A Different Point of View on Ethiopia's Welkait Region

 The Habesha published on 10 March 2026 a commentary titled "Legitimacy and the Limits of Political Experimentation in Welkait" by Sisay Mulu.  

The author disagrees at both the analytical and policy level with the conclusions of Zola Moges's "The Welkait Quagmire Neither Ballots nor Bullets Can Resolve" reposted below on 2 March.  

Sisay Mulu argues that Zola Moges downplayed the importance of historical administrative continuity, discussed legal and constitutional issues in abstract terms, and failed to fairly consider the practical challenges of governing a contested post-conflict area.  

Ethiopia's Welkait: Amharan, Tigrayan, or Something Else?

 Ethiopia Insight published on 2 March 2026 a commentary titled "The Welkait Quagmire Neither Bullets nor Ballets Can Resolve" by Zola Moges, PhD in international law.

Welkait is a district that has been part of Western Tigray since the Tigray People's Liberation Front annexed it following the demise in 1991 of the Derg regime.  Prior to that, Welkait was part of Amhara Region.  

Welkait's strategic location at the intersection of Ethiopia's borders with Sudan and Eritrea complicates the ability to find a solution that manages to overcome long-standing ethnic, language, and cultural differences.  

The author suggests as a solution creation of a self-administered territory that might take the form of a special autonomous zone or even an additional regional state with bilingual Amharic and Tigrinya administration.  

Ethiopia: Fate of Western Tigray

 Ethiopia Insight published on 29 March 2023 a commentary titled "With a New Tigray Leader in Place, Amhara Dispute Comes into Focus."

Now that an interim leader of Tigray Region has been selected, the future of Amhara-occupied Welkait and Western Tigray rises as an issue to be resolved.  Ethiopia Insight concludes that the federal government must work to rebuild Tigray-Amhara ties and try to bridge the gap between their legal, historical, and demographic differences.