Administration of the Education System
Ethiopia is a federation of nine regional states delineated by ethnicity, as well as two cities designated as separate administrative units or “chartered cities” (Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa). After the fall of the Derg regime, Ethiopia’s government pursued a deliberate policy of decentralization, including the devolution of education administration to the regions. School education is now mostly administered by local authorities in subdistricts or woredas within the individual regions, a move designed to better accommodate local needs.
Funding is shared between the regions and the federal government, which provides about 50 to 60 percent of the funding through non-itemized block grants to regional governments, as well as grants given directly to schools. To ensure consistency, the federal government manages the education system with multi-year development programs that set performance targets and reform agendas for the entire system. School curricula are standardized nationwide. Schools use a national curriculum framework that includes textbooks developed by the General Education Curriculum Framework Development Department of the federal Ministry of Education (MOE).
The federal MOE in Addis Ababa oversees and funds Ethiopia’s higher education, exercising far-reaching control over public institutions. The autonomy of public HEIs is limited, since the MOE sets admission standards, enrollment quotas, and curricula; systematically curtails academic freedoms; and frequently appoints university administrators based on political allegiance.[10] Private HEIs are regulated less tightly, but must be accredited by the Higher Education Relevance and Quality Agency (HERQA), a nominally autonomous body under the purview of the MOE. Quality control in technical and vocational education and training (TVET) is provided by a federal TVET agency, which the MOE also oversees.
Ethiopia’s Federal Ministry of Education
Language of Instruction and Academic Calendar
Amharic is Ethiopia’s official language alongside English and the dominant language in major cities, government agencies, and the media. However, since it’s spoken as a mother tongue by only about 30 percent of Ethiopians, the language of instruction used in elementary education varies greatly by region. Languages used include Oromo, Amharic, Somali, Tigrinya, and at least 10 additional languages. English is introduced as a medium of instruction between grades five and eight, depending on the region, and is the sole language of instruction in secondary and higher education.
The Ethiopian school year runs from September to the end of June or the beginning of July. Universities usually have two semesters of 16 weeks each. When reviewing academic documents from Ethiopia, it’s important to note that the country follows its own ancient calendar, which can be difficult to understand. The Ethiopian year begins on September 11 and has 13 months: 12 months of 30 days and another month of five days (six days in a leap year, which occurs every four years). As a rule of thumb, Ethiopian calendar years are approximately seven or eight years behind Western calendar years, that is, November 1, 2018, is Tikimt (February) 22nd 2011 on the Ethiopian calendar. The easiest way to convert dates is to use an online conversion tool. Academic documents often indicate both the Ethiopian and Western (Gregorian) calendar dates, but sometimes they don’t.
Elementary Education (Basic Education)
The Ethiopian school system consists of eight years of elementary education, divided into two cycles of four years, and four years of secondary education, divided into two stages of two years (4+4+2+2). Education is technically compulsory for all children until grade eight, but actual participation in elementary education is far from universal. Low enrollment rates, particularly in rural areas, and widespread attrition are two reasons why. According to government statistics from 2011, 20 percent of children dropped out as early as grade two, and only about 50 percent of pupils remained in school until grade eight.
Prior to entering elementary education, pupils can attend kindergartens, which are mostly run by non-governmental organizations, faith-based organizations, and other private providers. However, the availability of preschool programs varies considerably by region and is extremely limited in some areas. The number of children attending kindergarten is still small, but growing quickly—the nationwide GER in preschool education was 39 percent in 2015 (up from 5.2 percent in 2011).[11]
Elementary education is provided free of charge at public schools, as well as by fee-charging private schools, which tend to have better facilities and better-educated teachers. About 7 percent of elementary schools were private as of 2012/13, most of them located in Addis Ababa. Private providers in the capital charge monthly tuition fees anywhere from a few dollars to more than USD$75, in addition to other fees for registration and teaching materials, putting these schools out of reach for poor households. There are also a number of international schools in Addis Ababa that charge exorbitant tuition fees by Ethiopian standards and therefore cater only to wealthy elites and expatriates. The overall share of enrollments in private schools among all elementary enrollments was 5 percent in 2015 (UIS).
