April 10, 2026
Gezahegn Engida
Dr. Yonas’ article dispassionately and eloquently describes the Ethiopian political quagmire from the economics perspective of game theory. Similar to Yonas, but in plain terms, others have also described the Ethiopian political quagmire employing the metaphor of passengers fighting for the best seat in a sinking ship. The problem has been described ad nauseum. The challenge is to come forth with practicable, do-able – no matter how small – action areas (that can be undertaken even by individuals) to bring about the required shift in mindset among the political actors to arrive at what the author calls pareto optimality. Who needs (to do what) to bring about the requisite shift in elite mindset, to employ Dr. Yonas’ apt phrases”, to move from the “logic of grievance” to the “logic of institutionalism”, to move from the lose-lose “desert” to the win-win “garden” of abundance; to move away from pushing toward the “collective ruin of the state”?
Dr. Yonas suggests that compromise is the way forward. The Ethiopian economic pie is in a shrinking trajectory, especially if one factors the rate of population growth. Compromise is not workable under the current circumstance. I believe we need to go beyond compromising to share poverty (shrinking pie) and agree to arrive at a radical break-through solution where we can create wealth, expand the pie and there is enough for everybody. To get there, again, we need to shift the current MINDSETS of the Ethiopian elite.
Dr. Yonas refers to the Oromo, Amhara and Tigre elites (to which both of us belong) as if they are fixed, immutable entities. Yet, increasingly the failure and bankruptcy of these elite groups is getting starker by the day. The Ethiopian youth, irrespective of the ethnic label, are opening their eyes to the disaster their elite has wrought on the country. The Ethiopian youth is seeing that their elite has failed to build any durable political, economic, social and legal institutions to enable the country to exploit its development potential. They see an elite that has “mainstreamed” fleeing from daunting challenges of nation-building (aka the phenomenon of “diaspora”). They are beginning to stir. They have seen their elite is not delivering, compared to the elites of other African countries, let alone Asian countries. They are starting NOT to follow them. So, I suggest Dr. Yonas recognize this and instead inspire them to look elsewhere for inspiration. I say give space to the Ethiopian youth!
Editor’s Note : Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
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