H.E. Queen Mathilde of the Belgians, Honorary Chairperson of UNICEF Belgium, meets H.E. President Mulatu Teshome of Ethiopia

Addis Ababa, 13 November 2015 – Queen Mathilde of the Belgians, Honorary Chairperson of UNICEF Belgium travelled to Ethiopia from 9 to 12 November to witness first hand programmes where UNICEF supports the Ethiopian Government in order to achieve results for children, especially in the areas of child survival and girls and women’s empowerment. 

On the first day, while visiting Yekatit 12 hospital in Addis-Ababa, the Queen declared: “I am impressed by the commitment of the medical staff, men and women. They provide not only care for babies, they also teach mothers how best to take care of their new-borns. Mothers themselves also receive care. It’s a global approach.” She also stressed the importance of birth registration: “a child who is not registered does not legally exist and cannot be protected.” 

Although huge strides have been made, harmful traditional practices still persist in the country. During her visit to Oda Sentela Primary School in Gursum Town, Oromia Region, the Queen could see how UNICEF, through supporting the Government, contributes to the reduction of child marriage and female genital mutilation. While meeting with young school girls, active in awareness raising, she told them, “I am impressed with your work in changing harmful traditions. I strongly encourage you to go on. You will be a model for the next generation.”

While visiting a water supply scheme in Gursum Town, the Queen witnessed how bringing clean water to communities has an enormous social and economic impact. “Not only can girls, who in the past walked many hours to fetch water, attend school and be safer, clean water obviously dramatically improves the community’s health situation,” she said.  

Queen Mathilde was moved by the sick children she met on the third day of her visit. But she underlined “I know that through the commitment of the health workers, their situation will improve.”

On her last day, she met with H.E. Dr Mulatu Teshome, President of Ethiopia. Speaking in the name of UNICEF Belgium, the Queen thanked the people of Ethiopia for their warm welcome and encouraged them to continue their efforts in the years to come in order to give each boy and girl a fair chance in life.

See pictures here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/unicefethiopia/albums/72157658825665103

A meeting of the Bandani Kebele Community Conversation Group which advocates against child marriage, Saguma village, Bandani Kebele, Dangla Woreda (District) ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mersha

“We are not just talking about change, we are stopping children from marrying.” A group of determined men and women from various villages in the Dangla Woreda (District) of Amhara, Ethiopia, sit under a tree among a verdant landscape of hills and pasture. Cattle, donkeys, goats, and the steep banks of a river in view. There is a food surplus in this area, the harvest having been plentiful. The talk is lively and incessant as the group discuss their antipathy towards child marriage and their unified commitment to see the practise eliminated in the Kebele (neighbourhood) of Bandani. Known as the Community Conversation Group (CCG), the 35 men and 35 women come from many of the 550 households in Bandani. All are considered influential community members, be that as elders, health workers, religious leaders or members of the Women’s Development Group.

Atalele Abera, 35, a member of the local Women’s Development Group and of Bandani Kebele’s Community Conversation Group against Child Marriage, Amhara, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mersha

Atalele Abera, 35, a member of the Women’s Development Group, comments: “Our group influences other women and most women want to engage in discussions on child marriage. There were 130 child marriages in this Kebele last year. School is far away and parents fear violence against their children and defilement if they send them on the long journey to school. Many cannot afford to educate their children. I have three children and limited the size of my family by using contraception, so I could ensure they would all be educated.”
Almost every member of the CCG was themselves married either as a child or to a child. They have also faced the decision whether or not to marry their own pre-pubescent daughters and sons. Those who did, now openly regret it, because of the resulting family poverty and the compromised life particularly their daughters now live.

The CCG has “Eyes” and “Ears” members who are tasked with reporting what they see and hear regarding child marriage, prior to a fortnightly meeting, hosted by the Community Conversation Facilitator, Girma Demlash, 30.

The CCG is part of a comprehensive programme against child marriage involving multiple stakeholders. The programme is run by the local government, the Dangla Women, Children and Youth Affairs Office (WCYAO), supported by UNICEF.

