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Promote:Ethiopia

Export from Ethiopia

A short guide for companies selling from Ethiopia: the export figures, the agreements and their limits, the main steps and who can help, each with its source.

1. What Ethiopia sells, and who buys it

Top goods exports

2023

  1. 1. Coffee (HS 0901)US$1.23 billion
  2. 2. Oilseeds (HS 1207)US$258.6 million
  3. 3. Dried pulses (HS 0713)US$257.6 million
  4. 4. Cut flowers (HS 0603)US$231.2 million
  5. 5. Fresh vegetables (HS 0709)US$185.4 million
  6. 6. Soya beans (HS 1201)US$130.2 million
  7. 7. Sheep and goat meat (HS 0204)US$61.3 million
  8. 8. Live plants and cuttings (HS 0602)US$30.8 million
Show 12 more products
  1. 9. Oilseed flours and meals (HS 1208)US$27.4 million
  2. 10. Bread, pastries and biscuits (HS 1905)US$22.6 million
  3. 11. Piston engines (HS 8407)US$19.7 million
  4. 12. Men's woven suits and trousers (HS 6203)US$18.3 million
  5. 13. Earth-moving machinery (HS 8430)US$15.7 million
  6. 14. Babies' knitted garments (HS 6111)US$15.6 million
  7. 15. Potatoes (HS 0701)US$15.4 million
  8. 16. Finished leather (HS 4112)US$13 million
  9. 17. Dried vegetables (HS 0712)US$11.7 million
  10. 18. Niobium and tantalum ores (HS 2615)US$10.9 million
  11. 19. Live sheep and goats (HS 0104)US$9.7 million
  12. 20. Flax yarn (HS 5306)US$9.14 million

Source: UN Comtrade, Ethiopia exports by product, 2023⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of 2023

Where the goods go

2023, share of goods exports

  • Saudi Arabia10.4%
  • United States9.7%
  • Netherlands7.6%
  • United Arab Emirates5.7%
  • Somalia5%
  • India4.9%
  • Germany4.7%
  • China4.6%

Source: UN Comtrade, Ethiopia exports by destination, 2023⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of 2023

2. What to look into next

Our reading

Promote:Global’s reading of the figures above, not a source’s statement, and not advice.

3. Trade agreements

What each arrangement can mean for a seller, and its limits. A preference is conditional: check the rules of origin before you quote.

  • African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)

    Ethiopian goods that meet AfCFTA origin rules may enter other members at preferential duty once the importing country applies its schedule.

    Ethiopia has notified the Secretariat that it trades under AfCFTA preferences; check the importing country's own schedule before you claim a preference.

    Source: AfCFTA Secretariat, status of tariff offers, July 2026⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 16, 2026

  • AGOA

    AGOA, the United States' trade preference program for eligible African countries, runs to 2028, but Ethiopian goods do not receive its duty-free entry while Ethiopia is not designated.

    The President did not designate Ethiopia for 2026; a 2027 review is open, so check the latest Federal Register notice.

    Source: Federal Register notice 2026-13177, AGOA eligibility, June 30, 2026⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of June 30, 2026

  • Everything but Arms (EBA)

    Ethiopian goods that meet the origin rules enter the European Union duty free and quota free, except arms and ammunition.

    Rules-based preference, not unconditional market access; new European Union rules apply from January 1, 2027, so check the origin rules that then apply.

    Source: European Commission, Everything but Arms page⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

  • Developing Countries Trading Scheme (Comprehensive Preferences)

    Ethiopian goods that meet the origin rules enter the United Kingdom under the scheme's most generous preference tier.

    Rules-based preference, not unconditional market access; confirm product rules with United Kingdom customs.

    Source: GOV.UK, Developing Countries Trading Scheme preference tiers⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of June 19, 2023

4. Steps to export

The main steps, in order, each with the body responsible and its official page.

Exporting from Ethiopia

  1. Hold a valid foreign trade license for export; banks ask for it before they issue an export permit.Ministry of Trade and Regional IntegrationOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: National Bank of Ethiopia, Foreign Exchange Directive FXD/01/2024⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of July 29, 2024

  2. A newly licensed exporter obtains a National Bank of Ethiopia account number through the Customs Electronic Single Window.National Bank of EthiopiaOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: National Bank of Ethiopia, press release, July 17, 2026⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of July 17, 2026

  3. Check whether an Ethiopian Standard applies to your product; the Institute publishes a standards catalog.Institute of Ethiopian StandardsOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Ethiopian Standards Institute, 2026 standards catalog page⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of 2026

  4. For plant and animal products, ask the Authority about its regulatory services and its electronic phytosanitary certificate service.Ethiopian Agricultural AuthorityOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Ethiopian Agricultural Authority, plant regulatory sector⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

Show 3 more export steps
  1. Apply for the certificate of origin your buyer needs; a chamber page says customs issues preferential certificates and the national chamber the others.Ethiopian Customs Commission; Ethiopian Chamber of Commerce and Sectoral AssociationOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: Addis Chamber, export documentation page⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of October 31, 2026

  2. File the export application and documents through the Ethiopian Electronic Single Window; an authorized bank issues the export permit.Authorized banks; Ethiopian Electronic Single WindowOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: National Bank of Ethiopia, Foreign Exchange Directive FXD/01/2024⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of July 29, 2024

  3. Bring export proceeds home within three months of the permit and convert 50 percent into birr; services exporters may keep all of it.National Bank of EthiopiaOfficial page⁠ (opens in a new tab)

    Source: National Bank of Ethiopia, Directive FXD/04/2026⁠ (opens in a new tab) · as of February 11, 2026

5. Organizations that help exporters

Start with MoTRI and ESS. Each card links to the organization’s own site.

Each card says what it can help with:Get adviceFind financeMeet requirementsResearch markets

Export development and market information

Show 2 more organizations

Customs and tax

Standards and sector requirements

Chambers and industry associations

6. Worth knowing

7. How Promote:Global helps

  • Compare potential export marketsSee which markets import what you sell, ranked on public trade data, and read each country before you commit.
  • Check duties and document requirementsCheck the duty, the origin conditions for a preferential rate and the documents a shipment needs.
  • Find advisors and service firmsAsk an advisory firm a scoped, paid question, or browse firms that list their own services, from legal work to logistics.
  • Organize your next stepsKeep each product and market in a project, with a roadmap of steps you work through.

Turn this guide into your Ethiopia project.

Use Promote:Global to explore markets, understand requirements and organize your next steps.

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Promote:Ethiopia is an independent guide by Promote:Global, not an official government portal. The organizations named here are independent public and membership bodies, not Promote:Global partners, and every link goes to their own site.

Facts read from public sources, with an editorial cut-off of October 31, 2026. Nothing here is investment, legal, tax or sanctions advice. Check current status with the organization before you rely on it.