Trade Ministry Pulls ECX into Contract Farming Procedures

Oct 1 , 2022

A new directive issued by officials at the Ministry of Trade & Regional Integration instructs that all cash crops produced under investment or contract farming schemes go through the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX) for weighing. Investors engaged in contract farming are compelled to weigh their cash crops at the Exchange before having them registered by the Trade Ministry and made ready for market. They retain the privilege to sell their commodities on the ECX trading floor. The ECX is mandated to validate the weight of oilseeds and cereals produced through the two schemes, conduct measurements while the commodities are still loaded on trucks, and provide the information to the Ministry. A couple of months ago, Trade officials added six commodities under the contract farming scheme, including niger seeds, groundnut and chickpeas.