This study was conducted in the Borana rangelands, southern Oromia, Ethiopia with the aim of investigating land-use/cover changes, rangeland condition and indentifying major change drivers in the rangelands. Satellite image scenes, ground survey and people’s perceptions were assessed to identify changes on herbaceous and woody species composition. Ordination techniques were used for correlation of grass and woody species into environmental variables. Piospheric effects on vegetation composition around patch resources were also examined. These assessments were designed to bring out both spatial and seasonal variation in vegetation parameters. Rangeland condition was determined using the ecological index (EIM) and the weighted palatability composition (WPC) methods. Grazing capacity assessment was largely based on rain-use efficiency, range condition, density of woody plants. Woody cover in the Borana increased from 11.3% in the 1970s to 49.26% in 2000s, while, grassland cover declined from 58% to 32% during the same period. The cultivated/built up area also increased gradually over the years though the extent of increment was less compared to the woody cover changes. The calculated NDVI values for the 2000s were low relative to the 1970s. Ground survey results demonstrated that herbaceous biomass production and woody plant density varied significantly (P < 0.01) for the different sites in Borana. Nevertheless, herbaceous plant diversity and evenness did not differ significantly (P>0.05) across the different sites and around patch resource areas. This confirms the resilience of the Borana rangeland to the effects of grazing pressure and climatic variability. Overall, the density of woody plants varied from moderate to sever encroachment, which corresponds to the rangeland condition classes from very poor to fair. The results of the present study showed that the nutrient contents of herbaceous plants (CP, NDF, ADF, ADL and ash) were greatly influenced by species, stage of maturity, site and season. Herbaceous species with high crude protein content based on laboratory results were also ranked as the top important species by the pastoralists. Similarly, herbaceous forage species with a high structural fiber were considered inferior. Pastoralists’ knowledge and laboratory results on the nutritive value of key herbaceous species complemented each other. The stocking density of livestock units was higher than the grazing capacity for the Borana rangelands. Stocking density for the Borana rangeland using rain-use efficiency was 1.43 ha/TLU. There was no significant difference in the grazing capacity across the different sites in the study area under the existing management. The majority of pastoralists believed that the rangelands in Borana have been degraded, as consequence of recurrent drought (83%), population pressure (65%), poor management and inappropriate government policy (38%). The majority of the respondents (94%) also asserted that the traditional coping mechanisms of Borana pastoralists have declined. There is therefore a need for designing appropriate pastoral land-use policies that fit the ecological potential of the region to ensure sustainable ecosystem functioning. We suggest a comprehensive and adaptive range management for the implementation of appropriate land-use systems for the different livestock species. There is need to adjust stocking rates based on seasonal availability of forage. This would foster economic feasibility and ecological sustainability of the Borana pastoral production system. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2013 / Plant Production and Soil Science / Unrestricted

