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Culture and change
Ethiopian women challenging the future
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Culture and Change: Ethiopian Women Challenging the Future takes
an unusual look at women’s issues in Ethiopia. Instead of focusing on the
many difficulties that women face in this largely traditional society, it highlights the
positives. It releases rays of sunshine rather than fogs of gloom. It describes how customs in various
cultures in Ethiopia support and protect women, rather than oppress and harm them. It
describes how organizations are fighting to overcome ignorance, change attitudes and better
the lot of women. And it tells how a few admirable individual women have struggled
against the odds, and how they have succeeded.
The book contains five parts.
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Part 1, Becoming a Woman,
describes the ceremonies and rituals that a woman goes through from her girlhood through to
motherhood and old age.
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Part 2, Social and Economic Empowerment, shows how Ethiopian
women work together to empower themselves socially and economically.
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Part 3,
Education and the Media, looks at the status of girls in the education system, tells how
certain women have managed to overcome barriers facing them to get schooling, and
describes how the media are being used to change attitudes.
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Part 4, The Law, shows how
national and traditional laws affect women, and how women are trying to change the law.
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Part 5, Challenging Roles, tells the stories of some individual women who have
fought against the odds to achieve something for themselves or for others.
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The Resources
section lists some websites, publications and details of organizations relevant to gender and
women’s issues in Ethiopia.
This book is a valuable source of ideas and inspiration for
schools, non-government organizations, community organizations and government
departments involved in extension, training, development work and policy formulation.
Contents
1 Becoming a woman
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Female festivities among the Gurage
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Ashanda: A holiday for the girls
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Signs and symbols of womanhood
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The white belt
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Freedom of choice: Marriage among the Kunama
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Marriage guidance in Woltae Atota
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Coming to motherhood the Dawro way
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A traditional Kembatta marriage
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The pampered bride
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Protesting against forced marriage
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The qeneffa: The Kembatta baby shower
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Women in Arsi Oromo society
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Qenafa: An Oromo motherhood symbol
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Fighting female genital mutilation
2 Social and economic empowerment
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An egalitarian rural community: Yaáa Mesera
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Awra Amba: Where men make injera
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The twin granaries
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Working together: Wobera labour groups
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Traditional savings-and-credit associations
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Coping with bereavement: Idir groups
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Tsire cooperatives in Gamo Gofa
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Dealing with emergencies
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From relief to development: Serving women in Tigray
3 Education and the media
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Fighting for her rights
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In the service of her people
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A life transformed by determination
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Against all the odds
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A future through education: FAWE–Ethiopia
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Changing schools, changing society
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A school club against early marriage
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Using the media to fight violence
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Betre Adam: The staff of Adam
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4 The law
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Property ownership among the Dawro
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A fight over land
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Kicha: Gurage customary law
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Sinke: The Oromo stick of justice
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Yakka: A Sidama women’s protest tool
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The power of lend mecho
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From wrestler to judge
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The Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association
5 Challenging roles
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The woman who removes bullets
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The snake-bite healer
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Mending bones, breaking barriers
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In the footsteps of a great tradition of painters
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The "mother of museums"
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The quine mistress
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A woman of steel
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The illiterate inventor
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The mother of many
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Easing loneliness in the twilight years
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Ajiyet: A title of honour
Resources
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Published 2003 by the International
Institute of Rural Reconstruction, Africa Regional Office, PO Box
66873, Nairobi, Kenya; www.iirr.org
 Available from
IIRR
Available from
IIRR Philippines
Role of Paul Mundy: Writeshop manager, editing, desktop
publishing, overall
responsibility for production
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