POLITICAL SPACE, IDENTITIES LIVELIHOODS, FOOD (IN) SECURITY, AND FAMINE: THE CASE OF THE SIDAMA OF SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA Daye, M. PhD thesis deposited in Curve July 2015 Original citation: Daye, M. (2015) POLITICAL SPACE, IDENTITIES LIVELIHOODS, FOOD (IN) SECURITY, AND FAMINE: THE CASE OF THE SIDAMA OF SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA. Unpublished PhD Thesis. Coventry: Coventry University Some images have been removed due to third party copyright. The unabridged version of the thesis can be viewed at the Lanchester Library, Coventry University Copyright © and Moral Rights are retained by the author(s) and/ or other copyright owners. A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. This item cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the copyright holder(s). The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the copyright holders. CURVE is the Institutional Repository for Coventry University http://curve.coventry.ac.uk/open POLITICAL SPACE, IDENTITIES LIVELIHOODS, FOOD (IN) SECURITY, AND FAMINE: THE CASE OF THE SIDAMA OF SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA By Mulugeta Bakkalo Daye April 2015 Director of Study: Dr. Marion MacLellan Co-Director of study: Prof. Moya Kneafsey The thesis submitted for fulfilment of the University’s requirements the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy To The Department of Geography, Environment & Disaster Management Faculty of Business, Environment and Society. United Kingdom. Abstract The rural livelihoods of the Sidama stem from a combination of crop production, and livestock rearing. Although seasonal hunger was prevalent among the Sidama, the full scale famine that had stricken northern parts of Ethiopia for a long time did not hit the Sidama area until the late 1990s. This research set out to understand why after the successful prevention of seasonal food insecurity progressing into famine for centuries, the Sidaman small holders and semi-pastoralists failed to do this from 1999/2000 onwards. This research used ethnographic methodology: a combination of both qualitative and quantitative methods. This helped to capture how the disengaging political space culminated in famine and response failure among the Sidama of southern Ethiopia in 1999-2003 and how the political space also conditioned the resilience, security and sustainability of the livelihoods held by those who are integrated and loyalists to the political system on one hand, stagnation and deterioration of the livelihoods of sceptics and the marginalised in the performance of the Productive Safety Net programme. A new livelihood framework is designed and tested. The Livelihoods of Engaging Political Space Analysis (LEPSA) is about freedom of conviction, expression and action. LEPSA illustrates the political space of conflicting and conditioned political identities and its effects on livelihood asset access. Food and livelihood insecurity that leads to famine is the culmination of generational poverty that emerges as cumulative effect of the inner socio-political dynamics of given society, whose resilience, (in) security (un)sustainability is linked to engagement or disengagement in political space. The“Political Space” was found to provide a more helpful analysis than “Political Capital” which obscured developing hazard by over-trusting those with powers from the above to decide on the lives and livelihoods of citizens from below. A better understanding of the trajectories of livelihood resilience, security and sustainability is made through engaging in an analysis of political space to be included in diverse development policies. Thus, the LEPSA helps to map out that is food and livelihood resilient or vulnerable and in (secure) in the face of the drivers of the interests of diverse identities’ interests on our planet. Acknowledgment I did not know what would await me when I prepared to leave the Sidama-land on 15th of June 2009 after completing the final phase of field research. Nevertheless, I found closed door of matrimonial home. Shocked, refused to accept what happened at least for six months, after six month accepted and after a year revived and finally passed through painful life experience before reaching the level of fitness to write this thesis. The moment gave me an opportunity to learn life lesson through processes, which will be another dimension to reflect for future. I could not have done this alone. I would like to thank Almighty God who gave me patience and wisdom to pass through difficult moments. Thank you Dr Marion and professor Moya for your patience and intellectual far-sightedness to shaped me to this level. I would like to thank Dr Peter and family of Newcastle Upon Tyne University, for your emotional and other supports at difficult moments. Thank you very much key informants, participants