Overview of the Country

Background:

  • Official name: Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia1
  • Location: Horn of Africa2
  • Population: 109.5 million (2024 projection)3
  • Capital: Addis Ababa4
  • Official language: Amharic5
  • National languages: five working languages (Amharic, Oromo, Somali, Afar, and Tigrinya6
  • GDP: $163.7 billion (2023)7
  • GNI per capita, PPP: $2,748.5 (2023)8

Membership of Regional Economic Communities (RECs):

Additional Resources:

Sources:

  1. Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) (1995)
  2. IGAD Member State Profile (2023)
  3. Ethiopian Statistics Service (2025)
  4. Constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (FDRE) (1995)
  5. Ethiopian Population Census (2007)
  6. Ethiopian Population Census (2007)
  7. World Bank (2023)
  8. World Bank Statistics (2023) 

Key priorities:[1]

  • Achieving universal primary education (current Net Enrolment Ratio (NER): 95%) 
  • Improving transition rates from primary to secondary (currently low).
  • Reducing high pupil-teacher ratios (average 57:1 in primary)
  • Improving education quality (student-textbook ratio 3:1) 
  • Expanding STEM, digital education, and TVET programs (1.2 million enrolled in TVET in 2023)
  • Addressing gender, regional, and urban-rural disparities in access and completion
  • Enhancing girls' education (Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER): 89% female vs 92% male)

 

Policy and Strategy References: 

Additional Resources:


 

Governance Structure for Education:[1] [2]

The Federal Ministry of Education is comprised of two sub-sectors: the General Education sub-sector and the Higher Education sub-sector.

The General Education sub sector oversees pre-primary, elementary, middle, and secondary education across all regions and city administrations.  According to the School Improvement Portal, there are 56,618 schools providing education from grades 1 to 12 in the 2022/23 school year: 11,095 pre-primary schools, 37,412 elementary and middle schools, 3,791 secondary schools, and 4,320 centres. 

The Higher Education sub-sector has Teacher Education Colleges (TEC) and Universities. At present, 38 TEC across the country offer three-year diploma programs, available in regular, winter, and continuous (evening and weekend) classes, to train prospective teachers. Public higher education institutions are categorized into three focus areas: eight research universities, 17 universities of applied sciences, and 21 public universities, contributing to an overall total of 46 universities. Additionally, the private sector has established 659 colleges of private higher education and five private universities.

Based on the organizational structure (organigram), the Ministry of Education (MoE) oversees general education. It has sector institutions managed under four entities: Universities, Regional Bureaus, Agencies, and College of Teachers Education (CTE). According to the proclamation No. 1263/2021, the Ministry of Education has the power and function to, among others:

  • Initiate education policies, strategies, laws and programs.
  • Formulate a general framework of education curricula.
  • Set standards and national qualification frameworks.
  • Oversee and coordinate the process of preparation of national examinations.
  • Devise strategies that enhance higher education institutions capacity in study and research.
  • Facilitate linkages between research and industry.
  • Oversee performance of public higher education institutions.
  • Ensure equity in student admissions and placements and delivery of quality and relevant education.
  • Implement the powers and duties under Higher Education Proclamation No. 1152/2019

The Federal TVET Institute manages vocational training in general, and skills training to teachers or industry technicians. It offers short- or long-term training designed to change the life of young Ethiopians. The Higher Education Relevance and Quality Agency (HERQA) facilitates accreditation, reaccreditation, campus expansion, program expansion and enrolment size expansion of higher education institutions.

Education System Structure:[3]

The 1994 Education Training Policy of Ethiopia established eight years of primary education, with the first cycle for grades 1-4, and the second cycle for grades 5-8. Similarly, the secondary education has also two cycles: first cycle for grades 9-10 and the second cycle grades 11-12. The first cycle secondary education prepares students for academic programs and for enrolment in vocational education. The second cycle prepares students to choose subjects leading to higher education that has more than 50 universities.  

Additional Resources:

Teferra et all. (2017). Ethiopian Education Development Roadmap 2017-2030. Ministry of Education. 


 

School age population (2023):[1]

  • Primary: 25.6 million  
  • Secondary: 12.3 million  

Gross enrolment ratio:[2]

  • Pre-Primary: 56.7% female / 58.8% male; Students with SENs):  3.3% female / 4.1% male.
  • Primary: 102.2% female / 109.9% male; Students with SENs):  10.5% female / 12.8% male.
  • Secondary: 37.2% female / 35.9% male; Students with SENs):  3.4% female / 3.7% male.

