This chapter of State of the Ethiopian Economy 2020 presents important core concepts – urbanization, population
dynamics, and urban welfare – and their roles in macroeconomic development, and vice versa. Ethiopia faces massive
developmental opportunities and challenges. It has very young and dynamic segment of its population; untapped potential to double, triple even quadruple production and productivity of the agricultural and manufacturing sectors. At the same time,
underemployment, unemployment, reliance on traditional methods of production, and very low rate of transformation processes bedevils the quest for growth. The underlying question for development practitioners and policymakers is what triggers rapid, sustained and inclusive development, and how the specific sectoral policies and programs influence other sectors.
State of the Ethiopian Economy 2020 (SEE) is a flagship project of the EEA which will be issued every year and it is a major departure from the former Annual Report. The SEE is conceived at a time Ethiopia is developing a ten-year development plan, which strives to bring about inclusive development and prosperity; increased income per capita, meet basic needs of the population, and utilize national potential. The plan has ten pillars of development (Ten Year Development Plan, 2020: 71):
