The Socioeconomic Dimensions of Development Induced Impoverishment the Case of the Karrayu Oromo of the Upper Awash Valley .
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Date
2012-06
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
This thesis deals with the issue of development and impoverishment among the
Karrayu Oromo of the Upper Awash Valley, Eastern Showa. Before they were
alienated from their land, the Karrayu had full right over the ownership and
management of their pastoral resources. Their social organization functioned
without the support of modern state structure or the super-imposition of the 'alien
authority', as the Karrayu call it, such that it was virtually autonomous and
flexible. Free movement, which was indispensable for the kind of arid and semi
arid pastoral economy had been the core element of Karrayu pastoralism. The
sacred grounds along the Awash Valley, beyond its religious importance, had
been one regulatory element in the seasonal and spatial movement. Thus before
land alienation, the Karrayu had full advantage of free movement of their herds,
adequate grazing space, proportional number of population size and flexible
political organization. In short, Karrayu production had both ecological as well as
socio- cultural adaptive forms.
The process of marginalization or land alienation, however, set in motion chains
of events, which worked against these forms of Karrayu adaptation. It imposed a
new form of political structure that curtailed the flexibility and autonomy of
pastoral social organization. This process in turn transformed Karrayu land right
that created a conducive environment for the Plantation and Park to alienate the
Karrayu from their traditional grazing area. The Development of towns further
exacerbated the process of marginalization by taking more of Karrayu land and
negatively attaching them to the market economy. Moreover, the intensification of
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population pressure, due to the Commercial Farm and towns and movement of
other pastoral groups into Karrayu territorial domain caused land encroachment,
and above all, brought-in large number of people which traversed the balance
between man, land and livestock. The result was herd loss and destitution on the
part of the Karrayu.
The responses of the Karrayu to the process of marginalization and destitution
involved peaceful and non-peaceful resistance, wage labor employment and
concomitant sedentarization and involvement in the share-cropping through
farming, which exposed them to the exploitation of townsmen. It also involved
incorporation into market economy through petty trading and charcoal selling.
However, every form of response led to the transformation of Karrayu
subsistence economy -from producers of their own subsistence to wage labor
employment.
Transformation of Karrayu production system through land alienation, specially
the loss of sacred grounds, contributed to massive social and cultural changemore
Karrayus are embracing Islam and their social organization is showing
gradual change.
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The Socioeconomic dimensions of development