Promoting Ethiopian Trade and Economic Integration through Private-Led Value Chain Development aims to support Ethiopia’s effective implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). By focusing on private sector-led value chains, it seeks to deepen trade integration, enhance competitiveness, and position Ethiopian businesses to seize the opportunities of a unified African market.

The project promotes regional economic integration, inclusive and sustainable growth, decent job creation, and local innovation—driving economic, social, and environmental development while leveraging Ethiopia’s comparative advantages.

Objectives

• Support active private sector engagement in AfCFTA implementation, particularly through regional value chains.
• Strengthen the capacity of Ethiopian authorities and stakeholders to adapt to AfCFTA provisions.
• Raise awareness across the business ecosystem about AfCFTA’s benefits and implications.
• Engage academic and research institutions to inform policy adaptation and long-term strategic planning.

Project Activities

• Training programs, hands-on workshops (LBD), and advisory services for SMEs and women-led businesses

• Sponsoring and organizing trade missions and business delegations to other African countries to identify and seize market opportunities under the AfCFTA

• Develop an online platform dedicated to women-led SMEs to market their products continentally

• Establish information centers on the AfCFTA within private sector associations

• Develop export strategies for the public and private sector, tailored to the African market

• Provide technical support to Ethiopian business associations

• Reduce non-tariff barriers (NTBs) such as bureaucracy and customs challenges

• Identify and promote Ethiopian subsectors/products with a competitive advantage in      African markets

• Harmonize national laws and support the AfCFTA protocol implementation

• Design postgraduate training programs on trade policies

• Establish a think tank composed of trade experts and academics to guide research and trade policies in Ethiopia and others.

Expected Results

• Workshops and other activities will contribute to increasing the familiarity of the AfCFTA and the opportunities to reap the benefits of this agreement amongst public sector representatives and private sector stakeholders, with a particular focus on women-led businesses.

• An added value of this action is that it will lay the foundations for new study and research methodologies and formats in Ethiopia revolving around trade and regional integration matters.