Content: Editorial

Finance is one of the elitist spheres of an economy. Its complexity often is understandable only to the handful experts that rotate the wheel through their advanced simulations of the economy. Their largely hypothetical approach is far too unconventional for others to even make an educated guess. Sitting on top of the financial system of […]

Though he still does not manage to win the hearts and minds of the crowd of diplomats residing in Addis Abeba, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn is showing improvements in his grasp of the economy. Of course, the bar could not be sent quite as high up the scale as the late Meles Zenawi. A simple […]

Last week saw the rather relaxed version of Ahmed Tussa, the chief executive officer (CEO) of the national amalgamated shipping and logistic enterprise – the Ethiopian Shipping & Logistics Services Enterprise (ESLSE) – who was in Adama to announce the performance of the enterprise he oversees to its employees. Speaking of performance, Ahmed indicated that […]

The modern Ethiopian state has a history of no more than two centuries. Its evolution has passed through many ups and downs in this time. The road was filled with twists and turns between varying forms and structures – from traditional monarchical arrangement to modern autocracy and from a centrally-planned, command structure to a relatively […]

Pragmatism seems to be a typical trait in the EPRDF camp, even if it has been declining lately. Since coming to power in 1991, the Revolutionary Democrats have gone through what can arguably be described as a rough policy ride. It is all connected to the timing of their ascendancy to power. The end of […]

It was during this week last year that the EPRDFites lost their acclaimed leader, Meles Zenawi, after weeks of buzz about his whereabouts and health. The news of his death sent shockwaves throughout the whole nation. A figurative politician from the EPRDF camp, Meles was the party’s policy guru too. His insights and reflections were […]

Sinkinesh Ejigu, the soft-spoken minister of Mines (MoM), seems to have a mixed legacy. This comes in a sector that has been a hot spot of contention between private investors and the state ever since trials for commercial development started during the era of Emperor Haileselassie. Private investors, looking for better return on their high-risk […]

Hosting the latest conference of the Agricultural Growth & Opportunity Act (AGOA) – a duty and tariff free export privilege that the US provides for the least developed countries (LDCs) – seems to be a moment to smile for the administration of Hailemariam Desalegn. If anything, the time is crucial. On the one hand, the […]

There seems to be no service that Ethiopians of all colours complain about more than telecommunications. A sector destined to live under the reign of the restructured ethio telecom monopoly, telecommunications remains the hotspot for the disappointments of the ever-growing population of the nation. At the heart of the complaint matrix rests the quality of […]

The EPRDFites, led by their technocratic chairman, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn, preside over a sprinting but volatile economy.  Ethiopia is experiencing a changing external image, a growing regional hegemony and an improving international acceptance. Their driving of the economy has largely been successful, although there has been bumps along the way. Four decades of litmus […]

The ruling EPRDFites seem to have started to establish a solid political base in Addis Abeba – the economic nerve centre of Ethiopia and the political capital of Africa. Here they have continuously been rewarded with an acceptance rating lower than the other edges of the nation. Since their outright defeat in the chaotic election […]

There seems to be no political party so fond of the theories of Ester Boserup – the popular opponent of the Malthusian population carrying capacity limitation of economies – than the ruling EPRDFites. Since, their ascendance to power in 1991, after overthrowing the 17 years pseudo-socialist military junta – the Dergue – they remain the […]

There has never been a week that Prime Minister Hailemariam has been placed in the limelight quite as much as last week. His presence graced the Public Private Consultative Forum (PPCF), Parliament and a gathering of journalists. As rare as they were, these series of events brought the personality of Hailemariam – the handpicked successor […]

As the EPRDFites were preparing to convene at Bahir Dar – the beautiful lakeside capital of the Amhara Region – the policy environment was tense with so much uncertainty. Pundits proclaimed for the conflict of interests to overshadow pertinent political and economic problems, which demanded the attention of the Revolutionary Democrats. To their disapproval, however, […]

A seed of change in culture and momentum seems to have taken root at the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry, being led by Tedros Adhanom (PhD), one of the progressive EPRDFites, with a historic confidence of facing the gruelling heat of the public space on Twitter – a social networking website – day in and day out. […]

The administration of Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn seems to be busy with a variety of issues in desperate need of policy attention. These extend from creating an understanding with downstream riparian nations on the use of the Nile waters to mobilising resources from non-Western darlings, such as China, for the overstretched Growth & Transformation Plan […]

The clouds over the Nile waters have become denser, after the Administration of Hailemariam Desalegn announced the change in course of the Blue Nile River – locally named Abay – in order to create a favourable surface condition for the construction of the Great Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). Uproars of conservative cautions from Egypt have […]

Whereas Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalgn – the unpretentious policy chief of the nation, with an increasing disposable power – was declaring the agenda of inclusive economic development, at the various events of the 50th year anniversary of the African Union (AU), Zenebu Tadesse was nowhere to be seen. The EPRDFite who leads the ‘too-big-to-fail’ ministry […]

Ethiopian politics is changing, and for the better. It is not that a change in the governing hands has taken place. But, rather a tide of change has been initiated within the ruling EPRDF. At the forefront of the change stands Parliament – a house of 547 elected representatives of the people from across the […]

There is little similarity, in terms of personality, that one could find between officials of the ruling EPRDF – a political party that had been at the driving seat of policymaking in the country for the last 21 years. What seems to cement their presence under one umbrella is their inclination towards the guiding principles […]

Keeping government within limits is certainly a tough task. As the powerhouse of public resources and power thereof, government is one of the most authoritative poles of a given political-economic system. So much as its limits expand continuously, overseeing it to live within its boundaries, delineated with the laws of the land, is certainly a […]

No frontier is more visible in the Ethiopian political scene than the House of Peoples’ Representatives (HPR), a.k.a parliament, now chaired by the Abadula Gemeda, a popular EPRDFite. Born in Arsi Zone of Oromia Region, where he served as president for five years between 2005 and 2010, Abdadula is a Revolutionary Democrat with a solid […]

Tedros Adhanom (PhD), the technocratic EPRDFite and minister of Foreign Affairs (MoFA), is undoubtedly a westerners’ favourite. He leverages a rare popular support among heads of many western missions based in Addis Abeba. His relative distance from the conventional, hardcore political stiffness of the ruling-EPRDF, along with his academic acclaim, seem to have seen him […]

Most parts of the nation were calm last Sunday, as it was the day for local and city council elections. Even the busy capital of the nation witnessed relative serenity, atypical of its usual bustling nature. The city, which hosts the heights of national and continental politics, was quite in keeping with the official line: […]

The local political wave has seen yet another crest with the election for the city councils of Addis Abeba and Dire Dawa, and that of local administrations fast approaching. This time around, however, the vibe is less breathtaking than previous elections. A resultant outcome of the slow diffusion of passivity from previous elections, both national […]