Legislative Drafting Manual

3.2.1.2. Compliance to Other Policy Objectives
A drafter is also responsible to make sure that the draft law is not in conflict with 
other existing national policies; to this end the following important steps should be 
adhered to:- 
i. 
Verification: a drafter must verify the content of the draft in line with other 
policies related to the subject matter of the draft law.
ii. 
Consultation with Concerned Regulatory Bodies: a drafter should 
further make proper consultation with all concerned regulatory bodies that 
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are concerned or will be affected by these other policies or by the policy 
direction of the new draft law.
3.2.2. Constitutional Compliance  
a. One means of determining the quality of legislative drafting in Ethiopian 
context should be the consistency or compliance of the draft law(s) with the 
provisions and requirements of the Constitution of the FDRE.
b. The mechanism for a drafter in Ethiopia to check such consistency or 
compliance is verification of the content of the draft law(s) in line with the 
provisions or requirements of the Constitution of the FDRE.
c. So, a drafter, before finalizing the draft, shall always check and verify that 
the provisions of the draft law are not in conflict with the Constitution of 
FDRE, in particular with the provisions which guarantee rights and 
freedoms.
d. A drafter shall, after completing the verification process, duly fill the 
“Compatibility Certificate” format, attached herewith, so as to provide 
appropriate information regarding the degree of compatibility with the 
FDRE Constitution. A drafter must state in this Compatibility Certificate 
whether the draft is fully compatible with the Constitution, and if not to what 
extent it is incompatible together with the reasons for such partial 
compatibility. This Certificate must be attached with the draft law at every 
stage of its consultation, including the approval process before enacted.
e. Apart from the drafter, other institutions in Ethiopia (e.g. the Legal 
Research Institute, the Council of Ministers, the Legal Committee of the 
House of Peoples‟ Representatives, the House of Peoples‟ 
Representatives itself, etc.. ) should also verify the constitutional 
compliance of a draft law before it is approved and becomes law.