{"id":5931,"date":"2023-02-15T04:00:12","date_gmt":"2023-02-15T04:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/imagine1day.org\/?post_type=avada_portfolio&p=5931"},"modified":"2023-02-15T04:00:12","modified_gmt":"2023-02-15T04:00:12","slug":"meda-welabu-2014","status":"publish","type":"avada_portfolio","link":"https:\/\/imagine1day.org\/portfolio-items\/meda-welabu-2014\/","title":{"rendered":"MEDA WELABU 2014"},"content":{"rendered":"

Community leaders are taking a stand, literally moving villages, to make it safe for girls to go to school.<\/h4><\/div>

Imagine sending your child to school knowing they have to cross two rushing rivers to get there. That\u2019s the daily reality of 306 students in the town of Batali during the rainy season. If they make it to school, they have to fight for a seat. Batali\u2019s Grade 5 class has 52 students sharing five desks in one open-air classroom. There\u2019s also a narrow log bench, but most will end up sitting or standing on sandy soil.<\/p>\n<\/div>

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\u201cWE ARE SPREADING THE WORD THAT THERE CAN BE NO CHANGE IN OUR SOCIETY IF WE DON\u2019T EDUCATE OUR GIRLS.\u201d \u2014 SHUKRI ADAM, PTA MEMBER<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>

This is all about to change. Batali is one of the Meda Welabu district\u2019s 58 communities, and with the support of this project, children in Batali will soon have a brand new school. This time, it will be on the opposite side of the two rivers, so students no longer have to make the dangerous trek across them. \u201cThis is a community decision,\u201d says Shukri Adam, Chairman of the Kebele and member of the Parent Teacher Association. \u201cWe have also decided to shift a few residents from this area (where the old school is), to the new area (where the new school will be), so that no students have to walk across the rivers. \u201cThis is a result of the training and conversations we\u2019ve had with imagine1day. Community associations engage in the school and they are now leaders who personally invest and cooperatively engage with these problems,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

Not all attitudes are transformed; out of 306 students, only 73 are girls. \u201cFamilies still have a conservative attitude and many prefer to marry their daughters than to send them to school,\u201d says Adam. \u201cWe are spreading the word that there can be no change in our society if we don\u2019t educate our girls. We are especially speaking to mothers because they are very influential. Change is slow, but it\u2019s coming.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>

2014 Game Plan<\/h3><\/div>

In the first of a three-year project in Meda Welabu, our focus is on developing relationships with communities, the district government and the school faculty, while also building critical infrastructure.<\/p>\n<\/div>

WE\u2019RE BUILDING SCHOOLS AND LATRINES<\/strong>
\nFour schools to be exact, each with four furnished classrooms serving grades 5-8. We\u2019ll also build an ECE classroom and playground adjacent to each school. Four eight-stall gender divided latrines will complete this year\u2019s construction plans.<\/p>\n

CLASSROOMS WILL BE EQUIPPED WITH KEY NECESSITIES<\/strong>
\n58 schools will receive desks (836 of them) so more kids can learn in comfort. Across the district we\u2019ll provide 7,883 books, 25 science kits, and 25 sports sets. We\u2019ll set up student leadership school clubs and creative writing programs too.<\/p>\n

TEACHERS AND COMMUNITIES WILL DEVELOP AND GROW<\/strong>
\nWe\u2019ll build leadership across the district by developing the government\u2019s capacity. In 58 schools we\u2019ll train religious leaders, women, influencers, and the PTA. Teachers across the district will receive extensive professional development.<\/p>\n<\/div>

Project Overview<\/h3><\/div>

Dry and arid, with acacia trees lining red earth and surrounding statuesque termite towers, Meda Welabu is a pastoralist district known for its extreme heat and wild summer rains. Its education indicators are among the weakest in all of Ethiopia with primary school enrolment at just 46%, drop out rates at 22%, and approximately two thirds the number of girls attending school as compared to boys. Over the next three years we aim to transform Meda Welabu\u2019s education system, in partnership with communities and the District Education Office.<\/p>\n

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COMMUNITY LEADERS IN BATALI MAKE PLANS FOR THEIR NEW SCHOOL<\/p><\/div>\n

Through leadership development programs that we\u2019ll put on for Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs), religious and political leaders, and women\u2019s associations; girls, orphans and other vulnerable children who are often at risk of not going to school, will have an equal opportunity to others. By constructing classrooms to serve Grades 5-8, children who would otherwise drop out of school after the 4th grade because the distance to reach Grade 5 is just too far, will now have the chance to continue learning in a brand new school near to their home. Our early childhood education (ECE) strategy will encourage parents to send their aspiring scholars to school at a young age, inspiring education as a household value and resulting in children starting primary school at the appropriate age. Teacher professional development programs and improvements in the quality of school learning environments will bring achievement and attitude changes across the board, and will help reduce drop outs.<\/p>\n

The best part of all, this project is being implemented through a funding partnership with Educate a Child, who have made a commitment to match every dollar you contribute. This is a great chance to double your impact.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

WHERE’S MEDA WELABU<\/h4><\/div>
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Meda Welabu is part of the Bale Zone in Ethiopia\u2019s Oromia Region.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>

PROGRESS REPORT<\/h4><\/div>

2014 Year-End Report<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

2014 Mid-Year\u00a0Report<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

QUICK FACTS<\/h4><\/div>

Meda Welabu Quick Facts<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

NEWS FROM THE FIELD IN MEDA WELABU<\/h4><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>

A problem no girl should have to think about in school<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

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In Ethiopia, coffee solves problems<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

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Discover how 12-year-olds are transforming Ethiopia\u2019s education system<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

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This is What Development Looks Like<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>

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