Ethiopia reaches 257 million mobile finance accounts
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Fanamc
Ethiopian President Taye Atske-Selassie says the country has a combined total of 257 million mobile money and mobile banking accounts. He gave the figure at the 10th session of the Statistical Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa, highlighting the role of financial reforms and reliable data in development planning, according to Fanamc.
Mobile money and mobile banking accounts in Ethiopia have reached a combined total of 257 million, Ethiopian President Taye Atske-Selassie said in Addis Ababa on Wednesday 21 October. He was speaking at the 10th session of the Statistical Commission for Africa, according to Fanamc.
Transactions linked to these services exceeded 24 trillion birr in the first nine months of 2026, he said. Taye Atske-Selassie attributed the growth to several reforms, including a national digital payments strategy, the opening up of the financial sector and the rollout of interoperable payment infrastructure. The national Fayda digital identity programme has also helped expand access to financial services and other essential services, he said.
The president also argued for the role of reliable statistics in public policy planning. He cited the reform of statistical legislation and the creation of the Ethiopian Statistics Service, which is responsible for coordinating the national data production system.
His remarks follow Ethiopia’s call to measure the continent’s progress, made on 21 October at the same session of the Statistical Commission for Africa (call to measure progress using data).
Summary produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools, under AFREEQUE’s editorial responsibility.
