Why This Matters
Poverty is still the strongest predictor of a child's education in Ethiopia.
of children from Ethiopia's very poorest households could not read or write, versus a sharply lower rate as household wealth increased.
Young Lives, Save the Children UK, 2005In poverty-stricken communities, children are the ones suffering most — and often the most inspiring. Many spend their days foraging for food or money to support a family, or leave the countryside as young as seven or eight to search out a better life in the city, only to find the streets just as unforgiving.
Household chores, family income pressure, distance to the nearest school and even minimal school fees all push education down the list of priorities for Ethiopia's poorest families. It's a systemic problem — but Ethiopia is a relatively peaceful nation with a stable government open to change, and FGF believes it can be addressed step by step, one child at a time.
children of pre-primary, primary and junior-secondary age are currently out of school in Ethiopia — nearly half of them girls.
UNICEF Ethiopiaof 10-year-olds cannot read or understand a simple sentence, a measure known as "learning poverty."
World Bank / UNICEFis roughly the share of students who go on to secondary school after completing primary — most don't make it past grade 8.
UNICEF Ethiopia