URBAN (IN)STABILITY AND HUMAN SECURITY IN POST-PRETORIA MEKELLE: CONFLICT DRIVERS AND ACTOR DYNAMICS IN KEDAMAY WEYANE SUB-CITY

The large-scale armed conflict in Tigray ended with the signing of the Pretoria Cessation of Hostilities greement (CoHA) in November 2022). Despite formal peace, lived safety has remained profoundly uneven at the neighborhood level. The study therefore studied the interplay of conflict drivers, actor priority systems and residents' own Security priorities to produce urban instability and unravel human security in Kedamay Weyane Sub-City-Mekelle during the post-Pretoria period. The study is designed as an embedded qualitative dominant case study according to the framework of Human Security with personal security as a level of analysis. Methods: Semi-structured interviews were used to collect data from 12 purposively selected Key Informants, a structured survey of 17 residents was administered with KoboToolbox; non-participant observation and document review. Data were analyzed using Braun and Clarke's six-phase thematic analysis, with descriptive statistics, and findings triangulated across source. The study reveals that urban insecurity is a result of complex web of political, economic, social and security root causes including youth unemployment, proliferation of illegal weapons, incomplete DDR processes (Disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration), weak institutional capacity and prevalence of crime and substance abuse in addition to displacement pressures. These challenges have led to increased fear of crime, declining institutional trust and social capital, as well as a decline in personal safety perceptions. The study also indicated that interactions between state and non-state actors mediates security outcomes. Residents perceived personal security as Originary return integrity and freedom from violence and also as access to livelihoods, services, mobility, daily survival, and dignity. As a coping strategy, community-driven mechanisms are utilized to minimize the existing security challenges. In conclusion, the Pretoria Agreement has not fully delivered human security locally by default. Unresolved post-war challenges and governance gaps sustain urban (in)stability in Kedamay Weyane. The research concludes that community security interventions need to be better integrated and supports continued investment in inclusive DDR transitional assistance and transition support initiatives, greater access to employment for young people, coupled with improved coordination within institutions and locally driven peacebuilding mechanisms focused on everyday security needs