GSSC Seminar Series

12 May 2026

The Political Economy of State and Nation-building of Eritrea 

Freweini Tekle Kidane (Makerere Institute of Social Research)

12:00-13:00

It has been over thirty years since the Eritrean government embarked on the post-liberation project of state and nation-building. The core elements of this project have been the national-service and nationalization of the land. By nationalizing land and assuming firm control over labor (via aggressive mobilization of the youth in an indefinite national-service), the government has effectively established an undisputed monopoly over the two crucial elements of economic production (labor and land) to a degree that is unprecedented in any post-colonial state. The research examines the impact of the political economy of this state and nation-building project—with a particular focus on the two most consequential macro-policies (nationalization of land and compulsory national-service)—on production, social reproduction and gender relations. 

Freweini Tekle Kidane is a PhD candidate at the Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR). Freweini’s  research interest lies in Peace-building studies, Feminist/political economy, Human right, Agrarian question, etc. Freweini is affiliated with the Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR), Research and Documentation Center of Eritrea (RDC), Young African Researchers in Agriculture (YARA). Currently, she is a guest researcher  at Global South Studies Center at the University of Cologne, Germany.