Most pupils enter elementary education at the age of seven, although there are a sizable number of overaged children in Ethiopia’s schools. The majority of public schools don’t have formal entry requirements, but private schools often have selection mechanisms in place, such as interviews and examinations.
As stated earlier, the core curriculum is standardized nationwide, but there are some variations, including the language of instruction, at the local level. The subjects taught in the first stage (grades one to four) are Amharic, mother tongue, English, mathematics, environmental science, and arts and physical education. The second stage (grades five to eight) includes the same language subjects, mathematics and physical education, but also features civics, integrated science, social studies, and visual arts and music, as well as biology, chemistry, and physics in higher grades.
Promotion is based on continual assessment during the first phase, while term-end examinations are introduced in the second phase. At the end of grade eight, pupils sit for a region-wide external examination and are awarded a Primary School Leaving Certificate, which is a prerequisite for admission into secondary school. Pupils who fail the exams need to repeat grade eight before they can retake the test.
Alternative Basic Education
Given the high number of out-of-school children in rural regions, Ethiopia has an alternative basic education (ABE) system in place to educate underserved children, mostly from pastoral communities, outside of the formal school system. ABE affords children in critical areas the opportunity to study the first-stage elementary curriculum on flexible class schedules that are adjusted to accommodate traditional ways of living. Classes are set up mostly in rudimentary local ABE centers and makeshift mobile schools that rely on local intra-communal instructors. ABE allows marginalized children to receive at least a basic, foundational education. Upon the completion of ABE, children can transfer into the second cycle of elementary education at regular schools. There were 821,988 children enrolled in ABE programs nationwide in 2011. In addition to ABE, radio broadcasts and pre-recorded audiocassettes and videotapes are used to provide educational programming.
Secondary Education
Participation in secondary education in Ethiopia is mostly a privilege of affluent households in urban areas. Enrollments in rural regions accounted for only 11.2 percent in lower-secondary education and 3.6 percent in upper-secondary education as of 2011. Overall enrollments in secondary education in the nation of 105 million people are remarkably low by international standards. There were only around 795,000 students enrolled in upper-secondary education in 2015, compared with 982,000 students in Afghanistan and one million in Sudan, both of which are countries with considerably smaller populations. Until very recently (UIS), merely 10 percent of Ethiopian youths in relevant age cohorts participated in upper-secondary education.
The first stage of secondary education in Ethiopia is referred to as general secondary education and lasts for two years (grades nine and 10). There are no entrance examinations at public schools, and education is tuition-free until grade 10, whereas upper-secondary students have to pay school fees. Private education is still nascent in general secondary education, where less than 5 percent of students are enrolled in private schools, but the share of private enrollments jumps pointedly to around 15 percent at the upper-secondary stage (2015, per UIS).
The general secondary curriculum covers three languages (mother tongue, English, and Amharic), mathematics, information technology, civics, biology, chemistry, physics, geography, history and physical education. The language of instruction is English, which can represent a challenge since the English-language abilities of both teachers and students tend to be limited.
At the end of grade 10, students must sit for the nationwide external Ethiopian General School Leaving Certificate Examination (EGSLCE), a multiple-choice test federally administered by the National Educational Assessment and Examination Agency. The EGSLCE usually includes nine test subjects, graded on an A-E letter grading scale. To qualify for progression into upper-secondary education, students must pass at least five subjects with a grade of C or higher. Failure rates in the exam are relatively high with about one-third of test takers failing in 2015.[12]
Depending on their grade average, students who pass can continue in the university-preparatory upper-secondary track, or enroll in vocational programs (discussed below). The government currently prioritizes technical training and seeks to stream the majority of grade 10 graduates into vocational education programs amid capacity shortages in higher education: In 2013/14, 45 percent of graduates transitioned into vocational education, while 30 percent to 35 percent of students continued in the university-preparatory track.
