ABSTRACT
Ethiopia recorded its first case of Covid-19 merely a day after the WHO declared it a global pandemic. The pandemic came when the country was at a political crossroads and the federation under heavy strain, coming ahead of the sixth national elections scheduled for August 2020. This chapter examines the multilevel response to the pandemic in Ethiopia. It argues that the Covid-19 pandemic further complicated political entanglements that beset the federal system and deepened communal divisions that already threaten the country with disintegration. Although Ethiopia has a federal constitution, it functions largely as a centralised system. During the pandemic, the federal government dominated, while local governments stood at the periphery, and states acted as implementers, with the exception of the state of Tigray which declared a state of emergency long before the federal government declared a nationwide state of emergency. However, this was not so much in response to the pandemic as it was political point scoring against the federal government. It can be concluded that although the pandemic did not alter the way in which the federation operates, it amplified political tensions and exposed the absence of traditions and institutions for the peaceful resolution of intergovernmental disputes.
