Nation-Building Predicament, Transition Fatigue, and Fear of State Collapse

Ethiopia, evolved from Tigray, is known by its history of having been an empire (e.g., the Axumite kingdom) and independent. The fundamental weakness Ethiopian state has lack inclusive national consensus, hampered oppression dilemma democratizing a feudal state. post-1991 TPLF-EPRDF-led Ethiopia experimenting with federalist nation-building to address Ethiopia’s historical contradictions: class oppression. 1995 FDRE Constitution established federal system subsequently recognized right nations self-determination including secession, self-administration, local development. constitution also declared that were “sovereign owners” constitution. However, coming Abiy Ahmed power his policy reforms based on ‘neo-pan-Ethiopianism’ opened box Pandora secessionist, irredentist, forces opposing plan recentralize ethnic federation, as it happened similarly in case former Yugoslavia. PM Abiy’s have branded those ‘Mikael Gorbachev Ethiopia’ for sweeping campaign against 27 years control. article investigates aspirations, transition fatigue, predicaments federalist, assimilationist narratives, subsequent fear ‘state collapse’ post-2018 crisis Ethiopia.