ECA, Libya prepare the ground for the development of e-commerce in Libya

Tunis, 25 September 2025 (ECA): The ECA office for North Africa concluded today in Tunis, Tunisia, a four-day capacity building workshop on Taxing E-Commerce in Libya.

15 senior managers, supervisors and technical staff from the Libyan Tax Authority (LTA) participated in this event. The workshop was an opportunity to improve participants' practical knowledge of best practices with regards to taxing the digital economy, and improve their understanding of related aspects such as audit, taxpayer registration, compliance by digital businesses and freelancers, and inter-agency coordination.

"E-commerce has already generated billions of dollars in GCC countries and will inevitably reach Libya: it is imperative that our member countries build a solid legal and administrative framework to ride this global wave," said Khaled Hussein, Chief of the Special Initiatives Sections at the ECA Office for North Africa

Since 2014, the Libyan economy has faced daunting challenges on multiple fronts, with its foreign trade significantly impacted by weak governance, disrupted oil production, and volatile oil revenues. To this day, Libya remains highly dependent on its hydrocarbon sector, which can result in severe vulnerabilities in case of price or production shocks.

In response to these challenges, the Libyan government is currently seeking to diversify its public revenues and reduce national reliance on hydrocarbons by promoting non-oil exports and improving tax collection. However, tax revenue mobilization has remained weak so far, due to widespread tax evasion, a narrow tax base, and noncompliance by taxpayers.

To address these issues, improve the country's fiscal resilience and advance long-term economic recovery, the Libyan Tax Authority (LTA) proposed in 2021 a comprehensive strategy to modernize income tax administration through a combination of digitalisation and reforms.

This workshop is part of a series of training workshops carried out by the ECA Office for North Africa in partnership with the Egyptian Tax Authority and in support to the Libya's tax modernisation strategy. A previous training was held in July 2025 with a focus on E-Taxation Services.

اللجنة الاقتصادية لأفريقيا وليبيا تمهدان الطريق لتطوير التجارة الإلكترونية في ليبيا

Media queries Houda Filali-Ansary -Communications Officer ECA Office for North AfricaE-mail: [email protected]

Issued by:Communications Section Economic Commission for AfricaPO Box 3001Addis Ababa EthiopiaTel: +251 11 551 5826E-mail: [email protected]