Ethiopia needs peace to accelerate its SDG 7 achievements

Ethiopia has been striving to achieve its SDG 7 targets by heavily investing in the power sector. Large-scale dams have been developed and are currently under construction, including the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD). These developments have supported the expansion of connectivity to millions of people. However, due to political differences between the Ethiopian federal government and the Tigray regional government, a devastating war broke out in November 2020, and the conflict has since expanded to other regions of Ethiopia. These conflicts have hindered Ethiopia’s economic development, derailing achievements of the SDG 7 targets. The negotiated peace settlement that was signed in Pretoria and Nairobi is encouraging and should be sustained. The government must use this opportunity and commit the country’s resources to the rehabilitation of damaged critical infrastructure and initiating large-scale projects to promote lasting peace by building confidence in the population. The conflicts of the last two years should be used as a lesson for Ethiopians to resolve political differences through constructive and equitable dialogue across the political spectrum. We need to develop a culture of resolving differences by ourselves through a) strengthening institutions and norms to nurture a political culture of resolving political differences through dialogues; b) developing and strengthening an independent judicial system; c) developing a culture of providing justice for those affected and introducing a true reconciliation process; and d) developing mechanisms to ensure and protect critical infrastructures during conflicts.