Urban Development Induced Displacement and its Consequences in Ethiopia

Academic Paper , 2021 , 11 Pages , Grade: 4

Sociology - Habitation and Urban Sociology

People are displaced by development projects, whether roads, rail transportation, water supply, dams and many other projects. While such projects can bring both benefit and costs on the community in the country. Accordingly, this paper intends to examine the urban development induced displacement and its consequences in Ethiopia. The paper used a detailed literature reviews in order to get adequate data. Besides, the paper used different theoretical models for better understanding of the issue. Throughout reading different literature, this paper realize that urban development-induced displacement has various negative consequences on displaced households. It causes health problems, loss job, food insecurity, socio-economic marginalization, weakening of social networks, and annihilation from social organizations.

The empirical findings also show that displaced households use different coping strategies to overcome the problems. Moreover, this paper disclosed that, the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia recognizes that appropriate legal implementation plans for resettlement during development projects and programs. However, on the ground there is gap in rehabilitating the displaced peoples in compensation and empowerment.

Table of contents

Abstract

1. Introduction

2. Paper Objective

3. Method (Source of Data)

4. Theoretical Models on Development Induced Displacement
4.1. Egalitarian Model
4.2. Voluntary Resettlement Model
4.3. Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction (IRR) Model

5. Empirical Findings and Discussion
5.1. Impacts of Urban Development Induced Displacement on Displaced Households
5.2. Displaced Households Coping Strategies
5.3. Government Strategies and Support for Displaced Households

6. Conclusion

References

Abstract

People are displaced by development projects, whether roads, rail transportation, water supply, dams and many other projects. While such projects can bring both benefit and costs on the community in the country. Accordingly, this paper intends to examine the urban development induced displacement and its consequences in Ethiopia. The paper used a detailed literature reviews in order to get adequate data. Besides, the paper used different theoretical models for better understanding of the issue. Throughout reading different literatures this paper realize that, urban development-induced displacement has various negative consequences on displaced household‘s. It causes health problems, loss job, food insecurity, socio-economic marginalization, weakening of social networks, and annihilation from social organizations. The empirical findings also show that, displaced household’s use different coping strategies to overcome the problems. Moreover, this paper disclosed that, the Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia recognizes that appropriate legal implementation plans for resettlement during development projects and programmes. However, on the ground there is gap in rehabilitating the displaced peoples in compensation and empowerment.

Key Words: Coping strategies; Displaced households; Displacement; Government; Urban development;

1. Introduction

Displacement is defined as the uprooting of people from their place of habitual (Getu and Assefa, 2015). As one part of displacement, development-induced displacement can be defined as the forcing of communities and individuals out of their homes, often also their homelands, for the purposes of economic development. Use of coercion or force of any nature by state is central to the idea of development-induced displacement (Dhru, 2010). People are displaced by development projects, whether roads, rail transportation, water supply, dams and other projects. While such projects can bring enormous benefit to the wider section of the community in the country, they also impose costs. For millions of the people around the world displacement has cost them their homes, their lively hoods, their health and even their lives (Terminisk, 2013).

Chernea (1997) showed that displacement due to development project has profound socio-economic and cultural disruption for those evicted as it breaks up living patterns and social continuity. Furthermore, Chernea argued that forced displacement dismantles existing modes of production, disrupts social networks, causes the impoverishment of many of those uprooted, threatens their cultural identity, and increases the risks of epidemics and health problems.

Urban development and infrastructure projects already are a principal cause of development induced displacement worldwide and the trend is likely to increase due to the accelerated urban growth rates, which necessitate enormous displacement (Robinson, 2003). In many developing countries population displacement because of development projects including infrastructures expansion has been a prominent feature in urban settings (Dhru, 2010).

In Ethiopian context, displacement is prominent in development projects and investments aimed at economic growth and social transformation. But development-induced displacement in Ethiopia has become the most significant type of movement replacing earlier concerns with resettlement, refugees, returnees and demobilization. Nebiyu (2000) indicated that development projects such as, urban renewal and infrastructures expansions such as roads, urban drinking water, electricity and housing has been caused displacement of thousands of people in urban areas of Ethiopia.

