‘Villagisation’ in Ethiopia The Development & Human Security ‘Realpolitik’

Public Lecture - Respublica Literaria CXII, MMXV

Costantinos Berhutesfa Costantinos, PhD

Professor of Public Policy, School of Graduate Studies,

College of Business & Economics, AAU

Abstract

     The villagisation programme to transform rural society started in earnest in Jan 1985 under the Dergue to relocate more than 30 million peasants over a nine-year period. The plan now is to resettle 1.5 million people in four regions: Gambella, Afar, Somali and Benishangul-Gumuz. The aim is to give rural people better access to amenities such as agricultural extension services, schools, clinics, water, electricity and cooperative services. It would strengthen local security and self-defence. Improved economic and social services would promote efficient use of natural resources and would lead to increased production and a higher standard of living. Nonetheless, critics point to the fact that instead of improved access to services, however, new villages often go without them altogether and the resettlement of people is connected to leasing large areas of land for commercial purposes.

      Good intentions of the state notwithstanding, it must listen to the social and environmental activists and convince its sceptics by proving itself right. In this regard, it must host roundtables for dialogue to convince them that the human and environmental impacts will not adversely affect the intended purpose of the schemes. It must ensure that all recommendations of impact assessments are implemented correctly by setting up a monitoring system that checks on progress. On the other hand, international lobby must also refine its advocacy so that protests that are not based on scientific facts and solid evidence and impact assessment evaluation do not hamper well-meaning development projects. In fact, a balance must be created between what is logically tenable in terms of the incessant dependency on international charity and ‘unsubstantiated’ militancy against such development projects, without which, that dependence will not be addressed. Ultimately, the legitimacy of the fledgling political pluralism process underway will depend in important ways on it being perceived as reasonably honest, transparent and accountable to its citizens in the execution of the state’s responsibility. A skilled and committed leadership at the district and federal levels can mitigate conditions that are hostile to political pluralism.

     Key words: villagisation, resettlement, conflict, ACM, service provision, political pluralism

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Unravelling African Integration Physical Infrastructure, Energy, ICT & Trade: the Greater Horn & the Great Lakes of Africa - A Comparative Case Study

     Africa faces the usual panoply of challenges endemic in developing countries with too few instruments and too few resources, while also grappling with the perennial problem of managing development. These are sequencing of policy reforms, all subject to the political constraints of containing the disruptive impacts of policy reforms to acceptable levels. This is a particularly important problem for Africa given the very narrow margins for manoeuvre imposed by fiscal and external deficits, subsistence levels of household income for much of the population and a complex political weave in the regions social fabric. Getting the priorities right and managing change are thus particularly vital issues for African integration. Hence, infrastructure development (energy, ICT, roads, railways, hydro dams, power transmission and industry – sugar factories, metallurgy, fertilizer plants…), a consumer goods revolution is just beginning in much of Africa.

      Emerging export industries—in mining, manufacturing and exportable services—are already making their mark as sources of growth in the economy and will soon overtake traditional foreign exchange earnings from minerals and agricultural goods. However, two overwhelming pressures in Africa’s current economic climate—inflation and challenging new regulations—are putting strains on private business and could potentially dent the country’s positive growth prospects. Hence, Africa should modify regulatory policies that inflate business costs and depress urban consumer incomes, go for bolder and more unconventional agricultural policies and put in place a smarter set of policies for the financial sector.

       Much of the public investment laid out in the two cases are needed, justified, and on the whole appropriate, but how such investment is to be financed remains only partially addressed and the issue of who should carry out the investments is—in at least three specific cases—quite questionable. The case for government investments in public goods such as roads and power infrastructure is undeniable, as it is laying the essential foundations—the necessary conduits and circuitry—of a modern economy.

