Social and Economic Impacts of Resettlement in Northwestern Ethiopia

Resettlement has a long history in Ethiopia. Forced resettlement that took place during the Marxist Derg regime ended up in failure due to the lack of proper planning and follow-ups. The current EPRDF-led government in Ethiopia has also identified resettlement as a rural development option to tackle food security problems in drought-prone areas of the country. However, the implementation of resettlement schemes in Tigray and Amhara regions was based on the free will of migrants to move to the more fertile lowland areas. Voluntary resettlement programs resulted in an overall improvement of livelihood conditions although some negative environmental and social impacts were observed. Deforestation and the loss of flauras and faunas as well as conflict with indegenous communities were found out to be the major impediments.

Autorentext

Dr. Kelemework Tafere Reda is an assistant professor of social anthropology and post graduate program coordinator at Mekelle University, Ethiopia. He has also worked for Haramaya University (Ethiopia ) as a lecturer and researcher . He attended his MA and PhD studies at Addis Ababa University and Johannes Gutenburg University of Mainz, Germany.