Addis ababa: The Ethiopia Circular Economy Hotspot Event 2025, designed to spotlight Ethiopia’s circular economy ambitions and inspire cross-sector collaboration, innovation, and investment, was held in Addis Ababa on Wednesday.

According to Ethiopian News Agency, the event highlighted the country’s commitment to a circular economy, which is a regenerative economic system aimed at eliminating waste and pollution by keeping products and materials in use for as long as possible through reuse, repair, refurbishment, and recycling. Ethiopian Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) Director-General Lelise Neme announced the launch of Ethiopia’s National Circular Economy Roadmap, serving as a blueprint for the country’s transition this year. This roadmap is a result of extensive collaboration between government institutions, the private sector, and civil society.

Lelise Neme emphasized that the roadmap serves as a guiding document for embedding circularity into key sectors, including agriculture, manufacturing,
the built environment, and digital technology. She highlighted Ethiopia’s commitment to go beyond policy, rooted in public participation, as demonstrated by the national campaign ‘Clean Ethiopia: Stewardship to Culture,’ which has engaged over 30 million citizens through direct interactions and media platforms in just four months.

Housing and Urban Development State Minister Helen Debebe stated that Ethiopia’s Circular Economy presents a strategic development opportunity, not just an environmental initiative. By integrating circularity, the country aims to create new value chains, reduce dependency on imports, and unlock opportunities for urban and rural communities in the coming years.

Finland’s Ambassador to Ethiopia, Sinikka Antila, stressed the importance of partnerships between the African Union, the European Union, Finland, and Ethiopia to transform the circular economy vision into reality. She highlighted Finland’s efforts to align with this framework and its pioneering approaches within the European
Union.

James Njeru, Natural Resources Stewardship Program Manager at GIZ Component, noted that the partnership with Ethiopia in the circular economy supports the development of a collective waste management system in Addis Ababa and other cities across the country. This partnership focuses on protecting natural resources, particularly water bodies, while creating jobs and value chains.