The Reversed Reality: The Reported Double-Digit Incremental Economic Growth Versus the Decreasing Trend in GDP Performance in Ethiopia During 2011-2020

Economic development and poverty alleviation have been a priority of the Ethiopian government over the past decade. The country is one of the poorest countries in sub–Saharan Africa and there have been contradicting reports by the government during the same decade for its fast-growing economy in the region with double-digit and incremental growth. This article attempted to analyse the trend in economic performance and the financial flow into the economic sectors in the country. On the one hand, government reports have indicated that the country is economically one of the fastest growing in Africa, a position that has been seconded by international financial institutions and other bilateral donors. On the other hand, the country remains on the list of poorest countries in the world. A qualitative approach was applied in analysing the reported data on economic performance in the country from 2011-2020. The study relied on secondary data sources using aid flow records, reports of government and United Nations agencies, policy manuals, research findings, books, and journals. The GDP measure in Ethiopia during the past decade decreased from 11.39 in 2011 to 6.06 in 2020. The trend in specific economic sectors was decreasing with little progress in specific poverty indexes in the economic sector. There were marked inequalities between urban and rural areas in the country. The performance in water supply, electricity power provision and road networking in the country showed sluggish progress. The intended transition from an agriculture-led economy to an industry and services sector-led economy remained unmet. The country continued relying on foreign aid for its poverty alleviation efforts and the aid flow during the past decade showed a fluctuating trend. The study results imply that there should be genuine reports on the economic performance of the country relying on the specific indexes of poverty measures. There is also a critical need to focus on internal capacities over the reliance on foreign support to achieve poverty alleviation and economic development goals.