The sustainability of mechanisms devised at home is unquestionably viable and lucrative as their spare parts are in the vicinity to be modified and altered whenever need arises. However, the solutions or subsidiary approaches imported from other nations or cultures might not be sustainable and rewarding as wasting time in search of remedies from countries of origin incurs the nation too much.
The very important approach recently entertained scheme, which is termed as ‘homegrown economic reform program’, as its name bespeaks, it reflects doable means to solve problems using home made weapons, mechanisms and gratifying approaches at home. Apart from pronouncing the lyrics of Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda, which has been a alleyway to opulence is a comprehensive economic restructuring, making conditions conducive for the people directly affected by the problems and/or issues of poverty is an incomparable lane to make a difference.
This means that the affected people themselves will be the major participants of the intervention to fight against poverty. Formal leaders need to be consulted, as well as those affected to make a difference. Their worldview should be taken into contemplation, and through facilitation, they become part of the process of addressing and resolving the issues they and fellow citizens face.
Besides, it is quite important to create an organized group within the community to help many people, rather than only a few individuals. Yes, as an alternative of working with individual persons, it is more effective to facilitate collective and organized actions to help strengthen and empower people in poverty through an institute. This means that it is not enough to provide assistance to individually affected persons alone, but through collective organization, each individual is developed and steps are taken to address their problems and other evils in the future.
Whenever community members are authorized to well identify issued and are made part of the plan, they would develop sense of belongingness and active in terms of being part of the solution. True, it is more effective when issues and troubles are identified by the people facing them. They begin to gain self-confidence and acquire capabilities in working together on simple problems.
This means that their initial efforts and experiences can be used toward addressing more complex problems and concerns. It is in identifying and acting on their initial simple issues or problems that the affected people gain confidence and the capability to identify other matters which need to be properly addressed. Though externally introduced projects can help some of poverty’s effects, without the people’s active involvement linking these projects with their own identified issues and problems, such projects will most likely not be sustained or maintained.
Unequivocally, fighting poverty takes time as it is not an overnight processes. The process of fighting poverty is not simple, indeed, especially since a deep personal transformation needs to take place in various forms and magnitudes, whose spillover effect benefits the nation at large. Since it takes time to empower affected people, they can become actors of their own development and change through lively contribution. Coming back to the transformation via effective poverty reduction, the recent reform and the most recent macroeconomic move build on the achievements of the past decade in infrastructure and human capital developments, among others.
Interestingly, poverty reduction schemes, including myriads of reforms, would incorporate strengthening public finances including through improving the efficiency of privatization for instance, gradually moving towards a flexible exchange rate regime to address external imbalances, reviving the monetary policy framework with the objective to stabilize prices and support if properly managed and systematically handled. This is to say that if the reform and policy trajectories are not scrupulously directed and professionally supervised, the outcome would undoubtedly be the overturned.
Unequivocally, when a nation relies heavily on imports, it may inadvertently adopt foreign cultural practices or lose its own traditional industries. Yes, by embracing autarky and promoting domestic production, Ethiopia can preserve its unique cultural heritage and support local artisans and craftsmen. Not only does this help to maintain independence, sovereignty and national identity but it also contributes to tourism and investment opportunities by which economic growth can be pushed forward, which ultimately helps the nation defeat poverty.
True, economic independence brings numerous benefits and opportunities for Ethiopia, ranging from increased job opportunities and improved living standards to enhanced security and resilience thereby being confidently competent in the continental and/or global arena. Most definitely, Ethiopia can have ample opportunities and greater control over its economic policies, foster innovation, among others, via embracing autarky and reducing dependence on external sources, aid providers as well as loan facilitators.
Since economic independence is a goal that many nations strive to achieve and bring numerous benefits and opportunities for growth and development, Ethiopia has to prettily underscored the significance of promoting homegrown economy and mobilizing citizens from corner to corner, particularly potential ones, so as to declare economic freedom, independence and become triumphant over poverty as it is not an innate phenomenon.
It should also be known that when a country is economically independent, it means that it can sustain its own needs without relying heavily on external assistance or resources, and this can be a pride if this trend is locally made. No doubt, economic independence can bring the nation to a bright boulevard over poverty.
