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 operations of the Ethiopia Securities Exchange were stopped in 1974 following the takeover by a communist military government. Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed described the relaunch as an “historic milestone” for Ethiopia’s economic and financial landscape.

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,