Nationality in Ethiopia is set forth in the 2003 Proclamation on Ethiopian Nationality. This supplements the provisions on nationality in the 1995 Constitution and replaces the 1930 nationality law (the continent’s oldest legislation on nationality). The 2003 law made naturalization easier and removed gender discrimination.
When Eritrea seceded from Ethiopia in 1993, the process raised questions about nationality in cases of state secession. When war broke out between Ethiopia and Eritrea in 1998, the question became more sensitive. Ethiopia began to deport persons of Eritrean origin, ultimately affecting some 75,000 people. Others were denationalized when, in July 1999, the government announced that all of those who had registered to vote in the referendum on Eritrea’s independence had opted for Eritrea nationality by so doing. Although the 2003 law has allowed some Eritreans to regain their nationality, they still reportedly face difficulty accessing identity documents and harassment . These issues were litigated before an arbitration commission convened by the International Court of Justice in The Hague.
An additional challenge to citizenship in Ethiopia is the question of internal citizenship and federalism. The 1994 Constitution devolves a large amount of power to states divided on the basis of language and ethnicity, which has created challenges for those who are not members of the dominant ethnic group in the area where they live.
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed regret in 2006 over Ethiopia’s lack of infrastructure to ensure that births are being registered properly.
By Metassebia Hailu Zeleke Mizan Law Review Vol 19, No.5 Abstract This article briefly examines Ethiopia’s nationality law since 1930 and highlights Eritrea’s post-1992 nationality law. It also discusses the attainments and current challenges relating to nationality laws in Ethiopia’s […]
By Hailemelekot Asfaw, director of the Center for International Private Enterprise, East Africa Regional Office The Ethiopian diaspora is a cornerstone of the nation’s economy, with remittances providing critical foreign currency and household income. In the previous five years, Ethiopia […]
A birth registration is the official recording of the birth of a child through a state’s administrative process. It is a permanent and official record of a child’s existence. Although birth registration is different from the process of acquiring nationality, […]
Submission to the CRC 99th session (Sept. 2024) considering Ethiopia’s Combined Sixth and Seventh Periodic Report, CRC/C/ETH/6-7 Extract: Nationality and statelessness: ● According to Article 6 of the Constitution, Ethiopian nationally can be acquired when both or either parents is […]
Ethiopia’s Immigration and Citizenship Service on Friday held a press conference with journalists in the capital Addis Ababa to highlight performance during the budget year. Selamawit Dawit, the Director, revealed a major change that has been undertaken this year. According […]
By Emmanuel K Dogbevi Applying for and getting a travel document such as a passport in most African countries can be a traumatic experience for most citizens. Despite advances in technology, which normally should improve service delivery in particular for […]
By Ashenafi Endale New Director vows to clear 300,000+ passport application backlog within a year The Ethiopian Immigration Service (EIS) has placed the country’s largest passport order in years – a whopping 1.5 million new documents from manufacturers in Paris. […]
ADDIS ABABA – (BORKENA) – Ethiopian passports are being issued to non-Ethiopian citizens illegally, according to sources. Fana Broadcasting Corporation has approached officials of the concerned institutions for an interview regarding the issue. They were asked why their institutions have […]
By Jennifer Riggan. RLC Briefing Paper 3 Abstract This briefing paper explains why many Eritreans speak Amharic and why it is plausible that, under certain circumstances, an Eritreans might not speak Tigrinya or another Eritrean language. In order to explore […]
Download gazetted version: Ethiopia Digital ID proclamation 1284-2023 Download undated searchable PDF: Ethiopia_Digital-ID-Proclamation-EN_2023 Also numbered 1284/2015 in Ethiopian calendar. Also available at: https://id.gov.et/
What is the newly adopted Ethiopian Digital Identity Proclamation Number 1284/2023 all about? Download PDF: Ethiopian National ID Program Apr2023
Zecharias Zelalem The rollout of digital ID Fayda in Ethiopia could entrench discrimination against Tigrayans and other ethnic minorities, rights groups fear Ethiopia introduces digital ID to improve access to services Tigrayans fear the data may be used to discriminate […]