Les territoires et populations du sud de l’Abbay jouèrent un rôle déterminant dans l'histoire politique, religieuse et économique de l'Éthiopie médiévale et moderne. Cet espace, situé à l'ouest du haut plateau central éthiopien, au sud-ouest de la rivière Gämma, au nord de l’Awas, vécut diverses transformations altérant progressivement sa culture et sa société. Au XIIIe siècle, Damot, Endägäbtän, Wäräb, Ennarya, Sat et Bizamo constituent le royaume du Damot, dirigé par les motälämi dont l'autorité s’impose jusqu’au sultanat musulman de l’Ifat et au port de Zeyla. Ils exportaient des produits de luxe locaux vers l'Arabie, l'Inde et la Chine. Gafat et Gärnbo, éleveurs et agriculteurs du royaume, y professaient un culte de possession et de divination (däsk). Au XIVe siècle, le royaume du Damot disparaît après l'annexion de l'Endägäbtän et du Wäräb par le royaume chrétien salomonien. Mais les motälämi gèrent jusqu'au milieu du XVe siècle une communauté d’espaces restreinte, sur laquelle un tribut chrétien est imposé, et Gafat et Gämbo résistent toujours à l’influence culturelle chrétienne. Au tournant du XVIe siècle, après avoir subi les assauts successifs de leurs voisins, une partie de ces populations est assimilée aux Oromo Mäçça qui annexent le sud de l’Abbay ; une autre émigre dans le Goggam où elle s'intègre lentement à la société chrétienne. Assimilation tardive et existence d'une entité géopolitique « païenne » pérenne 1 remettent en cause les sources médiévale, moderne et contemporaine ayant inspiré l’historiographie éthiopienne qui actait de la toute puissance du royaume chrétien sur ses voisins « païens ». / Territories and populations of southern Abbay were prominent actors in medieval and modern Ethiopian political, religious and economic history. This area, located west of the high central plateau of Ethiopia, south-west of the Gamma River, north of the Awas, Iived various alterations that changed late its culture and society. In the 13th century, southern Abbay (Damot, Endägäbtän, Wäräb, Ennarya, Sat, Bizamo) was the territory of the Kingdom of Damot led by motalâmi who imposed their authority to the Muslim sultanate of Ifat and Zeyla port. They exported luxury goods from their territories, to Arabia, India and China. Gafat and Gärnbo, breeders and farmers, inhabitants of the kingdom, professed possession cult and divination (dàsk). ln 14th century, the kingdom of Damot disappears after the annexation of Endägäbtän and Wäräb by the Salomonic Christian kingdom. The motälämi run until the middle of the 15th century a smaller space on which a Christian community tribute is imposed but Gafat and Gämbo still resist the Christian cultural influence. At the turn of the 16th century having suffered successive attacks of their neighbors, a part of its population is considered to Mäçça Oromo who annexed the southern Abbay, while another emigrated to Goggam where she accepts progressively Christian culture. Late assimilation and existence of a permanent "pagan" geopolitical entity challenge the medieval, modern and contemporary sources, who inspired the Ethiopian historiography arguing of the omnipotence of the Christian kingdom on its "pagans" neighbors.

Devolution of power, responsibilities, and resources from central to local governments has been the foundation of decentralization reforms in developing countries like Ethiopia. The most recent decentralization reforms in Ethiopia began in the early 2000s at the woreda (district) level, focusing on strengthening local governments as institutions of democratic governance and efficient service delivery. Until now, decentralization in Ethiopia has attracted very little research; this study aims to fill that knowledge gap. The extent of decentralization is examined from a holistic framework, including the three dimensions of decentralization (political, fiscal and administrative), while its impacts are explored by focusing on access, equity, efficiency and quality indicators of education service delivery. Using a qualitative case study approach, this research consists of semi-structured interviews of key informants in government and educational administration, field observations, and review of relevant documents. Four local governments and twelve schools within two regional states of Ethiopia were selected as the sample frame. This dissertation argues that the implementation of woreda decentralization reforms in Ethiopia has proven problematic, as the official establishment of devolution operates within centralized structures and practices. Regional governments have established political, administrative and fiscal decentralization, as evidenced by the existence of legal authority and mechanisms of accountability, expanded functions, and significant allocation of unconditional grants transferred to woredas. Despite much progress, the further deepening of decentralization reforms has been hampered by centralizing practices, including the dominant roles of the ruling party, weak administrative capacity at the local government and school levels, and limited resource base of local governments. The link between decentralization reforms and improved local service delivery has been inconclusive. This study suggests that the impact of decentralization on primary education has been mixed. While decentralization reforms may have facilitated the impressive expansion of access to primary education, quality indicators such as dropout rates and student learning assessments have shown little to no improvements. This study lays the groundwork for continued research into the vital link between decentralization and basic service delivery in Ethiopia and beyond.

