Editing Government of Ethiopia (section)

==== The Monarchy era (1930–1974) ====
During this period, Ethiopia was ruled by the Emperor [[Haile Selassie]]. He introduced several initiatives to modernize the country's public management system, such as:

* Enacting Ethiopia’s first constitution in 1931 (later revised in 1955).<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Misrak |first1=Yihenew |last2=Genet |first2=Yayew |last3=Muluye |first3=Ketemaw |date=2023-01-01 |title=The Demands and Contests of Constitutional Amendment in Ethiopia: Analysis on the 1995 Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) Constitution |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/09750878221114384 |journal=Insight on Africa |language=en |volume=15 |issue=1 |pages=88–107 |doi=10.1177/09750878221114384 |issn=0975-0878}}</ref>
* Establishing ministries, defining responsibilities, and delegating administrative authority.
* Support the creation of the Organization of African Unity (now the [[African Union]]), which strengthened Ethiopia’s presence in international diplomacy.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Binaisa |first=Godfrey L. |date=1977-07-01 |title=Organization of African Unity and Decolonization: Present and Future Trends |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/000271627743200106 |journal=The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science |language=en |volume=432 |issue=1 |pages=52–69 |doi=10.1177/000271627743200106 |issn=0002-7162}}</ref>
* Founding the Imperial Institute of Public Administration (IIPA), later renamed the Central Personnel Agency (CPA) in 1961, which functioned as the central authority for setting and maintaining public service standards, overseeing job classifications, recruitment, and salary regulations for government employees.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Vértesy |first1=László |last2=Lemango |first2=Teketel Bekalo |date=2022-11-12 |title=Public Administration Developments in Ethiopia Under Three Different Regimes |url=https://hrcak.srce.hr/285475 |journal=Hrvatska i komparativna javna uprava: časopis za teoriju i praksu javne uprave |language=en |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=403–430 |doi=10.31297/hkju.22.3.6 |issn=1848-0357}}</ref>

The 1931 Constitution and its 1955 revision were the most significant factors shaping Ethiopia’s public management system during this period. These constitutions formally established the separation of powers into three branches: legislative, executive, and judicial. Additionally, a bicameral legislature was introduced, consisting of the Chamber of Deputies (Lower House), whose members were indirectly elected by the people, and the Senate (Upper House), whose members were appointed by the emperor.<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Ethiopia Constitution 1937 |url=https://ia800804.us.archive.org/13/items/TheEthiopianConstitution/EC_text.pdf}}</ref>

However, the constitution concentrated most executive power in the hands of the emperor, limiting the operation and independence of the public management system. As a result, Ethiopia’s governance functioned as a Centralized Autocracy, where the emperor retained key powers, including the appointment and dismissal of government officials and members of the national legislature, as well as the authority to draft, veto, and amend legislation, even after parliamentary approval. Additionally, he exercised control over the military, judiciary, and land distribution and held the power to appoint and approve high-ranking Christian religious leaders.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

The public management system during this period faced several significant shortcomings, including:

* The direct adoption of foreign administrative structures without proper adaptation to Ethiopia’s unique context, which had local governance needs and autonomy demands of indigenous groups, resulting in a system that failed to address the country’s actual requirements. For example, the constitution was modeled after Japan and the UK, both monarchy regimes,<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Tafla |first1=Bairu |last2=Scholler |first2=Heinrich |date=1976 |title=SER'ATA MANGEST: An early Ethiopian Constitution |journal=Verfassung und Recht in Übersee / Law and Politics in Africa, Asia and Latin America |volume=9 |issue=4 |pages=487–499 |doi=10.5771/0506-7286-1976-4-487 |jstor=43111172 |issn=0506-7286|doi-access=free }}</ref> and the civil servant salary system was based on the U.S. model.
* Decision-making was slow and bureaucratic, with all major policies requiring the emperor’s approval. This was particularly evident in the failure of land reform policies and the government's inability to effectively address severe famines and droughts.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Alemayehu Tegegn |first=Dagm |date=2023-12-31 |title=The trigger of Ethiopian famine and its impacts from 1950 to 1991 |journal=Cogent Arts & Humanities |volume=10 |issue=1 |pages=2264017 |doi=10.1080/23311983.2023.2264017|doi-access=free }}</ref>
* A patronage system and widespread corruption, resulting from the emperor’s authoritative power over appointments and dismissals in government positions. This led to personnel selection based on loyalty rather than merit,<ref>{{Cite web |title=The Role of Political Elites in Nation-Building in Contemporary Ethiopia, 1960-2020 |url=https://scholarlypublications.universiteitleiden.nl/access/item%3A4054823/view}}</ref> causing a shortage of competent officials in the public sector.
* The citizen’s dissatisfaction and political opposition, which ultimately led to the suppression and violation by the government.<ref name=":3">{{Cite journal |last=Jalata |first=Asafa |date=2010-03-01 |title=The Ethiopian State: Authoritarianism, Violence and Clandestine Genocide |url=https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_socopubs/90/ |journal=The Journal of Pan African Studies |pages=160–189}}</ref>