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Article History

Received: 10 November 2025

Accepted: 18 July 2026

First Online: 2 August 2026

Declarations

Ethics approval and consent to participate: This study is part of a PhD thesis. The proposal for this study was initially examined and authorized by the academic commission (AC) of the Department of Rural Development and Agricultural Extension during the 2023 academic year, before the approval of Bahir Dar University's standard operating procedure. The authors received retrospective institutional review board (IRB) approval for this study, in which the ethical review board of the Department of Rural Development and Agricultural Extension at Bahir Dar University reviewed the proposal's contents, associated research tools, and respondents' informed consents retrospectively. As a result, the University found the proposal to be qualified for ethical clearance. We, the IRB committee, formally confirmed that Mr. Fentaw Teshome’s research has been thoroughly reviewed, and we found the research is fully compliant with the university’s standards and ethics. The IRB certificate was given to Fentaw Teshome on April 03, 2023. Informed consent was obtained from all respondents before the interview. The respondents were informed that the purpose of the study was solely academic. Their participation was voluntary, and all information collected would be kept confidential. Furthermore, respondents were approached in a respectful and friendly manner during the data collection period and were given the full freedom to withdraw at any time if they felt uncomfortable. Participation in the survey was entirely voluntary. All individuals who agreed to participate were deemed to have provided informed consent, whereas those who declined participation were excluded from the study.

Consent for publication: Not applicable.

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.