Yitayesh Akalu, Expert at the Dangla WCYAO comments: “We have undertaken several trainings with community members on how to implement the UNICEF social mobilisation project against child marriage. That includes how to establish a change group known as a Community Conversation Group. We have trained 10 male and 10 female Community Conversation Facilitators so far. This is the first time we have conducted a comprehensive programme in Dangela Woreda. It is a multi-sectoral programme involving health, education, justice, the community and livelihoods, in the form of a fund to support parents to educate their girls instead of marry them.”

Girma Demlash, Community Conversation Facilitator, comments: “We are very grateful to UNICEF for helping us facilitate the community conversations. Everyone who takes part is committed to ending chid marriage. We have just prevented two marriages – those of a 10 year old and a 13 year old girl – from going forward as a result of the girls reporting to us that their parents were in the process of arranging their marriages. We are not just talking about change, we are stopping children from marrying.”

“I go to visit new mothers seven days after giving birth to give them iron, and it is then I will refer them to hospital if they are suffering from fistula. I referred two women recently,” explains Hebeste Admas, 26, a Health Extension Worker at a local health post in the Bandani Kebele (neighbourhood) of the Dangla Woreda (district) in Amhara, Ethiopia.

Hebeste continues, “Child marriage results in so many other health consequences including miscarriage and stunting of the child. A girl’s uterus may be damaged from intercourse and she will suffer great psychological distress. I have seen all of this.”

Yitayesh Akalu, Expert at the Dangla Women, Children and Youth Affairs Office comments: “The problem of fistula is so huge we have dedicated fistula health centres. Fistula happens mostly to child and adolescent mothers as a result of intense and prolonged labour – their bodies are simply not developed enough to give birth. We have community ambulances so that fistula cases can be treated straight away. A girl will be transported by youth groups carrying her on a bed until they get to an accessible area where the ambulance will collect her.”

Hebeste has been a Health Extension Worker since she was 17, and her role includes teaching community members about the health consequences of child marriage.

“In my 9 years as a Health Extension Worker I have seen a decline in child marriage as a result of community awareness, and I do believe the practice will stop. I report cases to the police. There is no confidentiality as they are breaking the law. However people hold alternative ceremonies in secret to hide that it is a child marriage – at night or at dawn. Then the girl disappears and the family say she has gone to live with an aunt.”

Hebeste continues: “But local health workers like me know every pregnant woman and the Women’s Development Groups and Health Development Groups who look after the wellbeing of girls and prevent them marrying, operate at the village level. So we know. The development armies report to me and I report cases to the health centre and police.”

Hebeste notes the way girls who are forced to marry are not as able to protect their own health and plan their families. She explains: “There is a real difference between older and younger women who are married. Adult women come to me for family planning services without the knowledge or consent of their husband. Whereas when girls marry as children, they do not understand the consequences of sex, they are not empowered to seek advice, and so they do not come to me.

“I have had parents bring their daughter to me ahead of marriage saying they want contraceptives for her to try and avoid the complications of childbirth. The girl told me she was really scared to be marrying an adult man. I reported them.”

By Stephen O’Brien, António Guterres, Ertharin Cousin and Anthony Lake*

Zahara Ali, 9, cooks breakfast in a rural village in Dubti Woreda, Afar Region, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Bindra

Those who remember Ethiopia in the 1980s may feel a disturbing sense of déjà vu. The country is once again facing devastating climatic conditions: rains have failed; millions of people need food aid; children are suffering from severe malnutrition. But this is not the Ethiopia of the 1980s. With the leadership of the government and the support of the international community, Ethiopians can survive this crisis without witnessing a repeat of the devastating famine that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives 30 years ago.

The facts are frightening enough. Two back-to-back seasons of poor or non-existent rainfall, exacerbated by the strongest El Niño phenomenon on record, have led to the worst drought in decades. At the beginning of this year, less than three million Ethiopians needed government support. Today, that figure stands at an estimated ten million, and forecasts indicate that it could double within months.

In a country that already hosts the largest refugee population in Africa, many are concerned that the looming crisis could lead people, particularly farmers, to move in search of food, water and pasture.

