July 16, 2026
By Mekonnen Solomon
On September 11, 2026, the federal civil service entered into a period of deep reform implementation on major economy and social sectors of Ethiopia. While the government frames this as a vital federal sector reform, the reality on the ground is one of fear. With the government acting as the country’s largest employer, the looming threat of layoffs is creating real distress for civil servants and their families who are already navigating an environment of financial hardship.
It is certain that over 2.5 million government employees are staring down the barrel of uncertainty, fearing that their means of livelihood may soon vanish. As the government pushes forward with ambitious plans to build a world-class efficient public sector, a widening gap has opened between official promises of progress and the heavy reality felt by those on the front lines. These professionals are not just worried about their pay checks; they are facing a future that feels increasingly fragile and beyond their control.
The government has spent too much time blaming the employee and too little time fixing the foundation. It is time to look past the surface at the systemic rigidities and misaligned external pressures that have hindered our progress. Real reform requires an honest assessment by contrasting our current struggles with historical examples of what happens when civil servants are properly supported, we can see that a functional, thriving public sector is not just a dream, it is an achievable reality.
The dominant narrative surrounding our civil service challenges tends to simplify complex issues by attributing them primarily to ‘overstaffing’ and ‘individual inefficiency.’ This framing serves as a convenient scapegoat, diverting attention from the deeper, systemic problems that plague our institutions. By focusing on these superficial explanations, the narrative creates a façade of legitimacy for proposed mass workforce reductions, suggesting that the solution lies in simply trimming the number of employees rather than addressing the underlying structural deficiencies.
Isolated instances of low productivity in the public sector are rarely indicative of individual failure; rather, they are symptomatic of a deeper, persistent institutional malaise. The current skills gap is a direct consequence of the past academic curricula that have failed to synchronize theoretical training with the technical rigors of modern governance, leaving dedicated professionals ill-equipped for the demands of their roles. Furthermore, any perceived overstaffing is not a failure of the workforce, but a reflection of the state’s inability to foster a robust private sector capable of absorbing and mobilizing this human capital nor its limitation to create favourable investment environment for professional youth
History offers a compelling alternative in the story of the Awash Valley. During the 1950s and 60s, the region’s transformative development unfolded in perfect harmony with the emergence of the first generation of graduates from Alemaya (now Haramaya) University. These pioneers did not just fill government roles; they acted as the true architects of Ethiopia’s modern commercial agricultural sector. Whether working as agronomists, farm managers, or agricultural economists, they thrived by moving directly from the lecture hall into the demanding reality of the Awash Basin. By translating scientific principles into large-scale industrial output, they built the very foundations that would eventually define our national export economy. This history serves as a powerful reminder: when professionals are supported, empowered, and aligned with practical needs, they do not just perform, they lead.
Over time, however, structural constraints became more pronounced. The quality of education given by colleges and universities faded. Education increasingly pushed youth toward government roles as a gateway to stable income, making self-employment and entrepreneurial spirit feel like distant dreams for many. Likewise, government institutional structures have remained stubbornly tied to outdated manual operations, rigid bureaucratic procedures, and static management styles that actively discourage innovation, adaptability, and responsiveness to changing circumstances. The chronic absence of consistent, high-impact, field-oriented training programs has left generations of civil servants without the essential tools needed to adapt to evolving modern practices and technologies.
The harsh remuneration realities must also feature prominently in any honest analysis. For too long, wage rates, rewards, and compensation packages have failed miserably to keep pace with the skyrocketing cost of living. Just a year ago, the maximum gross salary for many civil service employees stood at around 14,000 Birr per month, yielding a net take-home pay of approximately 9,400 Birr equivalent to roughly 78 dollars per month . In that economic climate, this amount barely covers not even essentials like food, household rent, and the education of children, leaving virtually nothing for savings, professional development, and investment. The level of this salary is 6 to 7 times less than the amount paid by the private sector for the same professional position. Such inadequate reward and compensation severely diminish motivation and restrict employees’ capacity to focus fully on innovation, creativity, excellence, skill enhancement, and high-quality output.
Today, a widespread and deeply held perception exists among scholars that the aggressive push for reform is driven less by genuine domestic priorities and more by powerful external pressures emanating from international lending institutions. Many believe the underlying objective is the drastic reduction of government expenditure to meet stringent fiscal consolidation targets, achieved either through significant cut of the public sector workforce or other austerity measures. This perception creates high-stakes tension and erodes trust.
