Journal of Ecosystem & Ecography
Open Access

Khat/chat, Ethiopia, Jimma, Culture, Addiction

Introduction

Human interest to conserve the new thing in their life is the nature of humanity regarding to chewing khat also as an experiment they tray by few days rather by pear pressure nor by environmental effects once in other people involve their self in addiction. However, starting from 15th century chewing khat talk as an action as hereditary of norms and cultures of the environment not only this people and the concerned body by itself looking as legal form of life of their peoples. Jimma zone has rich potential by khat production due to the nature and it is easy to produce plus to make many. The user of this plant did not have an adequate attention and any limitation of age from the local authorities and the society consequently; this make addiction is normal in any level of economy, family, culture, age, and sex [1-3].

In line with this, a few researchers have conducted their study on the area of the effects of the khat instead of economic and social factors. The works of like-Tekalign Damena, Andualem Mossie, and Markos Tesfaye in the title khat chewing and mental distress: a community based study, in Jimma city, South western Ethiopia they try to show the effects of khat in human mental status quo.

Another researcher Emishaw D. et al. Factors Associated with khat Chewing among High School Students in Jimma Town South west Ethiopia, they sow the early age khat chewing have their own effects and addiction in early age quietus their future wish. Hence most the study have the effects in economy or the social effects and the others may look the human body texture overview rather they did not look the factors in the working environment of the region even this also causes for the all thing. The working habit in Ethiopia is no longer, than 8 hours in a day’s from this limited times from region to region our working habits is different.

However, the study focusing on identifying the challenges in working environment and give some emphasis and showing rooted cause of the working habits and the severe quietus of generation [4].

Methodology

What are the cause for the prevalences of khat chewing and effects of khat?

How did they assess the khat factors regarding to culture values?

What are the social values of khat chewing in Jimma town?

How did they look the economic revenues of khat production for the study areas?

How did they look the working habits of the study areas?

Khat history and overview

The historical overviews of chewing khat in this world have long history and in East Africa, it has called as common cultures of the natives. However, currently it is common in European and North America, this is predominantly practised among settlers those in refugees since from Africa like the country Somalia, Ethiopia and Yemen, not only this the cultivation of khat also nearby, Red sea and in the east coast of the African boundary’s. However, the common producer and exporters of this plant is the country like Ethiopia, Djibouti, Kenya, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, South Africa, Madagascar, Afghanistan, and Turkestan.

In the case of Ethiopia, khat is the constant income for the producers plus for the government next to coffee. Therefore, from the local producers, and traders they collect huge amount of tax that is why they did not claim any policy regarding to the users and the demerits of khat among the under aged. While various in number right about khat but they did not included the historical and socio-economic impacts of this under aged users. Rather they give their attention in to the rapid growth of khat and there revenues from the exports (Medhanit, 2020).

According to Mereid Getachew the total estimation of the khat chewers in Ethiopia is more than ten millions of the users should recorded in the history. In line with the production of khat in Ethiopia which is estimated around three millions of producers and traders in Ethiopia (2019). According to participant in Jimma town the sources of khat is from the woredas; “Baddaa Bunaa, saqa, and Dedoo, shebe sonbo, Santama, Agaro, etc those are the major suppliers of khat for the town and traders also depended on their life in selling khat.[5,6]

Culture and khat

The cultural prospects of khat have both advantages and disadvantages most of the participants may agree in the advantages of khat. Hear Gudina and Abulu explain most of the chewers are youth, therefore they did not included themselves with the rest of the community rather they developed there new social life. “In this regard, khat has, for instance, become the primary source of different types of social ills such as robbing and theft that have become wide-spreading from time to time and mainly committed by youths, according to the study participants. Contrary to its social harms, few study participants described that khat has some social benefits. khat mainly chewed in the group. khat chewing brings people together. Therefore, people come together for khat chewing, they exchange information on personal and public issues which worry them and search solution for it.

The other viewing point hear, the society gives value as a culture for the khat especially students may use khat for long stay to studying. According to Brhanu the chewers in student level should agree “it plays a role in making them awake and stay alerted during in the study for hours, It helps students stay focused on what they are doing. In addition, they believed that khat use makes individuals pleasant and social conformists. The chewing khats it may serve as a way-out from stress, anxiety and personal disturbances as they look.

