NEW YORK, Dec. 9, 2024 — Education Cannot Wait (ECW) Global Champion Nicolai Wammen, Denmark’s Minister of Finance, along with ECW Executive Director Yasmine Sherif, concluded a high-level mission to Ethiopia with a call for urgent donor action to secure innovative funding solutions for education in crisis zones. The leaders stressed the need for bold steps to provide quality education for millions of children affected by conflict and displacement in Ethiopia and beyond.
Today, an estimated 9 million children in Ethiopia are out of school, a figure that has tripled since 2022. Ongoing violence, climate-related disasters, and forced displacement have disrupted education across the country, with nearly 18% of schools either damaged or destroyed. Ethiopia also hosts Africa’s third-largest refugee population, with more than 200,000 new arrivals from Sudan and Somalia in 2023-2024, further stretching already limited resources.
ECW’s delegation traveled to the Tigray region, which is recovering from a devastating three-year conflict that halted education. During their visit, they met children, teachers, and parents in schools benefiting from ECW funding and saw first-hand how these programs, supported by UNICEF, the Norwegian Refugee Council, Save the Children, Imagine1Day, and local partners, are making a difference. One school alone reported a 20% increase in enrollment last year, thanks to ECW’s comprehensive interventions.
“The education crisis in Ethiopia is one of the world’s largest, yet least recognized,” said Yasmine Sherif, Executive Director of ECW. “We are witnessing impressive progress thanks to ECW’s investments. However, more support is urgently needed. We call on strategic donor partners to increase their funding and ensure that more children can access education.”
During the mission, Sherif announced a new US$5 million First Emergency Response (FER) grant, bringing ECW’s total investment in Ethiopia to over US$93 million since 2017. This grant, which includes US$4 million for UNICEF and US$1 million for Imagine1Day, will address urgent education needs in the Oromia and Afar regions, where ongoing conflict, intercommunal violence, and drought have further disrupted education.
These new emergency efforts build on the US$24 million Multi-Year Resilience Programme, which focuses on the Amhara, Somali, and Tigray regions. “It is inspiring to see the transformative power of education in these challenging situations. I met many strong and resilient children who are returning to school thanks to ECW’s support,” said Nicolai Wammen, Denmark’s Finance Minister and ECW Global Champion. “But conflicts and climate change continue to force millions of children out of school. We need new and innovative financing solutions to address this growing crisis.”
Since 2017, ECW has reached over 550,000 children and adolescents in Ethiopia, providing vital support such as safe learning environments, educational materials, and psychosocial services. “Thanks to ECW’s support, children are learning in safe spaces across Ethiopia,” said Dr. Aboubacar Kampo, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia.
Dr. Seid Aman, Country Director of Imagine1Day, expressed gratitude for the new FER grant, which will help over 13,000 out-of-school children in the Afar region, 60% of whom are girls. “This project will provide these children with safe learning environments, empowering them to reach their full potential. Given the severe underfunding of education in emergencies in Ethiopia, this support is crucial.”
ECW’s investments are aligned with Ethiopia’s Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) and the Education Sector Development Programme VI. ECW is now calling for additional resources to bridge a US$64 million funding gap to meet the acute education needs outlined in the 2024 HRP.
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