It is evident that Ethiopia is one of the countries of Africa that is experiencing significant population growth as well as land use/cover dynamics. Land use/cover induced degradation of natural resources is a major challenge to the country’s development. The main objective of this study was to investigate the impact population dynamics has had on land use/cover in Mandura district. Data on population over time were taken from the CSA during the 1984, 1994 and 2007 national census results. A total of 210 farm households from three kebeles: 105 from the local people and 105 from migrants were surveyed in May 2011 to acquire data on socioeconomic, land use, resource use and management. Aerial photographs of 1957, 1982 and SPOT-5 image of the 2006/07 were used to generate data on land use/cover changes. The results indicate that population has substantially increased, more than fourfold between 1957-2006/07, mainly due to migration from the surrounding areas, government sponsored resettlements, and flourishing of new urban centers. No less important is mortality has decreased due to immunization and the birth rate has been increasing due to improved maternal and child care as compared to the situation prior to the 1990s. The change on land use/cover show that from the total land use/cover conversions, which totals 58,403 ha of land, farm land constitutes 90.1 %. The study finds natural population increase, migration, urbanization, agricultural extensification, institutional weakness, land tenure insecurity, famine and drought, and poverty as root causes. The study further identifies existence of all weather road, resettlement, Tana-Beles project, expansion of agriculture, land colonization, wood extraction for fuel, and soil fertility decline as direct causes of land use/cover changes. As a result of change of customary land tenure system, the local population has been forced to engage in extractive economic activities that have never been practiced in the past. Therefore, the study calls for coordinated efforts for resources use and management at different levels, land use policy formulation, devising alternative sources of livelihoods and fuel, regulating migration and involvement of the wider community in policy formulation and implementations. / Geography / Ph. D. (Geography)

abstract: WHO estimates that 830 women die every day due to maternal health complications. The disparities in maternal health are unevenly distributed between wealthy and poor nations. Ethiopia has one of the highest mortality rates in the world. Existing high maternal mortality rates worldwide and in Ethiopia indicate the shortcomings of maternal health interventions currently underway. Understanding the socio-cultural, economic and political factors that influence maternal health outcomes locally while simultaneously examining how global reproductive and development programs and policies shape and influence the reproductive needs and knowledge of women is important. Employing feminist and African indigenous methodologies, in this research I explore maternal health issues in Ethiopia in two of the largest regions of the nation, namely Oromia and Amhara, more specifically in Seden Sodo and Mecha districts. Using qualitative interviews and focus group discussions, I examined the various socio-cultural, political and economic factors that influence maternal health outcomes, assessing how gender, class, education, marriage and other social factors shape women's health outcomes of pregnancy and childbirth. I also explored how global and local development and reproductive health policies impact women's maternal health needs and how these needs are addressed in current implementation strategies of the Ethiopian health system. Recognizing women's social and collective existence in indigenous African communities and the new reproductive health paradigm post-ICPD, I addressed the role of men in maternal health experience. I argue that global and local development and reproductive policies and their implementation are complex. While comprehensive descriptions of national and maternal health policies on paper and gender-sensitive implementation strategies point toward the beginning of a favorable future in maternal health service provision, the global economic policies, population control ideas, modernization/development narratives that the nation employs that focus on biomedical solutions without due emphasis to socio-cultural aspects have a detrimental effect on maternal health services provision. I advocate for the need to understand and include social determinants in policies and implementation in addition to legal enforcement and biomedical solutions. I also argue for alternative perspectives on masculinities and the role of men in maternal health to improve maternal health service provision. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Gender Studies 2017

