Ethiopian Journals Online (EJOL)
Not a member yet
4332 research outputs found
Sort by
National Dialogue for Peacebuilding in Ethiopia: Lessons from Rwanda, Tunisia, and Yemen
Full text linkSince the late 20th century, national dialogues have been a widely recognized mechanism for peace-building during political transitions. Following its own transition in 2018, Ethiopia launched an inclusive public dialogue process aimed at addressing both historical and contemporary sources of discord while fostering national consensus to build a peaceful and prosperous state. While this process holds significant transformative potential, it currently lacks a systematic framework for integrating empirical lessons from comparative international models, which hampers its ability to incorporate proven success mechanisms. This study examines national dialogues in Rwanda, Tunisia, and Yemen to extract a comprehensive set of lessons that could inform Ethiopia’s ongoing process. Through a systematic literature review and thematic data analysis, the study identifies ten key factors that contribute to the success or failure of national dialogues: political will and national ownership; the credibility of the convener; the inclusion or exclusion of key stakeholders; the scope and nature of the dialogue agenda; connecting public suffering to structural solutions; decision making systems; unifying dialogue slogans; support structures and programs; the interplay between tangible and intangible goals of national dialogue; and the implementation and sustainability of dialogue outcomes. Effectively adapting these insights could significantly enhance the prospects for the success of Ethiopia’s national dialogue
Teachers’ Understanding of Learning Styles: Perspectives on Curriculum Adaptation in Secondary Schools of Mareko Special Woreda, Central Ethiopia Regional State
Full text linkThis study examines teachers’ understanding of learning styles and their impact on curriculum adaptation and student engagement in secondary schools of Mareko Special Woreda, Central Ethiopia Regional State. The primary purpose is to assess how teachers perceive and identify diverse learning styles, the strategies they employ to adapt curricula accordingly, and the perceived effects of these adaptations on student participation and motivation. Employing a convergent mixed methods design, data were collected through questionnaires and semi-structured interviews. The study targeted all Mathematics and Natural Sciences teachers (a total of 52) across three secondary schools, using census sampling. Purposive sampling was employed to select six teachers for in-depth interviews. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, including frequency and percentage whereas qualitative data were analysed using thematic analysis. Major findings reveal that although teachers possess a moderate to high familiarity with learning styles, their understanding often lacks depth, relying mainly on observational methods rather than systematic assessment. Group work and multimedia resources are the most common curriculum adaptation strategies, but resource limitations and insufficient training hinder broader implementation. Teachers generally perceive curriculum adaptation as significantly enhancing student engagement; however, their capacity to fully realize these benefits is constrained by limited professional development and resource shortages. The study underscores the need for targeted professional training and resource provision to improve teachers’ ability for effective curriculum adaptation aligned with diverse learning styles. The study recommends workshops, resource allocation, and the establishment of peer support systems to foster the accommodation of students with diverse learning styles
Emergency department crowdedness level and its determinants at selected public hospitals in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Full text linkBackground: Emergency department overcrowding is a critical public health concern,negatively impacting patient care, safety, and hospital efficiency in Ethiopia and many other countries. It contributes to longer lengths of stay, increased mortality rates, staff burnout, and higher healthcare costs. Objective: This study aimed to assess the level of emergency department overcrowding in Tikur Anbesa Specialized Hospital and St. Paul’s Specialized Hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, using the National Emergency Department Overcrowding Scale (NEDOCS)
