Education and Training in Ethiopia An Evaluation of Approaching EFA Goals
Education and Training in Ethiopia - Koulutuksen tutkimuslaitos
Education and Training in Ethiopia - Koulutuksen tutkimuslaitos
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5 RESULTS<strong>Education</strong> has been a development priority on the national agenda s<strong>in</strong>ce the formation <strong>of</strong>the Transitional Government that was <strong>in</strong> power until 1995, when the Democratic FederalRepublic <strong>of</strong> <strong>Ethiopia</strong> was established. In 1994 the Government developed an <strong>Education</strong><strong>and</strong> <strong>Tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g</strong> Policy (ETP) <strong>and</strong> an <strong>Education</strong> Sector Strategy (Transitional Government <strong>of</strong><strong>Ethiopia</strong>, 1994). Most <strong>of</strong> the <strong>Ethiopia</strong>n population is still illiterate. Accord<strong>in</strong>g to the<strong>Ethiopia</strong>n Government <strong>and</strong> UNICEF statistics (FDRE & UNICEF, 2001), the illiteracy rate isapproximately 73 per cent for females <strong>and</strong> 50 per cent for males.The goals, strategies <strong>and</strong> programmes <strong>of</strong> <strong>Ethiopia</strong>n educational policy are address<strong>in</strong>gthe problems <strong>of</strong> access, equity, quality <strong>and</strong> relevance <strong>in</strong> education. <strong>Education</strong> <strong>and</strong> tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>ghave particular significance for the reduction <strong>of</strong> poverty <strong>and</strong> for strategies <strong>of</strong> gender equitybecause they stress the dimensions <strong>of</strong> opportunities, skills, human resources development<strong>and</strong> empowerment. However, an emphasis on develop<strong>in</strong>g TVET <strong>and</strong> skills was <strong>in</strong>troduced<strong>in</strong> <strong>Ethiopia</strong> only at the turn <strong>of</strong> the 21 st century.5.1 Indicators <strong>of</strong> the <strong>Education</strong> Sector Development ProgrammeThe Government <strong>of</strong> <strong>Ethiopia</strong> has sought to exp<strong>and</strong> equitable access to primary education<strong>and</strong>, to some extent, to vocational education <strong>in</strong> order to meet the needs <strong>of</strong> the country <strong>and</strong>the economy. The objectives for the first phase <strong>of</strong> the ESDP have been (ESDP, 1998a):• <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g access to primary education by exp<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g enrolments from 3.1million to 7 million;• promot<strong>in</strong>g equity by exp<strong>and</strong><strong>in</strong>g schools <strong>in</strong> rural areas <strong>and</strong> <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g theproportion <strong>of</strong> female students from 38 to 45 per cent;• improv<strong>in</strong>g the quality <strong>of</strong> education by provid<strong>in</strong>g each child with a textbook <strong>in</strong>each core subject, <strong>and</strong> by improv<strong>in</strong>g teacher tra<strong>in</strong><strong>in</strong>g;• improv<strong>in</strong>g relevance by reform<strong>in</strong>g the curricula;• <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>g efficiency by reduc<strong>in</strong>g dropout <strong>and</strong> repetition rates; <strong>and</strong>• support<strong>in</strong>g educational f<strong>in</strong>anc<strong>in</strong>g by rais<strong>in</strong>g public spend<strong>in</strong>g to 19 per cent <strong>of</strong>the government budget, <strong>and</strong> encourag<strong>in</strong>g private-sector <strong>and</strong> communityf<strong>in</strong>anc<strong>in</strong>g.This research report <strong>in</strong>vestigates the achievement <strong>of</strong> the ESDP objectives: <strong>in</strong>creas<strong>in</strong>gaccess, promot<strong>in</strong>g equity (with focus on gender) <strong>and</strong> improv<strong>in</strong>g the quality <strong>and</strong> efficiency34