By early next year, projections indicate that 400,000 children could suffer from Severe Acute Malnutrition, a potentially fatal condition that requires immediate treatment. Some children who suffer from SAM may have massive loss of body fat and muscle tissue and look almost elderly; others can look puffy and their hair may be thinning. Both sets of symptoms mean there is a high risk of death. Even when it is treated successfully, SAM can affect physical and mental development throughout a child’s entire life.

We know this is coming. We know how to prevent it. We simply have to act, now.

The key to stopping this crisis in its tracks is early warning followed by decisive action. And the Ethiopian government is leading the way. Its safety net programme, the largest in Africa, will assist eight million of the poorest Ethiopians to access food. By linking agricultural training and asset creation, the programme has already made Ethiopian families and communities far more resilient to drought, famine and food price spikes.

Coupled with investment in infrastructure including the roads that are vital to move supplies around, this means conditions for emergency relief have changed beyond recognition in the past 30 years. But what has not changed is the harsh and unpredictable climate that can cause sudden, sharp hunger in a country where more than 80 per cent of people depend on agriculture.

The Government has raised the alarm and international aid agencies have tried to mobilize funds and action. But with multiple crises around the world and record numbers of people displaced by conflict, they have had limited success. There are many claims on donor funds and by global standards, Ethiopia does not look urgent.

By the time it looks urgent, it will already be too late. We must not repeat the mistake of 30 years ago, when the world ignored the unfolding crisis for far too long and only heeded the alarm when the situation was beyond control.

This time, we need urgent, rapid action to scale up our support to the Ethiopian government and people. And the good news is that we have every chance of success. By investing now, we can safeguard three decades of development and billions of dollars of assistance that have helped Ethiopia to become one of the most successful economies on the African continent. UN agencies, the Red Cross and Red Crescent movements, and international and local charities are on standby to increase their help. All they need is reliable funding.

So far, donors have provided an additional $200 million in aid, but there are early indications that the amount needed to make sure lives are not lost could be around $1 billion. Ethiopia needs that money now, if we are to avert a second tragedy in 30 years.

UNICEF calls for ambitious action on climate change

Mother and children take ITNS home through swamps along the Baro River ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2005/Getachew

PARIS, 10 December 2015 – Children are already paying a heavy price for the world’s inaction on climate change, UNICEF said.

 “The future of today’s children, particularly the most disadvantaged, is at stake,” said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, speaking at an event at the 21^st United Nations climate change conference in Paris, known as COP21. “Sadly, we are failing them. Because today’s children are disproportionately bearing the brunt of the effects of our changing climate. They are paying for our failure with their health and safety. With their futures. And too often, with their lives.”

A UNICEF report ‘Unless we act now – The impact of climate change on children’ points out that climate change brings more droughts, floods, heatwaves and other severe weather conditions, which contribute to the increased spread of major killers of children such as malnutrition, malaria and diarrhoea. The report also shows that over half a billion children live in areas where floods are extremely frequent, and thus are highly exposed to climate change. Many of those children are in countries with high levels of poverty.

“We can no longer allow our collective inaction on climate change to perpetuate a vicious cycle that condemns the most disadvantaged children to lives with little hope, at the mercy of disasters beyond their control,” Lake said.

In addition to cutting emissions, steps need to be taken to reduce inequities among children, Lake said, citing the need for investments in health and other essential services and in basic infrastructure that can withstand climate-related disasters.

“The path the world chooses here in Paris will indelibly mark humanity’s future,” Lake said. “History will judge us. And most importantly, our children will — and should — judge us for our stewardship of the planet they will inherit.”

 Lake spoke at an event jointly hosted with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), which featured discussions amongst civil society and young people about ways to reduce the impact of climate risks on the most vulnerable children.

Ethiopia: Government and humanitarian partners launch the Humanitarian Requirements Document (HRD) for 2016

Fartun Hassan, 25, mother of 4, makes her way home in Yahas-Jamal Keble in Somali region of Ethiopia 11 February 2014 ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Ose

Addis Ababa, 11 December 2015: The Government of Ethiopia and humanitarian partners today launched the joint Humanitarian Requirements Document (HRD) for 2016. The appeal seeks $1.4 billion to provide 10.2 million people with emergency food assistance; 5.8 million people with water, health and sanitation; and more than 2.1 million people with nutrition including 400,000 severely malnourished children. The HRD also identifies funding requirements for education, agriculture and livelihoods, emergency shelter and relief items, displacement, and targeted assistance for women and children.