As it is repeatedly heralded and confirmed by economists, one of the primary benefits of economic independence is the ability for a nation to have complete control over its economic policies and decisions, but when they rely heavily on imports or foreign investments, they may/could be subject to external pressures and influences that can hinder their respective growth or comprehensive development.
Ethiopia has to devise local solutions to the problems it has been entangled, especially as a result of poverty and underdevelopment, especially focusing on all means leading to economic development and combating poverty and scarcity. Here, another of economic independence is the potential for increased job opportunities and improved living standards for citizens.
Yes, whenever Ethiopia is able to produce and supply its own goods and services, such an appealing situation creates a self-sustaining economy that can generate employment opportunities for a number of its citizens. This, in turn, reduces unemployment rates and improves the overall standard of living, which contributes a lot to the effort geared towards poverty reduction.
The best example of this is seen in the case of South Korea, which transformed itself from an aid-dependent nation to a major exporter of automobiles, electronics, and other manufactured goods. This economic transformation has not only created jobs but it has also propelled South Korea to become one of the world’s leading economies.
Meaningfully reducing poverty and declaring economic independence would also provide Ethiopia with a sense of security and resilience in times of regional, continental or even global economic uncertainties. Obviously, when a country is heavily reliant on imports, it becomes vulnerable to fluctuations in global markets, such as price hikes or supply disruptions that would absolutely result in serious high cost of living. Hence, export promotion needs to be encouraged since reducing dependence on external sources can be a preferable weapon to safeguard the country from such risks and ensure a stable supply of locally provided essential goods and services.
Besides, empowering citizens can help eradicate poverty because those who have been empowered will become self-reliance from their skills that they have learned, can have jobs which they will use to lift their family members and the community at the vicinity out of the grip of poverty they find themselves in. If there is no one in the family could afford to take care of the children and other relatives the poverty will increase, so by empowering a single person it is possible to save many lives. Thence, poverty is defeated at family level though the degree varies.
Without a shadow of doubt, making citizens powerful to achieve poverty eradication implies developing clearer and more consistent coverage polices that appropriately address the unique needs of individuals and community members.
The issue of good governance can also be cited here as it is instrumental in fostering undertakings that target at reducing poverty though the link between good governance and poverty reduction is much more complex and difficult to deal with.
Poverty alleviation has been highlighted as one of the essential aspects of development and growth. Multiple factors such as low household income, the high expense of drugs and medical procedures, and lack of health insurance coverage also pose significant obstacles for impoverished populations seeking timely access to medical services. Despite progress made in the aspect of poverty alleviation, in Ethiopia, lessons should also be learned from many countries which have come up with remarkable records in that regard concerning economic, health, education, infrastructure development and other related factors especially through effectively utilizing local resources and putting domestic expertise into effect.
It is this time that locally devised means for defeating poverty would bear yummy fruits and help the nation declare economic independence over poverty. Therefore, effective strategies aimed at facilitating poverty alleviation need to be constantly explored, along with the evaluation of projects targeted at poverty alleviation from the perspective of cost-effectiveness and wise use of resources.
The invaluable role of administration in guiding poverty-eradication-related work cannot be ignored here as leadership and effective implementation of activities matter the most.
Clearly, Ethiopia has to make a significant contribution to the continental as well as global poverty alleviation endeavor as it has consisted of second level population in the continent. This remarkable milestone trekked on promoting homegrown economy, macroeconomic policy and journey to intensify potential tourist destinations can be attributed to the significant role of leadership and organization at the governmental level.
Yes, the country has established a poverty eradication management network with the federal government acting as a coordinator, state governments taking overall responsibility, and city administrations overseeing the proper implementation. From a global perspective, effective control of these poverty-related health conditions calls for cross-national collaborations and communication aimed at facilitating joint efforts toward global poverty alleviation for mutual benefit on a win-win basis. Besides, numerous measures need to be taken to improve equity in terms of economic growth, healthcare, and infrastructure development, among others. Additionally, society, in general, should have an increased awareness of the importance of eradicating poverty and the great contribution of their participation in that regard.
BY MENGESHA AMARE
THE ETHIOPIAN HERALD SUNDAY EDITION 11 AUGUST 2024