Refugee Education:[3]

  • Pre-Primary GER: 55.8% female / 57.5% male
  • Primary GER: 40.8% female / 51.5% male
  • Secondary GER: 8.1% female / 19.7% male

Completion rates:[4]   

  • Primary: 67.1% female / 67.9% male
  • Lower Secondary: 61.8% female / 58.8% male

Repetition and Dropout Rates:[5]

  • Primary: Dropout – 16.3% female / 18.3% male; Repetition – 2.9% female / 3.0% male
  • Lower Secondary: Dropout – 17.8% female / 23.3% male; Repetition – 12.5% female / 10.7% male

Survival Rate to Grade 7:[6]

  • 34.8% female / 29.7% male

Number of Out of School Children:[7]

  • Total: 2,187,570
  • Female: 1,424,020
  • Male: 763,550


 

The National Educational Assessment and Examination Agency (NEAEA) administers national exams (Grade 4, Grade 8, Grade 10, Grade 12). Some of these national examinations determine which students can move from one level of education to the next. Among students who took the examination for Grade 12 in October 2022, 3.3% scored high enough to be able to join public universities.[1]

National Examinations is a census-based assessment that takes place in grades 10 and 12; National Learning Assessment (NLA) is a sample-based assessment undertaken in the exit cycle of primary and secondary education (grades 4, 8, 10 and 12). Early grade literacy and numeracy assessment, on the other hand, is conducted at grades 2 and 3. Both the National Examinations and the NLA have been administered based on the national education and training policy and curricula of the country.[2]

Learning Poverty:[3]

  • Percentage of primary-age children not proficient in reading: 90%

 

Out-of-School:[4]

  • Share of primary school-aged children not enrolled in school: 14% (17.2% female / 10.9% male).

 

Below Minimum Proficiency (MPL):[5]

  • Proportion of children who do not achieve the minimum proficiency level (MPL) at the end of primary school: 89%

 

Learning poverty gender gap comparison:[6]

  • Human Capital Index: 0.38 (0.39 female / 0.38 male)
  • Learning-adjusted Years of Schooling: 4.5 (4.3 female / 4.7 male)

 

Grade 12 Examination (percentage of students who scored 50% and above):[7]

  • Natural Science: 8.8% (6.9% female / 10.2% male)
  • Social Science: 2.4% (1.9% female / 2.8% male)
  • Total: 5.4% (4.2% female / 6.5% male)

 

Additional Resources:

 


 

Percentage of teachers qualified according to the national standards:[1]

  • Pre-primary: 74.0% female / 11.5% male
  • Primary and Middle 33.0% female / 42.0% male
  • Secondary: 18.5% female / 73.7% male

Percentage of appropriately qualified teachers:[2]

  • Primary and Middle 8.2% female / 61.0% male
  • Secondary: 4.0% female / 51.7% male
  • Secondary: 18.5% female / 73.7% male

Percentage of qualified school supervisors:[3]

  • Primary and Middle 5.5% female / 79.3% male


 

School infrastructure and facilities:[1]

  • Percentage of Primary and Middle schools at level 3 and above: 12.9%
  • Percentage of Secondary schools at level 3 and above: 32.3%

Note: Level 1 schools have the lowest scores and require significant improvement, Level 2 schools are under progress and Level 3 and Level 4 schools meet most of the standards (Ministry of Education, 2013).

Inputs and infrastructure:[2]

  • Percentage of primary and middle schools with access to electricity: 28.5%
  • Percentage of primary and middle schools with functional libraries: 38.7%
  • Percentage of primary and middle schools with functional libraries: 38.7%
  • Percentage of primary and middle schools with functional laboratories: 10.9%
  • Percentage of primary and middle schools with functional pedagogical centers: 41.4%
  • Percentage of secondary schools with access to computers (multimedia teaching facilities): 62.1%
  • Percentage of secondary schools with functional laboratories: 30%
  • Percentage of secondary schools with functional pedagogical centers: 47.2%

Inputs and infrastructure:[3]

  • Percentage of schools with functioning toilets:  Overall 41.3 / Urban 45.1 / Rural 17.5
  • Percentage of schools with drinking water: Overall 69.6 / Urban 74.8 / Rural 36.9
  • Percentage of schools with access to internet: Overall 15.8 / Urban 16.4 / Rural 6
  • Percentage of schools with access to electricity: Overall 70.3 / Urban 78 / Rural 21.2
  • Percentage of schools accessible to children with SENs: Overall 67.7 / Urban 69.4 / Rural 57.9


 

TVET is a government priority for youth employment and skills development. The Ministry of Science and Higher Education (MSHE) is responsible for Ethiopia's TVET system.[1]

TVET institutions and share of youth in employment and NEET categories:[2]

  • Number of TVET institutions (2021): Over 1, 600 (673 public, 883 private, and 57 NGO-managed
  • Percentage of youth in the formal sector: 66%
  • Percentage of youth in TVET by gender: 46% female / 54% male
  • Percentage of youth in the NEET category: 11.3% (16.3% female / 6.3% male)

 

Assessment of TVET graduates in Addis Ababa (2012):[3]

  • Total number of colleges: 38.
  • Total number of graduates: 10,085
  • Number of graduates assessed: 3,5004
  • Percentage of graduates assessed: 35%
  • Percentage of graduates found to be competent: 10%

 