En outre, nous avons fait une expérience sur les nouveaux outils pour identifier les tiques par MALDI-TOF MS protéines profilage et des méthodes moléculaires. Notre étude visant à explorer les bactéries dans les ixodidae prélevés sur des animaux domestiques en Éthiopie a révélé une prévalence globale de 6% (46/767) des rickettsies de SFG, 3,8% (29/767) ADN de Borrelia et 6,4% (54/842) de C. burnetii dans différentes espèces de tiques. L'étude pour étudier les bactéries dans 303 puces prélevés sur des chiens et des chats domestiques en Ethiopie qui ont été identifiés comme étant morphologiquement Ctenocephalides felis felis, Ctenocephalides canis, Pulex irritans et Echidnophaga gallinacé montré Rickettsia felis dans 21% des puces, principalement dans Ctenocephalides felis, avec un semblable prévalence dans les puces de chiens et de chats. La présence d'Acinetobacter spp. dans M. ovinus, Heterodoxus spiniger, Bovicola ovis et Linognathus vituli. La séquence du gène rpoB partiel a révélé la présence de A. soli, A. lowffii, A. Pitti et 3 nouveaux Acinetobacter spp. dans les poux et Keds. Bartonella melophagi a été identifié par une PCR standard, suivi par un séquençage du fragment de la gltA et gène rpoB chez M. ovinus. Dans l'ensemble, nos résultats alerte les médecins en charge des patients avec fièvre d'étiologie inconnue en Ethiopie et ceux qui se soucient de voyageurs en provenance de l'Ethiopie à prendre en compte la présence de plusieurs espèces zoonotiques à transmission vectorielle de bactéries, y compris SFG rickettsies, C. burnetii, R. felis, B. henselae et B. melophagi comme agents pathogènes potentiels. / Our study to explore bacteria in ixodid ticks collected from domestic animals in Ethiopia revealed an overall prevalence of 6% (46/767) SFG rickettsiae, 3.8% (29/767) Borrelia DNA and 6.4% (54/842) C. burnetii in different tick species. The study to investigate bacteria in 303 fleas collected from domestic dogs and cats in Ethiopia that were morphologically identified as Ctenocephalides felis felis, Ctenocephalides canis, Pulex irritans and Echidnophaga gallinacean showed Rickettsia felis in 21% of fleas, mainly in Ctenocephalides felis, with a similar prevalence in fleas from dogs and cats. The study to investigate bacteria in lice and sheep ked (Melophagus ovinus) revealed Acinetobacter spp. in M. ovinus, Heterodoxus spiniger, Bovicola ovis and Linognathus vituli. Partial rpoB gene sequence revealed A. soli, A. lowffii, A. pitti and 3 new Acinetobacter spp. in the lice and keds. Molecular identification of lice using an 18S rRNA gene analysis confirmed the morphological methods of lice identification. Bartonella melophagi was identified by standard PCR followed by sequencing of fragments of the gltA and rpoB genes in M. ovinus.Overall, our findings alert physicians managing patients with fever of unknown aetiology in Ethiopia and those who care for travellers from Ethiopia to consider the presence of several vector-borne zoonotic species of bacteria including SFG rickettsiae, C. burnetii, R. felis, B. henselae and B. melophagi as potential causative agents.

In Ethiopia, one of the primary contributors to blindness is trachoma, which is an infectious ocular disease. There is no record of any prevention programs in rural Ethiopian villages of Oromia, where the prevalence of trachoma is high. The original purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the perceptions of rural Oromo villagers in Ethiopia on the causes, treatment, and prevention of trachoma, using the health belief model and the social-ecological model as a theoretical framework. Due to a security situation in Ethiopia, final interviews were conducted with immigrant Ethiopians in the US, all of them from the trachoma-endemic rural areas of Oromia, all now living in Phoenix, Arizona. Results showed that this sample of former villagers had limited knowledge of the causes, prevention or treatment of trachoma, and could not recognize, or differentiate it from other eye diseases. The participants had some knowledge of governmental and nongovernmental efforts to control trachoma in their home country - through education and pit latrines. They also knew about the limitations of those programs. All reported that people would be willing to attend classes for trachoma prevention if held at a convenient time and place. These results may be useful in preparing a program to prevent trachoma in rural Ethiopia, and reduce blindness in this population, enabling more individuals to become educated and contributing to their community's well-being. Since trachoma is highly infectious, and participants in this study come from a trachoma-endemic area and do not know how to recognize it for themselves, the need for screening for trachoma on arrival in the US should be examined in more detail.

