FSS launches final outputs of “Ethiopia’s Future Scenarios” project
Forum for Social Studies (FSS) launched the final outputs of the Ethiopian Future Scenario project implemented in collaboration with the Society for International Development (SID), in a ceremony held at Hilton Addis Hotel on Thursday 21 September 2023.
Dr. Yeraswork Admassie, Executive Director of FSS, opened the ceremony with an acknowledgment of SID for funding the project, and the senior research team for their dedication and hardwork. This team, consisting of a historian, a political scientist, and an economist, undertook an in-depth exploration of Ethiopia’s socio-historical trajectory and current governance and economic landscape.
The launching event featured two presentations. Mr. Arthur Muliro, the Deputy Director of SID, provided insights on the significance and objectives of scenario building, citing international experiences and lessons from similar ventures. Following him, Professor Bahru Zewde, who led the study team provided a background information on the implementation of the Ethiopia scenarios building project, including the challenges encountered in the process.
He highlighted the fact that the study outputs of the project that are launched today are the meticulous preparatory work of the team that were reviewed and elaborated by two consultative workshops, with participants being drawn from a wide range of academics, representatives of political parties, CSOs, the youth, the private sector, media personalities and public figures. He added that the proceedings of those workshops were carefully recorded by rapporteurs and made use of in the building of the three scenarios by the team of researchers.
In his presentation, Professor Bahru highlighted the three scenarios forwarded by the study, namely, the “Dark Days of Winter” (YeHamle Chelema), A Bumpy Course (Mangaragach), and “Spring” (Tsedey).
This scenario building exercise aimed to answer the pivotal question: how might the socioeconomic and political transition of Ethiopia turn out, and with what outcomes?
It is hoped that the scenarios that are identified and hereby presented will provide valuable inputs to decision-makers and all those who have a stake in the country’s future.
With a brief reflection session after the two presentations, the launching event was closed with a dinner reception in recognition of the successful completion of the project.
For those keen on diving deeper, the comprehensive report of the scenario study is available online. Additionally, an executive summary, in both English and Amharic, has been published in print and digital formats. You may visit our website for the following links
https://fss-ethiopia.org/download/quo-vadis-ethiopia-scenarios-study-report/
https://fss-ethiopia.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Scenarios-Excutive-summery-final-English.pdf
https://fss-ethiopia.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Scenarios-Exc.-Summ-Amharic-final.pdf