Ethiopia lost an estimated USD 24.6 billion to trade-related illicit financial flows (2013–2022).
Losses place Ethiopia among the top ten globally for such outflows.
Illicit flows result from invoicing mispricing and non-reported trade.
Across sub-Saharan Africa, total trade value gaps reached 152.9 billion US dollar in 2022.
Report highlights the scale of unrecorded capital movement in foreign trade.
Why it matters:
USD 24.6 billion in lost funds significantly impacts Ethiopia’s balance of payments and foreign exchange reserves, reducing resources available for imports and investment. Understanding and addressing illicit flows is critical for improving trade data integrity, policy planning, and FX market stability.