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from June 20 to 27, 2023, enrolling allpatients presenting to the emergency departments during this period. Data were collectedusing a standardized checklist adapted from previous studies with adjustments. Hourlyobservations were recorded for seven days and analyzed using SPSS version 26.Results: Over seven-day period, emergency department crowding was assessed every hourduring the daytime, resulting in 84 sampling times. The median NEDOCS score, indicatingcrowding severity, was 476.5 (IQR: 363-595), with a mean score of 455.7 (SD ±74.2) and arange of 287 to 581. The primary factors contributing to overcrowding were prolonged patientlengths of stay and high patient flow. Nearly 60% (393 patients) stayed beyond 24 hours,with an average length of stay of 4 days (SD ±2.8), reaching up to 16 days in some cases.The most frequent reason for extended ED stays was bed scarcity (77.9%).Conclusion: Emergency departments in the selected hospitals are experiencing criticallyhigh patient volumes, leading to dangerously long wait times. This overcrowding requiresimmediate, coordinated action to mitigate its impact on patient care delivery
Nutritional Status and associated factors among adults living with HIV/AIDS in Yekatit 12 Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: A facility-based cross-sectional study
Full text linkBackground: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and AIDS remained a significant healthburden particularly in developing countries. It has been continued as one of a global healthcrisis with 1.5 million [1.0 million–2.0 million] new HIV infections and 680 000 [480 000–1 000 000] deaths from AIDS-related causes that occurred in 2020. Poor nutrition resulting inweight loss, muscle wasting, weakness, nutrient deficiencies leads to impaired immunesystem which could facilitate HIV disease progression or increase the risk of infection.Objective: This study aimed to asses’ nutritional status and associated factors among adultsliving with HIV/ AIDS at ART clinic of Yekatit12 Hospital Addis Ababa.Methods: Facility based cross-sectional study was conducted among all adults attendingART follow up services at Yekatit 12 hospital from May 2024 to July 2024.Results: A total of 393 participants were included in the study. The mean age of theparticipants was 33.74 (SD ±5.29) years. The prevalence of malnutrition with(BMI<18.5kg/m2) in this study was 37.15%. Opportunistic infections (AOR=3.12,95% CI:1.77-5.46), Clinical stage four (AOR=6.39,95% CI: 1.73-23.65), Clinical stage three (AOR=4.69, 95% CI: 1.02 -6.05), receiving nutritional support and care (AOR=0.53, 95% CI: 0.27-1.14), high meal frequency (AOR=0.36, 95% CI: 0.13-0.95), and, food insecure (AOR= 2.99,95% CI:1.56-5.73) were significantly associated with under nutrition.Conclusion: Malnutrition associated with advanced clinical stages of HIV diseases,opportunistic infection and food insecurity is significant problem among peoples living withHIV/AIDS
Beyond Cultural Heritage and Symbolism: A Quest for Constitutional Recognition of the Oromo Gadaa System in Ethiopia
No full textThis study argues for the formal legal and functional recognition of the Oromo Gadaa System (OGS) beyond its current status as intangible cultural heritage. Through a qualitative analysis of Ethiopia’s legal framework and the implications of UNESCO’s 2016 inscription, the research has found that while Proclamation 839/2014 provides a basis for safeguarding heritage, it fails to address the integration of the OGS’s governance mechanisms. Constitutional provisions allow for such recognition but remain unimplemented. The study has identified the OGS’s core democratic principles-such as periodic succession, checks and balances, and restorative justice-as potential contributors to strengthening Ethiopia’s governance architecture. However, significant structural incompatibility between the centralized state and the decentralized, consensus-based logic of Gadaa present fundamental challenges. The findings, derived from interviews and document analysis, suggest that moving from symbolic to functional recognition requires navigating complex questions of legal pluralism, power-sharing, and institutional hybridity. The study concludes that a constitutionally recognized, hybrid model is necessary to leverage the OGS’s indigenous values for enhanced political stability, administrative effectiveness, and socio-cultural harmony.
 
Sustaining Indigenous Governance: The Role of Gujii Women in the Continuity of the Gujii Gadaa System
No full textIndigenous governance systems in Africa have historically provided comprehensive frameworks for social organization, leadership, conflict resolution, and cultural continuity. Among these systems, the Gadaa system of the Oromo people represents a highly developed socio-political institution grounded in democratic principles, grade governance, accountability, and collective responsibility. Despite its significance and global recognition, scholarly attention has largely emphasized male leadership roles, resulting in the marginalization and under representation of women’s contributions to the continuity and functioning of the system. This study addresses this gap by examining the roles of women in sustaining the Gadaa system and the indigenous legal and institutional mechanisms that protect and empower them. Among the Guji Oromo who are one of the major Oromo moieties where the Gadaa system is a living institution. The main objective of the study is to analyze women’s roles in governance, ritual practice, generational continuity, and social regulation within the Gadaa system. Specifically, the study investigates women’s shared responsibility in leadership, their participation across Gadaa grades, their exclusive roles through indigenous institutions such as Haadha Bantooyyee, and the legal protections accorded to them from birth to death. The study employs a qualitative research approach using ethnographic methods. