The Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission announces it will submit approximately 400 recommendations to Parliament before September 20, with Tigray-related agendas directed to the federal government due to operational constraints
By Staff Writer
(Nairobi, Kenya) — The Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission (ENDC) announced that it will hand over its final recommendations—comprising approximately 400 decision points collected over a month of national consultations involving 4,000 participants—to relevant government bodies before September 20, 2026.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, September 10, 2026, Chief Commissioner Professor Mesfin Araya clarified that the submission timeline aligns with the scheduled dissolution of the current House of People’s Representatives on September 29, 2026. Because lawmakers established the commission under Proclamation No. 1265/2021, officials must deliver output reports to incumbent parliamentarians before the legislative body’s term officially ends.
Addressing regional agendas, Professor Mesfin stated that dialogue agendas gathered regarding the Tigray region cannot be submitted directly to regional authorities given current conditions, and will instead be handed over to the federal government. He added that if conditions become favorable in the future, the commission may also submit the agendas to relevant regional bodies.
Because security and operational constraints prevented conducting the dialogue process inside the Tigray region, the commission collected agendas within Addis Ababa. Professor Mesfin noted that 164 individuals participated on their own behalf and as community representatives for the region, adding that this turnout was comparable to contributions from other regions.
In accordance with Proclamation No. 1265/2021, the commission is preparing a strategic implementation document alongside a dedicated monitoring system to oversee execution across federal, regional, and municipal governance levels. For recommendations reflecting contested public opinions among the 400 submitted, the framework outlines options for the executive branch to present alternatives to the public through referendums or other legal mechanisms.
The commission, now in its fifth year, is operating under a second eight-month mandate extension that expires on October 24, 2026. With less than two months remaining, Professor Mesfin acknowledged the difficulty of completing all remaining tasks, noting that the incoming House of People’s Representatives will decide the commission’s future institutional status.
During the press briefing—the first held since the conclusion of the national dialogue assembly conducted from July 15 to August 23, 2026—Professor Mesfin rejected allegations regarding commissioner partiality and ruling party interference, maintaining that the commission conducted deliberations independently.
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