<p></p><p>Sorghum (<i>Sorghum bicolor) </i>is a well-known agronomic crop of global importance. The demand for sorghum as a food crop makes it the fifth most important cereal in the world. The grain of sorghum is utilized for food and feed, whereas the sorghum biomass may have many other uses such as for fodder, bioenergy or even for construction. Globally, sorghum is consumed as a food crop and used for home construction primarily in the developing world. The grain and biomass yield of sorghum is drastically reduced by the parasitic plant <i>Striga hermonthica </i>which is endemic to Sub-Saharan Africa. To date, only one sorghum gene, <i>LGS1</i>, has been characterized as a genetic mechanism that reduces <i>S. hermonthica</i> parasitism by altering the strigolactone composition of the host root exudates which results in a reduction of the parasites ability to germinate. To establish more durable resistance additional genetic variation needs to be identified that reduces the <i>S. hermonthica </i>parasitism in sorghum, but also reduces the parasitic weed seed bank by promoting suicidal germination. To that end, the PP37 multi-parent advanced generation inter-cross (MAGIC) population was developed, originally as a recurrent selection population that was developed to recombine sorghum accessions with different putative resistance mechanisms to <i>S. hermonthica. </i>Whole genome sequences were developed for approximately 1,006 individuals of the PP37 MAGIC population. The population was phenotyped for <i>S. hermonthica </i>resistance during the 2016 and 2017 growing season in Northwestern Ethiopia. There was significant spatial variation in the <i>S. hermonthica </i>natural infestations that were partially attenuated for with artificial inoculation. The data was used to conduct a genome-wide association study that detected several subthreshold peaks, including the previously mapped <i>LGS1. </i>The highly quantitative nature of <i>S. hermonthica </i>resistance confounded with the complex spatial variation in the parasite infestations across a given location make it difficult to detect highly heritable variation across years and environments. </p> <p> In addition to <i>S. hermonthica </i>resistance, the plant architecture of the PP37 MAGIC was also assessed at a location in Northwestern Ethiopia that is free of the parasite, as it significantly reduces plant height. To asses plant architecture the total plant height, the height of the panicle base, flag leaf height, and pre-flag leaf height were collected using a relatively high-throughput barcoded measurement system. Sorghum head exertion and panicle length were derived from this data. The actual measures of plant architecture and the derived traits were used to conduct a genome-wide association study. The high heritability of this trait demonstrated the statistical power of the PP37 mapping population. Highly significant peaks were detected that resolved the <i>dwarf3</i> locus and an uncharacterized qHT7.1 that had only been previously resolved using a recombinant inbred line population. Furthermore, a novel significant locus was associated with exertion on chromosome 1. The random mating that was utilized to develop the PP37 MAGIC has broken the population structure that when present can hinder our ability associate regions of the genome to a given phenotype. As a result, novel candidate gene lists have been developed as an outcome of this research that refined the potential genes that need to be explored to validate qHT7.1 and the novel association on chromosome 1. </p> <p>This research demonstrated the power of MAGIC populations in determining the genomic regions that influence complex phenotypes, that facilitates future work in sorghum genetic improvement through plant breeding. This research however also demonstrates a large international research effort. The nuisances and lessons learned while conducting this international research project are also discussed to help facilitate and guide similar research projects in the future. The broader impacts of this research on the society at large are also discussed, to highlight the unique potential broader impacts of international research in the plant sciences. The broader impacts of this research include germplasm development and extensive human capacity building in plant breeding genetics for developing country students and aspiring scientists. Overall this research attempts to serve as a model for highlighting the interdisciplinary nature and complexity of conducting international plant science research, while also making significant strides in improving our understanding the genetic architecture of quantitative traits of agronomic importance in sorghum.</p><br><p></p>

The management of international waterways presents riparian nations with a challenging set of political, economic, environmental, and geographic difficulties. Historically, the Nile Basin has exemplified many of these problems as witnessed by inter-basin conflict, devastating floods, crippling drought, and unstable political and economic development. Despite their tumultuous past the ten riparian nations of the Nile Basin established a supranational water management institution in 1999, the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI), in order to develop collective solutions to their common water related problems. However, serious challenges to the cooperative process threaten to derail the NBI and enflame underlying causes of conflict. This thesis seeks to determine how the NBI has affected water related decision making in the Nile Basin. This will be achieved by examining patterns of decision-making before and after the establishment of the NBI. Specifically, the impact of the NBI will be tested by examining patterns of decision-making within three measures of conflict, namely the allocation of water resources, the sharing of technical data and expertise, and the financing of water related projects and programs.

Ethiopia suffers from a medical shortage or brain drainthat has severely affected its already fragile health care system. The country has a very low physician-to-population ratio,whilemany in the medical community continue to leave in great numbers. Aphenomenological approach was used in this study to explore the lived experiences of medical doctors who have left Ethiopia, with contemporary migration theory serving as the conceptual framework. The central research question focused onwhy Ethiopian medical doctors leave their country and what can be done to retain them. Participants were 10 medical doctors of Ethiopian origin who live and practice medicine in the Washington, DC metropolitan area. Participantswere purposively selected, and in-depth interviews and a focus group discussion were used to collect data from them. The study followed Moustakas' recommendations for phenomenological analysis, which representeda modification of the Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen method. The themes that emerged during data analysis have economic, political, professional, and personal dimensions. The findings includelow pay, lack of professional development, poor working conditions, the threat of political persecution, fear of contracting HIV, and inability to participate in health care decision-making. Recommendations accordingly include offering pay raises and fringe benefits, creating opportunities for professional development, improving working conditions, and limiting political interference in the health care system. Implications for positive social change include the fact that stemming the outflow of medical doctors could help save the lives of thousands of Ethiopians threatenedby preventable and curable diseases.

