Expanding school feeding in Ethiopia
The expansion of school feeding in Tigray, Ethiopia, has led to schools in the region resuming normal operations and an increase in student enrolment.
In our first update from Ethiopia article, I wrote about how your response to our “Crisis in Ethiopia” appeal in 2024 has enabled us to triple the reach of our school feeding programme in the region.
In this article, I talk to Abraha Bahlbi, Head of School Feeding at Daughters of Charity – our partner in Tigray – about how the aftermath of the recent conflict and drought continues to present challenges for our school feeding programme, and the impact of Mary’s Meals’ school feeding programme on communities in Tigray.
Mary’s Meals: Could you talk about the main challenges you face in reaching children with meals in Tigray?
Abraha Bahlbi: The challenge we face is in prioritising districts and schools where we should work because all the areas are facing similar issues. Despite the incredible support we’ve received, we can’t reach all of the schools we would like to, and we know that students are dropping out from those schools due to lack of food. We often see many children facing acute food insecurity.
The education system has virtually collapsed, with an alarming 80% of facilities damaged and numerous schools still occupied by internally displaced people especially in urban areas. 1.4 million children have been out of school for almost four years, suffering from hunger and trauma.
On top of this, widespread food scarcity continues to impact the number of children in school, and only 42% of the students who were expected to enrol this year have done so.
What impact has the recent conflict had on the region?
The brutal regional conflict that broke out in November 2020 and lasted two years caused serious damage to Tigray’s infrastructure and caused extremely high levels of food insecurity. It is estimated that around 4.5 million people in Tigray are in need of immediate food assistance.
There have also been significant fuel shortages in the past few months, which is creating difficult situations to deliver our food to the districts and schools. Added to this, the price of food and other items is increasing.
Another challenge is water shortage in schools and the surrounding communities. The war destroyed more than 74% of the water infrastructure and water points, as they were either looted or damaged.
How has our “Crisis” appeal helped to expand school feeding in Ethiopia?
In a response to extreme hunger being experienced by children across Tigray, Daughters of Charity worked with Mary’s Meals to rapidly expand its school feeding operation – more than tripling the number of children receiving meals in the region. The programme is now reaching more than 110,000 children in over 200 schools.
Another positive result is that schools that were closed due to the war and drought have returned to normal teaching. For example, in one of our districts, Abergele, two schools were on the verge of closing due to hunger. After being included in the Mary’s Meals school feeding programme [expansion], those schools have resumed normal operations.
We have also witnessed a gradual increment of enrolment of students. For example, at Abidera School in Atsbi district, around 176 children who had not registered due to difficulties returned after the school feeding programme was implemented. And among those who returned, 75% were girls.
Finally, what impact has school feeding had on communities in Tigray?
Before the feeding programme, even though most parents wanted to send their children to school, they were not able to provide them with a basic meal for the day. Thus, many children stayed home on empty stomachs and many of them dropped out of school.
Since Mary’s Meals school feeding programme began, parents no longer worry about sending their children to school. This is a huge relief for the parents, communities and teachers
We also continually work together with local contacts to resolve the challenges such as fuel and water shortages and it means we’re able to deliver the food and non-food items within our planned time and schedule.
All in all, these collective efforts foster hope in the children of Tigray, giving them a vision of a brighter future.
It costs just £19.15, €22, $25.20 USD or $31.70 CAD to provide a child with school meals for an entire school year. Learn how the promise of a daily meal at school enables the children we serve in Ethiopia to receive an education.
Shona Shea is our Senior Content Manager and has worked closely with our programme teams for the last 10 years, to collect and share the stories of our work with supporters across the world. Last year she spent time with our partner in Ethiopia, visiting schools and communities in Tigray.