The impact of this global El Niño climactic event followed failed spring rains and led to erratic summer rains in Ethiopia, and contributed to one of the worst droughts in decades. Resultant spikes in food insecurity, malnutrition, water shortages, and health concerns surged well beyond global emergency thresholds and compelled a massive increase in emergency assistance by the Government and humanitarian partners. The needs presented in the HRD for 2016 were established through a robust, Government-led interagency assessment that resulted in a strategic overview and objectives, sector implementation plans, and detailed funding requirements.

The impact of the El Niño-driven disaster will be most acutely felt in the months ahead. “The Government has, and continues to provide exemplary leadership for humanitarian responses to the emergency,” said Ms Ahunna Eziakonwa-Onochie, the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Ethiopia.

“The Government has responded immediately, put forth its own resources, and led calls on the international community to scale-up response and funding. The humanitarian system and donor partners are moving quickly to step up, which is very encouraging,” Ms Eziakonwa-Onochie further noted.

“The highest priority remains food – some $1.1 billion is urgently required for emergency food assistance,” said Ms Gillian Mellsop, UNICEF’s Representative to Ethiopia. “We are confident donors will quickly provide this support, as this can prevent needless suffering and far more costly specialized nutrition interventions if we act now. In addition to emergency food aid, we must ensure nutrition, water and health are effectively resourced to meet urgent gaps as well.”

Mr Amadou Allahoury Diallo, FAO’s Representative to Ethiopia, stated, “We must capitalize upon the opportunity to utilize available water to support small-holder farmers for short cycle crops to restore livelihoods and reduce food importation.”

“In many areas its simply didn’t rain” said Mr Paul Handley, OCHA’s Head of Office. “This, in addition to affecting livelihoods, dried up potable water sources and affects nutrition and health concerns. Addressing this is a critical priority of the HRD for 2016.”

The Ethiopia Humanitarian Country Team further calls on development partners and the Development Assistance Group to continue to work closely together to safeguard development gains and to identify durable solutions to cyclical humanitarian needs.

Zelalem Belay, 70, Elder, speaks in front of Bandani Kebele’s Community Conversation Group against Child Marriage, Amhara, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mersha

Zelalem Belay, 70, is a respected Community Elder and member of the Community Conversation Group against Child Marriage in the Bandani Kebele (neighbourhood) of the Dangla Woreda (district) in Amhara, Ethiopia.

He stands in front of the gathered crowd and speaks with absolute humility and sincerity as he discusses his personal regrets over marrying his daughters when they were children: “At my age I have to tell the truth. Why hide when I can stand here and tell the truth for the betterment of my community,” Zelalem says.

“At first I opposed the change in culture away from chid marriage. I was resisting what the role of the poor girls could be. What options do poor children have? I thought. But I have since become convinced child marriage is not right. I have changed my mind. By supporting poor girls with economic incentives so they can continue their education, there is a different future for them and for their families”, explains Zelalem.

“I was married at 18, to a ten year old girl, but she kept running back to her family. She wanted no physical attachment to me. So three months later I had a second marriage to a 15 year old – it was easy to arrange quickly as my father was wealthy. My first wife, her parents sent her back to school and she married again a few years later.”

Zelalem Belay, 70, Elder, a member of Bandani Kebele’s Community Conversation Group against Child Marriage, Amhara, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mersha

Zelalem continues: “So you see, in my former life, I had good assets, with family land and property, but then we did not see education as important. But now, those who are educated, they have a higher position than those with just land. A district judge, a school principle – they educate their children so that they have a position in society, they dress well.

Zelalem’s gaze is firm, his voice unwavering as he explains the impact on one of his children: “One daughter, I married her at 15, she gave birth immediately but she is now divorced. I sent her back to school. But she did not perform well. Her life was disturbed and miserable.

“So I strongly advise against child marriage. It is a bad experience for the boy and the girl. If there is a young girl and older man, she will not be responsible for the house and he will always be out spending his money on other women.”

