The Ethiopian Freight Forwarders and Shipping Agents Association (EFFSAA), a lobby organization for logistics, has made two attempts to secure the hosting rights for the International Federation of Freight Agencies (FIATA) World Congress. This prestigious event brings together over a thousand logistics stakeholders from around the globe.
As a member of FIATA, the Ethiopian association submitted a bid to host the 2025 competition, which was ultimately won by Vietnam. However, Ethiopia’s security condition, linked to the conflict in the northern region, played a role in the nation not being chosen as the organizer for the next congress in 2022, during the evaluation of bids.
Dawit Woubishet, the president of EFFSAA, presented Ethiopia’s proposal at the 2024 FIATA HQ Meeting Extended Board session held in Geneva two weeks ago. This session gathered more than 250 stakeholders from 60 countries to assess the state of the logistics industry. The proposal was reviewed by the Extended Board, which also included the Czech Republic as a finalist to host the 2027 congress.
Due to regional instability in the Middle East, Israel was ruled out as a nominee to host the 2027 event, leaving Brazil as the remaining contender, which later withdrew its bid.
Dawit stated, “If we have sponsors, which we have already secured some huge potentials and sustainable security situation, hopefully we will be chosen to host the event.” He expressed the expectation of government support, as hosting such an event would be beneficial for promoting the country’s tourism potential.
Dawit emphasized that Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia, is an ideal location for hosting international events due to its significant tourist attractions.
The burgeoning African Continental Free Trade Area is considered an important factor in bringing the forthcoming convention to Africa, as FIATA has only held three congresses on the continent during its 100-year existence.
The host for the 2027 FIATA World Congress will be announced in September at the 61st FIATA World Congress (2024) to be held in Panama City, Panama.
The annual FIATA World Congress offers discussions on industry trends and challenges, insights from prominent industry figures, solutions, and networking opportunities with participants from various global logistics sectors. Over a thousand people from the logistics, transportation, and freight sectors attend the event each year, along with observers from other businesses and institutional guests.
The 2025 and 2026 congresses are scheduled to take place in Hanoi, Vietnam, and Milan, Italy, respectively. Italy, being one of the founding members of FIATA, will celebrate the organization’s 100th centennial in 2026.
If Addis Ababa is chosen to host the event, it will become the third African nation to do so, following South Africa and Egypt.
FIATA is home to 109 national associations and represents over 5,500 individual members from 150 countries around the world, collectively representing more than 40,000 shipping and logistics companies.
