Addressing epistemic injustice (and ongoing effects of colonisation) through the Ethiopian intellectual tradition of Qiné

• Published in: BMJ global health Vol. 10; no. 7; p. e019230
• Main Authors: Wondimagegn, Dawit, Whitehead, Cynthia Ruth
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BMJ Publishing Group Ltd 15.07.2025; BMJ Publishing Group LTD; BMJ Publishing Group
• Subjects: Analysis; Canada; Collaboration; Colonialism; Colonization; Education, Medical; Ethiopia; Global Health; Higher education; Humans; Knowledge; Medical education; Psychiatrists; Reflexivity; Social Justice; Traditions; Canada; Ethiopia; Addis Ababa Ethiopia; Global Health
• ISSN: 2059-7908; 2059-7908
• DOI: 10.1136/bmjgh-2025-019230

As global health and medical education scholars build their understanding of the historical and continuing influences of colonisation, the absence of non-western forms of thought in medical education remains a challenge. Qiné is an Ethiopian intellectual tradition and poetic practice dating back many centuries (predating colonialism) that continues to exist and has the potential to expand scholarly inquiry in critical spaces. The central tenet of Qiné is that all phenomena, subject matter, knowledge and truth are incomplete and thus open for exploration and interpretation. In introducing Qiné in this analysis paper, we outline key Qiné definitions and concepts, describe our positionality and the processes we followed to bring Qiné concepts into this global critical scholarly space, provide a brief background on our Ethiopian/Canadian collaborative partnership model, review some of the literature about Qiné written in English and provide a few examples to illustrate the potential Qiné holds as a theory and methodology for global health and medical education. We conclude with some suggestions for next steps in incorporating Qiné into the methodological and theoretical toolkit for global critical scholarship. Advancing a-colonial theories and methodologies may be one effective way for educators and scholars to decolonise global health and medical education.