Some of them give credit regarding to the continuity of community interaction khat plays great role. Peoples use khat as one social function they detained in birth, marriage ceremony and in funeral ceremony, they use to develop their relationship and kinships. Hear in Jimma, this is common as cultures of the natives [7, 8].

Economic perspectives

Economically khat is the most profitable for the government that gate from revenue from export and in the local market, not only this it also have profit for the producers plus for the traders the transporting, processing, packaging and resale of khat has created employment opportunities across the region. Most of the users there income is depending on their activity, regarding to the personnel loss their working hours rather they give time for buying khat and chewing. khat user spend their many for the ceremony and this is associated with its consumption such as a cigarette, soft drinks, sugar, ‘Shisha’ and, more than half of the chewers reported spending up to 118.2, Ethiopian birr per one ceremony on khat. Not only these users after khat, have they spent their many, which is greater than the amount for khat.

Methodology of the study

In any research to investigate new field of study, one must make series of decisions. One of these is the decision of choice between qualitative and quantitative methodology. The choice between the two research methods is important because they reflect entirely different research philosophies. Accordingly, given the overall objective of this study, which is to deepen the understanding of the topic under study, I will employ qualitative method, as the main research methodology. This is because qualitative research techniques are essential in exploring peoples’ values, opinions, beliefs, change, and continuity of the work. The qualitative method employed as an appropriate method to obtain reliable and relevant information about the issue under the study hence it used to collect data of a particular point in time with the intention of describing the nature of existing conditions. Further, the strength of qualitative research method to my research is its emphasis on words rather than numbers. Accordingly, the reason why I will employ qualitative method as the main research method is the nature of the research problem and research questions, which in the case of this study, was an attempt to understand khat and the working habits of the Jimma Town. Therefore, considering this reason, qualitative methodology is more appropriate for this study (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Khat from nearby and caring on their back sales on the street by the females.

As the important source of data collection I utilized unstructured interviews. In the area of methodological analysis this kind of interview is commonly defined for its central attitude of relation to knowledge and observance. Unstructured interview is helpfully to give modality for statement the subject’s own creation and appearance. This model answers the part within the beginning of the interrogation context and gave me the possibility to variation between text and oral communication. By using the unstructured interview I was able to add the participant data about the over viewing of effects of khat in working environment (Figure 2) [9,10].

Figure 2: Participants when baying and sailing khat in Jimma city.

Results

The suppliers of khat in Jimma town are so many; some are expensive because of the places they bring. The common which everyone can afford is the khat from nearby and caring on their back sales on the street by the females.

The most costly one is the khat from Sentema, according to my participant this brand is unique from the other places because the land scape and the environment itself gives some taste for the plant, and he says in his market places few peoples ordered and imported for secured and very wealthy persons those they don’t want to go to sale and showing there self to public, they don’t want to work afternoon, especial those have messenger for every kind of order. The minimum amount of this kind of khat 200 Ethiopian prices and the maximum up to 3000 Ethiopian birr.

Discussion

The second most familiar especially by travellers, drivers, Jimma University student, staff, and those have better income from the ordinary people is the khat from BedaBuna. The participant says this type of khat is common in Jimma, they most of the user should afford the prices and any time they gate easily and the minimum amount for this khat is not more than 50 Ethiopian Birr and this kind of khat users are; half of the users in the afternoon section and most of them common in the night and some of them the all day. However the participant call them the hopeless and those not satisfied by there work and their income, those most of there time west by khat chewing.

Conclusion

From the other plant production khat plantation have better resistance from famine and climate change. khat it may produce in the year and for the manufacturer have constant financial income and Ethiopia is next to coffee production the khat production have the great commodity regarding to incomes for the country. The government also have constant tax collection from export.

The working habits of Ethiopian people is not that much impressive unlike the other world, because our tradition and the hereditary story of women on working environment is give low recognition and though for working equal to men. Most of the employees of government and non-government organization did not work more than 8 hours in the day this developed as the habits of the country.

Generally the working habits of the study area was not that much great and most of the people belonging wealth before hard-working and rather they think in a few days or times they want to stay in the pick stage of life . Africa rich by youth though, the study area also full of youth but they don’t want to work hard rather they went transferred property from their family and they always ask government support and generate new income. Begging the rest of the people for supporting them but they did have normal physical appearance no disability.

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