Ethiopia country and political profile

Ethiopia is often described as the oldest independent country in Africa, and one of the oldest countries in the world. The discovery of the world's second oldest human remains in the Awash valley confirms the country's ancestral character. Herodotus as early as the 5th century BC, already speaks of the country, while the Ancient Testament relates the story of the Queen of Sheba and her visit to King Salomon, which according to the Ethiopian Kebra Negast would have fathered her son, Menelik who is said to be the founder of the Ethiopian empire. Ethiopian history dates back to over 3000 years between the rule of Queen Sheba and Emperor Haile Selassie.

Ethiopia has a population of more than 85 million with a very low median age of 16.9 years. The country is the tenth biggest territory in the African continent and is home to more than 80 different ethnic groups who speak as many indigenous languages along with some 200 dialects. Amharic and English are the official languages of Ethiopia, but Oromifa, Tigrinya, Somali and Afar are also widely spoken in the country's different regions.

In 1995, the country adopted a new constitution establishing the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE). This constitution establishes a bi-cameral institutional structure composed of the House of Peoples’ Representatives, the highest authority of the federal government, and the House of the Federation which represents the common interests of the nations, nationalities and peoples of the states. Members of both councils are elected by universal suffrage for a five-year term.

The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia is composed of 9 states (also called regions), and two chartered cities (Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa) which are delimited on the basis of settlement patterns, language, identity and consent of the peoples concerned. The state is currently headed by President Girma Woldegiorgis and the government by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. The Prime Minister is accountable to the House of Peoples’ Representatives. Each autonomous state is headed by a State President elected by the State Council. The judiciary is constitutionally independent.

In terms of the Ethiopian economy, political reconciliation is considered to be highly important in order to establish a consensus and reverse the unfavourable long-term trends in Ethiopia’s growth performance. The latter has been heavily influenced by the fact that over the past 40 years Ethiopia has had three completely different regimes with the corresponding shifts in economic policies and strategies. Each regime had, or has, established its own institutions for the execution of the country's economic policies and strategies. These changes of regime and shifts in economic thinking have had a significant impact on the pace of macro-economic growth, however, over the last few years; Ethiopia has carried out trade reforms to gain competitiveness and to further integrate its economy in the regional and global economy.

The elections to be held on 23 May 2010 comprise elections for the House of Peoples’ Representatives and for State Councils.