Our forefathers sacrificed a lot to unite Ethiopians and formed the country with relentless struggle. Even some of them lost their irreplaceable lives for the creation of a vigorous nation.
They made their slogans: “United the stronger we become, divided the weaker we would be.” They believed in the power of unity and understood the weaknesses in isolation.
This was driven by their indigenous knowledge hidden in their various cultures. For example, a proverb in Afaan Oromo: “Tokkummaan humna, kophummaan gowwumma,” that is literally translated to: “Unity is power, isolation is thoughtlessness.”
They also understood that unity does not necessarily mean oneness. They respected and protected cultural, social, economic and political differences that they managed to handover them to the generations that followed them.
These are among the reasons why Ethiopia is still called “Land of Origin.” In every corner of the nation, there are different languages, astonishing traditions, indigenous administrative system , various religions, diverse views of the world and so many impressing living styles.
As well, our fallen fathers’ unity assisted them to defeat the then most powerful colonial powers with their ideologies. Their unity was stronger than the colonial modern weapons.
After uniting and protecting sovereignty of Ethiopia, our great fathers helped the Organization of African Unity (OAU) to born on May 25, 1963. Especially, Emperor Hailesillassie I and his administration played crucial roles in OAU formulation with leaders of other countries.
From then onwards, Ethiopia has helped and has shepherd the organization and the African Union (AU) that was established and launched in 2002 in South Africa replacing the OAU.
To enhance strong Africa, the 54 member states should strengthen their internal unity. Unless their individual internal unity is strengthened, it will be difficult to achieve the priorities in driving Africa’s growth trajectory within the framework of Agenda 2063 including.
In order to deepen the unity of the continent, every single member state needs to deepen its internal unity. And to advance inclusive economic growth and sustainable development of the continent, all the member states must work hard internally.
Likewise, ensuring political and economic unity, good governance and peace in the continent requires individual and collaborative efforts. And internal integration is essential to support regional integration, industrialization, economic development, trade and investment.
Similarly, as the fourth industrial revolution is approaching, all the nations in the continent have to develop an appropriate strategy for it individually and assist the continent. Economic and financial inclusion for women and mainstreaming the interests of women also require critical focus.
In the same way, every member state should focus more on conflict resolutions than igniting conflicts and putting the continent in uncertainty.
At last, if all the member states are internally united, Africa would champion the position of a strong and influential roles player in the world.
The Ethiopian Herald February 13/2020