Key words: infrastructure, transformation, entrepreneurship, capital, policy, trade, peace & security

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Enterprises, Employment & Human Security in the Greater Horn of Africa

         A major contributing factor to the appalling situation of the youth in Africa is that there is and has been a shallow understanding of, and a feeble grip on, the essential components that constitute the required human qualities for development, and the intensive and comprehensive nature of their development and utilisation processes. Human security, a post-Cold War concept, is a multi-disciplinary understanding of security involving a number of research fields, which equates security with people rather than territories, with development rather than arms. It is about ensuring freedom from want and freedom from fear for all persons is the best path to tackle the problem of global insecurity refers to an emerging paradigm for understanding global vulnerabilities that arise from unemployment and lack of entrepreneurship.

        There is simply no alternative to defining the scope of the state and the establishment of sound institutional capacity for real-time strategy development, sensitivity analysis, policy coordination, and attention to the details of implementation of entrepreneurial employment. Hence, public and private sector employment generation schemes underpin the need for community commitment (targeting, rationalising and effecting public works schemes) to the success of public works initiated. Participation implies local commitment, decisions, innovativeness, resource contribution and legitimate social capital to preside on the collective will and decisions of community, who, at the end, determine the requisite basis that participation to happen. The foci of the initiative are grounded on a firm conceptual base for remunerated safety nets in developing methodology for comprehensive self-assessment of the population and analyses of the operational capabilities: objectives, inputs, outputs, effects and impact of employment-support projects.

       In addition, it concerns outlining proposals for capacity development on mechanism for participation that can assure sustainability. These include building the rules and institutions of finance and the market and legal empowerment of the poor that seeks to generate new policy recommendations that will reduce poverty through secure, enforceable property and labour rights, within an enabling environment that expands legal business opportunity and access to justice.

Key words: employment, entrepreneurship, human security

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Battles of Adwa & Guræ, the Calamity of 18th, 19th & 20th Centuries & Dawn of Pan Africanism

     

     Axum, the Seat of the earliest Ethiopian kingdom and one of the holiest grounds, the Church of St. Mary of Zion. The earliest monasteries in Ethiopia, established by the “Nine Saints” who spread the gospel are also found in Tigray. Thus, it is properly considered the birthplace of Ethiopian state, religion, culture and civilization. As the area through which all trade and communications passed to and from the ports of Adulis and subsequently Massawa, it was the gateway of the Ethiopian Empire. During the last quarter of the 19^th century, there had been constant internal and external warfare and famine in Tigray.

     During 1890, Menelique received the response to his letters to the European powers announcing his coronation and requesting their recognition. Notably, Britain and Germany responded that according to Article XVII of the Wuchalle Treaty concluded with Italy, Menelique’s communication ought to have been made through Italy. Angered by this response, Emperor Menelique at once wrote to King Umberto on September 26, 1890, denouncing Article XVII of the Treaty of Wuchalle. The relation between Ethiopia and Italy rapidly deteriorated. Ultimately, an advance party led by Ras Makonnen and aided by Ras Alula, Ras Mikael of Wollo and Ras Wolle of Yejju as well as a number of other commanders was dispatched to join Mengesha in Tigray. On 7^th Dec 1895, Ethiopia gained her first victory at Amba Alage. After the arrival of the Emperor with the Empress Taitu and King Tekle Haymanot of Gojjam, the Ethiopian forces successively defeated the Italian army at Mequelle on 21 Jan 1986 and at Adwa on 1^st of March, 1896.

     Adwa has become a quintessential emblem and a pedestal for Pan-Africanism - an important political form of a religious Pan-Africanist worldview appeared in the form of Ethiopianism. Ethiopia’s African diasporic religious symbolism grew in the 1800s among blacks in the US and the Caribbean, through a reading of Psalm 68:31, Ethiopia shall soon stretch forth its hands unto God, as a prophesy that God would redeem Africa and free the enslaved.

Key words: Adwa, Victory, Mequelle, Amba Alage, Menelique, Mengesha, fascist Italy,

See the talk here