The intertwined challenges of food insecurity, deforestation, and biodiversity loss remain perennial challenges in Ethiopia, despite increasing policy interventions. This thesis investigates smallholding farmers’ tree- and forest-based livelihoods and management practices, in the context of national development and conservation policies, and examines how these local management practices and policies transform the agriculture–forest mosaic landscapes of southwestern Ethiopia. The thesis is guided by a political ecology perspective, and focuses on an analytical framework of ecosystem services (ESs) and disservices (EDs). It uses a mixed research design with data from participatory field mapping, a tree ‘inventory’, interviews, focus group discussions, population censuses, and analysis of satellite images and aerial photos. The thesis presents four papers. Paper I investigates how smallholding farmers in an agriculture–forest mosaic landscape manage trees and forests in relation to a few selected ESs and EDs that they consider particularly beneficial or problematic. The farmers’ management practices were geared towards mitigating tree- and forest-related EDs such as wild mammal crop raiders, while at the same time augmenting ESs such as shaded coffee production, resulting in a restructuring of the agriculture–forest mosaic. Paper II builds further on the EDs introduced in paper I, to assess the effects of crop raids by forest-dwelling wild mammals on farmers’ livelihoods. The EDs of wild mammals and human–wildlife conflict are shown to constitute a problem that goes well beyond a narrow focus on yield loss. The paper illustrates the broader impacts of crop-raiding wild mammals on local agricultural and livelihood development (e.g. the effects on food security and children’s schooling), and how state forest and wildlife control and related conservation policy undermined farmers’ coping strategies. Paper III examines local forest-based livelihood sources and how smallholders’ access to forests is reduced by state transfer of forestland to private companies for coffee investment. This paper highlights how relatively small land areas appropriated for investment in relatively densely inhabited areas can harm the livelihoods of many farmers, and also negatively affect forest conservation. Paper IV investigates the patterns and drivers of forest cover change from 1958 to 2010. Between 1973 and 2010, 25% of the total forest was lost, and forest cover changes varied both spatially and temporally. State development and conservation policies spanning various political economies (feudal, socialist, and ‘free market-oriented’) directly or indirectly affected local ecosystem use, ecosystem management practices, and migration processes. These factors (policies, local practices, and migration) have thus together shaped the spatial patterns of forest cover change in the last 50 years. The thesis concludes that national development and conservation policies and the associated power relations and inequality have often undermined local livelihood security and forest conservation efforts. It also highlights how a conceptualization of a local ecosystem as a provider of both ESs and EDs can generate an understanding of local practices and decisions that shape development and conservation trajectories in mosaic landscapes. The thesis draws attention to the need to make development and conservation policies relevant and adaptable to local conditions as a means to promote local livelihood and food security, forest and biodiversity conservation, and ESs generated by agricultural mosaic landscapes. / <p>At the time of the doctoral defense, the following papers were unpublished and had a status as follows: Paper 2: In press. Paper 3: Submitted. Paper 4: Manuscript.</p>

This MA Report explains the impact coffee cooperatives are having on the Ethiopian coffee industry. It analyses how the current multi-billion dollar global coffee industry began in what remains one of the world’s poorest countries, where arabica coffee was discovered sometime before the sixth century. It explains the emergence of coffee cooperatives historically, as well as their present role offering an alternative to the country’s previous reliance on the assistance of Western nongovernmental organizations with their possible negative impact, including arguments they enforced a dependency on Ethiopia that impeded the country’s development. In discussing coffee buyers and coffee consumption, the report focuses on America, although the same points made apply to the vast majority of Western countries. The report investigates whether cooperatives offer a business model sufficient to achieve self-sustainability for Ethiopian coffee farmers, and discusses how the interaction between and among cooperatives, unions, the Ethiopian government, and specialty coffee buyers in America is enabling Ethiopian coffee to increase its leverage on the international coffee market, generating essential income for the struggling Ethiopian economy. The report focuses on the following areas: the connection between poverty and linkage to markets; how coffee travels from smallholding farmers in Ethiopia to be sold in American cities like Austin, Texas; the emergence of certification systems like Fair Trade to protect farmers and ensure they receive a fair price for their produce, as well as the chain of commerce that Fair Trade is part of; the quality and characteristics of Ethiopian coffee; and whether cooperatives and unions can remain true to the original goals of serving their farmer members—not turning into purely profit-orientated businesses. While this report focuses on Ethiopia, it dissects and debates economic trends that usually affect developing nations producing coffee. It explores the logistics and ethics of prices paid in the West for coffee from developing countries like Ethiopia. The report ultimately aims to enlighten readers so they’re able to make an ethical purchase of a good quality coffee, while aware of the myriad factors and trends affecting the international coffee market. / text

