Ethiopia Has Prepared a Medemer Grand Strategy Extending Through 2050, PM Abiy Announces

Addis Ababa, October 8, 2026 (FMC) — Ethiopia has prepared a Medemer Grand Strategy extending through 2050, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced Thursday, revealing a long-range strategic framework as the country’s newly constituted parliament began its first regular session.

Prime Minister Abiy made the announcement while explaining the criteria used in selecting members of the new Cabinet, telling the House of Peoples’ Representatives that the nominees were assessed not only on their educational qualifications and professional experience but also on their ability to understand and execute the country’s broader strategic direction.

“Beyond that, Ethiopia has prepared a Medemer Grand Strategy extending to 2050,” the Prime Minister said.

He said the government had sought individuals whose competence had been tested through training and who demonstrated a proper understanding of the Grand Strategy, including its major areas of focus and the detailed thinking behind it.

The Prime Minister placed particular emphasis on the strategy’s orientation toward citizens’ interests, saying Ethiopia’s growth, transformation and development would have little value if they did not ultimately reach and improve the lives of citizens.

He illustrated this principle through infrastructure development, saying that even a road should be considered in terms of its impact on ordinary people, including whether a poor citizen could walk or ride a bicycle on it.

The example, he said, reflects the need to think beyond processes and outputs and focus on actual impact.

This emphasis on impact formed part of the criteria used to assess Cabinet members, alongside education, work experience, execution capacity and the ability to follow through on plans.

Prime Minister Abiy said the responsibility placed on the new government is particularly significant given the mandate entrusted to it by the Ethiopian people in the June 1 general election.

He said more than 54 million citizens had entrusted the government with the responsibility of strengthening and sustaining the state and enhancing Ethiopia’s standing, requiring leaders with broad shoulders capable of carrying that trust.

He stressed that public office should not be viewed as comfort, leisure or privilege, but as a responsibility requiring hard work, discipline and a commitment to serving citizens.

The Prime Minister also said the Cabinet-selection process sought, as far as possible, to preserve Ethiopia’s ethnic, gender and religious diversity after competence and experience had been taken into consideration.

He explained that this was intended to ensure that the country’s executive institutions reflect the society they serve while maintaining the overriding requirement of competence and delivery.

The 2050 horizon therefore emerged in the Prime Minister’s presentation as part of the broader strategic context within which the new Cabinet is expected to operate, linking the government’s immediate five-year mandate with a much longer national trajectory.

He said the Cabinet members carry a responsibility to strengthen Ethiopia, enrich the country and advance its journey toward greater prosperity and civilization.