After being elected in 2018, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed began carrying out significant reforms that aimed to merge Ethiopia's ethnic parties and reduce the influence of the Tigrayan Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), as the organization had dominated the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) political coalition since the fall of the Derg regime in 1991.

In November 2019 Abiy tweeted: The unanimous decision passed today to merge the Party is a crucial step in harnessing our energy to work toward a shared vision.

[17][18][19][20][21] With the formation of the Prosperity Party in 2019, Abiy Ahmed promised to redress the marginal status of the regional states in the Ethiopian periphery.

Satellite parties that represented so-called ‘emerging’ regions, including Afar, Somali, Benishangul-Gumuz and Gambella, were promised equal representation and became part of the ruling PP.

There exists a substantial divide between the Oromo and Amhara wings of the party, with academic Tobias Hagmann noting that the two sides are largely kept together through opposition to the TPLF.