Upper-Secondary Education (Preparatory Secondary School)
University-preparatory education lasts two years (grades 11 and 12) and is open to all holders of the EGSLCE with sufficiently high grades. Students can choose between a natural science track and a social science track. Both streams have a common core curriculum that makes up 60 percent of the study load and includes English, civics, information communications technology, mathematics, physical education and an elective language (Amharic or local languages). The courses taught in the natural sciences track are biology, chemistry, physics, and technical drawing, whereas the social science track covers geography, history, economics, and business.
At the end of grade 12, students sit for the nationwide external Ethiopian University Entrance Examination (EUEE), which tests their knowledge in seven subjects, including mathematics, English, civics, general academic aptitude, and three stream-related specialization subjects. The examinations are quite demanding: In 2017, only 41 percent of the 285,628 students who sat for the examinations scored high enough to be admitted into university. Exam performance is graded on a numerical 0–100 point scale with a total possible score of 700 in the seven test subjects combined. Cutoff scores for university admission vary by year depending on the number of available seats, but a minimum overall grade average of 295 was required for admission to higher education in 2017 (see also the section on university admissions below).
TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND TRAINING (TVET)
The majority of Ethiopian students who continue education after grade 10 enroll in TVET programs, of which there are a great variety offered by both public and private providers. These programs range from informal short-term training courses to formal certificate programs lasting between one and three years. The Ethiopian government has recently undertaken heightened efforts to standardize TVET by developing official vocational competency standards and a TVET qualifications framework. Strengthening vocational training is a top priority as the country seeks to expand its manufacturing sector and advance the employability of Ethiopian youth.
As of lately, the TVET sector has expanded rapidly with annual growth rates averaging 30 percent between 2004 and 2009, but the supply of training programs is still vastly insufficient to accommodate the surging demand. According to government statistics, there were 352,144 students enrolled in formal programs in 2015 (up from 191,151 students in 2007). More than 75 percent of these students were enrolled in private institutions.
The current TVET system was codified in a 2011 TVET law and is overseen by a dedicated federal TVET agency which develops model curricula and sets overall training standards. Regional TVET agencies or education bureaus have some leeway to customize the curricula to accommodate local industry needs. Private providers must seek accreditation from regional authorities and apply for re-accreditation every three years.
Grade 10 graduates can enroll in TVET programs at public or private colleges and training centers, as long as they meet set minimum grade thresholds in the EGSLCE exams, which vary by year and region depending on the number of available slots. Training is free at public institutions for recent secondary school graduates, but older students and those attending private institutions pay tuition fees. Private for-profit providers are primarily located in urban areas and tend to have better facilities, but do not necessarily provide better training.
Secondary-level TVET qualifications are grouped into four categories (I-IV), depending on the length and complexity of the program: Level I programs last one year, level II programs two years, and level III and level IV programs, three years, with level IV programs being designed to prepare students for supervisory roles in the workforce.
Upon graduation, students earn a certificate of completion of middle level technical and vocational education and training. However, students must also pass an external vocational skills test to earn a formal, nationally recognized certificate of competency or national qualification certificate. The federal TVET agency has developed training curricula for at least 379 vocations, but Ethiopian TVET providers offered only 197 of these curricula as of 2012. Common fields of study in TVET include agriculture, construction, business, information technology, manufacturing, hospitality, nursing, and midwifery. Students can progress sequentially from level I to level IV programs, and external candidates who have adequate work experience may also obtain a certificate of competency by taking the vocational skills assessment test without completing a training program.
TVET curricula are highly applied rather than theoretical, and include a practical training component of 70 percent that comprises a mandatory industrial internship. Theoretical instruction makes up only 30 percent and incorporates a general education component (mathematics, English, civics, and business). Holders of level III and level IV certificates can apply for admission into university programs after two years of employment and may receive advanced standing in some fields.
In addition to upper-secondary TVET programs entered after grade 10, there are “basic” and “junior” TVET programs that can be entered upon completion of elementary education and provide a pathway to middle level programs. At the post-secondary level, TVET colleges and some HEIs offer vocationally oriented diploma programs classified as level V, which require a level III/IV certificate or the EUEE for admission and are mostly two years in length, although one-year and three-year programs also exist. These programs are primarily designed to prepare students for specialized employment, but study completed in applied diploma programs may sometimes be transferred into bachelor’s degree programs at universities.
