The 2027 FIATA World Congress will run in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, from 5 to 7 October, the Federation has confirmed — taking its flagship annual event to East Africa for the first chapter of its second century.

The announcement follows this year's Congress in Milan, where FIATA wrapped up its centenary celebrations. Italy hosted the industry's leaders, freight forwarding professionals, policymakers and international organisations; Ethiopia now picks up the baton.

That venue choice is the real story. Addis Ababa puts Africa's freight sector at the centre of the room, not on the guest list.

Why Addis Ababa matters

FIATA frames the 2027 location as a deliberate spotlight on Africa's role in global supply chains, regional connectivity and the logistics networks that underpin international trade. For a Federation representing forwarders in more than 100 countries, holding the Congress in Ethiopia signals where it sees growth and relevance heading.

Dawit Woubishet (PD), Local Organising Chair and Chair of the FIATA Airfreight Institute, said: "Hosting the 2027 FIATA World Congress in Addis Ababa is an opportunity to bring the global freight forwarding and logistics community to Ethiopia and highlight Africa's growing role in international trade."

He added that the event would "create a space for industry leaders to exchange ideas, build partnerships and explore opportunities to strengthen connectivity across regions," and pointed to showcasing "the potential of Ethiopia and the wider African logistics sector."

What does this change for forwarders?

In practical terms, a date and a destination. Forwarders planning participation now have a fixed window — 5 to 7 October 2027 — and a venue that shifts the agenda's centre of gravity toward African trade corridors, regional integration and the infrastructure questions that come with them.

The Congress itself serves as FIATA's main annual platform for industry dialogue, and the 2027 edition arrives as the profession works through a familiar checklist of pressures: geopolitical uncertainty, shifting trade routes, digital transformation and rising demand for supply chain resilience. Expect those themes to dominate the programme.

A new century, a new set of questions

FIATA's Director General, Dr Stéphane Graber, framed the event as a bridge between the Federation's first 100 years and its next. "As FIATA begins its next century, the focus turns to how the Federation and the global freight forwarding community can continue to evolve in a rapidly changing world," he said.

The 2027 Congress, he added, "will provide an opportunity to carry forward the lessons of the past 100 years while looking ahead to the priorities, partnerships and innovations that will shape the future of our profession." Graber also stressed FIATA's ambition to remain "the global voice of freight logistics" by uniting the industry "across regions and generations."

For delegates, the pitch is straightforward: one venue, three days, and a programme that connects European, Asian and American forwarders with an African logistics market that FIATA clearly wants closer to the centre of global trade flows.

Between now and October 2027, the detail to watch is the agenda — whether the Addis Ababa programme translates Africa's supply chain ambitions into concrete commercial outcomes for carriers, forwarders and shippers, or stays at the level of regional showcase.