A girl who completes school has a better chance of staying healthy and happy while earning a decent income. Through the project ‘Education Matters, Now More Than Ever’, the ICDI seeks to prevent school dropouts among girls in Ethiopia.
Child marriages, teenage pregnancy or being bullied at school; these kinds of issues can prevent girls in Ethiopia from continuing their education. However, according to Asia Koerten of International Child Development Initiatives (ICDI), there are other seemingly far ‘simpler’ barriers. Think about the lack of facilities when menstruating, like being able to wash without hassle if necessary.
Future mothers
Education Matters, Now More Than Ever strives make schools girl-friendly. It follows on from the ICDI’s previous initiatives. Koerten: ‘From past projects on child marriage, we knew that people in Christian Ethiopia often tend to consider education for girls to be less important. Why would you send your daughters to school when they will become mothers in any case? Interestingly, girls who complete their schooling tend to do better as mothers. They are more aware when it comes to health, are able to take better care of their children, and contribute more readily to the family income via activities outside of the household.’
This awareness is becoming increasingly pervasive even in Ethiopia’s conservative rural areas, Koerten continues. But despite this, practical obstacles may still hinder girls’ schooling. In some cases, girls remain at home for as long as a week each month due to menstruation. So, they fall behind and eventually fail to attend at all. Koerten: ‘Having a place to get changed and freshen up has often proved to be a solution.’
Home-made sanitary towels
Obviously hygienic materials must also be made available to them. Koerten: ‘We began with groups who started to make reusable sanitary towels, working on simple sewing machines with old textiles. It is remarkable that these groups include boys, sometimes representing up to fifty percent of them. This kind of group provides a great opportunity to discuss taboo subjects together. For example: discussions around traditional gender roles. Moreover, when girls take home their self-made sanitary towels, they are more likely to engage in discussions with their mothers, aunts and sisters.’
Applause for action research
An additional element is youth-led action research. Action research involves working towards change in concrete ways, right at the heart of the community. Both boys and girls receive training on how to conduct scientific research into the factors that cause girls to leave school. Which barriers exist and how can they be removed? These young people invent solutions and action plans to solve the problems. Subsequently improving their school environment through mini-projects they set up themselves. Koerten: ‘The groups then present both their results and plans to the village community. Parents are usually very proud. Furthermore, when the entire village applauds such a plan, the village elders almost inevitably agree to implement it’.
Proven added value
The major challenge facing the ICDI is how to scale up this approach. Having local community partners can help to spread the method further. Ultimately, the success of a project is only sustainable if the changes are supported by the community, says Koerten. ‘We are also preparing an impact assessment. In order to scale up, you have to demonstrate the building blocks of your approach. This will allow us to convince local communities and their leaders of the added value of this approach more effectively.’
