The Daily Monitor (Addis Ababa) – Three inauguration ceremonies took place over the weekend for the construction of two Primary Schools in the SNNPRS, and Oromia regional states and a market centre in the same regional state which altogether cost 260,211USD ( Equivalent to 2,427768.63 Birr).
These projects were funded by the Embassy of Japan through the small grants scheme, namely the Grant Assistance for Grassroots and Human Security Projects (GGP).
Through the GGP alone, Japan has supported more than 100 education projects over the last 11 years across Ethiopia, amounting in total to 7.4 million US dollars, a statement from the Japanese embassy in Addis Ababa said.
The ceremonies were attended by government officials and other stakeholders, including Shiferaw Shigute, President of the SNNPR as well as Kinichi Komano, the Ambassador of Japan to Ethiopia.
The construction of the school in Awassa Zuria, SNNPRS (88,610USD) avoided for school age children having to travel an average of two hours a day along a busy road which discouraged parents to send children to the school and this contributed to a high drop-out rate at the school, according to the statement.
More over, the constructing of a school block (4 rooms), toilet (8 rooms) and rehabilitating an existing block (4 rooms), administrative block, and library for the Buku Weldeya Primary School in Oromia helped improve access as well as the quality of education, the statement said adding some necessary school furniture, such as desks/chairs and blackboards were provided.
And the marketing center together with a kiosk and restaurant in Arsi Negele town was constructed is hoped to improve marketing as well as increasing consumption of agricultural goods, so that farmers can gain more bargaining power with the agricultural goods they produced, according to the statement.
“The government of Japan firmly believes that education is the key to laying the foundation for economic and social development,” the embassy said in a statement.
“At the same time, it is vital to ensure that any development intervention should be implemented in an integrated manner if the community is to be empowered and the human security of the people is to be protected comprehensively.” Japan has launched AVI (African Village Initiative), Japan’s new initiative, to empower local communities by improving their livelihood through protecting and empowering each individual in a multi-sectoral way.
In Ethiopia, two project sites have been selected in two areas of Oromia (Arsi Negele and Arsi) where the Embassy of Japan has currently been implementing four projects in an integrated way, two in the education sector and the other two in the agricultural sector.