The Ethiopian Economics Association (EEA), in collaboration with the Centre for Evaluation and Development (C4ED), held the Evidence Use for Policy Making Forum on 17 August 2026 in Addis Ababa.

The Forum primarily served as a platform to launch and support baseline data collection on the use of evidence in policymaking in Ethiopia. It brought together representatives from seven ministries, two commissions, and five accountable institutions, covering 97 directorates, providing a broad institutional base for understanding how evidence is currently generated, accessed, and used in policymaking.

The Forum also featured a keynote address by H.E. Dr. Kassahun Gofe, Minister of Trade and Regional Integration, and a panel discussion on “What Policies Are Needed for Ethiopia’s Trade Integration?”, bringing together policymakers, researchers, and experts.

The baseline exercise is an important first step in identifying current practices, gaps, and institutional barriers to evidence use, and will provide a foundation for designing interventions to strengthen evidence-informed policymaking in Ethiopia.