Ethiopian Prime Minister Wins Nobel Peace Prize

Abiy Ahmed, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, has just been announced as the 100th winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway.

The Norwegian Nobel Committee decided to award Prime Minister Ahmed the prize “for his efforts to achieve peace and international cooperation, and in particular for his decisive initiative to resolve the border conflict with neighbouring Eritrea”.

The committee were at pains to formally recognise the efforts of Eritrea’s president, Isaias Afweki, in helping the two nations build what is hoped to be a lasting settlement.  “Peace does not arise from the actions of one party alone”, the statement read.  Though the spoils were not shared equally by the two men, largely owing to President Afweki’s repressive human rights record.

It was not just Abiy’s work with Ethiopia’s neighbour, but his domestic reforms, and his role as mediator and broker in many of the continent’s other conflicts, that contributed to this award.

Ahmed was elected to office by a landslide in April 2018.  He spent his first 100 days in government lifting the country’s state of emergency, promoting press freedoms and greater gender equality.  He further dismissed military and civilian officials suspected of engaging in corrupt activities.

Across both East and North East Africa, Abiy has vowed to bring peace to the region.  He mediated talks between Eritrea and Djibouti, helping to normalise diplomatic relations between the two countries.  He achieved similar results with Kenya and Somalia.  

He further facilitated the resumption of peace talks between the Sudanese government and the opposition, resulting in the signing of a new constitution in August, promising to provide a peaceful transition to civil rule in Sudan.

But the committee stressed that there was still much work to be done.  Ethnic tensions remain prevalent in Ethiopia, and international observers estimate that around 3 million people have been internally displaced.

They reminded us that “Rome was not built in a day, and neither will peace and democratic development be achieved in a short period of time”, urging patience to those detractors that will think the award has come too soon.