Ethopia's Minister: Ethiopia Overtakes Morocco to Become Africa's Fifth-Largest Economy

Morocco has been surpassed by Ethiopia, which now ranks as Africa’s fifth-largest economy, following a substantial GDP rebasing that boosted its recorded economic output to $210.7 billion for the 2025/26 fiscal year. The nation in the Horn of Africa is now part of the continent’s top five economies, alongside South Africa, with a GDP of $489.1 billion; Egypt, at $442.9 billion; Nigeria, at $386.7 billion; and Algeria, at $331.9 billion.

Ethiopia’s Economic Ranking Shift

The rebasing caused the country’s previously measured 2024/25 economy to expand by 59.2%, raising its GDP to 24.03 trillion birr, which is equivalent to $201.4 billion. The GDP for the subsequent fiscal year was reported at $210.7 billion. Source: Business Insider Africa Fitsum Assefa Adela, Ethiopia’s Minister of Planning and Development, disclosed the figures after unveiling the new GDP series at a national forum convened by the Ministry of National Strategy.

At a high-level national forum organised by the Ministry of National Strategy, Ethiopia today launched its rebased GDP series, with 2017 EFY (2024/25) as the new base year. While Ethiopia has published official GDP figures since 1960, the previous series, based on 2008 EFY… pic.twitter.com/nfjExQ2ZTU

— https://x.com/FitsumAdela/status/2118006253859344789

The Process of GDP Rebasing

The new GDP series is based on the 2017 Ethiopian Fiscal Year (2024/25), supplanting the prior series that was constructed around the 2008 EFY (2015/16). The government stated that the previous methodology was no longer sufficient for capturing economic shifts, such as the growth of sectors and the emergence of activities like digital finance and services. The revised estimates are derived from recent national agriculture and economic establishment censuses, an integrated household survey, and administrative records. For the first time, the calculations also include data from federal and regional state-owned enterprises and non-profit institutions that serve households.

The Impact of New Statistics

The 59.2% increase is a statistical adjustment to the economy’s measured size, not a corresponding increase in actual economic output. By refreshing its data sources and accounting for activities that were previously undercounted, Ethiopia has achieved a higher estimate of its national production. The government indicates that the new series will deliver a firmer evidentiary foundation for fiscal policy, budgeting, and development planning, while enhancing the caliber of economic information accessible to investors, rating agencies, and development partners. The revision also elevated Ethiopia’s estimated GDP per capita from $915 to $1,517.

Ethopia's Minister: Ethiopia Overtakes Morocco to Become Africa's Fifth-Largest Economy — Photo: chimpreports.com

The rebasing provides internationally comparable statistics, strengthens investor, rating agency and development partner confidence, and offers a more robust evidence base for fiscal policy, budgeting and development planning.