+

Gender Equality in

Ethiopia

GVPT 354

Cecilia GutnerSamirawit AyaneAndrea GlauberNadav KarasovLogan Connor

Millennium Development Goal #3:Promote gender equality and empower women

+Introduction: Where We Are Ethiopia ranks 116th out of 135 countries

on the 2011 Global Gender Index

Discriminatory social institutions and cultural norms

+Where We Are Going 2005: Creation of Ministry of Women’s Affairs

(MoWA) National Action Plan on Gender and

Development (NAP) PASDEP

Constitution grants women right to own land

+How We Get There Eliminating disparities in education

Changing attitudes and cultural values

+ Political and Community Representation

Political Representation by Gender in Ethiopia

Women make up: 21.3% of Parliament 14.6% of ambassadors 30% of formalemployment sector

+Maternal Care Poor access and education

6.7 million women who want access to family planning resources do not have it

60% of mothers who did not attend health facilities while giving birth do not see the benefits of delivering at a medical center The remaining 30% who abstain from going there cite culture and beliefs as

their reasoning

Ethiopian Church Silence on condoms Opposed to family planning

U.S. Helms Amendment U.S. funds cannot pay for safe abortions in cases of rape and incest or to

save the life of the mother 1/3 of pregnancy deaths are the result of unsafe abortions

+ Education 1994: first comprehensive education policy Challenges: Access, Equity, Relevance, Quality Factors: 1) Translating policy into practice, 2) Gender factors inhousehold decisions, and 3) Favoritism of boys Primary level enrollment continues to increase while secondary and tertiary

enrollment remain low Regional and rural/urban disparity Early marriage inhibits girls’ access to education:

80% of married girls have received no education, and 81% cannot read Only 3% of married girls ages 15-19 are in school, compared to 34% of

unmarried girls

+Child Brides

49.1% of Ethiopian girls marry before age 18 Most common age for girls to be married is 12

Girls from poor households twice as likely to marry before age 18 Girls younger than 15 are 5 times more likely to die from childbirth than women in their 20s or 30s Higher risk of contracting deadly STDs such as HIV

Girls ages 15-19 are 2 to 6 times more likely to contract HIV than boys Child brides show signs consistent with sexual and physical abuse—as well as PTSD—paired with feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, and severe depression

+Policy Recommendations

Representation: Implement community-based education programs to teach the importance of women in society Support and scale-up community programs

Maternal Care and Child Brides: USAID should reinterpret the Helms Amendment to allow U.S. funds to pay for safe abortions in the cases of rape and incest, and to save the life of the mother

Education: Improve access and quality by enforcing compulsory enrollment in primary school and providing incentives for attendance at the secondary and tertiary level, such as scholarships.

Provide economic opportunities for young women, such as teacher training workshops or microfinance groups

Promote national policies that prohibit harmful traditional norms

+

Thank you.

Questions?

+References Asfaw, Abraha. “Gender Inequalities in Tertiary Education in Ethiopia: Mediating

the Transition to University through the Development of Adaptive Competencies.” Global Scholars Program Working Paper Series: Working Paper 5 (November 2012). Center for Universal Education, the Brookings Institution. Print.

World Economic Forum (WEF). “The Global Gender Gap Report 2011.” World Economic Forum. 2012. 16 Dec. 2012. Web.

Ministry of Women’s Affairs (MoWA). “Ethiopia: Progress Made in the Implementation of the Beijing Platform for Action.” Government of Ethiopia. Mar. 2004. 1 Dec. 2012. Web.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). “Ethiopia.” Social Institutions & Gender Index. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 2012. 16 Dec. 2012. Web.

Inter-Parliamentary Union. “Women in National Parliaments.” Inter-Parliamentary Union. 31 Oct. 2012. 1 Dec. 2012. Web.

International Center for Research on Women. “Child Marriage Facts and Figures.” International Center for Research on Women. 2012. 6 Dec. 2012. Web.

PBS. “Child Marriage: What We Know.” PBS. 12 Oct. 2007. 6 Dec. 2012. Web. Ministry of Finance and Economic Development (MoFED). “Ethiopia: 2010 MDGs

Report: Trends and Prospects for Meeting MDGs by 2015.” United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Sep. 2010. 1 Dec. 2012. Web.