New Gov’t Foundation for Better Ethiopia: Senior Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister

Addis Ababa, September 29/2021(ENA)The formation of a new government will lay foundation for a better Ethiopia beyond a formal political transition process, Senior Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister noted at the monthly Addis Weg forum organized by the Office of the Prime Minister.

The discussion held today under the title: ‘New Contract in New Spirit --- Government Formation and Nation Building’ mainly focused on what the new government needs to do and  nation building.

At the discussion experts drawn from various sectors presented discussion papers on nation building, national security, economic issues, and civil service.

Senior Policy Advisor to the Prime Minister, Mamo Mihretu said Ethiopia has economic, social and security problems that need to be overcome.

For instance, he noted that more than 60 million Ethiopians do not have access to electricity.

Therefore, the new government will be responsible in overcoming Ethiopia's complex problems, the senior policy advisor stated, adding that “formation of a new government will lay the foundation for a better Ethiopia beyond formal political transition.”

State Minister at the Office Prime Minister, Fisseha Yitagesu said on his part nation building needs to be based on brotherhood and national identity.

The issues of democracy and freedom, especially in multi-ethnic countries like Ethiopia, should be resolved in a spirit of brotherhood, he stressed.

Furthermore, Fisseha elaborated that nation building could be successful by working on the next generation.

Building independent institutions, creating trust between the government and the people, and building a strong democratic system are also key pillars for nation building, the state minister noted.

Defense Force Capacity Building Research Director, Colonel Fikreyesus Kebede said building a strong defense force is part of building a strong government.

One of the key ways to build a strong defense force is to free the institution from political partisanship, he said, adding that the new army building strategy is based on this principle.

This will enable to build an effective army, the director stated.

According to him, the army building involves all nations, nationalities and peoples.

The other panelist, Planning and Development Commissioner Fitsum Assefa said the new government will continue implementing the policies and documents prepared over the last three years.

Civil Service Commissioner Bezab Gebreyesus said one of the obstacles to state building in Ethiopia is the poor performance of the public sector service delivery.

He pointed out that new measures should be put in place to curb malpractices and digitalization of public services is crucial to control corruption.