Unintended pregnancy is a global public health threat that affects the lives of women, families, communities, and society. In 2008, the rate of unintended pregnancy in Ethiopia was 101 per 1,000 women aged 14 to 44 years. Although Ethiopia has experienced a steady increase in modern contraceptive use since 2004, this increase did not result in a proportional decline in unintended pregnancy, total fertility rates, or rapid population growth. In this cross-sectional study, associations between individual, interpersonal, community, and societal factors and contraceptive uptake were tested using a sample of 3,863 women aged 15 to 49 years who participated in the 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Surveys. Statistically significant predictors of contraceptive use were included in the logistic regression model. Findings showed that age, education, marital status, type of residence, and wealth index reliably predicted contraceptive use. Increase in age, highest level of education, and wealth index were associated with 13%, 15%, and 65% increase in the odds of contraceptive use, respectively. Being married was associated with 85% decrease in the odds of contraceptive use and being from an urban residence was associated with 56% increase in the odds of contraceptive use. Results of the study can be used to develop targeted family planning interventions to increase contraceptive use and reduce unintended pregnancy, child and maternal mortality, total fertility rates, and rapid population growth in Ethiopia.

Although the attitudes of non-disabled individuals toward people with disabilities (PWDs) have been studied for years, most of those studies were conducted outside of Ethiopia and very little has been written about Ethiopians and their attitudes toward PWDs. The current study examined the attitudes of Ethiopian college students toward persons with visible disabilities. Secondarily, the study identified variables that may affect these attitudes. Past studies identified that negative attitudes have created societal barriers affecting the quality of life of PWDs. The non-participation of PWDs in society has been very evident in Ethiopia; however. Because negative attitudes are barriers, without identification and adequate measurement of the attitudes, changing them is difficult. This study provided information about the attitudes of a group of university students at Addis Ababa University who might be influential in the future inclusion of PWDs in Ethiopia as future elite professionals in Ethiopian society. This study collected data on Ethiopian college students' attitudes toward people with visible disabilities as measured by the Multidimensional Attitudes Scale Toward Persons With Disabilities (MAS). This study examined the students' attitudes and also identified significant variables. The results of the CFA, T-test, ANOVA, and correlation analyses provided some major findings. First, the CFA conducted indicated that the model of MAS for the Israeli sample did not fit the Ethiopian sample. The first CFA was conducted because the MAS was only used with the Israel sample. There were no studies which utilized the MAS to compare it to. The results indicated that 12 out of 34 item loaded below .4, indicating that the model of the MAS did not fit. The second CFA was conducted using the 22 items which loaded above .4, while it fit better the first one, over all it did not fit the model. The MAS indicated that Ethiopian college students have negative attitudes in general. The variables gender, level of education, year in school, academic major, contact level, self-esteem, and cultural orientation proved to be significant factors which affected attitudes toward disabilities. Limitations of the study and future research recommendations were discussed.

Improving the quality of newborn care services and accelerating the service utilization of sick young infants is required to contribute to the reduction of neonatal mortality and improve the wellbeing of the newborns. The purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of neonatal healthcare services in the primary healthcare units in the north-west of Ethiopia and develop guideline for effective neonatal care. A mixed method approach with a sequential explanatory design was employed to explore factors affecting the effectiveness of the neonatal healthcare services. Interviewer-administered questionnaires were administered to 221 health workers and health extension workers in 142 health facilities; and service statistics abstracted for 767 sick young infants’ from the sick young infant registers. Data was entered in the EpiData 3.1, exported to SPSS and STATA for analysis. In the qualitative study, twenty-six participants from the health centers and health posts were interviewed through focus group discussions. Thematic analysis was undertaken to explore factors affecting neonatal healthcare services. Results: The quality of newborn care with the domains of newborn resuscitation, follow-up care after resuscitation and thermal care; immediate care and breastfeeding advice for very low birthweight babies were found to be moderate at primary hospitals and urban health centres; low at rural health centres and health posts. The availability of essential equipment is significantly associated with the quality of neonatal care provision in the health facilities (p < 0.05). More than forty percent of health facilities were not meeting the quality of case management tasks for sick young infants, and the newborn care knowledge of health providers is significantly associated with the quality of sick young infants’ management (p < 0.05). The sick young infants’ service utilisation was only 6.3 percent from the expected sick young infants’ population. Overall, the effectiveness of the neonatal healthcare services has a significant association with the health facilitates readiness [95%CI: 0.134-0.768]. Conclusion: The quality of neonatal healthcare provision is low to moderate; and the service utilization of sick young infants is very low. Thus, the rural health centers and health posts should be prioritised for the effective neonatal care. / Health Studies / D. Litt. et Phil. (Health Studies)