This paper aims to add to the recent scholarly search for African leadership philosophy to improve leadership effectiveness in Africa. It examines the Oromo Gada system’s democratic governance and leadership principles and argues its relevance to the current and future leadership effectiveness in Oromia, Ethiopia, and Africa. It analyses the literature on the history, culture, and current practices of the Gada system to identify its leadership philosophies. It discusses these principles by comparing with Ubuntu and other indigenous African leadership philosophies on the one hand with UN principles of good governance on the other. Evidences show that in spite of the expansion of modern education and leadership training; there are little or no evidence of leadership effectiveness in Africa. Corruption, poverty, injustice, and lack of legitimacy and accountability have continued to be the images of Africa and its leadership. These leadership failures are attributed to lack of leadership that connects with the societal values and cultures. The adoption of Gada leadership principles of liberty, equality, morality, rule of law, participation and engagement of citizens, decision making by consensus, separation of power and check and balance, decentralized governance, fixed terms office and peaceful transfer of power, accountability, transparency and impeachment of elected leaders, honesty, team leadership and conflict transformation in political, public and private sector organization leadership are discussed. The development and adoption of Gada, Ubuntu, and other indigenous leadership philosophies is recommended as a remedy to Africa’s leadership problems.
Management in Africa is under researched by scholars both within and outside of the continent. As a result, nowhere is management research-practice gap so wide than in Africa. This paper aims to assess the management research practices and challenges in selected Ethiopian higher education institutions (HEIs) and contributes to the improvement of management research practice in general. The study employed qualitative approach and a descriptive case study designed to assess management research practices in 7 selected public and private higher institutions in Addis Ababa. The study result indicated that the status of management research and publication in these institutions is limited and lack focus. There is only once a year call for papers and publishing of proceedings. The themes were selected by research coordinators or committees often without consultation with staffs and other stakeholders. There are lacks of genuine commitment from the institutions; rather they face saving activities made to meet the minimum standards for the renewal of their licenses. The major challenges were shortage of finance, staff competency deficiencies and lack of commitment, absence of research culture, lack of incentives and encouragements, and lack of involvement and engagement of key stakeholders in the research process. Hence, to improve their visibility, their staff and education quality HEIs are recommended to establish their research program through involvement of internal and external stakeholders in the research process from identification of research areas to the use of the results, develop research competency of their staff, provide incentives, and promote research culture.
Purpose: study aimed to assess the Corporate Social Responsibility practices, business-community relations, and the missing links in Corporate Social Responsibility- community development in Ethiopia. Approach/Methodology/Design: Case study and thematic analysis of data on 45 structured interviews of key informants from federal and regional government, companies, and local community was collected, transcribed, and analyzed to identify the current CSR practices and consequences, and the missing links in CSR-community development interface. Findings: The CSR is ad-hoc philanthropy activity based on neo-liberal and voluntary approach motivated by market performance, reputation and image building objectives. There is no community development orientation, no social and environmental impacts. There are tax dodging, deforestation, water and chemical pollutions, britches of labor and community rights, CSiRs; National indigenous culture based community development oriented mandatory CSR policy, coordinating agency, engaging community, measuring the implementation, rewarding good CSR performance and punishing CSiRs. Practical Implications: The study has implications for academics, managers, policy makers, public administrators, community activists and leaders. It contributes to CSR approach in developing countries, CSR theories, thinking, and practice in African context, the business community relations, the business management approaches, scope of stakeholders, in improving CSR to contribute to community development. Originality/value: This study’s originality lies in bringing Ethnic diversity, federal- regional government, political history, collective rights, power of community and nationalism in CSR to the front.
The purpose of this study is to add to recent calls to develop indigenous knowledge of peace system and culture development to promote culture of peace in Africa. It assesses the indigenous Gadaa system peace concept and culture, identify its peace related values, philosophies, traditions, institutions, etc for nurturing and sustaining peace in the Oromo society, with the neighboring ethnic group, and its relevance to creating peace culture in Africa and beyond. It relates Gadaa peace system with the UN peace system initiative and framework in demonstrating the relevance of Gada peace system to peace building in multi-ethnic conflicts transformation in the Horn of Africa and beyond. Oromo people were traditionally a culturally homogeneous society with genealogical ties living in Ethiopia, Kenya, and other neighboring east African countries. They governed themselves in accordance with Gadaa (literally "era"), an outstanding democratic sociopolitical system long before the 16th century that has survived to date and is currently functional in Ethiopia and Kenya, and gaining importance and restored in all parts of Oromia in Ethiopia. The Gada system is an indigenous institution that pervades every aspect of an Oromo life including personal, interpersonal, social, economic and political life. The Oromo concept of peace is comprehensive and broader than western conception of absence of violence. It covers both negative and positive peace, intra-personal peace, interpersonal peace, within Oromo, with other communities, with nature, and peace with God. Therefore, to build peace culture the Gada concept of peace, truth, values, principles, and conflict resolution techniques need to be restored and promoted. It should be documented and made part of education system. The academics should do research and disseminate these values. The regional state government and civic societies should develop a peace education program based on these values and traditions so that they should be restored quickly and sustained among Oromo community in all corners of east Africa where Oromo community lives. The concepts of gender equality and participation in sustainable development of the society needs to introduced into the Oromo culture and Gada system.
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