Ethnicity and ethnic federalism in Ethiopia

Abstract

Ethiopia is an indigenously diverse and multicultural country. Ethiopia is home to over 81 languages and 86 ethnic groups. The Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) implemented ethnic federalism in 1991, reorganizing its regions along linguistic and ethnic lines. Ethnic problems and ethnic conflicts have emerged in recent years. Ethiopia's ethnicity problem is analogous to a pandemic outbreak. Ethnocentrism is spread across the whole country. The problem is getting worse. The relationship between different ethnic groups is deteriorating, and people are dying daily because of their ethnic background. As a result, the peaceful coexistence of communities has been affected. There is a fear that if the problem is not managed urgently, it could drag the nation into disintegration. Therefore, ethnic federalism is blamed for the conflict and tension between different ethnic groups in the country. Now a days, studies are being done on whether ethnic federalism outweighs the benefits of the problems. This becomes the main source of intense debate. In this regard, it is considered important to examine these discussions. The aim of this study is to examine the debates on ethnicity and ethnic federalism in Ethiopia. The ethno-linguistics of Ethiopia were discussed first, followed by Ethiopia's ethnic federalism and its benefits and drawbacks. A literature review was used as the method for this study.