• Bilateral deal follows $3.5B debt relief agreed with official creditors
• France also signs €81.5M financing plan for reform program
• Ethiopia has been in default since December 2023

Ethiopia and France signed a bilateral debt restructuring agreement on February 11, 2026. It is the first agreement of its kind between Addis Ababa and a member of the Official Creditor Committee (OCC) under the G20 Common Framework.

The deal follows the signing in July 2025 of a memorandum of understanding between Ethiopia and the OCC, formalizing debt treatment agreed in principle in March 2025 and providing more than $3.5 billion in relief.

Ethiopia had requested comprehensive external debt restructuring under the G20 Common Framework in early 2021 before defaulting on its only Eurobond in December 2023. According to the International Monetary Fund, the country’s debt is considered unsustainable, mainly due to prolonged breaches of external debt-to-export thresholds.

New French financing plan

Alongside the bilateral restructuring agreement, France signed a new financing package totaling €81.5 million (about $96.6 million) for Ethiopia. The package includes €80 million in budget support for HGER 2.0, the second phase of a national economic reform program, and a €1.5 million technical assistance grant.

The funding “adds to the €100 million already disbursed by France during the first phase of the reform program,” Ethiopia’s Ministry of Finance said.

Ethiopia and France also agreed to explore potential French participation in the construction of Ethiopia’s new airport, a project aimed at strengthening connectivity and trade.

Total investment under the partnership between the two countries now exceeds €600 million, including more than €300 million allocated to the energy sector to expand and modernize electricity infrastructure.

Lydie Mobio