In an effort to support the Government of Ethiopia's Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) and Agriculture Growth Program (AGP), USAID's Feed the Future Initiative (FtF), and the USAID/Ethiopia's CDCS, USAID/Ethiopia has developed the "Economic Growth and Private Sector Development Support Strategy (EG-PSDS)." EG-PSDS centers on establishing "enabling environment" needed to promote FtF as well as the broader private sector stakeholders affiliated with or supporting agriculture sector development under GTP. The EG-PSDS seeks to promote the development of both public and private sector actors in the target reform areas of Finance, Trade, Business Capacity, and the "Cross Cutting" area of ICT. To this end, USAID/Ethiopia intends to award a five-year $19 million contract for the implementation of Trade and Customs Enhancement Reform Project (TraCER) through a competitive full and open request for proposal
The goal of the Trade and Customs Enhancement Reform Project (TraCER) is to improve the trade environment in Ethiopia, resulting in expanded exports and a more competitive private sector as key drivers of sustainable economic growth and reduced poverty in Ethiopia. The TraCER project is structured to achieve a number of defined activities and results yet allowing for additional activities that will be pursued depending upon windows of opportunity.
Trade and Customs Enhancement Reform will a) Create a trade center that links academia, the private sector, and the public sector; b) Facilitate the streamlining of customs processes; c) Introducing ICT platforms to support customs processes; d) Develop the capacity of a core team of GOE staff to participate in trade negotiations; e) Educate the private sector on international standards and best practices; f) Elevate the profile of Ethiopian products in international markets; and g) Establish a framework for the promotion of trade corridors with neighboring countries.
TraCER project is expected to reach its goal through the following three separate but complementary, interrelated objectives:
• Objective 1: Improve the overall trade environment by reducing the cost and time of exporting/importing goods.
• Objective 2: Assist the GoE in completing the process of acceding to the WTO.
• Objective 3: Enhance quality of public-private dialogue.
In addition, each of these objectives will have a public outreach element whereby sustainable consultative methods will be developed/enhanced to communicate any important changes in trade regulations or tariffs to the private sector and the public.

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