The day before, a neighbour had come to consult Zelalem over marrying his 11 year old daughter. Zelalem explains: “I told him the law and that the marriage may not work out. That he will have lost property in agreeing to a marriage that does not last – divorce when people marry as children is common. I told him his daughter will probably run away. If she runs away to the city she could end up as a sex worker, trying to support herself. Many end up in cities working in local bars. They have nothing to fall back on.

“My life experience tells me that if you marry with an equal age and love each other – when it is a choice – and you share household responsibilities equally, then the marriage will prosper. They can run a business together, the husband can source raw materials and the wife can use them to make local beer to sell. It is a better life.

“I dream to get back to be like a child, and to live such a life.”

KOICA Country Director, Doh Young Ah and UNICEF representative to Ethiopia, Gillian Mellsop sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to work together in a Maternal and Child Health (MCH) care project. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Sewunet

Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) announces US$ 9 million support to UNICEF for “Community Based Newborn Care” today in the UNICEF Ethiopia office. This financial support will be implemented in five zones of SNNP, Oromia and Benishangul Gumuz regions of Ethiopia.

The agreement was signed by KOICA Country Director, Doh Young Ah and UNICEF representative to Ethiopia, Gillian Mellsop.

KOICA’s support aims to strengthen Ethiopian government’s efforts to improve maternal and newborn health in hard to reach areas building mainly on the Health Extension Program and the Primary Health Care platform. Over 150,000 pregnant women and their newborns will benefit from this generous support per year, reaching over 300,000 mother-baby pairs in the coming years.

In collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Health, Regional Health Bureaus, the Ethiopia Midwifery and Paediatric associations, NGOs, donors and academic institutions, the programme aims to scale up maternal and newborn care in 5 zones covering a total population of 4 million between 2015 and 2018. This programme will contribute to the national scaling up of evidence based high impact interventions to improve maternal and newborn health at community and health facilities levels.

The combination of innovative, evidence-based strategies and the government’s long legacy of leadership on maternal, newborn and child survival is yielding impressive results. Ethiopia achieved MDG 4 three years ahead of schedule by cutting under-five mortality from 205 per 1,000 live births in 1990 to 68 per 1,000 in 2012. Ethiopia’s progress illustrates that countries can achieve dramatic declines in child mortality, despite constrained resources.

See photos here 

By Johnny Magdaleno

Moges Teshome 3 years old with his mother Kokeb Nigusse in Romey Kebele, Deneba Woreda, Ethiopia. ©UNICEFEthiopia/2015/Michael Tsegaye

Moges dashes across the grass with a herding whip in hand. At three years old he can’t make it crack like his father or the other men in Romey Kebele (sub-district), a pastoralist area a few hours outside Addis Ababa where his family lives. But he smiles proudly as he loops it in wide circles around his head.

Today, Moges is beaming with life and colour. Three years ago, he was close to death as pneumonia and diarrhoea nearly robbed him of his life within months of his birth.

Muluemebet Balcha, one of the Health Extension Workers (HEW) that helped save Moges’ life, remembers how distraught his mother was. Ms. Muluemebet had contacted her to offer postnatal care for Moges through the Ethiopian government’s Health Extension Programme (HEP). “She was desperate. She thought the child would have died,” she said.

“I gave him treatment and on the second day he got well. I was very happy to see him survive,” she remembers.

Prior to becoming this kebele’s first HEW, Ms. Muluemebet says not all new-borns in the area were as lucky as Moges. “Before that training was given so many children who encountered the same problem died,” she said. The HEP has done wonders for families in hard-to-reach rural areas like Moges’ ever since it was established in 2003.

Health Extension Worker Haimanot Hailu checks two month old Moges Teshome’s breathing to determine if his pneumonia has improved. © UNICEF Ethiopia/2012/Getachew

With help from UN agencies like UNICEF, it continues to grow. As of 2015 there were more than 38,000 HEWs like Ms. Muluemebet working in over 16,000 health posts across the country. Each health post serves around 5,000 people, meaning the vast majority of Ethiopia’s population of 99 million are within reach of free, basic health care.