2. Paper Objective

The purpose of this paper is mainly to contribute empirical findings about urban development- induced displacement in Ethiopia. Specifically, this paper intends to examine the impact of urban development induced displacement on displaced households, the coping strategies exercised by the displaced households to overcome the challenges and the government strategies and support for displaced households.

3. Method (Source of Data)

In developing this term paper, detailed literatures were reviewed in order to get adequate data by using basic searching techniques focusing on documents such research papers, eBooks, journal articles and government data base.

4. Theoretical Models on Development Induced Displacement

4.1. Egalitarian Model

This model supports development project on the premise that it reduces poverty and inequality and maintains that all people are equal in fundamental worth. This ideology proposes that displaced individuals must have a share in the benefits of project. Inequality can be conceivably reduced if benefits reach to the poor, may be by putting the burden on better off. Moreover, this theory emphasizes that development must be for all and should neither adversely affect nor benefit a particular group or community. It claims fair and just compensation can be one of the measures which can resolve the inequality in society (Oliver, 2002).

4.2. Voluntary Resettlement Model

Scudder and Colson (1982) through their four-stage model of voluntary resettlement attempted to establish a relation as how people and socio-cultural systems respond and adjust to resettlement. The stages were labeled as (1) Recruitment: at this stage people are not notified about the plans of development in the given area. Here, the policy-makers and developers formulate development and resettlement plans. (2) Transition: this is the stage where for the first time people get to know about their future displacement to pave the way for development. Such news often heightens the stress amongst the potentially affected groups. (3) Potential development: this stage comes after the actual physical relocation. Once relocated, the focus of displaced people gets shifted in rebuilding their economy and social networks and lastly Handling over or Incorporation the process of displacement and resettlement ends at this stage where second generation of residents who identify with and feel at home in the relocated community. Once this stage has been achieved, resettlement is deemed a success.

4.3. Impoverishment Risks and Reconstruction (IRR) Model

This model of Michel Cerena is an attempt to identify the impoverishment risks intrinsic to forced resettlement. It also talks about the processes which can facilitate the reconstruction of displaced people livelihood. Without well planned and targeted policies, involuntary shift can end up in impoverishment and marginalization of the displaced. He proposed following eight points : (1) Landlessness: Land acquisition can result into de- capitalization and pauperization of displaced people. It disrupts the basics of displaced people by affecting their system of production, earnings and commercial activities. (2) Joblessness: Involuntary shift threatens the wage employment of affected people working in industries, service sector or agro industries located at rural or urban areas. (3) Homelessness: Displacement at times deprives the displaced of their shelter. Temporary homelessness is common feature in such cases and some faces this problem for longer periods. (4) Marginalization: Downward mobility is also one of the consequences of forced and involuntary shift, reason being the change in economic conditions due to relocation. The trend of slipping to the lower levels is called as marginalization. Reduced social, psychological and economic statuses are the visible impacts of marginalization. (5) Food Insecurity: At times forced uprooting may result into temporary or chronic under-nourishment. It can obstruct normal growth and work. (6) Increased Morbidity and Mortality: Cerena found that serious decline in health levels is directly related with displacement. Involuntary shift imposes social stress and psychological trauma which at times are accompanied by outbreak of vector borne diseases such as malaria etc…, supply of unsafe water, filthy drainage system (Cerena, 2000).

(7) Loss of access to common property: Many traditional activities are dependent on common property resources of particular locality. With the loss of it income and livelihood sources too deteriorates. Upon that usually displaced are not compensated for these losses by Government. (8) Social Disarticulation: Involuntary relocation ends up into number of social changes at individual, family and community levels. Fragmentation of families, scattering of kinship network, uprooting of communities and dismantling of social and interpersonal ties are some of the major social changes associated with the involuntary displacement and relocation. It disperses informal life supporting social network. Major impoverishment risks mentioned above creates crisis situation and it affects the displaced population frequently and adversely (Cerena, 2000).