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with elders, women leaders, and key informants, participant observation of rituals and social practices, and analysis of oral traditions and customary laws. The data were thematically analyzed to capture indigenous meanings and institutional structures. The findings reveal that women are indispensable to the continuity of the Gujii Gadaa system. Leadership is exercised through marital partnership, ritual legitimacy depends on women’s participation, and women’s institutions play critical roles in public health, moral regulation, and cultural transmission. The study concludes that the Gujii Gadaa system embodies a complementary model of gender relations rooted in balance, mutual responsibility, and collective well-being. The study recommends greater scholarly recognition of women’s indigenous governance roles, legal protection and documentation of women’s institutions, and the integration of indigenous gender-balanced governance principles into contemporary policy and cultural preservation initiatives
Navigating Ethiopia's Revolutionary Democracy since 1991: A Tool for Political Control and Regime Stability
No full textEthiopia has had a revolutionary democracy from 1991 to 2018, a two-edged sword that has enabled both regime survival and change under the EPRDF. This article sheds light on how the EPRDF authoritarian regime used co-optation, legitimation, and repression as complementary survival toolkits to maintain power until 2018. The article is a qualitative case study that incorporates both primary and secondary sources through critical analysis, both conceptual and content-wise. The article contends that, under the pretext of revolutionary democratic ideology, the EPRDF has looked to construct a monopoly on power that would serve as the center of authoritative and coercive authority, employing ethnic federalism and development-state rhetoric. Both federalism and the developmental state model are employed as weapons of repression, coercion, and legitimacy to preserve hegemonic power control at the price of long-awaited democratization and self-government. However, these EPRDF strategies stayed a double-edged sword, enabling monopolistic political control while also generating resistance based on long-held dissatisfaction with the ambiguities and contradictions between revolutionary democratic ideas and deeds. Therefore, the repressive techniques used by the EPRDF sparked social mobilization, resulting in collective actions by marginalized groups from various sects, finally leading to the EPRDF regime's collapse in 2018. The downfall of the EPRDF demonstrates that a political ideology not only serves to obtain support and legitimacy by driving party members to fulfill specified political goals, but it can also serve as a primary framework that accelerates political prospects for regime transition
የቃል ግጥሞች ማኅበራዊ ፋይዳ - በደቡብ ወሎ ቦረና ወረዳ አርሶ አደሮች ማንጸሪያነት : The Social Benefits of Oral Poetry: Reflections of Farmers’ Life in South Wollo, Borena District
No full textየዚህ ጥናት ዋና ዓላማ በደቡብ ወሎ ቦረና ወረዳ በሚገኘው አርሶ አደር ማኀበረሰብ ከሚከወኑት ቃል ግጥሞች ማኅበራዊ ፋይዳ ባላቸው ላይ የይዘት ትንተና ማካኼድ ነው፡፡ ጥናቱ ዓይነታዊ የምርምር ዘዴን የተከተለ ሲኾን፣ ቃል ግጥሞችን ከመስክ ለመሰብሰብ ተግባር ላይ የዋሉት የመረጃ መሰብሰቢያ ዘዴዎች ደግሞ ቃለ መጠይቆችና ሰነዶች ናቸው፡፡ በእነዚህ የመረጃ መሰብሰቢያ ዘዴዎች የተሰበሰቡት ቃል ግጥሞች በገላጭ የምርምር ዓይነት ይዘታቸው ተተንትኗል፡፡ በትንተናው ወቅት ተግባራዊ ንድፈ ሐሳብ (Functional Theory) ጥቅም ላይ ውሏል፡፡ ከይዘት ትንተናውም ቃል ግጥሞቹ የማኀበረሰቡን መልካም ዕሴቶች የማስተማር ፋይዳ ያላቸው መኾኑን ለመገንዘብ ተችሏል፡፡ በዚህም ግብረ ገብነትን በሚያንጸባርቁ ቃል ግጥሞች አማካይነት ልጆችን እና ወጣቶችን በማስተማር ገና ከለጋነታቸው ጊዜ ጀምሮ ባሕርያቸውን መቅረጽ እንደሚገባ መረዳት ተችሏል፡፡ ከዚህ በተጨማሪ ቃል ግጥሞቹ በሥራ የመትጋትን ጥቅም ለማኅበረሰቡ የማሳወቅ ፋይዳ እንዳላቸው ተስተውሏል፡፡ ይህ ዓይነቱ ፋይዳ በኅብረተሰቡ ዘንድ የሥራ ፍቅር እንዲኖር ስለሚያደርግ ለኢኮኖሚውና ለማኅበራዊው ልማት የሚያበረክተው አስተዋፅኦ እጅግ ከፍተኛ ግምት የሚሰጠው ነው፡፡ በሌላ በኩል ደግሞ ቃል ግጥሞቹ መጥፎ ባሕርያትን የመግታት ፋይዳ እንዳላቸው ለማወቅ ተችሏል፡፡ በዚህ መሠረት በስንፍና፣ በዳተኝነት፣ በሐሜት፣ በክሕደት፣ በአመንዝራነት፣ ጠንቋይን በማመን፣ በመታበይ (በመኩራት)፣ በሙስና፣ በመሳሰሉት መጥፎ ተግባራት ላይ የተዘፈቁ ሰዎች አድራጎታቸውን ለመቆጣጠርና ለመግታት ሲባል በቃል ግጥሞች አማካይነት በማኅበረሰቡ ሲወገዙ ተስተውሏል፡፡ በመጨረሻም የሥነ ማኅበረሰብ፣ የሥነ ሰብና የታሪክ ምሁራን ማኅበራዊ ፋይዳን በተመለከተ የተነገሩ ሌሎች ቃል ግጥሞችን ከመስክ ሰብስበው ጥናት ቢያደርጉ የወረዳውን ማኅበረሰብ ታሪክ፣ ማኅበራዊ ሕይወት፣ ባህልና ሥነ ልቡና፣ ወዘተ. የበለጠ ለመገንዘብ ያስችላል የሚል ይሁንታ በአጥኚው ቀርቧል፡፡