National TVET policies and systems:[4]

  • Number of TVET centers: 582 (2017)
  • Student enrollment in TVET centers: 300,000 (51% female) (2016/2017)
  • Share of students attending non-governmental TVET institutions: 13.5% (2016/2017) (MOE, 2016).
  • Share of secondary school students enrolled in TVET programmes: 12% (2016/17), accounting for only 35% of total university enrolment.
  • Urban youth unemployment (25–29 age groups): 24.2%
  • Percentage of competent instructors (2,311 assessed): 53%
  • Ratio of TVET trainers to trainees: 11%

 

Other key statistics:[5]

  • Youth population (ages 15-24): 26,961,000
  • Participation of youth (15-24) in education and training: 49.3%
  • Enrolment in vocational programmes, secondary level: 7% (52.3% female)
  • Number of TVET registrants by gender (2015/16): 302,083 (51.32% female)
  • Youth unemployment: 5.4%

 

Ethiopia’s TVET system needs government attention to overcome the many challenges it currently faces. More specifically, the Ministry of Education’s Education Sector Development Programme IV (ESDP IV) calls for better-quality TVET, both formal and non-formal; improved responsiveness of TVET to the needs of the labour market; the establishment of outcome-based approaches; and the promotion of medium-sized and small enterprises using new technologies. 

Wider access to higher education, especially science and technology, is also seen as paramount, as is high-quality training and relevant professional inputs to improve employability.[6]


 

Student enrollment in all qualifications:[1]

  • Total: 765,930 (38.6% female)
  • Government: 64.3% (of which 31.7% female)
  • Non-Government: 35.7% (of which 50.9% female)

Enrollment by Mode of Admission:[2]

  • Regular: 59.4% (of which 65.2% government with 31.4% female; 50.9% female for non-government) 
  • Distance: 25.4% non-government and 1.34% government
  • On-line: 0.6% (all non-government)

Number of Enrollments for Students with Special Needs in Government HEIs:[3]

  • Blind: 160 (47 female / 113 male) 
  • Deaf: 22 (9 female / 13 male)
  • Mute: 1 female
  • Physically challenged: 40 (13 female / 27 male)

National Exit Exam Pass Rate by Ownership:[4]

  • Number registered: 190.292 (94,827 government / 95,465 private)
  • Percentage that sat: 82.1% (92.9% government / 71.4% private) 
  • Pass rate: 38.5% (58.0% government / 13.2% private)

Number of accredited Higher Education institutions:[5]

  • Total: 50+


 

Gender Parity Index (GPI) / gross enrolment ratio:[1]

  • GPI Pre-Primary: 0.96
  • GPI Primary: 0.93
  • GPI Middle level: 1.03
  • GPI Upper secondary: 1.04
  • GER Pre-Primary, SENs: 3.3 female / 4.1 male
  • GER Primary, SENs: 10.5 female / 12.8 male
  • GER Secondary, SENs: 3.4 female / 3.7 male
  • Number of female graduates in youth and adult life skills education: 817, 056.


 

  • Education receives about 20% of the national budget, but funding gaps remain.
  • Heavy reliance on donor funding for infrastructure and materials.
  • Households bear costs for uniforms, materials, and secondary fees.

Expenditure on Education:[1]

  • Government expenditure on education as a percentage of GDP: 2.3% (2024)
  • Expenditure on education as a percentage of total government expenditure: 16.7% (2024)


 

  1. Adult Literacy Rate (15+ years):[1]
    • UNESCO (2023 estimate): ~51.8%
      (Male: ~57%, Female: ~44%)
  2. Youth Literacy Rate (15-24 years):[2]
    • UNESCO (2023 estimate): ~70%
      (Male: ~73%, Female: ~67%)

Literacy rate by sex (2017):[3]

  • Youth (15-24 years): 71% female / 74% male
  • Adult (15 years and above):  44% female / 59% male

 

Key Factors Affecting Literacy in Ethiopia:[4]

  • Gender disparity (higher male literacy).
  • Regional disparities (higher in urban areas like Addis Ababa vs. rural regions).
  • Government efforts: The MoE has been implementing adult literacy programs and expanding primary education.


 

Percentage of schools with access to internet:[1]

  • Overall: 15.8%
  • Urban: 16.4%
  • Rural: 6% 

Percentage of schools with functional pedagogical centers:[2]

  • Primary and middle schools: 41.4%
  • Secondary schools: 47.2%

Percentage of secondary schools with access to computers: 62.1%[3]

Percentage of the population using internet: 24%[4]  

Proportion of households with access to radio and TV channels:[5]

  • Radio: 42% urban / 29% rural
  • TV: 61% urban / 11% rural

Mobile network coverage, national: 90%[6]

 

Additional resources:


 

Refugee Education:[1]

  • Pre-Primary GER: 55.8% female / 57.5% male
  • Primary GER: 40.8% female / 51.5% male
  • Secondary GER: 8.1% female / 19.7% male