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Promoting English would depoliticize the complicated language issue, unite Ethiopians, and provide practical benefits.
meThiopia is a diverse country without an official national language, where Amharic has been the federal working language of the country and regional states have had to make their own decisions.
The formal use of local languages flourished with the implementation of federalism during the government of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). However, considering the number of indigenous languages, meeting all the demands for federal language status is unrealistic and economically unfeasible. Similarly, promoting some local languages to federal status would pose great challenges for non-speakers.
Also, given strong national competition, try to choose only one The local language as the official language of Ethiopia would be so controversial that it could jeopardize stability. For example, given its historical imposition on speakers of other languages, the adoption of Amharic would be contested by those who suffered in the past and by those who aspire to be the official language of their mother tongue.
However, if done fairly, having an official language would be in the national interest and promote unity. Given this, it is of great urgency to refine the policy on federal working languages, which could mean improving English.
New policy
As well as being the working language of the Amhara region, Amharic plays the role of a common language, especially in Addis Ababa and other urban centers. It should also be noted that, compared to other indigenous languages, it has historically been the beneficiary of privileged policies and had the role of national language under previous regimes. However, a new language policy has been ratified to include the Oromo, Tigrayan, Somali and Afar languages as federal working languages.
The topicality of this policy cannot be overstated, as these languages are some of the most widely spoken in the country and in the region in general. For example, Afaan Oromo has the highest number of native speakers and also a considerable number in Kenya. Likewise, Tigrigna is also the lingua franca Y de facto Eritrean working language. Somali is spoken in both Somaliland and Djibouti, as is Afar in the latter.
However, this recognition means that the federal government will give these languages the same official role as Amharic, which will be costly. Unfortunately, considering the large number of languages spoken in Ethiopia and other implementation challenges, the adoption of this policy could be problematic. Conversely, failing to revoke Amharic’s privileged status and refraining from elevating other languages will not provide a lasting resolution.
Language dilemma
Simply put, the language dilemma is between granting more federal labor status, with the respective economic challenges, or establishing a single federal working language, and suffering unfavorable political repercussions.
Therefore, one way to balance these interests would be to introduce a language that plays the role of the federal working language. Under such a configuration, communication between a particular region and the federal government would be facilitated by the use of this language, along with the option of translating the message into the working language of the region.
Today, institutions and citizens of different countries use international languages to have better access to information and opportunities. As such, for strategic, historical or religious reasons, it is common for major global languages, such as English or French, to assume de jure or de facto status of the working language, either alone or in conjunction with other local languages.
English is used as a medium of communication in many international organizations, is taught as a required language, and continues to serve as a Medium of Instruction (MoI) in middle school, high school, and higher-level educational institutions. This use of English as MoI dates back to Emperor Haile Selassie I, and was superseded by Amharic in primary schools during the Derg regime.
It was only in 1994 that the Ethiopian Education and Training Policy mandated the use of “mother tongues” in primary education, approving the use of English as MoI only in secondary and higher education. Furthermore, since higher education materials are available in English, applying English as MoI at different levels of education would be pragmatic, as long as it does not contradict the pedagogical recommendation to use native languages during primary education.
Looking forward
Furthermore, considering how the national literacy rate is increasing, and combining this with the fact that 70 percent of Ethiopia’s population is under the age of 30, the overall population is projected to double by 2050 and with the growing national Internet penetration, we can expect English to be ubiquitous in a few years.
As such, making English a mandatory federal working language would be a future strategy as it is increasingly popular with young people and is perceived as neutral to all of our ethnic groups, so making it a federal working language as well. it could counteract the weakened sense of unity in the country.
Over time, this approach will be significant in reframing the perceived inequalities between local languages. However, improving English would represent a challenge for those who do not master it well. But this can be mitigated by improving teaching and offering many platforms in which local languages are used.
Given the current volatile situation, it should be clear to all stakeholders that political and economic interests are far more important than concerns about the adoption of English as our federal language. Therefore, all stakeholders should consider this proposal to try to achieve a stable, envy-free and well-coordinated relationship between different regions and ethnic groups.
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Main photo: a student from the Soke Bukicha primary school in the Arsi area, Oromia region; Robert Sauers, USAID Ethiopia.
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