Accelerated Learning Programmes in Ethiopia

Two young Ethiopian girls are one step closer to achieving their dreams of quality education with support from an innovative ECW-funded programme delivered by World Vision and UNICEF

By Education Cannot Wait

October 24^th, 2022

TAREK

Tarek, 15 years old, dreams of becoming a doctor. She wants to help her family and the people in her community in the Amhara region of Ethiopia.

She is one of the 222 million crisis-impacted children and adolescents worldwide in need of immediate educational support.

Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the United Nations global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises, believes that investments in education for crisis-affected children like Tarek are a crucial step to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG 4 — which calls for education for all.

Tarek and her classmates return to learn at Gijen Primary School after almost two years. Photo © UNICEF Ethiopia/2022/Hailu Workeneh

An Education Interrupted

Tarek’s life was upended by conflict in November 2018. After violence broke out in her hometown, her school — Gijen Primary — burned to the ground. Tarek was in fifth grade at the time.

The conflict greatly affected Tarek and her family. Their house was also burned to the ground and all of her family’s belongings, including cattle, were looted. Tarek and her six siblings had to leave the village they once knew as their home — the only place she had ever known. They fled to a sub-district in the region.

In 2019, however, the government helped rebuild houses for several families like Tarek’s, ensuring a safe return to their village.

Tarek pumps water on her way to school in Ethiopia. Photo © UNICEF Ethiopia/2022/Hailu Workeneh

A Return to Hope

With ECW funding, UNICEF and World Vision Ethiopia opened a temporary learning center with two classrooms, a latrine and safe drinking water points. An accelerated learning programme run within the center by volunteer teachers helped students like Tarek get caught up on their studies and receive appropriate mental health and psychosocial support.

Almost two years after conflict arose in Tarek’s hometown — and COVID-19 disrupted education across the globe — the Gijen Primary School officially reopened its doors to students. Tarek and her siblings have now resumed their education.

“I play volleyball and jump ropes with students from different communities freely. My teachers and directors encourage me when I feel stressed thinking of experiences that we went through.” ~ Tarek

Tarek is hard-working and high-ranked among her classmates. She feels safe in school again, which has helped her focus on learning.

She is happy to be back in school and excited to start grade seven.

“I now regularly come to school, take notes, and read supplementary reference books to be able to join the university in the future. I do this to make my dream come true.” ~ Tarek

ECW HAS SUPPORTED 276,661 CHILDREN IN ETHIOPIA SINCE ITS INCEPTION

Tarek is not alone. The inter-ethnic conflict in Ethiopia’s Tigray region and the drought have caused significant internal displacement for hundreds of thousands of primary school children like Tarek. Tigray is one of the world’s worst ongoing conflicts.

EMEBET

Emebet, 17 years old, lives in Ethiopia and has an all-too-similar story to Tarek. She attended Guntir Primary School for seven years until it burned down due to nearby inter-ethnic conflict. Like Tarek, Emebet’s home was also destroyed. All of her family’s belongings, including livestock, were stolen.

After the incident, Emebet’s family went to live with their grandmother in a nearby sub-district in West Dembia Woreda. Everything she had known up until that point had been decimated. Not only did she lose her books and other belongings, but all of her friends were suddenly scattered in different places throughout the region as families sought refuge.

At a time when all hope seemed lost, ECW’s Multi-Year Resilience Programme (MYRP) and its implementing partners — UNICEF, the UK Government and World Vision Ethiopia — provided educational supplies and rehired teachers to help girls like Emebet return to the safety of a classroom.

In 2020, regional authorities assisted in rebuilding Emebet’s home. She and her family were able to return to their village and Emebet was finally able to resume her education.

"Our teachers are back and have received training on psychosocial support. Coming to school helped me focus on my learning instead of remembering the fear, sadness, hopelessness and anxiety I felt.” ~ Emebet

Emebet takes notes in class at Guntir Primary School. Photo © UNICEF Ethiopia/2021/Nahom Tesfaye

Trauma-induced care techniques were used for both teachers and students who saw their lives torn apart before their eyes. During the COVID-19 outbreak, mental health was emphasized along with sanitation measures. ECW funds helped distribute soap, masks and hand sanitation supplies. Additional catch-up classes were also provided.

Emebet has big dreams for the future.

"I want to become an accountant to provide banking services for my parents and my community." ~ Emebet

She wants to continue her studies and complete a course in business administration. Emebet’s parents support her dreams of an education and career — and have decided to send all of their children to school.

Emebet plays with other students at her school in Ethiopia. Photo © UNICEF Ethiopia/2021/Nahom Tesfaye

COMMITMENTS TO EDUCATION IN CRISIS-AFFECTED COUNTRIES

ECW and its strategic partners worldwide are working to realize #222MillionDreams✨📚 for crisis-affected girls like Tarek and Emebet. Education Cannot Wait’s High-Level Financing Conference will take place in Geneva in February 2023. Hosted by Switzerland and Education Cannot Wait – and co-convened by Germany, Niger, Norway and South Sudan – the conference calls on government donors, private sector, foundations and high-net-worth individuals to turn commitments into action by making substantive funding contributions to ECW.

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