Dilemas de segundo orden en juegos de bienes públicos y comunales

3.3.4 Education in Ethiopia during the EPRDF period since 1991 up to now

The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopian government intended a newly designed Education and Training Policy in (1994). The educational structure was arranged as a 4 + 4 + 2 + 2 arrangement. These are four years of first cycle primary education (Grade 1 to Grade 4), four years of second cycle primary education (Grade 5 to Grade 8), two years of lower secondary education (Grade 9 to Grade 10) and two years of upper secondary education (Grade 11 & 12 preparatory education for university entrance). The first 10 years of education that is termed general education is free for all children.

The upper secondary education that leads to tertiary education has a cost-sharing arrangement in that students are charged fees. Since 1991 there were fundamental changes in Ethiopia education, the rapid expansion of primary schools, enrolment of pupils, and completion of educational levels were high annual abstract (MOE, 2013:36). The other achievement of this regime was, in regions where the language is relatively well developed and has sufficient a high number of teachers who are trained in that language, education in the mother tongue is given up to Grade eight, particularly in regions such as Oromiya, Amhara, and the Tigrayi Regional States. On the contrary, regions that use mother tongue up to Grade 6 resorted to the use of English language as an intermediate of teaching from Grade 7 uphill.

According to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (MOE, 2014:68), Ethiopia is devoted to the attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and country national Plan, the Growth and Transformational Plan (GTP I). Growth and Transformational Plan I was stipulated in (2010/11) and would be accomplished by 2014/15, with the aim of providing quality education. Enhancing access, equity, the relevance of curriculum and centre of excellence at all grades of learning, in particular for girls and children’s (Growth and Transformational Plan I, 2010:74-76).

The establishment of a sustainable economic growth in Ethiopia at present has motivated the allocation of educational funding sources. In Ethiopia, primary education is widely provided by the government in rural, towns and cities as well as by private individuals (MOE, 2013:40). Next, to access, the ranking of the stipulation of better quality education at all level of schooling and all level of school-going age pupils is becoming more and more an agenda by the government. However, owing to the existence of persistent problems that adversely affect the provision of the expected quality Education For All children in primary school remain a challenge (MOE, 2012/13:6-7). On the contrary, a document of National Learning Assessment

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(NLA) (2012: 10-13) indicates that considerable number of pupils repeat classes and do not complete their primary education as would be expected. This, in turn, affects quality education the level (MOE, 2012:18.) This might be accounted for the lack or insufficiency of parental involvement in the education sector with the full effort of their experience, knowledge and skills. Thus, the lack of adequate parental involvement in schools’ events with full awareness of why and how they participate (which would get a better quality education), as indicated in a document of Education Sector Development Programme ESDP IV, (2012/13:45) is one serious problem at primary level.

As Ethiopian education system arrangement kindergarten (KG) is the starting point for children’s schooling. Kindergarten is pre-elementary school learning with an estimated age of 3-6 years (MOE, 1994). Pre-primary education in Ethiopia would provide by the government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and even by private individuals. Nowadays, one rarely comes across a government primary school, especially, in cities and towns, which has not opened a KG in its compound. In Ethiopian education structure, only passing pre-primary schooling for children’s is not an obligatory condition for admission, especially in rural areas of the country. It becomes mandatory requirement only in urban and large cities (Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, MOE ESDP III).

Recently, great importance is given providing pre-primary education children who cannot come to schooling on the appropriate entering age of early day’s education with a goal to arrive 3 million children’s (69%) (MOE, 2014:76). Education and Training Policy of the country apparently indicate that children’s getting an age for the primary schooling level is seven years. However, in some cases, over-aged children are enrolled to give a chance for such pupils. Primary schooling nowadays is given by the government at large, in all over the country and by private in small-scale especially around cities and urban areas. In many cases, the number of students will be increased in alarming rate in all areas of the country until 1997. In 2014, there were about 23 million students registered in 31,000 elementary schools in the country and 26 million pupils in 2016 in 35,000 primary schools (MOE, annual abstracts, 2016: 23). Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, Ministry of Education School Improvement Programme (2009:68) postulates that in Ethiopia rapid economic growth realised since (2005) also realised colossal budget allocation for the sector in order to bring fast educational growth in primary schooling, particularly in cases of school buildings, infrastructure and increasing of inputs, like teachers and learner enrolments. For instance, in 1994, in primary schools gross

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enrolment rates (GER) was 20% compared to 96.8% and net enrolment rates (NER) was 15% compared to 92% in 2013 respectively. In recent years, this trend has highly increased, and be requiring sustainable intervention for quality education by involving parents in the management primary schools through introducing packages and putting in place appropriate programmes. Children’s dropout rate is one criterion that shows quality education indicators, through their eight years of their primary schooling. The result of this indicator shows us higher than 85% when compared with the completion rate for1994which was 42 percent the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, (MOE, 2012:7). According to the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, (MOE, 2009:26), access to education could be facilitated through non- formal education programmes (NFE) and alternative learning opportunities for the adolescents who cannot have time and enough money (for school uniform and other material expenses), or do not have the chances to follow official learning are offered and even waster at any level of schooling are also confident to register in this programme.

The researcher understands that even though the government takes all these efforts, parental involvement was still left destitute in terms owning the management and supervisory activities in their schools. Ministry of Education (2004:1) expresses the condition of its educational system in the primary school with resentment for its being characterised by low down change charge, namely 20 % in 1994. The Ministry notes that “there was high educational wastage in primary level to secondary level, but the primary one was too high”. As a researcher, the researcher understands the above notes as it resulted from parental low or reluctant participation in school and school activities.