Writing Ethiopia into the World, Writing the World from Ethiopia
The Ethiopian Women Researchers Network (EWNET) hosted an online scholarly webinar on Friday, 30 January 2026, titled ‘Writing Ethiopia into the World and Writing the World from Ethiopia’. The webinar examined how Ethiopia has been represented within global knowledge production and how Ethiopian thinkers and political leaders have historically engaged with ideas beyond the country’s […]
The Political Economy of Coffee in the Kaffa–Bench-Sheko–Sheka Belt, Southwest Ethiopia Region
This study provides a critical political economy analysis of the coffee sector in the Kaffa–Bench-Sheko–Sheka belt in Southwest Ethiopia Peoples’ Regional State, the genetic and cultural heartland of Arabica coffee (Coffea arabica). Based on 47 key respondent interviews, the study reveals that persistent underdevelopment of the sector does not stem from technical market failures but […]
EWNET Regional Writing Workshop and Research Seminar
The Ethiopian Women Researchers Network (EWNET) has established a dedicated regional platform to strengthen academic writing, research collaboration, and public engagement for EWNET Small Grant Awardees alongside Dire Dawa University (DDU) female academics in the social sciences and humanities, as well as the broader academic community. The initiative aims to harness a writing-centered academic culture […]
The Political Economy of Coffee in the Jimma–Ilu Aba Bora–Buno Bedele Belt, Oromia Region
The findings of this study reveal a number of critical insights about the political economy of coffee in the Jimma–Ilu Aba Bora–Buno Bedele coffee belt. The coffee economy is shaped by a small number of influential actors, including state institutions, licensed traders, exporters and intermediary networks, who largely determine access to markets, pricing and value […]
Beyond the Beans: The Political Economy of Coffee in Ethiopia
A synthesis of three case studies in the Sidama–Gedeo–Guji, Kaffa–Bench-Sheko–Sheka and Jimma–Buno Bedele–Ilu Aba Bora belts SUMMARY The Ethiopia Peace Research Facility This report was written for the Ethiopia Peace Research Facility as part of its Knowledge for Peace series on the political economy of coffee in Ethiopia; Dereje Feyissa served as research advisor for […]
From research to publication: EWNET Review of Books Seminar creates space for critical engagement
The Ethiopian Women Researchers Network brought together authors, reviewers and researchers at Addis Ababa University to critically engage with books and research by women scholars, and to reflect on the wider journey from research and writing to publication. On 4 September 2026, the Ethiopian Women Researchers Network (EWNET) held its Review of Books Seminar at […]
The Political Economy of Coffee in the Sidama–Gedeo–Guji Belt, Southern Ethiopia
This report is part of a wider research project on the political economy of coffee in Ethiopia in the context of the political transition since 2018. It focuses on the Sidama–Gedeo–Guji coffee belt in southern Ethiopia, aiming to understand the local implications of the 2017 coffee sector policy reform in this area. Sidama, Gedeo (Yirgacheffe) […]
EWNET Review of Books Series (ERBS) 2026: Inaugural Seminar
The Ethiopian Women Researchers Network (EWNET) has established a dedicated platform, the EWNET Review of Books Series (ERBS), to launch, celebrate and facilitate the critical appraisal of newly published books by women researchers in the social sciences and humanities. The series aims to contribute to academic traditions of rigorous co-reading, critical engagement and citation practices […]
RVI Research Featured in JEAS Special Collection
Research from a Rift Valley Institute project features in the latest issue of the Journal of Eastern African Studies—Volume 20, Issue 2 (May 2026)—as part of a special collection on ‘Religion and Politics in Post-EPRDF Ethiopia’. This collection—guest edited by Jörg Haustein and Terje Østebø—sets out with the premise that a national or Addis Ababa-centric […]
EWNET Podcast Episode 8 – EWNET Members Exchange: Conversation between Konjit Hailu (PhD) and Elshaday Hagos
In Episode 8 of the EWNET Podcast, two EWNET network members, Konjit Hailu (PhD) and Elshaday Hagos, discuss their educational backgrounds, career journeys and research interests. Konjit reflects on how her experience as a working mother shaped her interest in work-life balance among women entrepreneurs in Ethiopia, a theme she explored during her doctoral and […]