Neamin Ashenafi

Although the number of COVID-19 cases and fatalities appear comparatively low in Africa than in other regions of the world, the pandemic could have a disastrous impact on the continent’s already strained healthcare system and quickly turn the situation into a social and economic emergency. 

The wider Horn of Africa region generally and countries like Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya remain in the spotlight of international media outlets.

Even though it did not last long, the reforms introduced following the ascendance to power of Abiy Ahmed (PhD) as Prime Minister brought about short-lived widespread political and social changes, including greater freedoms for citizens, CSOs, political parties, and the media

Following the Speaker of the House of Peoples’ Representatives (HPR) announcement earlier in September that preparations have been finalized to form a new administration and will take Office as of October 4, 2021; the issue has become a talking point by political commentators and fellow Ethiopians from different walks of life.

US President Joseph Biden signed an executive order last week allowing the imposition of sanctions over parties involved in the war in the Northern parts of the country.

In early September of this year, major international media organizations broadcasted a footage of a man in a regular attire sitting on a sofa barefoot, surrounded by soldiers. The man in the footage was the 83 year old Guinean President ousted by a military coup.

The Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) announced its withdrawal from the second round of the national elections scheduled for September 30, 2021.

The events that have taken place in the just concluded Ethiopian year can be summed up by the Danish proverb: “The year has a wide mouth and a big belly.” Through its wide-open mouth and a cavernous belly, the past year ingested a lot filling the pit with everything ranging from euphoria to despair. In this piece, The Reporter walks its esteemed readers through a rollercoaster year for Ethiopian politics.

After eight months of fighting against the forces of the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in the Tigray region, and an initial victory declared, the Federal Government went on to declare a unilateral ceasefire to “allow farmers in the region to conduct their farming peacefully during this ceasefire, so that they don’t miss the rainy season.”

When PM Abiy Ahmed (PhD) assumed the chairmanship role of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) that went on to become Prosperity Party (PP), and the Premiership, Ethiopians were euphoric.