NIMBLE COMMERCE


NIMBLE COMMERCE

Street vendor lays out his merchandise at a bus stop around the Mexico roundabout. He looks to instigate impulsive purchases from pedestrians through a shifting marketplace. The Addis Abeba Trade Bureau is drafting regulations that restrict the type of products sold by street vendors. High levels of urban unemployment fueled in part by elevated rural-urban migrations contribute to the thriving informal sector. Recent estimates of the informal sector are around t 69pc in the capital compared to the national average, which lies below 15pc.While the term informal often sparks a raised eyebrow a majority of the economic activity in urban areas in developing countries is conducted through such channels. The informal sector currently accounts for over half the global employment, involving an estimated 1.8 billion people as compared to the 1.2 billion of the formal sector according to data from the International Labor Organization(ILO).

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In-Picture

NEIGHBORHOOD DAMS

Often overlooked in urban homes, jerrycans become priceless where water is a luxury. On the streets of Mekelle, they are hauled on wheelbarrows through neighborhoods that rely on pipes for long-awaited water, without the constant fear of running dry. Ethiopia's water supply struggles touch roughly 60 million people, about 43pc of the population, with rural communities bearing the heaviest burden. Even fast-growing urban centers, including Addis Abeba, face shortages, while several regions are cl...


In-Picture

PEACE TALK

Dawit Merhatsidk, CST Ethiopia Humanitarian Programme Advisor, and Abera Teferi of Adigrat University attend the National Peacebuilding Learning Symposium at the Intercontinental Hotel on October 14, 2025. CST Ethiopia, with support from the European Union, opened the symposium to media coverage, highlighting collaborative approaches to peacebuilding, recovery, and resilience in conflict-affected communities. Delegates from government, civil society, academia, and regional partners convene...


In-Picture

SWEET BASKETS

At Lafto Vegetable Market, young vendors sit among baskets brimming with ripe papayas and avocados, swapping stories as they display their vibrant produce. With the average Ethiopian consuming roughly 550 grams of food daily, mostly staple grains, the bursts of fresh fruit serve as a small, bittersweet reminder of life's flavor in a market navigating rising costs and sweeping reforms. Each basket tells a story, not just of fruit, but of dreams, hustle, and hope ripening under the sun...