ETHIOINQUIRY Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

THE CAUSES OF INTER ETHNIC CONFLICT BETWEEN AFAR AND SOMALI COMMUNITIES THE CASE OF AMIBARA, GEWANE AND MILLE WOREDAS, ZONE THREE AFAR REGION

Betselot Addisu Ayal — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0300

Inter-ethnic conflict between the Afar and Somali communities in the Amibara, Gewane, and Mille Woredas of the Afar Regional State has been ongoing. This study examines the root causes, considering historical, political, and socio-economic factors. Using qualitative methods, we gathered data from primary and secondary sources, with thematic analysis employed to identify key patterns. Findings reveal that relations between the Afar and Somali communities were generally peaceful before 1991, despite occasional confrontations over grazing rights and cattle raiding. However, the introduction of ethnic federalism in 1991 led to increased competition and conflict. Key drivers of violence include competition over natural resources such as pasture, water, and land, politicization of ethnicity, territorial disputes, and the spread of small arms and light weapons. The study emphasizes the need for inclusive, culturally tolerant national dialogue to achieve lasting peace between the two communities.

NATIONAL DIALOGUE AS AN AVENUE FOR NATIONAL CONSENSUS AND SUSTAINABLE PEACE

Dagne Shibru Abate — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0300

National dialogue is proposed as a strategy to foster cooperation and sustain peace. With multiple conflicts ongoing in Ethiopia, plans are underway for a national dialogue aimed at achieving national consensus and lasting peace. This article examines the feasibility of the Ethiopian national dialogue by focusing on one ethnic group—the Sidama people. Through key informant interviews, group discussions, and informal conversations, the study identifies conditions that can facilitate or hinder national dialogue, challenges during the preparation and process phases, and anticipated obstacles in the implementation phase. The success of the national dialogue in Ethiopia largely depends on the participation and inclusion of diverse stakeholders in the political process. Within Sidama, while there is considerable variation in awareness and understanding of the national dialogue, the majority supports the initiative and is committed to its success and implementation. Ensuring broad participation, a diverse agenda, trusted conveners, and a clear plan for implementing recommendations are critical factors that will determine the dialogue's effectiveness. Local ownership and the involvement of a respected national facilitator are crucial to producing meaningful results.

DOES HUMAN CAPITAL COMPETENCY AFFECT THE ETHIOPIAN COFFEE COOPERATIVE PERFORMANCE?

Shashi Kant — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0300

A nation's ability to generate income and expand is largely dependent on its human capital. Ethiopia, the fourth-largest coffee exporter and the fastest-growing coffee market, relies heavily on its human capital and coffee cooperatives. Numerous empirical studies have investigated the performance of coffee cooperatives in relation to the effective utilization of human capital. The existing literature has emphasized the impact of optimizing coffee cooperatives' performance through human capital, particularly using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). This paper employs generalized Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA), Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), and SEM approaches to explore this relationship. The empirical findings demonstrate a significant connection between the performance of Ethiopian coffee cooperatives and human capital competency. Additionally, the study challenges the prevailing notion that the development of human capital within coffee cooperatives has stagnated. According to the SEM analysis, the performance of a coffee cooperative can increase by 70.3% with a one standard deviation improvement in human capital, assuming other independent variables remain constant. Consequently, the study recommends that policymakers prioritize the development of human capital to enhance the performance of coffee cooperatives.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (HRM) PRACTICES AND QUALITY OF WORK-LIFE (QWL)

Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0300

Effective management of human resource (HR) practices is key to enhancing employee quality of work-life and organizational productivity. This study examines the impact of HR practices on employee work quality in a Nigerian financial organization. A descriptive research design was employed to survey 127 randomly selected managers and employees. Multiple regression analysis was used to assess the relationship between various HR practices and work-life quality. The findings reveal that favorable working conditions, welfare packages, fringe benefits, and flexible work hours positively influence employee work-life quality. Training, development, coaching, and mentoring also contribute significantly. Additionally, employee performance appraisals were found to have a strong positive effect on work-life quality. The study concludes that achieving organizational goals and enhancing employee satisfaction depend on the strategic implementation of HR practices, leading to improved performance without excessive effort.

AWARENESS AND PRACTICE OF CHAT GENERATIVE PRE-TRAINED TRANSFORMERS: A NEW LANGUAGE MODEL ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN HIGHER INSTITUTIONS: THE CASE OF AMBO UNIVERSITY EFL INSTRUCTORS

Habtamu Walga Adaba — Tue, 08 Oct 2024 00:00:00 +0300

The introduction of ChatGPT has caused a significant upheaval in the education sector. It is altering the method by which educators obtain information for scholarly and investigative endeavors. This study aimed at exploring awareness and practice of Chat Generative Pre-Trained Transformer: New Language Model Artificial Intelligence in Higher Institutions: The Case of Ambo University EFL Instructors. Sixteen instructors of English Language and Literature at Ambo University were subjects of the study. Questionnaires and interviews were used as data-gathering instruments. Both probability and nonprobability sampling techniques, simple random sampling and availability sampling, were used in order to collect the necessary data. The collected data was analyzed using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The findings of this study indicated that EFL instructors were not familiar with ChatGPT, a new language model in English language teaching. The study also showed that EFL instructors’ practice of ChatGPT was low due to a lack of familiarity with it. Challenges such as lack of awareness about ChatGPT, lack of familiarity with the tools and their functionalities, lack of technology-related resources, lack of personalization, and lack of time to use ChatGPT in the language classroom affected their use of ChatGPT in their EFL classroom. Therefore, effective integration of ChatGPT technology will likely require on-going professional development and a collaborative approach between teachers, administrators, and educational technology experts.