Description: Ethiopia in the Wake of Political Reforms brings together contributions from a multi-disciplinary team of over twenty scholars and practitioners with acknowledged expertise in the areas of political and economic reform, federalism and nation building, as well as foreign and security policy.
Brief description: Melaku Geboye Desta is professor of international economic law at Leicester De Montfort Law School in England (since 2013), currently on leave working for the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) as principal regional advisor in regional integration and trade. He is a lawyer by training and holds a PhD in international economic law. Melaku has published widely in the fields of international economic law and policy, with a particular focus on the interests of developing countries in general and those in Africa in particular. Melaku is a founding coeditor of the Ethiopian Yearbook of International Law (EtYIL), which has been published annually since 2016.
Review Quotes:
This book is a timely collection of thoughtful essays that impacts political reform in Ethiopia and contributes to an understanding of the country's challenges. It covers a wide range of issues by mostly Ethiopian authors. The excellent introduction effectively summarizes the book for time-challenged readers.
-David Shinn, Ph.D., Author of China and Africa: A Century of Engagement (2012 University of Pennsylvania Press)
Since April 2018, Ethiopia has been undergoing a process of reform that has been breathtaking in its speed and absorbing in its multi-faceted nature. Nor has the process yet been consummated. Attempting to analyze this reform process might thus be like attempting to hit a moving target. Yet, the editors of this volume have succeeded beyond expectations in assembling an array of scholars representing various disciplines to explore the political and economic dimensions of the reform as well as its implications for the federal arrangement and the country's foreign policy. The authors delineate the historical setting of the reforms, analyze their various facets and almost invariably conclude by indicating the way forward. The interplay of agent and structure are analyzed and the inherent challenges of change coming from within highlighted. The volume is thus a handy companion to anyone who wants to gain a deeper understanding of the process of change that Ethiopia has been undergoing in the past two years or so.
-Bahru Zewde, Ph.D. Emeritus Professor of History, Addis Ababa University
The editors of this volume have assembled an extraordinary set of essays that provide the definitive account of the contentious processes of change in Ethiopia since 2018. The scholarship demonstrates deeply informed insights based on primary research, an understanding of the country's rich histories and cultures, and engagement in the most important challenges Ethiopians face today. This volume will be valued by specialists and all seeking to understand the potential for transformation and the dangers that challenge this vitally important state. This book will be the touchstone for scholarship on contemporary Ethiopia for years to come.
-Terrence Lyons, Ph.D., Author of The Puzzle of Ethiopian Politics (Lynne Rienner Publishers, 2019)