Central Bank Governor Highlights Ethiopia’s Financial Reforms at IMF-World Bank Meetings

Addis Ababa, April 15, 2026 (ENA) —Governor of the National Bank of Ethiopia, Eyob Tekalign, took center stage at a Capacity Development Talk held on the sidelines of the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings 2026, where he presented Ethiopia’s comprehensive financial sector reform agenda.

Speaking at a high-level Capacity Development Talk attended by senior figures from the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and European Commission, the governor laid out a sweeping reform agenda aimed at building a more resilient, modern, and inclusive financial system.

Eyob highlighted a broad structural transformation underway within Ethiopia’s financial system as part of the government’s Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda.

 

Key measures include a transition toward an interest rate-based monetary policy framework, the adoption of a market-determined exchange rate, and a sweeping overhaul of the regulatory landscape, anchored by a new central bank proclamation and updated banking legislation.

A central theme of the Governor’s remarks was national ownership, ENA learned.

 Ethiopia’s reform program, he emphasized, is domestically designed and carefully sequenced, with technical assistance that is demand-driven and aligned with national development priorities rather than externally imposed.

 

Looking ahead, Governor Eyob identified the deepening of domestic financial markets and the gradual opening of the sector to foreign investment as key priorities for the next phase of reform.

He further underscored that sustainable progress will depend on strong institutional capacity, consistent policy implementation, and a financial system capable of supporting a dynamic, private sector-led economy.