While government officials consistently maintain that the initiative is of its own and the goal is not downsizing but rather optimization of public service ventures through elevated global standards of efficiency and professional excellence, a pervasive skepticism persists, with critics characterizing the agenda as a veiled mechanism for workforce reduction.
Critics argue that one can easily examine the historical influence of external structural adjustment programs (SAPs) on Ethiopia’s administrative landscape, particularly their intersection with public sector reform and business process reengineering (BPR) initiatives. Following the transition from the Derg era in the early 1990s, Ethiopia adopted SAPs as a strategic mechanism to stabilize the macroeconomy, attract essential external financial assistance, and liberalize key industrial sectors. These frameworks characterized by currency devaluation, subsidy rationalization, trade liberalization, privatization, and fiscal consolidation often necessitated stringent control over public wage bills, leading to workforce optimization and broader austerity measures. Fortunately, a retrospective analysis reveals that many professionals impacted by these historical downsizing measures successfully leveraged their expertise to secure high-value positions within international organizations and prominent private agricultural firms. Others demonstrated entrepreneurial resilience by establishing consultancy service , effectively pivoting from public service to private sector leadership.
The most recent competency examinations, conducted across 4 key federal government institutions, have generated enormous frustration and disillusionment. With success rates of pass as low as only 5 to 10 percent among tested employees, the vast majority have failed. Many argue these assessments are not fair and objective measures of true competence, but deliberate mechanisms engineered to facilitate a predetermined reduction in workforce. An employee who participated in the official competency test stated that , “When experts courageously express these legitimate concerns, they are frequently dismissed by officials and labelled as mere ‘resistors to change’ or defenders of the status quo.” This type of categorization not only invalidates their important viewpoints but also fosters a significant divide between leadership and staff, exacerbating divisions and diminishing trust.While the current reform climate naturally generates apprehension among civil servants, this historical precedent suggests that workforce mobility can serve as a catalyst for professional growth. When viewed through the lens of human capital reallocation, these transitions often empower skilled individuals to move beyond the constraints of traditional bureaucracy, enabling them to pursue more dynamic and rewarding career trajectories
Yet many passionate professionals in the agriculture sector today are brimming with confidence and ambition. They envision a future where, if strategically organized—perhaps as dynamic shareholder companies with streamlined access to land and credit—they could not only replicate but even surpass the extraordinary accomplishments of the Alemaya generation in the 1960s. These dedicated individuals bring a treasure trove of practical expertise to the table, adeptly managing and operating farms that specialize in a vibrant array of flowers, field crops, luscious fruits, crisp vegetables, aromatic herbs, poultry, fattening, dairy production, and cutting-edge agro processing.
I recall a survey moment during Dr. Arkebe Oqubay’s, the chief Economic Advisor of the late Prime minister of Ethiopia, doctoral research, when in his capacity leading the National Export Coordination Committee, he consulted the staff of the Horticulture Development Agency on how to best transform the horticultural export sector. Their response was unequivocal: they did not seek reliance on government payroll but rather access to credit and land for themselves. These professionals, possessing the technical know-how and deep industry experience, sought the opportunity to transition from civil servants into local private investors.This remains the path forward today: if the government truly aims to reform the civil service in coordination with the World Bank and IMF, it should facilitate the transition of these skilled public servants into the private sector, providing the land and capital necessary to unleash their potential as entrepreneurs.
In the end, I argue passionately that civil servants are far more than cost centers on a balance sheet. They are the backbone of public trust, the implementers of national policies, and vital partners in the country’s quest for wealth and stability. Much evidence from successful global public sector transformations demonstrates that balancing efficiency gains with equity, investment in people, and contextual adaptation yields far superior long-term results.
The current economic landscape presents a profound paradox. While agricultural land and bank loan are frequently channelled toward the wealthy traders and unskilled diaspora , the country’s own field-hardened experts and those eager to transition from public payroll sheets to private enterprise are systematically sidelined, often for reasons that remain opaque and unclear for a number of decades. Even more disquieting is a fiscal framework that prioritizes foreign currency allocation for importers of alcohols, human hair and non-essential cosmetics products , while simultaneously depriving our most committed local professionals of the capital required to import and transfer technology , value-added agribusinesses.
Ultimately, it is incumbent upon the government and its reform partners to fundamentally rethink and redefine this agenda; for the sake of the nation’s future, reform must transition from mere administrative contraction to the strategic empowerment of the architects of our own destiny
About the Author: Mekonnen Solomon is an Agricultural Economist working in the Ministry of Agriculture, Ethiopia, and can be reached at ehdaplan@gmail.com.
Editor’s Note: Views in the article do not necessarily reflect the views of borkena.com
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