The primary objective of this study is to conduct a content analysis of the social benefits of oral poems performed within the farming community of the Borena District in South Wollo. The study employed a qualitative research methodology, utilizing interviews and document analysis as data collection methods to gather oral poems from the field. The collected poems were subsequently analyzed using descriptive research, guided by functional theory. The content analysis revealed that oral poems serve several key social functions. Primarily, they are instrumental in teaching and reinforcing the community's positive values. The findings suggest that by transmitting moral lessons to children and youth, oral poems play a crucial role in shaping character from an early age. Furthermore, the analysis indicates that oral poems promote a strong work ethic by informing the community of the importance of hard work. This benefit fosters a collective appreciation for labor, which is highly valued for its contribution to both economic and social development. Conversely, it was found that oral poems also function to curb negative social behaviors. The study observed that individuals engaged in detrimental acts—such as laziness, dishonesty, gossip, betrayal, adultery, belief in witchcraft, arrogance, and corruption—are often subject to social condemnation through these poems, which serve to control and restrain such conduct. Finally, the researcher suggests that further collection and study of oral poems concerning social benefits by sociologists, anthropologists, and historians would provide deeper insights into the history, social life, culture, and mentality of the district's community
Hiob Ludolf and Johann Michael Wansleben. Oriental Studies, Politics, and History between Gotha and Africa, 1650-1700
No full textThe work under review promises to contribute to our understanding of two individuals who were of great importance for early modern European interest in Ethiopia: Hiob Ludolf (1624-1704) and Johann Michael Wansleben (1635-1679). The former is known as an “armchair scholar” who meticulously collected knowledge about a wide range of matters relating to Ethiopia, while the latter is known as a travelling “manuscript hunter”[1] who never actually visited the country. However, only three of the total twenty-two chapters focus on Wansleben. From the perspective of Ethiopian studies, this is regrettable, as the significance of Wansleben for Ethiopic studies has been highlighted, for example, by Alessandro Bausi.[2] Nevertheless, this does not diminish the overall high quality of the individual contributions or the volume as a whole – after all, editors of academic conference proceedings are dependent on the range of topics submitted by the scholarly community
Construct and Predictive Validity of Head-Toes-Knee-Shoulder (HTKS) Test as a Measure of Executive Function of Children in Pre-primary O-Classes in Ethiopia
Full text linkExecutive Functions are the cognitive abilities needed to control and regulate one’s thoughts, emotions and actions, which are necessary skills for learning, problem solving, coping and adapting with challenges. The purpose of this study was to determine the validity of the HTKS test as a measure of executive function and relate it to academic skills such as emergent mathematics and literacy skills. The research questions were: 1) Is the Head Toes Knee Shoulder (HTKS) Test a reliable and valid measure of executive function? 2) Does executive function predict emergent literacy and mathematics performance of preschool children enrolled in O-class? 3) Do gender, age, regional location account for the contributions of executive functions on emergent literacy and mathematics performance? Cross sectional survey research method was employed and data was collected from 2,515 O-class preschool children (with 50% females) in five regional states of Ethiopia where 98% of the sample were between 5 and 8 years old. Data was collected using the Measure of Early Learning Quality and Outcome (MELQO) with the following sub-tests: emergent mathematics and literacy, executive functions. Reliability and validity of the MELQO tools were established during the pilot phase as well as during the main study and showed sound psychometric characteristics. Data was analyzed using t-test, confirmatory factor analysis and hierarchical multiple linear regression. Results showed that the HTKS test was both reliable and valid measure of executive function. Furthermore, there were no statistically significant difference between boys and girls in emergent literacy, mathematics and in executive function scores. Finally, results revealed that children’s executive function significantly predicted performance on emergent literacy and mathematics after controlling the effects of age and regional variations. About 14.3% and 15% of the unique variance on the emergent literacy and mathematics was respectively associated with executive function. In conclusion, executive function skills were found to be good predictors of academic skills and need to be considered in school readiness programs