The annual Education World Forum took place from 20^th–23^rd January in London, attracting high-level attendance from around the world in the form of government ministers, high-profile figures, and hundreds of education practitioners.

An Ethiopian delegation, headed by Dr. Tilaye Gete, Minister of Education, attended the 4-day event supported by the British government, including the Department for International Development (DFID) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

During the forum, Dr. Tilaye shared his views on global contemporary strategic problems and issues in education, and highlighted Ethiopia’s education and training road map study.

The UK is one of the biggest donors to Ethiopia’s education sector. Between 2015 and 2018, through DFID, the UK helped 11.4 million children globally to obtain a decent education, and the UK’s priority remains that no one should be left behind.

In Ethiopia, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has been clear on the importance he personally attaches to improving education, launching the country’s Education Roadmap 2030 in September 2018.

Ethiopia’s budget allocation for education, at 24%, compares favourably with many of its fellow African countries. Its new 4-year General Education Quality Improvement Programme for Equity (GEQIP-E) has a total budget of £1.7 billion.

While visiting Addis Ababa in October 2018, the UK Minister for Africa, Harriett Baldwin MP, announced the country’s continued support for education in Africa, through a contribution to the GEQIP-E worth over £110 million.

According to a statement from the British Embassy in Addis Ababa, the UK will work closely with Ethiopia’s Ministry of Education to improve access to education and learning for more than 1 million children, and to improve training for more than 125,000 teachers and head teachers nationwide.

The UK’s focus will be on equity – helping girls in rural areas and people with disabilities and other marginalised groups to access education.

Ethiopia has made important strides in education since the 1990s, with over 26 million children now enrolled in schools, compared to only 10 million a decade ago.

Teacher training and the availability of learning materials have been steadily improving. UK support to Ethiopia’s previous education programme resulted in 1.2 million more children receiving a decent education.