2nd Round of Grant Contracts Signed for Human Security Projects with USD 449,411

On 6 September, 2011, a signing ceremony for Japanese Grant Assistance for Grassroots Human Security Projects (GGP) in the Japanese Fiscal Year (JFY) 2011 took place at the Japanese Embassy. Four Ethiopian organizations were invited as project partners to the ceremony; Seden Sodo Woreda, Shashemene Town Education Office, Enemor and Ener Woreda Education Office and South Omo Zone Education Office. The total amount of funding extended was USD 449,411.

On the occasion, Mr. Yoshiaki ITO, Minister and Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of Japan in Ethiopia, said that improvement of primary and secondary education opportunities and quality would bring a variety of benefits in all aspects of life, including job opportunities, efficiency in agriculture, and better health conditions. It could be said that this improvement in the quality of life is not only at the individual level but also at the national level. Mr. ITO also mentioned that supporting the education sector in the rural areas, where there is a scarcity of services, would be essential for rural society to prosper and to prevent poverty in the future.

In JFY2011 (April 2011 – March 2012) alone, the Embassy of Japan is planning to award grants to 18 projects from various not-for-profit organizations and local authorities throughout Ethiopia for the improvement of education, water resources, health, and infrastructure. In particular, the projects target the enhancement of lives of the vulnerable, including women, girls, the aged and the disabled who cannot access these basic services. The Government of Japan will continue to offer support for such people.

The four recipient organizations who signed grant contracts on 6 September 2011 were:

1. Seden Sodo Woreda  (USD112,358)　
2. Shashemene Town Education Office (USD112,356)
3. Enemor and Ener Woreda Education Office (USD112,340)
4. South Omo Zone Education Office (USD112,357USD)

The description of each project is as follows:

1. The expansion of access to secondary education for G11 – G12 students in Seden Sodo Woreda, West Shoa Zone, Oromia   
2. Seden Sodo Woreda   

Even though access to primary education from G1 to G8 has grown in the Oromia Region, secondary school access is still low; the net enrollment rate is 15% in G9-G10 and 1.8% in G11-G12. In Seden Sodo Woreda, there are 27 primary schools with an overall attendance of 16,000 students. However, due to the absence of a preparatory school (G10- G11), in this Woreda, the students who graduated from the secondary school either have to attend a school in Tulu Bolo, which is 27 to 66 km from their villages, or they have to give up higher education.
For the purpose of decreasing these obstacles, this project will construct an additional one block with five rooms and one library and laboratory block, and provide furniture for the new blocks. In addition, the local community constructed two blocks with eight classrooms for this preparatory school in 2009, and the local government will provide the books and equipment for the library and laboratory. It will provide access to preparatory education for 1,040 students, and the number of students in each classroom will be reduced to 40 students, meeting the regional government standard. 

1. Improvement of access to the secondary school for G9-G10 students in Shashemene Town, Oromia
2. Shashemene Town Education Office

Secondary education is in high demand in Shashemene Town. Therefore, the government opened the Millennium Secondary School in 2007 at the Burka Bekumsa Primary School by using some classrooms for the secondary school. Even though there is a fence to divide the compounds of the primary school and the secondary school, the total number of students is over 4,000 in both schools. The noise caused by the primary students often disturbs the secondary school’s lessons. It is also a federal government rule that primary and secondary schools should be located separately.
In order to increase the number of students in the secondary school and to improve the quality of education, Shashemene Education Office and the community discussed using all classrooms including those utilised by the primary school for the secondary school. It is in this context that two blocks with eight classrooms will be constructed by this project for a new primary school, and one hundred and sixty students’ combined desks and eight blackboards for new blocks will be provided. In addition, the Education Office will construct one block with four classrooms and an administration block, and the community will contribute the money for one block with four classrooms to keep the quality of the primary school. Through this project the number of students in each classroom at the secondary school is expected to decrease from 69 to 40, which is the government’s standard for class size.

1. The Improvement of access to the second-cycle primary school in Enemor and Ener Woreda, Gurage Zone, SNNPRS
2. Enemor and Ener Woreda Education Office

Enemor and Ener Woreda has the highest population in the Gurage Zone, around 1.2 million people, and is one of the most densely populated areas. Even though the enrollment rate at primary schools has been increased at the regional level and there are around 71 primary schools in Enemor and Ener Woreda, the second-cycle education enrollment is still low, there being only 29 second-cycle primary schools. Therefore, there are some students for whom a second-cycle school (G5-G8) is too far way and others for whom the long distances they have to walk to the school causes them to drop out.  
The Gahrad Medhanialem Primary School was established in 2006 by the community, and now the number of students is around 414 from KG (Kindergarten) to G4. After the G4, students have to go to the second-cycle schools, which are far from their villages, often over two hours walk each way. Due to the high population density in this area, the second-cycle schools that exist in other villages have no capacity to receive students from other villages.
For the purpose of decreasing these obstacles, this project will construct an additional two blocks with eight classrooms and provide 184 combined desks, 8 blackboards, and 8 teachers’ desks and chairs to enable it to enroll additional students. This is expected to decrease the number of students in each classroom from 57 to 53, and increase the total number of students to 747.

1. The Improvement of access to the second-cycle primary school in Salamago Woreda, South Omo Zone, SNNPRS
2. South Omo Zone Education Office

The project site, Salamago Woreda, is far from the capital city of Addis Ababa, and one of the remotest areas in Ethiopia where a variety of tribal groups are engaged in pastoralism. In this cultural and social lifestyle, few students can participate in formal schooling. Even though the enrollment rate of first-cycle primary education is around 85%, the enrollment rate of second-cycle primary education was still around 40% in 2009/10, which excluded pastoralists such as the Mursi and Bodji. In addition, the dropout rate is around 15-19%, and the number of students who can attend the secondary school is 3-6%.
The Hana Primary School, located in the capital of Salamago Woreda, was established in 1979 by the local government. The number of students is around 653. Each class comprises over 70 students, and one tent is used as a classroom due to the lack of classrooms. Furthermore, the scarcity of second-cycle schools in this area means that many students who graduated from first-cycle education cannot proceed to the next level.
For the purpose of decreasing these obstacles, this project will construct an additional two blocks with eight classrooms and provide 184 combined desks, 8 blackboards, 24 teachers’ desks and chairs, 1 director’s desk and chair, 2 official tables, and 2 shelves. This project will be expected to decrease the number of students in each class from 72 to 53 to improve the educational environment.