Ethiopia A Country of Hsitorical and Cultural Diversity

A visit to South Ethiopia and Oromiya December – January 2011

I spent the last 4 weeks in Ethiopia on a very intense consulting exercise to the South. And
Oromiya I t was an amazing experience. After travelling more the 6000 km, I came to the
conclusion that

 Ethiopia is not a poor country. The country side is full of unexploited resources .
 Ethiopians do not heavily depend on fertilizers for their crops, they use traditional
farming methods
 Ethiopian rural farmers depend on hand tools and animal tillage for their small
pieces of land
 There is a lot of potential as the soils are very rich but the potential require changes
in cropping patterns which means crop rotation and testing of new varieties
 Some of the animals such as sheep suffer from inbreeding problems which can be
addressed by introducing of better quality progeny.I grew up rearing sheep and cows
and I understand them well
 Ethiopian has one of the best Road Networks in the World. Their first class roads (
Chinese built) are among the best . The ERA and its regional cousins have done
excellent work. The model is a good one for countries such as Uganda where urban
roads are in a poor state. Uganda should learn from Ethiopia.
  Woredas and Kebeles have not given up traditional building standards. Simply
replacing traditional buildings with brick and iron sheets will create massive work
throughout the country and a boom in growth and economy. A construction boom
is waiting and the impact will be phenomenal.
 Ethiopia has large population of livestock which are of exportable quality. Export of
processed meat can earn the rural poor high incomes and change the lives of many .
Exporting live animals should be discouraged. Rather processed ones but this
requires government investments and FDI
 Education is one of the 5 key sectors supported by the Woredas budgets and PBS
funding, but more needs to be done. A focus on education especially will increase
literacy rate. The quality of rural schools, teacher education and primary school
graduates can be improved
 Rwanda adopted a policy of mass training and introduction of English. Ethiopia can
do the same and with more than 80 million people, it language can make Ethiopians
competitive regionally, continentally and internationally.
 The law prohibits the sale of land. This is perceived as inhibiting development of the
country. Sale of designated commercial land among Ethiopians should be
encouraged but sale to foreigners should be discouraged. As it can abused and
before you know it the country is gone.
 Foreign investors should be encouraged to partner with locals especially those who
have been given large estates in agro processing. Ethiopia should also consider small
investors who may have clean money of at least US$20000 and above. A window
for the small investor is what has enabled Uganda to keep going.
 African countries can learn from Ethiopia to plant forests and use them for
construction and other f businesses. Bamboos have been planted in some parts and
these have solved construction resource needs. I have picked my lessons from this.

One of the many rivers in South Ethiopia, unlike an image of aridness created in the press.
 Horses, cows and donkeys are an interesting part of the rural and urban transport
system. Horses are not as in many former British colonies a status symbol. Countries
such as those in Southern African can learn from this. Lesotho have experience using
horses as a key transport animal.
 Ethiopia ha s unexploited potential which will make it a giant if there is a good vision
for the country in the various sectors. If Ethiopia is a sleeping giant, then African is
the place to develop and modernise. The country should focus on development
technical skills and leadership
 Many of the smaller cities are well placed to become modernised. A grading system
with incentives can be used to encourage city administrators to do manage and
administer their cities
A typical Zimbabwean species muzimbiti (softwood) prevalent in Ethiopia

 I am discouraged when I see Ethiopians making every effort to travel to the USA, its
good if you will improve your life and that of your fellow Ethiopians but being in
Washington or Georgia or Virginia is not being in paradise. In the future, many
Africans who have migrated to the so called first world will wish to go back home
because things will get better. Some engage in fake marriages, paying large sums to
travel to USA.
 Ethiopia has excellent hotels in some places such as Gurage, Awassa . Some of these
hotels are lowly priced and from a business view, its clear the owners will take long
time to recoup their investments
 With large forests, SNNPRs, Oromiya have the potential to become key suppliers of
honey and related products.
A wooden structure between Bonga(SNNPRs) and Oromiya Region. Efficient use of wood.

 Visit Ethiopia and see the beautiful South, Oromiya and Dire Dawa, Gindar and other
places of interest. Its a beautiful country with interesting culture.
A typical Ethiopian small rural town. Whoever designed these cities had vision

 Gurage dance was one the most intriguing experiences. The complex combination of
tapping and wriggling and the perfection is really pleasing to watch. It reminds me of
 the jekunje dance in East Zimbabwe, where even the oldest woman of 75 years can
tap jump and dance 1 m – 1.2 m high during the height of the excitement and at
such a fast pace and speed for 5 – 7 minutes per session. This is because across
Africa, during various seasons music and dance are part of our culture. I knew how to
play at least 2 drums when I was 7 years old. In winter, we spent half the night until
mid night or well past 12 dancing as children( boys & girls) singing, drumming and
dancing. In The gambia, I won a traditional dance competition because I grew up
dancing in a similar fashion but the Gurage dance is just in a class of its own fast
speed and intriguing.
A Gurage house made from bamboo /grass thatch. Houses last 50 – 60 years

 Being a Zimbabwean, I was so excited to witness a country with multiple seasons ,

so much forest cover, millions of cattle, sheep , goats and chicken . We would travel
through a woreda or zone experiencing heavy rains and after 200 or so km its all
over , we are in autumn or winter in another region. I was excited to see forests
that looked exactly like the forests in the villages where I grew up. I remember
telling my colleague Getachew , “if you leave me here you will find me alive “
because I had found places with more than 15 tree species found in Zimbabwe. One
of my uncles bragged every time, I was growing up, saying we came from Ethiopian
highlands and I kept asking him, which ones because there are many and up to now
he has not answered. I met 3 people in my visit to SNNPRs and Oromiya and as I
gradually began to understand Amharic, I realised that some Ethiopian Amharic
 words are equivalent to bantu languages. I even translated the meanings of two
names which are the same as we use in Zimbabwe. I remember a guy I met in
Diggaa who looked at me for so long during a 2 hour meeting because I looked like
him. Another guy in Chencha was so happy he told me you look like my brother and
another. In Oromiya, they always spoke to me in Oromigna imagining I was born and
bred here. My grandmother always bragged she was a grown girl when Rhodes
colonised Zimbabwe. She also bragged that her people had bibles and kept the 10
commandments before white men came to Africa. I guess she was right as
Ethiopians have never been colonised. Yes Ethiopians have their difference but their
diversity which is integrated in the culture is awesome. Dont ask me any questions
just wait for my next report.
 God Bless Ethiopia until Jesus Comes !

If you found this interesting please email me at maingishe@yahoo.com

Phibian Mashingaidze -