of survey and focus group discussions. I would like to thank also Melkamu Genale and Mebrat Degife my research assistants. This is largely self-funded PhD study, combined with occasional financial assistance from friends and family members. I would like to thank Abigail Hailu. Her support is the pillar of strength to accomplish this thesis. I would like to thank my children Arfase, Karisa, Tuula, Daniel and David who missed my parental love and understood the situation I was passing through. Mulugeta Bakkalo Daye, April 7 2015. Covenmtry University. Coventry. Table of content Page Abstract Acknowledgment Table of content i Table of Figures iv Table of tables Error! Bookmark not defined. CHAPTER ONE 1 1 Introduction 1 CHAPTER TWO: FOOD (IN)SECURITY, FAMINE,IDENTITIES AND THE NOTION OF POLITICAL SPACE 16 2 Introduction 16 2.1 Defining food (in) security 17 2.2 Famine and its prevention 20 2.3 The evolution of sustainable Livelihood Framework (SLF) 24 2.4 Insufficiently politicized Sustainable Livelihoods Framework (SLF) 25 2.5 First politicized Sustainable Livelihood Framework 44 2.6 The notion of political capital and more politicization of the SLF 45 2.7 Constraints of Political –Capital 47 2.8 Political space and access to livelihood assets 49 2.8.1 Defining Political space 49 2.8.2 Institutions and institutional channels 51 2.8.3 The political discourse of actors 52 2.8.4 The actions and performances of political actors 53 2.9 Understanding political identity in context 57 2.10 Political identities formation and the engagement 58 2.11 Livelihoods of Engaging Political Space Analysis (LEPSA) 64 2.12 The link between political identity and livelihood asset access 72 Summary 73 CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 75 3 Introduction 75 3.1 Justification for selecting this case study 77 3.2 Research philosophy 80 3.3 Methods 82 3.4 The study area for 2000-2001 research 83 3.5 The study area for 2008-2009 research 84 3.6 Location and geographical features of Dale District 86 i 3.7 Location and geographical features of Lokka Abbaya 88 3.8 Conducting the field research 90 3.8.1 Pilot phase (2000-2001) 90 3.8.2 The main data Collection (2000-2001) 92 3.8.3 The main data Collection (2000-2001 and 2008-2009) 97 3.8.4 Political identities and local perception of accessing livelihood assets 100 3.9 Positionality and understanding 107 3.10 Data entry and analysis 113 Summary 114 CHAPTER FOUR: THE SIDAMA ETHNO-NATIONALISM AS POLITICAL IDENTITY 115 4 Introduction 115 4.1 Understanding ethno-nationalism in African and in Sidaman context 116 4.2 Family-hood Ayiidooma Sidaman indigenous structure 121 4.3 The Sidama’s institutional structures and governance 123 4.4 The Sidama Social capital and access to livelihood assets 130 4.5 Social capital and food sharing among the Sidama 131 4.6 Livelihood Asset sharing practice 134 4.7 Natural capital and the Sidama way of accessing 138 4.8 Indigenous Sidaman land tenure 139 4.9 Human capital among the Sideman 144 4.10 The indigenous knowledge of growing Drought-resistant crops 147 Summary 157 CHAPTER FIVE: CONFILICTIVE IDENTITIES AND LIVELIHOODS 159 5 Introduction 159 5.1 The genesis of conflictive political identity 161 5.2 The conquest of Sidama and institutional channels from ‘above’ 163 5.3 A discourse from ‘above’: Amharization and forced Christianization 178 5.4 The action from ‘above’: creating unitary State 185 5.5 ‘Self’ within state, discourse and actions from ‘below’: the effect on Livelihoods 188 5.6 Relative plitical space wideninig and the character of Citizen’s Engagment (1970-1977) 192 5.7 The narrowing of the political space and its negative effects 196 5.8 Reactions from ‘below’ 202 Summary 209 CHAPTER SIX: CONDTIONED POLITICAL IDENTITIES AND ITS LINK TO FAMIN 211 6 Introduction 211 6.1 Genesis and the trend of conditioned political identities in the Sidama 211 ii 6.2 The political space in Sidama and the trend of engagement (1991 to 1994) 225 6.3 Sidama’s 1999-2003 Famine as the product of narrowing the political space 237 Summary 251 CHAPTER SEVEN: RESLTS ON CONDITIONED IDENTITIES’ LIVELIHOOD ASSET ACCESS AND AN ASSESSIMENT OF THE PRODUCTIVE SAFETY NET PROGRAM 252 7 Introduction 252 7.1 Trust and interest in political setting conditions political identities 252 7.2 Conditioned political identities’ access to livelihood assets 255 7.2.1 Results of field study on accessing natural capital 256 7.2.2. Results on human capital 259 7.2.3 Result on accessing social capital: Party membership as social capital 272 7.2.4 Results on accessing financial capital 278 Summary 288 CHAPTER EIGHT: DISCUSSIONS 291 8 Introduction 291 8.1 Donors’ dilemma and the evolution of the Productive Safety Net 291 8.2 Access to livelihood assets 294 8.2.1 Access to natural capital (land tenure) 295 8.2.2 Access to human capital 300 8.2.3 Accessing social capital 307 8.2.4.