Woldemariam in Foreign Affairs on Ethiopia’s Reforms
Michael Woldemariam, Assistant Professor of International Relations and Political Science at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, recently published an Op-Ed examining the aggressive reforms of Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
Woldemariam’s Op-Ed, entitled “Can Ethiopia’s Reforms Succeed?” was published by Foreign Affairs on September 10, 2018.
From the text of the article:
Ethiopia is on the move. The resignation of beleaguered Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn in February ushered in the most significant reordering of political power in the country since 1991, when youthful guerrillas toppled the long-serving Marxist strongman Mengistu Haile Mariam.
The new administration, led by 42-year-old Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, has pursued an aggressive, reformist agenda. It wants to rewrite Ethiopia’s old, authoritarian social contract and unite the country’s fractured society. It isn’t yet clear whether Abiy will succeed, and progress so far has been mixed. But if he does, Ethiopia will have a chance not only to reinvent itself but also to bring a wave of reform and perhaps even democratization to the wider region.
Michael Woldemariam’s teaching and research interests focus on African politics, particularly the dynamics of armed conflict, the behavior of rebel organizations and self-determination movements, and post-conflict institution building. He has special expertise on the Horn of Africa region, where he has traveled extensively and conducted fieldwork.