Master of Public Health - MPH / The Health Extension Program (HEP) is an innovative, community based comprehensive primary health care program that Ethiopia introduced in 2003. It gives special emphasis to the provision of preventive and promotive services at community and household level. However, utilization of the HEP packages is low and reasons for this underutilization are not well known. The aim of this study is to assess the availability and utilization of the Health Extension Program Service in Akaki District of Oromia Region, Ethiopia. Quantitative study using a cross-sectional survey design. The study was conducted in Akaki District of Oromia Regional State in Ethiopia with 79,162 inhabitants. Random sampling was used to select 355 households. A structured data collection tool/ questionnaire was employed to collect data from the study participants. Data were analyzed using SPSS for Windows version 19. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze socio demographic characteristics of the study participants and to assess the availability and utilization of each service component. The response rate of the study was 100% with complete data obtained from 335 (94.4%) of the households. The majority (93.1%) of respondents were women. The availability of HEP services as described by the household visit of Health Extension Workers (HEWs) is very high with 86.6% visiting at least monthly and 11.3% visited sometimes. There was a highly significant association between the health extension workers’ visit to households and health extension service utilization during pregnancy (OR=16.913, 95% CI 8.074-35.427 at p<0.001). HIV testing utilization showed a tenfold increase among households who received education. Participation of households in the Model family initiative was another key factor associated with high levels of HEP services utilization. Though HEP services are available for most households, the frequency of household visits by HEWs and the involvement of Households in model family training greatly influenced service utilization. Improving frequency of services availability at household level and consistent health education will greatly improve services utilization.

Text in English with appendices in Afaan Oromoo (Oromo language) / Despite the imperative of reintegration assistance for returnees of illegal migration, which will enable them to become independent and productive members of the community, the reintegration needs and experiences of returned illegal migrants are neglected in academic studies. The objectives of the study were to explore the socio-contextual factors that gave rise to the illegal migration of the study participants; their illegal migration abuse and exploitation experiences; the reintegration needs they sought after return; and the responses of relevant stakeholders to meet the reintegration needs of the returnees and help them reintegrate into the community. To this end, I conducted a qualitative study in Omo Nada district in 2017. I collected the data by means of indepth interviews, key informant interviews and focus group discussions. I used thematic analysis to analyze the findings. The study revealed that the decision to migrate ‘illegally’ was the result of numerous drivers: poverty, unemployment, political discrimination, family pressure, and absence of legal means, the influence of brokers and smugglers, and socio-cultural and religious factors. The returned migrants experienced various types of abuse and exploitation, including physical abuse, economic, labour and sexual exploitation both on the migration journey and at the place of destination. The long periods of isolation some experienced also resulted in the disintegration of their families. Participants identified the need for support in the form of health services, counselling, housing, employment, skills training, finances, loans and social support from relevant stakeholders such as family, the community, the government and non-governmental organizations. Despite the many needs identified, the relevant bodies provided very little reintegration support. Due to this, the returnees were not able to reintegrate into their communities. Returning to the premigration conditions which drove them to migrate ‘illegally' in the first place, with no hope of any reintegration assistance, led some returnees to re-migrate illegally. Reintegration is a key aspect for return migration. Therefore, to be sustainable and for the reintegration process to be successful it must be widely supported. The consequences of illegal migration and reintegration support must be taken seriously and supported by the government in all its aspects. Government agencies such as the Labour and Social Affairs Office must be capacitated to provide the necessary assistance and supports to effect sustainable integration. / Sociology / Ph. D. (Sociology)