Yesterday, Ethiopia’s nation, nationalities and people were forced to be considered as second class citizens. Their area excluded from development and limited for exile and prison, they weren’t able to be beneficiaries of the development. Yesterdays Ethiopia has been a land of pain for Ethiopia’s nation, nationalities and people. Those days where citizens were having a hard time to live their lives, made to be hopeless and confused; and those miserable days where they were engulfed in an unending war, famine and exile have been send away not to ever come back.
Today, we have reached a time where respecting the constitution is considered respecting oneself. Citizens have started to be hopeful and are now enjoying their lives standing side by side. They are able to move freely, and peacefully. And we are able to get to this better place because of the sacrifice paid by thousands. The outcome was that peace was gained within the whole country; development has become the main staple; and the democratic order building process has stood in a firm basis.
The years of those miserable days have been stopped. The oppressive dictatorial regime met its demise; the days of oppressing the people just to keep their grip on power has ended; and we are now able to create a country where the only way to get to power is through peaceful and democratic manner. A firm belief is held to enable Ethiopia’s nation, nationalities and people to benefit equally and fairly from the development by basing it on the peace and democracy they have been bestowed upon them. They are enjoying the benefits and fruits of it. And the basis of all this is the constitution that Ethiopia’s nation, nationalities and people, which they have ratified with their blood.
Of course in the past 25 years, Ethiopia’s nation, nationalities and people have stood as one more than ever to build a single political and economic community by strengthening their common interests. As the unity that is based on diversity is important for the success of the renaissance, everyone has stood committedly to protect the constitution.
The basis of the path that ensured that human and democratic rights are respected all over Ethiopia; that democratic unity is laid, that the identity, beauty and sovereign power of nation, nationalities and people are seen; and generally the path that initiated the road towards the developmental and democratic system is the constitution. Citizens have continued with their path holding hand in hand in order to build upon the successes and results of the constitution, augment the identity of citizens and their cultural heritage, and strengthen the good experiences further to ensure that they continue to be the expression of our unity and strength. It has been two decades since Ethiopia’s nation, nationalities and people ratified the constitution through their representatives.
During these times, good results have been gained in terms of ensuring equal benefits between regions and especially in terms of development and growth. Exercising their right to equal development, rapid development has been gained relatively in every region. By basing on the historical realities of the country, multinational federal system has been implemented as stipulated by the constitution. The multinational federal system has been able to answer the question of identity and economic benefit that were denied by past oppressive regimes.
The issue of maintaining a unity based on consent and quality and building a single political and economic community is being facilitated by the renaissance. And through the decentralized system of the federal system, nation, nationalities and people are able to have direct participation. With this; their political, economic and social participation and their benefit have strengthened at each level. They are having huge role for the national development by developing their areas. And with regards to ensuring equal benefit for all regions, it confirms that the development and growth of the country is being carried out by the regions equally.
And with regards to ensuring equal benefit of regions, the developmental government has formulated a clear economic laws, development policies and strategies and created a suitable environment where they will be implemented in line with the realities of the areas or regions. By building upon the good experiences gained from the implementation, systems have been setup to enable the beneficial outcomes to reach the people at every area of the country.
By improving the procedures that identifies bottlenecks in the implementation of the government’s development policies and strategies, the participation and benefit of nation, nationalities and people is being ensured. By formulating rural and urban development and good governance plans and by making their people the main executors of it, the regions have played their own role in the double digit economic growth on average recorded for the past eight years. And the federal government is building roads that link regions with regions and with neighboring countries, and installing fast telecom services. And by hastening the service of electric power and air transport service, and by creating local and foreign market & strengthening them, the effort to build a single economic community is going well.
Although there are works that are still left to do, the first Growth and Transformation has benefitted the people at every level. And satisfactory result has been gained as a result. And the second phase that is being implemented is being executed in a way that will elevate the participation and benefit of nation, nationalities and people. It is expected that higher success will be gained from it.
The horizontal and vertical relationship that exists between the regions is playing a huge role in bringing equal benefit and comparable development and growth. And if it is possible to solve the development and good governance bottlenecks, and build upon the good experiences gained, I think there isn’t any single reason left as to why our country won’t enter middle income countries.
Side by side to the development efforts the country’s regional states and the people put on, a special support board that involves the relevant ministers on the side of the federal government has been setup. There have been efforts being made to build a lasting capability by installing a budget allocating scheme that accounts for the MDGs and support mechanism for the regions. Notwithstanding the fact that the results that have been gained so far are encouraging, information show that the joint effort of the federal and state governments will continue strongly considering they lay a base/basis for the future.
Here I think it is necessary to mention the villagization program that is being carried out in regions that needs support like Somale, Gambella, Afar and Beninshangul-Gumuz – as some forces that don’t want our country’s growth and development are seen talking about this. What should be known firstly is the program’s objective is to create a suitable condition for citizens to benefit from their country’s development and growth, and enable them to be part of the good governance and democratic order building process. In addition to this, the program is done to ensure good governance, democracy and development rights in the country.
The program will make sure that their effort to have an organized fight for their democratic right won’t be difficult as they live separately. So, the program will enable them to carry out their role like the people for their rights and benefits, whilst also enabling them to have dialogue with the government structure and search for solutions. This program, seen from the country’s capacity, it has made it possible to provide social, economic and infrastructural (development) services in a successful manner. As a result to it, huge change has been seen in regards to ensuring citizens’ food security. It also aims to save citizens from the global climate change and the resulting natural disasters.
More than anything, it is a program that is carried out by a full consent and democratic principle. Firstly, the program ensures that there is an ample supply of garden, farm, grazing land and water supply at the areas. Attitude, skill and input delivery works have been done side by side within the program in order for the people to enter into production without developing indolent mentality.
In addition to this, social infrastructure institutions are being built and started to give service. This program elevates the participation of the people living in region with special support in peace, development, good governance and democracy building process and ensures their benefit from it. Through this, the program is fulfilling the objective of creating comparable development and growth between regions. And it is showing that it changes the lifestyle of citizens and living standard of citizens in a quick time frame relatively. And it is making its contribution in building a common community with comparable income.
It is impossible to detail the benefit the constitution has brought in this short article. Nonetheless, every nation, nationalities and people of our country has been beneficiary of this document – for more than two decades. In my belief, Ethiopians both here and abroad came out in mass demo to oppose the anti-Ethiopia forces that are in opposition to the constitution out of their desire to maintain their benefit and not to see the former regimes make a comeback. Read from the source here
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