Ethiopia has officially become Africa’s fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP after a sweeping rebasing of its national accounts lifted its measured output to $210.7 billion for the 2025/26 fiscal year.
The revision, announced on November 4 by Finance Minister Fitsum Assefa following the launch of the new GDP series, increased Ethiopia’s previously measured 2024/25 economy by 59.2% to 24.03 trillion birr ($201.4 billion).
This places the country behind only South Africa ($489 billion), Egypt ($443 billion), Nigeria ($387 billion), and Algeria ($332 billion), ahead of Morocco (~$196 billion) and Kenya.
Africa’s economic rankings are shifting — but not necessarily because countries are producing or exporting more. Several governments are revising their national accounts to capture previously underreported economic activity, resulting in significantly larger estimates of GDP.
These statistical adjustments are reshaping rankings and influencing how countries assess their debt levels. Ethiopia is the latest to undertake a major revision.