Ethiopia: Corporate and Company Law

The commercial relationship between the United Arab Emirates and Ethiopia has deepened considerably over the past decade, driven by geographic proximity, complementary economic profiles, and a growing web of bilateral agreements that provide the legal infrastructure for sustained investment flows. For UAE-based investors — whether Emirati nationals, family offices, sovereign-adjacent funds, or the substantial community of international entrepreneurs who operate through UAE corporate structures —

Serving as a director of an Ethiopian company — whether a Share Company or a Private Limited Company — carries with it a range of legal duties and personal liabilities that many appointees, particularly those nominated by foreign parent companies, do not fully appreciate until a crisis arises.

The enactment of the Commercial Code of Ethiopia, Proclamation No. 1243/2021, represents the most significant overhaul of Ethiopian corporate law in more than sixty years.