Vanity Plates On Offer Under Transport Ministry’s New Vehicle Registration System

Minister signals potential for changes to national flag

The Ministry of Transport and Logistics has confirmed that under Ethiopia’s new vehicle plate registration system, organizations, and public figures will be able to order and obtain customized plate numbers.

Alemu Sime (PhD), minister of Transport and Logistics, touched on vanity plates during a press conference earlier this week, where he said that a new registration system is necessary to fill in the gaps left behind by an outdated framework.

The previous system, established over a decade ago, is no longer suitable for the country’s growing transport sector in terms of plate types, symbols, production, distribution, and overall service provision, according to the Minister.

The new registration scheme will be implemented based on a new Ministry directive.

Under the ‘Types of Vehicles Identification Number Plate and Symbols Determination and Service Delivery Directive,’ vehicle plates will display both Geez (“ኢት”) and Latin (“ETH”) characters alongside a geographic outline of Ethiopia.

The directive applies to all vehicles registered or to be registered in Ethiopia, including those owned by manufacturers, importers, assemblers, international organizations, and individuals.

Alemu said the previous system did not comply with international agreements to which Ethiopia is a signatory, and described it as highly inefficient.

“The former vehicle plate registration system was not aligned with current and future road transport sector growth. It was burdened with bureaucracy, wasted time and money, and exposed to corruption and maladministration,” he said.

The Ministry noted that the old plate production and distribution system was poorly supervised, allowing duplication and forgery to become common. Expired or dumped plates were often reused illegally on other vehicles.

“Such practices exposed transport bureaus to unnecessary expenses,” he said, adding that the new system would help Ethiopia use its limited resources more effectively and modernize the vehicle registration process.

The directive, he explained, fills gaps in plate types, production, and distribution while aligning with international standards Ethiopia has ratified.

Alemu stated that the new plates will incorporate advanced digital and security features.

“The new plate registration system is based on a single, technologically backed national production mechanism,” he said. Each registered vehicle will be assigned a unique federal identification number and a corresponding digital sticker, both integrated into a secure database.

“Based on international conventions, including the Vienna Convention, Ethiopia’s code ‘ETH’ will serve as the only identification mark for vehicles. Re-registration will be done only after verifying the legality of previous registrations,” said Alemu.

The new plates will also feature reflective signs for better visibility under different light conditions, as well as hidden security marks.

Alemu emphasized that the system is designed to enhance security and transparency. Features such as holograms, watermarks, barcodes, QR codes, RFID or chips to identify and track vehicles and micro-texts, which will make plate duplication impossible, according to the Minister.

“There will also be a sticker placed on the vehicle’s windshield, which remains valid from registration until the vehicle’s disposal. The sticker and plate number will be interoperable,” Alemu explained.

The embedded technology will allow authorities to verify where a vehicle was registered, who owns it, and its model, strengthening efforts against vehicle-related crimes.

Bareo Hassen, a state minister of Transport, noted the new layout will cut down on the number of paints currently used in plate production, all of which are imported.

The new registration system categorizes vehicles more clearly, including private cars, vehicles for persons with disabilities (marked with ‘PD’), government vehicles, taxis, commercial vehicles, religious institutions, diplomatic missions, and international organizations.

Under the directive, private vehicles will use black letters on a white background, commercial vehicles will use green letters, taxis will have red letters marked ‘Taxi,’ and government vehicles will display the institution’s name or logo.

Religious and civic society vehicles will have orange letters, while international and intergovernmental institutions will have specific abbreviations.

Aid and diplomatic vehicles will use unique tags such as ‘AO’ or ‘CD.’

Motorcycles will feature red text on a white background, and electric vehicles will be identified with green lettering. Vehicles classified as special machinery or equipment will be marked “SME” in both Geez and Latin alphabets, while heavy trucks will also bear names in both scripts.

Bareo explained that the previous system could register only up to nine million vehicles, while the new one, using ten digits, can accommodate as many as 121 million.

“All vehicle data will be digitally stored in chips readable through QR codes,” he said. The initiative, he added, is in line with Ethiopia’s international commitments under the African Continental Free Trade Area, the Africa-Euro Safety Charter, the Tripartite Agreement and the Vienna Convention.

During the press conference, journalists asked why the Ethiopian flag was not included in the new vehicle plate number design. Alemu responded, “What if the national flag changes as a result of the ongoing national dialogue? In that case, the newly produced plates would only be temporary, even after we have ordered two million of them.”

The Ministry deliberately chose not to include the flag in the new designs, according to Alemu.

Alemu disclosed that the first batch of the new plates has already been imported from abroad, and preparations for the digital installation system are underway. The Ministry plans to replace all existing plate numbers with the new version during the 2025/26 fiscal year.

“We’ll start changing the plate numbers within two months,” he said.

Alemu added that the Ministry is currently reviewing technology providers and will select a company capable of completing installation in the shortest time possible.

Vehicle registration in Ethiopia dates back to 1942, with the first plates officially issued in 1964. New designs were introduced in 1981 and again in 2001. The Ministry estimates that over 1.6 million vehicles are currently registered in the country.