Draft:Harmolantica

• Comment: What those involved say about Harmolantica is not useful likewise for speeches which are primary sources. See Your first article. S0091 (talk) 21:23, 17 July 2025 (UTC)

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Harmolantica

Harmolantica is a contemporary African philosophical and socio-political concept that advocates for harmony, fraternity, and imaginative reconstruction as foundational principles for societal transformation. The term was coined by Tibebu Taye, an Ethiopian writer, youth advocate, and political thinker, who introduced it as an “African-born emancipatory toolkit” aimed at addressing the continent’s deep-rooted political and social challenges

Origins and Conceptual Framework

Tibebu Taye first introduced the term Harmolantica in a series of opinion pieces published on Borkena, where he described it as a response to the dissonance and fragmentation in Ethiopian and African political life. He characterized the political landscape as a “phantasmagoric theatre” of chaos and repetition, where progress is often illusory and moral clarity is obscured

In this context, Harmolantica emerges as a call to return to Africa’s indigenous values of harmony, brotherhood, and fraternity. It is both a critique of post-colonial political failures and a visionary framework for reimagining African governance, identity, and community. Taye emphasizes the importance of creative potential, moral instinct, and imaginative design in crafting a new political ethos rooted in African epistemologies

Philosophical Influences

While Tibebu Taye coined the term, he acknowledges the intellectual influence of African philosophers such as Adom Getachew and Elleni Centime Zeleke. Their works—World Making after Empire and Ethiopia in Theory, respectively—explore the limitations of post-colonial self-determination and advocate for a re-grounding of African political thought in indigenous moral and social frameworks

Taye builds on these ideas by proposing Harmolantica as a practical and philosophical alternative to the dominant paradigms of governance and development. He argues that African societies must move beyond the rhetoric of independence and embrace a deeper transformation that includes economic sovereignty, social justice, and ecological consciousness

Political and Cultural Impact

Harmolantica gained broader recognition when Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley of Barbados referenced similar themes during her address at the 38th African Union Summit. She echoed the call for institutional reform and emphasized that emancipatory tools should be accessible not only to political elites but also to ordinary citizens

In Ethiopia, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has also invoked the spirit of Harmolantica, highlighting Africa’s rich spiritual heritage and the human potential for harmonious coexistence. His remarks align with the goals of the Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission (ENDC), which seeks to foster peace and reconciliation in a country long marred by ethnic conflict

Youth Engagement and National Dialogue

In a 2024 article titled “Harmolantica: Youth of Ethiopia Following Anticipations from the National Dialogue Commission”, Tibebu Taye urged the ENDC to adopt Harmolantica as a guiding framework. He proposed five pragmatic, ecocritical measures to support the Commission’s mission, emphasizing the role of youth in shaping Ethiopia’s political future

Taye’s vision positions Harmolantica not just as a theoretical construct but as a lived philosophy—a way of being and relating that prioritizes empathy, ecological awareness, and collective healing.

Rurther Reading

Tibebu Taye

Tibebu Taye