EthSwitch, Ethiopia’s national payment switch, has recorded more than 1 million EthioPay-IPS transactions in a single day, with the value of transactions exceeding 5 billion birr, in what the company described as a major milestone for the country’s digital payments system.

The achievement comes as EthSwitch and global payment software company BPC received The Asian Banker’s “Best Financial Inclusion Technology Initiative in Africa for 2026” award, recognizing their role in expanding interoperable instant payments and broadening access to digital financial services in Ethiopia.

EthSwitch said the milestone reflects the rapid uptake of interoperable digital payments and the growing use of EthioPay-IPS across the country’s financial ecosystem. The platform is designed to strengthen national payment infrastructure by enabling faster, more affordable and more accessible transactions for banks, microfinance institutions, businesses and consumers.

Yilebes Addis, chief executive officer of EthSwitch, said the 1 million daily transaction mark demonstrates the practical value of interoperable instant payments for financial institutions, businesses and citizens. He said the award from The Asian Banker makes the achievement even more meaningful and reinforces the company’s commitment to advancing inclusive digital finance in Ethiopia.
He also thanked BPC and development partners including BMGF, ADFI and AfricaNenda for their support in building the system.

Powered by BPC’s SmartVista platform, EthioPay-IPS supports account-to-account and wallet-to-wallet transfers, QR payments, request-to-pay services, alias-based payments and recurring payments. The platform also enables real-time transfers, interoperable QR payments, e-mandates, bulk payments and trade-related transactions.

According to the company, the system is helping financial institutions offer payment services that are faster and more secure while improving interoperability across the financial sector. It also supports online and in-app commerce by linking financial institutions, businesses and payment networks with immediate settlement.

Customers can use cards, bank accounts, digital wallets, QR codes and payment links within a single interoperable system, while also making payments for utilities, taxes and government services.

The Asian Banker said the EthSwitch-BPC infrastructure shows how shared technology can reduce fragmentation, broaden access to digital financial services and support more inclusive participation in the formal economy.

Dahlak Yigezu, country manager for Ethiopia at BPC, said the company was proud to celebrate the milestone with EthSwitch and to share in the recognition from The Asian Banker. He said the national switch is helping build resilient, future-ready payments infrastructure as Ethiopia’s digital economy continues to expand.

EthSwitch, which is owned by the National Bank of Ethiopia, public and private banks, microfinance institutions, payment institutions and payment service operators, said its mission is to make payments simple and affordable and its vision is to become Africa’s best-in-class payment network by 2035.

Ethiopia’s commitment to a tight monetary policy stance—hailed by international partners as a critical safeguard against rising inflation—has taken center stage as the country secured a staff-level agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for the fifth review of its economic reform program.

An IMF staff team led by Alvaro Piris visited Addis Ababa from May 6 to 20, 2026, for discussions on the review. According to a statement issued by the Fund, the talks have since continued virtually, focusing on recent economic developments and the impact of the conflict in the Gulf region on Ethiopia and its reform program.

“The authorities have continued to make progress in implementing their Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda, with favorable macroeconomic outcomes through to the onset of the war in the Middle East,” said Piris. “Output indicators, exports, reserves, and government revenue all continued to improve through early 2026, alongside declines in inflation.”

However, Piris noted that the Middle East war has caused a significant external shock, disrupting trade and leading to temporary fuel shortages as well as sharp increases in the price of imported fuel and fertilizer. “Even so, economic activity appears robust, with as-yet modest impacts on output growth and consumer price inflation,” he added.

The IMF team warned that risks to the economic outlook have risen due to global uncertainty and high commodity price volatility. “Higher costs for essential imports and the volatile environment call for adroit responses to emerging challenges and careful management of resources,” Piris said.

The international partners have commended the Ethiopian government’s tight monetary policy stance, describing it as a safeguard against potential inflationary pressures. “A tight monetary policy stance remains warranted to anchor inflation expectations,” Piris stated. He also emphasized the need for further efforts to enhance the functioning and transparency of the foreign exchange market, prudent expenditure management, and continued progress in domestic revenue mobilization.

Advancing structural reforms, including improving the business climate, strengthening financial sector resilience, and deepening market reforms, remains key to unlocking higher private sector-led growth, according to the IMF.

The statement also noted that good progress continues toward securing a comprehensive external debt treatment to restore debt sustainability, with discussions with official creditors advancing in line with expectations and talks with bondholders ongoing.

An IMF staff team led by Alvaro Piris visited Addis Ababa from May 6 to 20, 2026, for discussions on the review. According to a statement issued by the Fund, the talks have since continued virtually, focusing on recent economic developments and the impact of the conflict in the Gulf region on Ethiopia and its reform program.

“The authorities have continued to make progress in implementing their Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda, with favorable macroeconomic outcomes through to the onset of the war in the Middle East,” said Piris. “Output indicators, exports, reserves, and government revenue all continued to improve through early 2026, alongside declines in inflation.”

However, Piris noted that the Middle East war has caused a significant external shock, disrupting trade and leading to temporary fuel shortages as well as sharp increases in the price of imported fuel and fertilizer. “Even so, economic activity appears robust, with as-yet modest impacts on output growth and consumer price inflation,” he added.

The IMF team warned that risks to the economic outlook have risen due to global uncertainty and high commodity price volatility. “Higher costs for essential imports and the volatile environment call for adroit responses to emerging challenges and careful management of resources,” Piris said.

