EDT celebrates impact on education in Ethiopia as the TARGET programme draws to a close

On Thursday 18th January, EDT came together with ministry officials and other key stakeholders in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to celebrate our TARGET programme's remarkable achievements over the last four years as it draws to a close. The event was an excellent opportunity to share the programme’s impact and results, discuss key insights, and collectively shape the future of education in Ethiopia.

We were proud to celebrate alongside the Minister of Education His Excellency Professor Berhanu Nega, His Majesty's Ambassador to Ethiopia Mr Darren Welch, and other officials from the Ministry of Education, representatives from regional educational bureaus, and key education sector stakeholders.

The TARGET (Technical Assistance to Reinforce GEQIP-E in Ethiopia) programme was a £19.5 million package of technical assistance funded by the UK government to support the World Bank-managed multi-donor trust General Education Quality Improvement Programme for Equity (GEQIP-E). 

TARGET has played a pivotal role in improving education outcomes for Ethiopian children since it began four years ago. By August 2023, it had reached over 5.5 million learners, and provided training and support to over 9,800 school ‘leaders of learning’ through comprehensive training.

At the event, we shared not just statistics, but the real, tangible improvements the programme has made to the Ethiopian education system, including in:

School improvement planning
Teaching for learning
Safeguarding
Lesson quality
Data use and management
Teacher attendance.

While we highlighted TARGET’s achievements, we also acknowledged the gaps identified during the programme's implementation. This reflection has helped, and will help, us to understand the broader implications on education policy and practice in Ethiopia, and take these into future work.

Ethiopia’s Minister of Education, His Excellency Professor Berhanu Nega, said: “One of the challenges that every sector in the Ethiopian government faces in the lack of accurate data. TARGET has taken this head on and implemented D4D [Data for Delivery], which allows the Ministry to have accurate real-time data and a clear reflection of what is happening within the schools.”

His Majesty’s Ambassador to Ethiopia, Mr Darren Welch, also commented: "We are really happy that the TARGET programme demonstrated impressive movement towards increasing the role of female school leaders, as well as the programme’s contribution towards inclusion, especially marginalised girls in emerging regions."

TARGET has laid the groundwork to transform the education system in Ethiopia, and we look forward to continuing to partner on further improvements in creating a brighter future for Ethiopian learners. Our recommended strategic priorities for the future of education in Ethiopia include considerations for post-conflict education, equity, and the need to improve the quality of education.

To learn more about the programme’s journey and impact, visit the TARGET programme page.

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