Teshome Alemu, Moges’ father, says he owes his child’s life to the HEWs. “To go to [the nearest hospital] you may not even afford the transportation cost,” he said. “If you don’t have money, you can suffer a lot. The children will also suffer.”

“The provision of this service in our Kebele is very beneficial,” he added.

In September 2013 Ethiopia turned heads around the world by announcing it had achieved Millennium Development Goal 4, which pushed for a reduction of child mortality rates by 67 percent, three years ahead of its 2015 deadline. What started as 205 deaths for every 1,000 children in 1990 tapered off to 59 deaths per 1,000 in 2015. While developments in technology and new levels of political support are partially responsible for this drop, the HEP was a key driver in making this improvement a reality.

Meeting MDG 4 was a milestone in the country’s history, but HEWs aren’t claiming “mission accomplished” quite yet.

“The size of kebeles and their population means they cannot be covered by one HEW. I am the only health worker serving this community so it is very tough to reach all the households,” says Ms. Muluemebet, outlining challenges she and the program at large still faces.

Moges’ and his family, assisted by a UNICEF-support child health program in Romey Kebele, Deneba Woreda, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Tsegaye

Because she balances so many patients, she’s not always able to put in the time to make sure health education sticks. “Given the awareness of the community, it takes a long time to implement some of the activities. Families are getting the education needed, but sometimes it takes them a while to put it into practice,” she says.

Moges’ mother, Kokeb Nigusse, admits that while the community is grateful for the free services they provide, not everyone follows their advice to the fullest.

“They give the children medicinal drops, injections and syrup when they are sick,” she said. “They check up on the children. They also follow up and give injections to pregnant women. More significantly they advise us to deliver in health institutions and not at home.” Despite this last suggestion, she says, house deliveries still occur.

With more support from Ethiopia and UNICEF, that is beginning to change. “Before I started work, most mothers delivered at home. But now, if you take this year’s data, out of 171 pregnant mothers only 20 delivered at home,” said Ms. Muluemebet. The rest delivered at the local HEP health centre.

There have also been gains in building confidence in mothers like Ms. Kokeb, who are reluctant to vaccinate their children. “Vaccination of children was very low previously but now almost all children get vaccinated,” says Ms. Muluemebet. “I informed her that if the child gets sick he should get treatment even before baptism, because the community believes they shouldn’t get anything before baptism.”

Moges’ and his family in Romey Kebele, Deneba Woreda, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Tsegaye

Pneumonia, diarrhoea and malaria are three of the five most common life-threatening conditions that new-borns face in Ethiopia. These threats have curtailed with the debut of the integrated community case-based management of common childhood illnesses (ICCM) regime. So far, more than 28,000 HEWs like have been trained in ICCM.

With help from the financial support of its donors, UNICEF has guided development of the ICCM and HEP programs, given technical assistance to Ethiopia’s Ministry of Health, and delivered 10,000 health kits to HEP health posts throughout the country. Ms. Muluemebet says the change from this support has been enormous.

“I am a witness to seeing mothers die while giving birth,” she says. “But with the HEP we can easily detect mothers who need help, or who need to get service at health centres, and if it is beyond their capacity they call the ambulance and they take the mother to health centre and they can be easily saved.”

Moges and Ms Kokeb were saved from having to travel great lengths to get basic care. Today they walk hand-in-hand across the bright green plains that surround their vast plot of land, happy, at ease and part of a complete family. As the HEP continues to grow, success stories like theirs will become a shared experience for millions more Ethiopians.

By Elizabeth Willmott-Harrop

Lakech, 13, had her marriage cancelled as a result of reporting her parents to the Community Conversation Group in Bandani Kebele (neighbourhood), Amhara, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mersha

Lakech*, aged 13, is from a poor family in the Bandani Kebele (neighbourhood) of the Dangla Woreda (district) in Amhara, Ethiopia. Her father, 55, is frail from ill health and her mother, 45, supports the family on her own.

Although Lakech’s older sisters have been educated, times are now hard. Lakech’s mother had arranged for her to be married, to both benefit from a dowry and to avoid the additional costs of Lakech’s presence in the household.

“We sometimes do not have enough to eat. We do not even have clothing”, explains Lakech’s mother, “I was given this dress by Hebeste the Health Extension Worker. My girls are always asking me: Why do we not have clothing? Why do we not have soap? Life is hard.”

