Abstract:
The main objective of this study is to investigate youth unemployment and its impact on peace
consolidation in Metta District, East Hararghe Zone, and Oromia, Ethiopia. The specific
objectives of this study are to investigate the life experiences of unemployed youths, explore
factors contributing to youth unemployment, and investigate the impacts of unemployed youths
on peace consolidation in Metta District. Accordingly, to frame youth unemployment under
the lens of related literature, this study incorporated concepts of peace, youth, as well as two
theories of conflict related to youth unemployment employed with other empirical examples.
This study employed a qualitative case study research design by using tools of data collection
such as in-depth interviews, Focus Group Discussions, Key Informant Interviews, observation,
and secondary data sources (official reports, theses and dissertations, journal articles, books,
and academic literature). The participants in the research were selected based on purposive
sampling techniques. The study exposed the life experiences of unemployed youths as
dependent, hopeless, harsh, and careless. Additionally, it revealed the factors contributing to
youth unemployment are structural problems (corrupted political system), low economic
status, lack of financial support, lack of infrastructure, job preferences of youths, complex
procedures to get funds, lack of institutional linkage, high population density, and lack of
resources (lack of land). These all played vital roles in the challenging lives of youths,
particularly, and society in general. Since they are facing psychological and socio-economic
problems, they are participating in crime and conflict. As a result, this study revealed an
absence of positive peace in Metta District. Finally, it recommended that governmental
institutions, non-governmental institutions, Medias and researchers should play their roles by
giving entrepreneurs training and organizing comprehensive job creation programs.
