Ethiopia

The 2011 announcement of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam’s construction came at a critical time, as Egypt was in the midst of a revolution and relations between Egypt and Ethiopia were already tense. Despite initial Egyptian threats of undertaking military action, Ethiopia pursued the construction of what has been presented as an essential part of its national and, to some extent, regional development. Tensions between the Sudan, Egypt and Ethiopia have been extremely high for t ...

Against the backdrop of mutual accusations of a lack of political will to bring the tripartite negotiations on the commissioning of the “Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam” (GERD), to a successful conclusion, Egypt and Ethiopia continue to alternately send signals of provocation and appeasement. This tension is growing in intensity as the rainy season (July to September) draws nearer. On the one hand, Ethiopia intends to seize this opportunity to fill the dam; on the other hand, Egypt ...

The author is an alumnus of the 2018 Atlantic Dialogues Emerging Leaders program Last year Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed took a big step toward stabilizing the Horn of Africa when he agreed to sign a long-disputed peace agreement with Eritrea - one that previous Ethiopian governments had refused to sign beca of the border demarcation within the agreement would seem to leave Ethiopia to blame for sparking the conflict in 1998 that eventually caused as many ...

The opening of the border between Ethiopia and Eritrea symbolized an important phase in the newfound relations between the two. Since their rapprochement in June 2018, events have occurred at a frenzied pace, yet much was still in the political arena and removed from demonstrating tangible benefits to average citizens. By opening the border, the leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea changed that. Yet the border opening also reveals an insight into a previously isolated and largely closed ...

Since coming to power on April 2018, Dr. Abiy seems to be unstoppable, making the world headlines on many occasions. He has embarked the country on an ambitious and transformative project; he has freed thousands of prisoners and established a Reconciliation Commission, has called on the privatization of state-owned enterprises and signed a stunning peace treaty with Eritrea. Furthermore, in a complete shift from the old paradigm of developmental state, the new PM outlined his renewe ...

There has been a flurry of activity in the Horn of Africa recently, where decades-old political disputes have suddenly been put to rest. The resulting changes have shattered the status quo in the region, putting the Horn on a new path where state-to-state relations are no longer marked by regional competition and frozen borders. While this has undoubtedly been a positive development for the region, one big piece of the puzzle has been the role of external actors in the process, and ...

Geographically, Egypt is located at the crossroads of several areas that are sometimes homogeneous and other times contradictory. These areas offer Egypt multiple opportunities to position itself in the region and in the world. However, the country is forced to manage its neighborhood’s contradictions. Historically, Egypt has inherited a past leadership that it is unable to maintain in absence of adequate leverage capacity. Its current resources and problems handicap its dream of re ...

Ethiopia is located at the heart of the Horn of Africa. Torn between its position within the Greater Middle East (Culcasi 2008, 128 and Fukuyama 2008, 206) from one side, and Sub Saharan Africa on the other, this East African state is landlocked in a region marked by intense and long-standing political strife and conflicts, and is directly exposed to regional insecurity and political volatility. Against this unstable background, successive regimes and governments in Addis Ababa have ...

The position of oil companies toward East Africa has changed considerably since 2006 when the first reserves in Uganda came to light. However, for many investors interested in the region, it remains difficult to get a clear picture of the scale of developments of this sector. This paper will discuss the locations of reserves, their volumes, when they will be developed, what they will be used for, and possible impediments to their development. In addition to Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania a ...