SUMMARY • Dire Dawa, Ethiopia’s second largest city, is a multi-ethnic and multi-religious economic hub in the country’s eastern region, sitting on the contested boundary between the Oromia and Somali regions. Despite an overarching sense that the city’s historical…
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SUMMARY • Gondar city is known for centuries of peaceful coexistence between its Muslim and Orthodox Christian community members. These inter-religious relations have, however, deteriorated over recent decades, erupting into view in the April 2022 attack on Muslim mourners…
ማጠቃለያ በአገር አቀፍ ደረጃ የፖለቲካ ለውጥ ቢደረግም በኦሮሚያ ክልል በሚገኙት ሁለቱ የጉጂ ዞኖች (ጉጂ እና ምዕራብ ጉጂ) የማዕድን ቁፋሮ ሥራ የአካባቢውን ማኅበረሰቦች ማግለሉን ቀጥሏል። ይህ እውነታ በተለይ በሳውዑዲ ቢሊየነር ሼክ መሐመድ ሁሴን አል አሙዲ ባለቤትነት በሚተዳደረው የሚድሮክ የማዕድን እና…
SUMMARY • Despite political change at the national level, resource extraction in the two Guji zones (Guji and West Guji) of the Oromia Region continues to exclude local communities. This is particularly so in the case of MIDROC –…
INTRODUCTION Social science knowledge production in Ethiopia, as elsewhere in Africa, has Eurocentric roots. This is because Ethiopian Studies was born outside of Ethiopia, with the first generation of scholars consisting mainly of academics from Western countries or Ethiopians…
HISTORY, POLITICS AND INTER-RELIGIOUS RELATIONS INTRODUCTION Religious affiliation is almost universal in Ethiopia, which means that religions amass significant political capital but may also act as potential catalysts for conflict. After five decades of ostensibly secular politics—first under a…
LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS The phased process of conducting local government elections (LGEs) in Puntland has now commenced, building on the agreements made between various political actors— mainly the political associations, Puntland state and the Transitional Puntland Electoral Commission (TPEC)….
Dulmar Inkastoo ay isbeddello waaweyn ka dheceen saaxadda siyaasadda Soomaaliya labaatankii sano ee lasoo dhaafay, arrin aan is beddelin ayaa ah ku tiirsanaanta nidaamka awood-qeybsiga beelaha, oo ay kamid tahay ‘4.5’. Inkastoo Dastuurka Kumeelgaarka ee Soomaaliya uusan dhigeyn wax…
Overview Amid the major changes to Somalia’s political landscape seen over the past two decades, an abiding feature has been the reliance on clan-based power-sharing models, including the ‘4.5’ formula. Despite the Somali Provisional Constitution containing no reference to…
Overview Since the formation of Jubaland state in 2012, decades of conflict have given way to increased stability across parts of the region. Even so, insecurity, political violence and humanitarian crises have persisted amid recurrent tensions between Jubaland and…
Recent Publications

EWNET Writes: Writing Workshop Session I
December 18, 2025
The Ethiopian Women Researchers Network (EWNET) inaugural writing workshop series aims to not only provide women researchers with uninterrupted time for their scholarly projects, but also build a supportive academic community. The first session, entitled ‘EWNET Writes: Writing Workshop Session

SSC-Khaatumo: Perspectives on the significance and implications of its formation
December 12, 2025
On 15 April 2025, during a visit to the city of Las Anod in Sool, Prime Minister Hassan Abdi Barre officially declared the federal government’s recognition of SSC-Khaatumo (SSC-K hereafter) as a federal member state, marking an important milestone in

Aid and Conflict Sensitivity in Contemporary Ethiopia
November 17, 2025
This study assesses conflict sensitivity practices among humanitarian, development and peacebuilding (HDP) actors in Ethiopia. It seeks to raise awareness and foster a deeper understanding of the evolving aid landscape in the country while analysing the challenges that affect conflict-sensitive