The impacts of the northern Ethiopia conflict on adolescents in Afar

Fighting in northern Afar began predominantly in December 2021, when the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) invaded, and continued until mid-2022 (The Guardian, 2022). Over the course of the war, it is estimated that 300,000 people in Afar were displaced and hundreds killed or injured (Deutsche Welle, 2022; Gerth-Niculescu, 2022).

Very little is known about the specific impacts of the conflict on young people in Afar. With ongoing consultations across the country about transitional justice, including in Afar (Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, 2024), this is an important juncture at which to consider young people’s experiences and priorities for post-conflict rebuilding and reconciliation. As such, this short research brief synthesises findings from a mixed-methods study carried out in Afar’s Kilbety Rasu zone in late 2023 and early 2024 involving 755 adolescents and 375 caregivers.

Suggested citation:

Presler-Marshall, E., Endale,K., Yadete, W., Jones, N., Gebreyehu, Y., Murha, R., … and Tilahun, K. (2024) ‘The impacts of the northern Ethiopia conflict on adolescents in Afar’. Policy brief. London: Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (https://www.gage.odi.org/publication/the-impacts-of-the-northern-ethiopia-conflict-on-adolescents-in-afar/)