top of page

Global Education Executives 

ETHIOPIA

 

Ethiopia, with a population of over 109 million people and 80 ethnic groups as of 2024, serves as a prime example of a country that is working towards quality education but remains hindered by various uncontrollable factors. Despite its occasional growth in economic strength from various foreign investments, Ethiopia as a whole is considered to be an underdeveloped country, with high rates of poverty and a literacy rate of less than 49% across the board (scoring lower in females than males). External factors, like COVID-19 and droughts, and internal factors, such as political unrest and heightened violence within the country since 1991, have also unfortunately contributed to the underdeveloped state of its government and people alike. In general, literacy rates in Ethiopia remain well below the global average, with only about half of the population being literate and only 54% of its youth enrolled in school past the eighth grade. In the most recent years, a combination of the effects of COVID-19 and armed conflict have caused thousands of schools to be looted and destroyed, significantly hindering the education of millions of Ethiopian youth.

​

Despite this, Ethiopia has persevered in certain aspects of expanding their education levels. For example, Ethiopia has worked to make education at the primary level accessible and universal, which is one of the target goals of quality education. Primary education in Ethiopia begins at grade 1 (or age 7), and is both compulsory and free for the next six years. Enrollment rates for primary school are reported to be relatively high, with a net enrollment of 88.7% in 2021-2022. 

​

However, progression into the secondary level of education sees a significant drop, with less than 50% of the youth reported to enroll in secondary school; although this is a large jump from less than 25% enrolled in secondary school before 2021, most youth over the age of 10 are still unable to perform at an accepted literacy rate. The aforementioned internal unrest and lack of open secondary schools, teachers, funds, and resources render the pursuit of higher education in an unstable spot, even as the government announced that they would increase funds towards education and make it a priority in the country. 

​

Nevertheless, various organizations and institutions from across the world have been moving to improve the education situation in Ethiopia, such as UNICEF and MAUSA. UNICEF aims to not only provide the students and classrooms with ample materials but also train adequate teachers and personnel for the task, putting an emphasis on marginalized and displaced children in Ethiopia and hoping to make education all the more accessible as a whole. MAUSA, a nonprofit Muslim Aid group from the USA, has also worked to build classrooms for secondary schools in Ethiopia and expand the number of high schools available, aiding in the strengthening of Ethiopia’s weaker education level. 

​

Ethiopia’s overall education level, while still struggling from a severe lack of manpower, resources, and intensive government regulation, is moving towards the direction of quality education, with overall literacy slowly increasing to more than 50% of the population and education at all levels at least being free, if not compulsory
 

References

  1. AfricaW. (n.d.). Major Problems Facing Ethiopia Today. AfricaW. https://www.africaw.com/major-problems-facing-ethiopia-today

  2. Molla, T. & Tiruneh, D. (2024, April 18). Spotlight on Ethiopia's Secondary Education Challenges. NORRAG.https://www.norrag.org/spotlight-on-ethiopias-secondary-education-challenges/

  3. Muslim Aid USA. (n.d.). Ethiopia Education. MAUSA. https://www.mausa.org/appeals/ethiopia-education/#:~:text=past%20Eighth%20Grade.-Ethiopia%27s%20school%20system%20is%20structured%20so%20that%20the%20primar y%20school,upper%20secondary%20lasts%20two%20years/

  4. UNICEF. (n.d.). Ethiopia: Learning and Development.  UNICEF. https://www.unicef.org/ethiopia/learning-and-development

  5. USAID. (n.d.). Ethiopia: Education and Youth. USAID. https://www.usaid.gov/ethiopia/education/

bottom of page