The lived experiences of displaced rural farmers due to urbanization in Bishoftu City of Ethiopia

Abstract

This study covers the lived experiences of persons displaced due to urban expansion. The study primarily aims at understanding the perspectives of the displaced farming community members living surrounding Bishoftu city. It looks at the effect of urbanization on displaced people from various viewpoints, including social, cultural, psychological, and economic aspects. The research employs a descriptive research design with a qualitative research approach, with data primarily collected through in-depth interviews and field observations. Through snowball sampling, the research provides detailed accounts of 21 interviewed persons who experienced displacement. Although the displaced people had substantial economic, social, political, spatial, and cultural resources before they were displaced, they have now become economically, socially, politically, spatially, and culturally marginalized. The study also reveals that displaced farmers have lost many of their cultural and social traditions, which are critical in coping with the social, psychological, spiritual, and economic challenges that they face. Criminality and immorality have permeated the culture as informal social control mechanisms derail. Many are impoverished, and some resort to socially immoral means of subsisting, such as begging. The study demonstrates some benefits in the lives of few displaced people, including women, by enhancing their access to infrastructure and creating employment opportunities. The study proposes that displaced people progress through four phases following their displacement. It also suggests that social disorganization theory can be extended to explain the chaos and disruption caused by urbanization in peri-urban areas. The thesis further implies that there are two classes of elites, neither of which contributes substantially to the improvement of the displaced.