Lakech found out about the planned marriage from school friends. She explains the impact when she found out: “I was determined not to be married. I wanted to run away, to an urban area where I would look after myself. I planned to work as a housemaid and continue my schooling. I could help my family be free from poverty if I was educated. Not if I am married.”

Lakech reported the planned marriage to Girma Demlash, the facilitator of the Community Conversation Group which campaigns against child marriage.

“I felt distrust for my parents during that time. At first my parents were angry when I reported them, as they said they had no capacity to send me to school. But we have been offered help because I reported it. So I am no longer in fear of a planned marriage,” explains Lakech.

The Mother of Lakech, 13, agreed to cancel her daughter’s planned marriage as a result of an intervention by the Community Conversation Group in Bandani Kebele (neighbourhood), Amhara, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mersha

Lakech’s mother was relieved when the marriage was cancelled. “The Community Conversation Group told me about the legal consequences. I have been supported by the community since. My friends are very happy that Lakech will not be married,” she says.

The family has been able to access a UNICEF supported Revolving Fund to prevent child marriage. So-called because when funding is paid back by beneficiaries it is reinvested into the next family who needs it, so it circulates within the community. Families can start a business, make money and send their girls to school. Plus the fund gives support for education materials including uniform and clothing.

Meseret Debalkie, Child Protection Officer, UNICEF Ethiopia, says of the fund: “For the wealthy family you just have to change attitudes. That is relatively easy. But for the poorer families, if you do not offer any other life options, what will they do? You have to give them alternatives.”

Atalele Abera, 35, is a member of the Women’s Development Group and of the Community Conversation Group. Atalele says of Lakech’s cancelled marriage:

“The girl’s family received 1,000 ETB ($47) as a gift from the husband’s family, but we made sure they gave it back. I am following up with Lakech. I didn’t trust the parents to stick to their decision to cancel. So I visited them four times in the aftermath and continue to collect information from the neighbourhood on whether the marriage plans have really stopped.”

Lakech, 13, and her Mother. Lakech’s planned marriage was cancelled as a result of an intervention by the Community Conversation Group in Bandani Kebele (neighbourhood), Amhara, Ethiopia. © UNICEF/ESARO 2015/Elizabeth Willmott-Harrop

Lakech’s mother explains that she had ambiguous feelings over educating Lakech: “I was worried that I will lose my daughters if I educate them as there are no schools nearby. My eldest daughter went to school some miles away and we have lost contact with her. So I was worried that when we face a challenge due to poverty that my other girls will do the same thing – they will leave and find a life elsewhere.

“But now we have the fund to help us. We will get 5,300 ETB ($250), I will buy sheep. It will cost me around 900 ETB ($43) to by one sheep if she is pregnant, so then I will have two. I will prepare local whisky and the leftovers from that will feed the sheep.”

*Name changed to protect identity

By Efa Workineh, CBNC Project Officer, Save the Children, Ethiopia; Tadesse Bekele, Regional Programme Manager, Save the Children, Ethiopia; Hailemariam Legesse, Health Specialist, UNICEF Ethiopia; Asheber Gaym, Health Specialist, UNICEF Ethiopia  

Elias with mother Shure after completion of his new-born sepsis treatment provided at the village health post ©SCI/2015/Efa Workineh

Abuna Gindeberet Woreda is one of the eighteen woredas (districts) found in West Shoa Zone, Oromia Regional State, 182 km west of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital.

Baby Elias Suyum Belacho was born in Guro Furto health centre in Gartoke Kebele (sub district) of Abuna Gindeberet Woreda on September 20 2015.  His mother, Shure Negasa and father, Suyum Belacho took good care of Elias, the fourth born in the family, even prior to his birth.  During her pregnancy, Shure attended three Ante Natal Care (ANC) visits at the Guro Furto health centre. Unfortunately, she had not received the required post-natal visit schedule following her delivery.

