Ethiopian Journal of Business and Social Sciences

Exploring Youth Social Media Habits Among University Students in Ethiopia: A Study on Selected Public Universities

Tesfaye Alemayehu, Temesgen Kassie — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 10:23:10 +0300

This study explores the social media habits of university students, focusing on how youths engage with various platforms. It applies Social Network Theory and the Use and Acceptance of Technology Theory to examine the participants' uses and gratifications of social media. Data was collected from students at three public universities through surveys and in-depth interviews. The analysis employed descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. The findings reveal that Ethiopian youths are actively engaging with various social media platforms, including Telegram, Facebook, YouTube, Messenger, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Viber. These platforms are primarily used for viewing others' posts, chatting with friends, discussing political issues freely, developing talents, and staying updated on current events. The study indicates that social media use among Ethiopian youths has reached a point of no return. A striking 98% of participants reported using more than one social media platform, with nearly 72% of them managing accounts on more than three platforms. Social media also offers numerous opportunities for youth, such as fostering friendships, connecting across national borders, developing personal talents, and generating stable incomes. However, challenges such as misbehaviors and misuse of platforms also persist. Based on these findings, the study suggests several recommendations: Users should better manage their time and social media interactions, group and page administrators should be more responsible for content management, and the government should intervene to curb misuse and abusive behaviors. Given that a lack of media literacy and analytical skills was identified as a challenge, the Ministry of Education should integrate media literacy into the education curriculum at various levels. In the meantime, Ethiopian universities should offer media literacy training to students.

Keywords: Ethiopia, Social Media, University Students, Youths, Youths’ Engagement

ሂሳዊ የማንበብ ብልሃቶች የተማሪዎችን አንብቦ የመረዳት ችሎታንና የማንበብ ተነሳሽነት ለማሻሻል ያላቸው አስተዋጽኦ፤ በዘጠነኛ ክፍል ተተኳሪነት

Belete Debas, Amare Teshome Mulatu — Wed, 22 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0300

የዚህ ጥናት ዋና ዓላማ ሂሳዊ የማንበብ ብልሃቶች የተማሪዎችን አንብቦ የመረዳት ችሎታ እና የማንበብ ተነሳሽነት በማጎልበት ረገድ ያላቸውን አስተዋጽኦ በከፊል ፍትነታዊ ምርምር መፈተሽ ነው፡፡ ከሂሳዊ የማንበብ ብልሃቶች መካከል ቅድመ ቅኝት፣ አውዳዊ ማድረግ፣ ለመረዳትና ለማስታወስ መጠየቅ፣ እሴቶቻችንን በሚፈታተኑ ጉዳዮች ላይ ፅብረቃ ማድረግ፣ ዋና ሐሳብን ማውጣትና ማጠቃለል፣ የፀሐፊውን የመከራከሪያ ሐሳቦች መመዘን እንዲሁም ተዛማጅ ጽሑፎችን ማወዳደርና ማነፃፀር ትኩረት የተደረገባቸው ናቸው፡፡ ዓላማውን ለማሳካት ጎንደር ከተማ የሚገኘው የፋሲለደስ አጠቃላይ ሁለተኛ ደረጃ ትምህርት ቤት በአመቺ ንሞና ዘዴ ተመርጧል፡፡ በትምህርት ቤቱ ከሚገኙ ሃያ ሁለት የዘጠነኛ ክፍል ምድቦች መካከል ሁለት ምድብ ተማሪዎች በቀላል የዕጣ ንሞና ተለይተዋል፡፡ ከእነሱም በቅድመ እና ድኅረ ትምህርት አንብቦ የመረዳት ፈተና እና የማንበብ ተነሳሽነት በሚለካ የጽሑፍ መጠይቅ አማካይነት የጥናቱ መረጃዎች ተሰብስበዋል፡፡ የተሰበሰቡት መረጃዎችም ከተደራጁ በኋላ በባዕድ ናሙና ቲ-ቴስት ተተንትነዋል፡፡ በውጤት ትንተናው መሰረትም የሙከራው ቡድን የድኅረ ትምህርት አንብቦ የመረዳት ፈተና ውጤት ከቁጥጥር ቡድኑ አንብቦ የመረዳት ፈተና ውጤት በልጦ ጉልህ ልዩነት (ቲ (111) = 4.313 P = 0.000) አሳይቷል፡፡ በተመሳሳይ መልኩ የሙከራው ቡድን የድኅረ ትምህርቱ የማንበብ ተነሳሽነት አማካይ ውጤት ከቁጥጥሩ ቡድን የድኅረ ትምህርት የማንበብ ተነሳሽነት አማካይ ውጤት በልጦ ጉልህ ልዩነት (ቲ (111) = 3.614፤ P = 0.000) እንዳለ አመላክቷል፡፡ ከዚህም በመነሳት ሂሳዊ የማንበብ ብልሃቶች የተማሪዎችን አንብቦ የመረዳት ችሎታ እና የማንበብ ተነሳሽነት ለማጎልበት አስተዋጽኦ አላቸው ወደሚል መደምደሚያ ላይ ተደርሷል፡፡ በመጨረሻም ከድምዳሜው በመነሳት ለመምህራን እና ለተመራማሪዎች ልዩ ልዩ አስተያየቶች እንዲቀርቡ ተደርጓል፡፡