Higher Education
University Admissions
Ethiopia has a centralized admissions system in which undergraduate admissions criteria are set by the federal MOE for all HEIs, public and private. Admission is generally based on the EUEE and is highly selective, given the scarcity of university seats. Each academic year, the MOE sets minimum grade requirements and quotas for different programs based on the number of available seats, which means that concrete requirements vary from year to year. The government’s objective over the past years has been to steer 70 percent of students into engineering and natural science programs and 30 percent into the humanities and social sciences. Cutoff grades for admission into public universities are higher than for private institutions, so that public HEIs receive the best students, while lower-performing students tend to be funneled into the private sector.
The minimum EUEE grade average to enroll in any higher education program was 295 in 2017, but the grade cutoff for admission into natural science programs at a public HEI was significantly higher at 352, while admission into social science programs required an average of 335. Disadvantaged groups are granted preferential admission via lower GPA requirements. For example, female students needed only a score of 320 to qualify for admission into social science programs—a threshold lowered even further for women from pastoral communities and other special needs regions, which required an average of only 300. That said, these measures have had limited impact thus far on diversifying Ethiopia’s student population, which continues to be dominated by mostly male, affluent students from urban areas (only 35 percent of undergraduate students and 24 percent of graduate students were female in 2015).
As mentioned above, alternative entry pathways exist for holders of TVET certificates of competency (level III or higher) after two years of employment. Additional university entrance examinations may be required in disciplines like architecture, medicine, veterinary medicine, or pharmacy.
Higher Education Institutions
Ethiopia’s higher education ecosystem has not only grown and diversified rapidly over the past few decades, it is bound to expand exponentially in the years ahead, driven by factors like population growth, rising income levels, and climbing upper-secondary enrollments. In 2013 the British Council projected that the number of tertiary students in Ethiopia will increase by an additional 1.7 million by 2025.
In light of these trends, the federal government in 2015 greenlighted the construction of 11 new universities; Ethiopia is now on the verge of having 44 operational public universities (up from 30). Private sector enrollments, meanwhile, have fluctuated and flattened in recent years after surging rapidly since the 1990s. However, private HEIs enrolled at least 15 percent of undergraduate students in 2015,[13] and the private sector still has tremendous potential for growth. Notably, foreign distance education providers like the University of South Africa and India’s Indira Gandhi National Open University have also begun to offer programs in Ethiopia, either independently or in collaboration with Ethiopian providers.
The size and scope of public universities in Ethiopia varies significantly, but a majority are multi-disciplinary institutions that offer undergraduate and graduate programs while concentrating on providing mass education rather than research. Public universities are directly funded by the federal government, although they raise part of their revenues from modest fees for tuition and on-campus housing. Addis Ababa University is the country’s largest and most preeminent HEI with 48,673 students and 70 undergraduate and 293 graduate programs. Another reputable public research university with more than 40,000 students is Jimma University located in the Oromia region.
Ethiopian universities trail institutions from other East African countries in terms of international reputation. They are not included in standard world university rankings, such as the Times Higher Education ranking of Africa’s best universities, which features both Uganda’s Makerere University (ranked in fifth position) and the University of Nairobi.
In addition to public universities, there are 32 public teacher training colleges , as well as a number of public institutions supervised by other federal government ministries, including military academies and the Ethiopian Civil Service University.
Private institutions tend to be smaller for-profit colleges specializing in fields like business administration and computer science and information technology, as well as allied health fields and nursing. Most private providers enroll not more than a few thousand students and offer only undergraduate programs. Just a handful of institutions, such as St. Mary’s University, offer master’s programs. There are presently 61 accredited private HEIs, predominantly clustered in Addis Ababa.
Most private HEIs have sprung up over the past 15 years and don’t have the best reputation in Ethiopia. While there are a number of quality providers, several are considered to be substandard, profit-driven, institutions with poor facilities whose unqualified teaching staff teach curricula directly copied from other institutions. While such claims cannot be verified independently, Wondwosen Tamrat, a professor at St. Mary’s University, alleges that some institutions also obtained accreditation by fraudulent means, yet circumvented scrutiny because they’re protected by powerful patrons in Ethiopia’s government.
