2020 was a year full of challenges and opportunities, and as we carry on with our critical work across the country, 2021 is shaping up to be another such year.The conflict that erupted on November 4, 2020 in the Tigray region of Ethiopia has led to immediate and large-scale internal displacement. The two joint Government-humanitarian
Educate A Child (EAC), a program of Education Above All, is a global initiative launched by Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser of Qatar, which aims to significantly reduce the number of children worldwide who are out of school. The goal of the Leaders, Educators, and Parents (LEAP) project is to increase access to equitable
Each year, the school in Awash Kolati disappears—washed away in Ethiopia’s annual floods. Each time, the community gathers to rebuild. This is their journey to a permanent solution.When 25-year-old Mustepha Birka first heard that he was being transferred to Awash Kolati Primary School to become its principal in 2013, he considered quitting the teaching profession
A 13-year-old was forced to drop out of school to get married. But her friends—part of the school’s Girls’ Club—weren’t going to let it happen without a fight.On a Sunday in February 2017, in the rural community of Shani Kondala, Ethiopia, 13-year-old Asmau Kamal got up earlier than usual. She had her regular chores: fetching
Melkitu, 15, dreams of a better life for herself. “My parents are both farmers, but I want to grow up and become an organization director. They labor so much for so little. I do not want to be like them. I believe I will have better life as director of an organization. "A better life means
Daniel Yibrah’s eyes were opened two years ago, when he experienced Lightyear Leadership training through imagine1day.“There is no impossible. Everything is possible if you are committed, if you are ready for change.”Leadership training is a core part of our programme. We know that by investing in people, we can create transformative, sustainable change. Adishumhafti Principal
Maykuho School sits amid a drought-stricken landscape. The nearby river remains historically low. Boxes of emergency food rations can be found in houses throughout the community.Yet, ask the school’s PTA (Parent-Teacher Association) about the impact of the drought, and their response is surprisingly stoic. School PTA members outside the extra classrooms constructed by the community.
Teka was just nine years old when imagine1day staff arrived at his school and asked him a question he had never considered before: What is your vision for your life?“I said I wanted to be a doctor when I grow up and discover a cure for HIV,” says Teka.Fast forward 10 years and Teka is
For decades, the community of Gereb Abdela had felt little ownership in their local school. The prevailing view saw it as a government institution, not a village asset. Many sent their children, but otherwise paid little attention.What a turnaround it has been. Today community members turn out for volunteer work, helping plough fields and plant
Gosaye Gizaw has a big job: as the Education Office Head for Ethiopia’s Bale Zone, he is responsible for the education of 350,000 children.He was one of 350 influential figures we invited to our leadership training in May, together with Lightyear Leadership. Through leadership training, we taught these people how to develop a personal legacy