ቁልፍ ቃላት፤ ሂሳዊ ንባብ፣ ሂሳዊ የማንበብ ብልሃቶች፣ አንብቦ መረዳት፣ የማንበብ ተነሳሽነት

Modeling of Future Land Use Dynamics in Biodiversity Hotspot Area of Southern Rift Valley Basin, Ethiopia: Insights from CA- Markov and Intensity Analysis Models

Mohammed Seid, Belay Simane, Ermias Teferi — Tue, 18 Mar 2025 00:00:00 +0300

Abstract

Protected areas (PAs) are vital to biodiversity conservation and ecological services. However, in Ethiopia, human-induced land use change(LUC) and degradation significantly daunting PAs’ functionality including Nechsar National Park (NNP), part of Somalia‑Masai Center of Endemism and the richest in biodiversity. A detailed analysis of future LUC using advanced prediction and change analysis models is necessary to halt the existing problems and design practicable long‑term management plans. Thus, our study quantified the complete processes of future LUC in NNP from 2020 - 2040 and 2040 - 2060 by integrating CA‑Markov and three‑level intensity analysis models. For LUC prediction, Landsat imageries of 1986, 2002 and 2020, four explanatory variables and TerrSet_20 software were utilized. Kappa Index was applied to model validation and resulted in (K_standard=0.893). Results revealed a continued reduction in forest, grass and woodland with 19%, 26% and 70% net loss, respectively and expansion with positive net changes in other land types from 2020 to 2060. Results of intensity analysis show the predicted overall change prevailed rapidly(1.26%) in 1^st and slowly (1.11%) in 2^nd time interval. The category and transition levels indicate the gain predicted for bush/shrub, the most active and intensively targeted woodland and grassland. Forest’s active loss is expected to be targeted by cultivated and woodland. Generally, this study provides adequate information for stakeholders to understand the intensity of future LUC and develop targeted management plans for NNP. It also shows that the CA‑Markov model is essential to predict LUC, but integrating with intensity analysis is necessary to examine the underlying characteristics of land changes and identify the reasons for the changes.

Keywords: Biodiversity hotspot, Land transition, Nechsar

Transition from Vocational Schooling to World of Work: Challenges of Graduates Working in Ethiopia’s Polytechnic Colleges

Girma Mekuria Worku — Mon, 26 May 2025 10:56:31 +0300

The study looks at the difficulties that TVET graduates have when they enter the workforce, with a particular emphasis on Arba Minch, Awassa, and Akaki TVET Polytechnic schools. Using a cross-sectional survey to address the dearth of research on this subject, the study discovered that low training quality, poor industry contacts, poor trainee performance, bad teaching techniques, and big class numbers all make it more difficult for graduates to enter the workforce. The sole professional obstacle that both male and female TVET graduates must overcome is the acquisition of actual hard skills. Even without parental support, they are prepared for the workforce and capable of being fairly independent. Thus, by showcasing exceptional performance and real-world skills like internships and entrepreneurial ability, TVET graduates may succeed in the workplace. Also, to ensure loan availability and encourage middle-level skilled resources to pursue self-employment options, financing organizations should embrace intangible assets.

Determinants of Livelihood Diversification among Rural Households in the Context of Climate Variability and Conflict-Affected Areas of East Wallaga Zone, Southwest Ethiopia.

Dereje Chimdessa — Thu, 05 Jun 2025 14:43:54 +0300

Abstract

This study investigates the factors influencing livelihood diversification among rural households in East Wallaga Zone, Southwest Ethiopia, a region affected by climate variability and conflict. Diversification is essential for resilience and food security in such vulnerable areas. A mixed-methods approach, using quantitative data from 400 households and qualitative insights from interviews and focus group discussions, was employed. The findings reveal that most households have not successfully diversified, leaving them susceptible to climate and conflict-related risks. Key factors positively influencing diversification include access to electricity, credit, water, irrigation, and higher income, while marital status, specific agro-ecological zones, and higher dependency ratios hinder diversification. The study recommends improving rural infrastructure, expanding financial services, and promoting irrigation to support livelihood diversification. These interventions can enhance economic stability and food security for rural households facing environmental and social challenges. This research contributes to understanding rural livelihood strategies in climate and conflict-affected regions.