The international partners have commended the Ethiopian government’s tight monetary policy stance, describing it as a safeguard against potential inflationary pressures. “A tight monetary policy stance remains warranted to anchor inflation expectations,” Piris stated. He also emphasized the need for further efforts to enhance the functioning and transparency of the foreign exchange market, prudent expenditure management, and continued progress in domestic revenue mobilization.

Advancing structural reforms, including improving the business climate, strengthening financial sector resilience, and deepening market reforms, remains key to unlocking higher private sector-led growth, according to the IMF.

The statement also noted that good progress continues toward securing a comprehensive external debt treatment to restore debt sustainability, with discussions with official creditors advancing in line with expectations and talks with bondholders ongoing.

Following the conclusion of Ethiopia’s 7th General Election, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Election Observation Mission (IGADEOM)
has released its preliminary report. While the report praised the country’s major strides in technology, it conversely called for clear improvements to be made to the physical voting infrastructure.

Chief among the mission’s primary recommendations is a request for the National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) to standardize and simplify the voter identification system, as well as to significantly lower the maximum voter capacity handled per polling station to align with international best practices.

Although this election was widely hailed as an “Election of Many Firsts” due to the use of the locally developed Mirchaye digital registration system and several other sectors, severe crowding was observed in the physical voting process on Election Day (June 1). According to regional observers, the high voter turnout resulted in long and tedious queues, particularly in major urban centers such as Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa.

As congestion worsened into the evening, the Election Board was forced to issue an emergency 6-hour extension, keeping doors open until midnight so that all interested citizens could cast their votes.

The head of the delegation, former Ugandan Vice President Dr. Wandira Speciosa Kazibwe, expressed her appreciation for the immense patience shown by the Ethiopian public who waited in lines until midnight, but pointed out that this time extension exposed a major operational vulnerability.

Under current Ethiopian law, the number of voters accommodated at a single polling station can reach up to 1,500. The IGAD observation team warned in its report that such a high limit naturally creates logistical delays, exhausts local election officials, and reduces the efficiency of the voting process.

To resolve this issue, the IGAD observation team put forward several resolutions for the improvement of future electoral processes.
Consequently, it called upon the Election Board, noting that it is essential to limit the number of voters registered per polling station to a maximum of 1,000 to align with international standards.

On the other hand, IGAD urged that the total number of physical polling stations and centers across the country must be significantly increased to reduce voter volume, and that the voter identification structure should be standardized and simplified to help speed up the queues.

This structural bottleneck was just one of several challenges cited by the observation team. Due to high security risks, the general election could not be conducted uniformly across the entire federation. A total of 46 constituencies were excluded from the democratic process, 8 of which are located in the Amhara region and 38 in the conflict-affected Tigray region.
Additionally, the report pointed out a lack of women’s representation, noting that female participation as candidates was low and that their representation in leadership roles, such as polling station managers, was extremely limited.

Nevertheless, IGAD stated that NEBE’s administrative foundation—which registered more than 54 million voters and coordinated 195,000 election professionals—is a major step forward for democracy in the Horn of Africa’s most populous nation.

The African Union Election Observation Mission (AUEOM) has released its preliminary findings on Ethiopia’s seventh general election, praising the significant strides made toward democratic consolidation while expressing deep concerns over the suspension of the electoral process in 46 constituencies.

The areas where the voting process was suspended are primarily located in the Tigray and Amhara regions, where voters were prevented from exercising their democratic rights due to security disruptions.

In a statement delivered on June 3, 2026, regarding the team’s preliminary assessment of the 7th general election, Uhuru Kenyatta, leader of the African Union Election Observation Mission and former President of Kenya, expressed concern that the suspension of these constituencies could undermine the overall inclusiveness of the electoral process.

“The mission noted the suspension of polling in 46 constituencies, notably in the Tigray and Amhara regions, which potentially affected the inclusiveness of the electoral process and undermined the full exercise of the right to vote due to the prevailing security situation,” the mission leader stated.

However, the Union commended the National Election Board of Ethiopia (NEBE) for its commitment to proceed with elections in these excluded constituencies once a conducive and reliable security environment is ensured.

Apart from regional security challenges, the African Union Election Observation Mission commended the overall electoral process, noting that the atmosphere across most parts of the country on Election Day was peaceful and orderly.

The mission lauded the high level of professionalism demonstrated by election officials and security personnel, stating that it reflects the Election Board’s commitment to administrative impartiality.

Furthermore, it was noted that the implementation of digital technology alongside the standard voter registration process contributed to an increase in the number of young voters.

Despite these positive indicators, the African Union mission emphasized that democracy is a continuous process of refinement.

Chief among their technical concerns was the administrative burden placed on individual polling stations. The mission labeled the maximum threshold of 1,500 registered voters per polling station as “undoubtedly too high,” pointing out that it hindered workload management and created structural bottlenecks. In some instances, overcrowding at polling stations not only disrupted the workflow but also compromised the secrecy of the ballot.

To address these deficiencies, the African Union offered preliminary recommendations, stating that it is necessary to reduce and standardize the maximum number of registered voters per polling station to ensure efficiency.

Uhuru Kenyatta pointed out the need to reconfigure the layout of ballot boxes and voting booths to protect the secrecy of the vote and ease voter movement. He also called for the implementation of targeted strategies to address the low registration numbers observed among women, who constitute a critical demographic.

The comprehensive and final report containing the full details of the mission’s findings is expected to be released to the public 30 days after the official declaration of the final election results.