The Addis Ababa Trade Bureau has announced that more than 11,000 informal traders have been identified and are set to transition into the formal business system as part of the city’s ongoing efforts to regularize informal economic activities.
According to Tsegaye Debele, Deputy Head of the Bureau, the initiative targets traders with capital below 200,000 birr, aiming to integrate them into the legal trading framework.
As part of this process, 217 designated trading sites have been identified to accommodate 11,112 informal traders during the current fiscal year.
Tsegaye further stated that in the past three months, over 600 traders have already received containers and sheds to begin operations, while many others are in various stages of formal registration and setup.
He emphasized that the legalization of informal trading will provide significant benefits both for registered business owners—who currently face unfair competition from untaxed informal traders—and for the broader market ecosystem by promoting transparency, accountability, and fair competition.