The making and re-making of administrative regions in Ethiopia, 1907-2018: policy changes and continuities

Abstract

ABSTRACT Ethiopia is one of the places in the ancient world where state formation took place, with its distinct cultural and technological advancements. Ethiopia has experienced the making and re-making of administrative regions several times in its long history. The purpose of this study was, therefore, to document the policy changes and continuities that were prevalent in the making and re-making of administrative regions in Ethiopia from 1907 to 2018. The researchers employed a qualitative research approach in the sense that both primary and secondary data were collected through document analysis and semi-structured interviews of key informants. This was followed by the selection, organization, and cross-checking of the data before it was analyzed and presented on paper. The findings of this study showed that, since the establishment of the Ministry of Interior in 1907, the rulers of Ethiopia formulated administrative policy/guideline based on their own administrative and political motives with which the country’s administrative regions were organized and reorganized. The administrative regions of the country showed little or no change from 1962 to 1991. A major shift in the administrative policy of the country, however, came about during the Ethiopian Peoples Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) rule from 1991 to 2018.