Another quality-related problem stems from Ethiopia’s centralized admissions system which steers top students into public institutions, so that private HEIs absorb mostly less-qualified students who get locked out of the public system. As one university administrator put it, “students we admit are in some way “leftovers” because the best ones (with highest scores) will go to public institutions.”[14] As in many other African countries, private HEIs in Ethiopia are demand-absorbing institutions unable to effectively compete with public providers.
Education Spending
Ethiopia’s government considers education a fiscal priority, but struggles to keep up with the expansion of the system and the surging number of students: Spending per tertiary student as a percentage of GDP per capita, for instance, dropped by more than 50 percent between 1997 and 2012. Nominal education spending has increased strongly in recent years with public education expenditures tripling from 21.6 billion Ethiopian Birr in 2009/10 (USD$780 million at current conversion rates) to 67.9 billion Birr (USD$2.45 billion) in 2015/16. However, when adjusted for Ethiopia’s high inflation rate, which averaged 16 percent between 2006 and 2018, real value gains were only modest and spending remains relatively low by African standards. Education expenditures as a share of GDP have fluctuated over the past 15 years: They increased from 4 percent in 2000 to a peak of 5.6 percent in 2012, before dropping back down to 4.2 percent in 2014, according to World Bank figures.
The Ethiopian government spent 24.2 percent of its overall expenditures on education in 2015/16, making education the largest item in the federal budget. While that’s a considerable percentage compared with the education spending of other emerging economies, observers consider current spending levels insufficient to drive further expansion while ensuring quality standards. A high percentage of education spending—48 percent in 2014/15—is devoted to tertiary education, which is largely consumed by the construction of new universities. Beyond that, a sizable share of expenditures goes to recurring expenses like teacher salaries, limiting the availability of funds for structural improvements in critical areas like the school system. Compared to other African countries, teacher salaries in Ethiopia are high in relative terms, that is, when measured as a percentage of GDP per capita. Corruption represents another challenge—while less widespread than in other countries in the region, there’s a risk of “leakage” in the downstream distribution of funds in some parts of the system, according to the World Bank.
Accreditation and Quality Assurance
To address quality problems in the mushrooming private sector, Ethiopia created an accreditation body in 2003—the Higher Education Relevance and Quality Agency (HERQA)—and made it mandatory for private institutions to obtain accreditation. The federal government establishes and oversees public universities, so they do not have to seek accreditation. However, they are required to have internal quality assurance systems and regular internal quality audits. HERQA monitors compliance with these requirements. The MOE also ensures that public universities advance national reform objectives by tying funding to the implementation of these goals.[15]
Private HEIs are not allowed to operate in Ethiopia unless they obtain a HERQA accreditation certificate for their programs and submit to quality audits by HERQA. Institutions first apply for a pre-accreditation permit and receive accreditation after one year of operation, as long as their programs satisfy HERQA’s requirements. Institutions have to submit a self-evaluation report which is evaluated in the form of multi-day on-site quality audits. HERQA assesses management structures, infrastructure, learning resources, curricula, academic assessment methods, promotion and graduation rates, research output, and other criteria.[16] HEIs have to apply for re-accreditation after three years, after which accreditation is given for five-year periods. Accreditation is granted for a specific set of programs, for which HERQA may stipulate enrollment quotas and permissible modes of delivery (that is, regular versus part-time or distance education modes). Lists of accredited institutions and programs are available on the HERQA website.
HERQA has helped improve quality standards in Ethiopia—its establishment alone caused a number of low-quality private providers to close down rather than seek accreditation in the early 2000s. In a sign of heightened emphasis on quality in recent years, HERQA in 2011 shut down five private HEIs and placed another 13 on probation. At the same time, HERQA has been criticized for not being autonomous enough and vulnerable to political intervention, having inadequate staffing and infrastructure, as well as low quality thresholds, and nontransparent and sometimes erratic decision-making processes. The MOE in 2010 barred private HEIs from offering distance education programs over quality concerns, only to revoke the ban a few months later, presumably because it affected too many students and instructors.