The Compatiblity Between Democratic Developmental State and Federal System in Ethiipia: Lessons for Africa
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2019-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
Democratic Developmental State model intends to promote economic growth and democracy at the same time. It is a recent phenomenon which is being applied in a few states. Ethiopia, Botswana and South Africa are among the few states which are adopting this new model.
Since 2000’s the ruling party EPRDF declared the Democratic Developmental State is the only and the one model which can lift the nation out of poverty and builds democracy. The party states that this due to the fact that democratic developmental state is the better alternative for developing countries. The party and the government spoke boldly that the undemocratic way of Developmental states can’t work for the diversified Ethiopia. So it should include democracy too. For administrative structure, Ethiopia is also a federal state.
The compatibility of Developmental and Democracy is addressed by many authors. But the issue of Democratic Developmental State and Federalism way of administrative is well not discussed. So this paper analyzed the compatibility between Democratic Developmental State and Federal system. The method of the study is using a qualitative research method.
Ethiopia has some very impressive achievements and some drawbacks. The country has been registered rapid economic growth after it has adopted the new model. However Lack of elite commitment, effective bureaucracy and lack of strong institutions in particular and weak democratization in general hinders the journey of building Democratic Developmental State and Federal system in Ethiopia. Therefore it is vital to assess the experiences in this case. Other African states can also take lesson from the draw back and also from the achievement.
Key terms: Developmental state, Democratic Developmental State, Federalism, elite commitment, National Consensus
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Keywords
Developmental state, Democratic Developmental State, Federalism, elite commitment, National Consensus