AliExpress has officially entered Ethiopia, marking a significant milestone in the country’s evolving e-commerce landscape. Two weeks after Shega broke the story of the imminent entrance of the Chinese e-commerce giant, an official commercial launch ceremony was held at the Ethiopian Airlines-owned Skylight Hotel on Thursday. In an atmosphere pulsating with palpable excitement, various stakeholders from Ethiopia’s public and private sectors gathered for a day of presentations, panel discussions, and case studies.
“This is not just a new chapter for Alibaba but also a new beginning for the Ethiopian e-commerce sector,” heralded Yeshurun Alemayehu (PhD), State Minister, Ministry of Innovation and Technology, during his opening remarks.
He highlighted how the entrance of AliExpress presents significant opportunities for local businesses to participate in global commerce and scale up their operations. However, lingering legislative bottlenecks like the National E-Commerce Strategy, which is awaiting approval from the Council of Ministers, could present indications of an underdeveloped enabling environment.
Inadequate digital infrastructure, logistics challenges, and limited access to digital payment systems remain critical challenges in the e-commerce landscape. Unresolved, these obstacles hinder consumer trust and adoption, which are vital for e-commerce growth.
With around 45 e-commerce licenses registered by the Ministry of Trade & Regional Integration as of December 2023, the sector is filled with small, mostly ephemeral startups that pop out of business in a few years.
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