5. Empirical Findings and Discussion

5.1. Impacts of Urban Development Induced Displacement on Displaced Households

Terminski (2013) argued that the ultimate goal of human development, including economic development, should be the improvement of individual and collective life. Implementation of large development projects are then expected to serve the broad economic interests of the country and to maximize the well-being of its citizens. However, development-induced displacement has varieties of negative consequences on displaced household‘s. In Ethiopia many studies were tried to examine development-induced displacement and its consequences. For instance, a study conducted by Gezahegn and Hesselberg (2013) shows that the city upgrading projects in Addis Ababa brings negative effect on the households particularly for those residents who lived in the city centre. They mentioned the following problems, increasing costs of rent, loss of income sources, changing schools for children, health problems and loss of savings. Bikila (2014) study found that majority of the displaced households experienced deterioration of their economic bases, loss of job, decline in productivity, food insecurity, socio-economic marginalization, weakening of social networks and deterioration of access to community services after displacement.

A study investigated by Tesfa (2014) shows that, urban development-induced displacements causes negative consequences like, low access of infrastructures, extra cost to find schools in far places, interruption of formal education and lose of services and violation of civil and human right. He also mentioned that, missing social solidarity, annihilation from social organizations (like Eddir, Ikub and Zikir). Gebre (2013) study shows that, thousands of low-income households have been displaced and adversely affected by the process of urban development. The process of relocating people from the inner city to new resettlement sites in the outskirts have disrupted the relocatees' business ties with customers, broken their informal networks of survival, caused loss of locational advantage and jobs and incurred high transport costs. Frehiwot (2013) explore the impact of development induce displacement on social capital in Jemmo condominium one (1). Her finding indicates that, social capital of the displaced people has been affected by the relocation program. It has negative impact on social tie or network, norm of reciprocity, trust towards familiars and traditional supportive institutions. The above mentioned studies clearly indicate that urban development induced displacement have negative effect on displaced households and they confirms Michel Cerena impoverishment risks and reconstruction (IRR) model.

5.2. Displaced Households Coping Strategies

Displacement and relocation of households created varies socio-economic crisis. Thus, a displaced household’s use varies livelihood strategies to deal with the differential impacts of displacement. According to Wakessa (2017) most of displaced households in his study area were predominantly engaged in the informal labor markets and small-trade activities such as; construction workers and sellers of handicrafts, local drinks (such as Arekie and Tella), bread, tea and local coffee ,fish and fish dish, Charcoal and Bajaj driver .

In the same way, Tesfa (2014) indicates that displaced household’s used different survival strategies to overcome the problems like family support either in the form of remittance or better income families in the country, selling boiled potato on streets, daily laborer. Furthermore, Bikila (2014) point out that, the coping strategies used by households include diversifying sources of income, selling of basic assets and educating children to get support after they employed. He also mentioned that, households with productive members diversified their livelihood activities by engaging in labor work, petty trade, microenterprises, livestock and crop trade and guarding. In general, regarding displaced households coping strategies the above empirical findings mentioned different adaptation mechanisms of survival. But these strategies were not enough to fulfill their overall livelihoods. Hence, the following section seeks to show whether the government support the displaced households or not.

5.3. Government Strategies and Support for Displaced Households

Countries have policies and regulation to compensate development based displacement affected people of their nation. In Ethiopia the FDRE government develops a legal framework for expropriation and compensation for development projects. The legal frameworks of Development Projects are based on the Constitution of FDRE and World Bank Operational Policies on Involuntary Resettlement. The Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia has several provisions which have direct policy, legal and institutional relevance for the appropriate implementation of the resettlement plans prepared by development projects and programmes. Article 44 No.2 of FDRE Constitution states that:

“All persons who have been displaced or whose livelihoods have been adversely affected as a result of state programs have the right to commensurate monetary or alternative means of compensation, including relocation with adequate state assistance.”

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• Course: URBAN SOCIOLOGY
• Grade: 4
• Author: Masters Tomas Tsegaye (Author)
• Publication Year: 2021
• Pages: 11
• Catalog Number: V1157962
• ISBN (PDF): 9783346627445
• Language: English
• Tags: urban, development, induced, displacement, consequences, ethiopia