Ethiopia launched a securities exchange on Friday, in what officials touted as a milestone in Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's drive to open up the country's tightly controlled economy to private investment.

Ethiopia opened its stock exchange — part of a plan to lure investors to an economy recovering from a civil war — without any brokers and no initial public offering debuts.

The Ethiopian Securities Exchange will start operations this Friday. According to CEO , Tilahun Kassahun, this is a big step forward for the country. The first shares to be sold will come from Ethio Telecom,