Currently, domestic wood product enterprises in Ethiopia are facing increasing competition from imports. Therefore, more needs to be done to address the evolving dynamics in public preference and taste while overcoming the pressure from the import market. However, the wooden furniture sector in Ethiopia is scarcely researched and documented to support the production and marketing system. This study investigated the determinants of consumer preferences for imported and domestic wooden furniture in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Multistage sampling was used to select a sample size of 385 consumers who had purchased wooden furniture. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire and analyzed through descriptive statistics, Kendall’s test, and the multivariate probit (MVP) model. The findings revealed that imported wooden furniture scored higher in terms of finishing, color, compatibility with other objects, and design, whereas domestic wooden furniture excelled in terms of durability, environmental friendliness, maintainability, and affordability. The MVP results indicated that wooden furniture preference was influenced by factors such as age, number of years in marriage, family size, number of years living in the city, occupation, and exposure to advertisements. The study recommends that domestic furniture companies enhance the finishing, design, color, and other desirable attributes of their products to attract and satisfy domestic demand, potentially reducing the need for imports. By focusing on improving multiple attributes, companies better cater to the preferences of consumers. Additionally, furniture companies should consider the diverse socioeconomic characteristics of consumers during the production of their furniture products to meet a range of needs.

Protected Areas provide secured habitat for plants and animals. The principal objective of the study was to estimate the determinants that influence households’ decision, maximum and the mean willingness to pay local rural farm for conservation and restoration of Senkele Swayne’s hartebeest sanctuary. To achieve the objective of the study, the contingent valuation method (CVM) was using double bound dichotomous questions followed by open-ended questions. Sample data from 175 rural households were collected by applying two stage sampling procedures. The primary data was collected using structured and semi-structured questionnaire interviews, conducting, a focus group discussion and a key informant interview. Relevant secondary data was also reviewed. Both descriptive statistics and econometric methods of analysis were used. Econometric models such as bivariate probit, binary probit and Tobit models were used to estimate mean WTP, determinants of decision WTP and the intensity of WTP respectively. The WTP result shows that the average amount of money from the open-ended format was 31.71 ETB per month and the mean WTP values from double bounded dichotomous households in the senkele sanctuary can pay up to 34.59 ETB per month. Determinants such as educational level, livestock holding and total land size had a positive and significant effect on the decision of households’ WTP. While distance from sanctuary and initial bid amount had a negative influence on households' WTP decisions. Therefore, the aggregated welfare gain expected from the conservation intervention of sanctuary from the open-ended format and double bounded dichotomous format were 12,024,812.52 ETB and 13,116,943.08 ETB per year respectively. Based on welfare gains from the sanctuary intervention, results show that the aggregate value of Sanctuary from an open-ended question format (12 million ETB) was underestimated as compared to a double bounded dichotomous choice format (13.12 million ETB). This indicates that there may be the existence of free riding problems in the study area. EWCA, researchers, local people and non-governmental organizations are working together to minimize deforestation and develop a sustainable management system for Senkele sanctuary.