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Article History

Received: 25 May 2026

Accepted: 13 July 2026

First Online: 9 August 2026

Declarations

Ethics approval and consent to participate: Ethical approval and permission to conduct this study were obtained from the Research and Community Service Committee, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mizan-Tepi University, Ethiopia (Approval No. CANR/RCS/2024/010), prior to data collection. The study was conducted in accordance with the ethical principles of the International Society of Ethnobiology (ISE) Code of Ethics, relevant Ethiopian national research ethics guidelines, and the principles of the Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit-Sharing. Permission to conduct the research was also obtained from the Aseko District administration, the District Agriculture Office, and the respective kebele administrations. Prior to each interview, the objectives of the study were explained to all participants in Afaan Oromo, and oral informed consent was obtained from every participant. Participation was entirely voluntary, and all information was treated confidentially and reported anonymously.

Consent for publication: Not applicable. This manuscript does not contain any identifiable personal data, photographs, or other information requiring consent for publication.

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.