When Elias was three weeks old, he attended the routine community based new-born care assessment provided as part of the community based new-born care programme of the national Health Extension Programme (HEP) package. (The HEP is a community health programme covering the whole of Ethiopia provided by two female community health workers (health extension workers) working at rural health posts, at present over 38,000 health extension workers are providing services in over 16,000 health posts across Ethiopia. The community based new-born care programme (CBNC) is one of the key public health interventions provided by HEP through extensive partner support. UNICEF is the major supporter of CBNC scale up in Ethiopia). Emushe Abebe, the health extension worker providing CBNC noted that Elias’ respiration rate was found to be 72 breaths per minutes in two counts; much higher than the upper limit of 60 expected at his age. During the assessment, Emushe asked Shure if she has noted any other symptoms that Elias has been showing recently. Shure explained that Elias had been coughing for the last two days. Thanks to her Community Based New-born Care (CBNC) training, the health extension worker correctly diagnosed Elias’ condition as new-born sepsis; a potentially lethal advanced infection in new-borns. In addition, she found out that Elias was underweight, which was caused by not enough breastfeeding.  As per her CBNC training, she classified Elias’s condition to be very severe. Shure was not aware that she had to breastfeed at least eight times per day and because she did not realise that Elias was seriously sick, she never reached out for medical assistance.

After counselling by the health extension worker, Shure agreed to start the treatment at home immediately and to continue taking Elias to the health post. 48 hours after initiating the standardised (Chart Booklet) treatment with gentamicin and amoxicillin antibiotics, the HEW assessed the status of the child and found that he was rapidly improving. By now he was physically stable:  he showed a lower breathing rate of 48/minute and he was breastfed more than 10 times a day. Following the seven days’ full course treatment, Elias completely recovered from his illness.

Elias’ mother Shure Negasa, who was not aware of her child being in life threatening condition, has promised to seriously take care for her new-born child and other children. From now onwards she will seek health care when ever needed and she will teach her neighbour’s what she experienced.

When Ethiopia along with 196 other countries signed the Millennium Declaration in New York in 2000, maternal and child health situation was bad for the majority of the population. Under five mortality rate – number of children dying before their fifth birthday from 1000 born alive- in 1990 (the beginning of measurements for the MDGs) was 222; one of the highest in the world. Many were sceptical that the country would achieve the targeted reduction of two thirds of the 1990 levels by 2015. Against all odds, the country has achieved child health target of the millennium development goals MDG 4 three years ahead of 2015 by reducing the 1990 child mortality rate to less than 68 child deaths per 1000 live births.

Clear health policy and strong implementation supported by coordinated international partnership; a large scale community health programme targeting rural villages through the health extension programme; sustained investments in health and sustained economic growth are among the reasons for this success story.

Highly appreciable as the improvements in child health are, an under five mortality rate of 68 translates to the unacceptable number of over 200,000 child deaths annually. More than 43 per cent of these child deaths occur during the first 28 days following child birth (the neonatal period) the majority occurring in the few days following birth. Breathing difficulties; premature birth and new-born infections/sepsis are responsible for the majority of neonatal deaths and most are preventable or easily treatable with currently available medical care. Access to health care is nevertheless essential to obtain the benefits of these lifesaving interventions. For the tens of thousands of new-borns born at home and far from health facilities, accessing these lifesaving interventions have been largely impossible.

To overcome this formidable challenge to access key new-born health interventions, Ethiopia in collaboration with its major child health partners including UNICEF has adopted novel public health interventions of ICCM/CBNC (Integrated community case management of childhood illnesses/ community based new-born care). ICCM/CBNC interventions rely on task shifting of key child health interventions responsible for majority of child deaths to community health workers who receive training on detection and treatment of key childhood illnesses at home or at village clinics (health posts). They also timely refer new-borns and older children with severe illnesses to higher level care.

The EU-ESDE (European Union- Enhancing Skilled Delivery in Ethiopia) project, allocated Euro 42 million for a three-year support to maternal and new-born health to Ethiopia from 2014-2016. The EU is one of the major partners for the national scale up of ICCM/CBNC programme in Ethiopia. Since its inception in 2013, the ICCM/CBNC programme has rapidly scaled up to increase availability of CBNC services in 75 per cent of the total health posts in the country. Key interventions of the programme include training and mentoring of health extension workers on key skills of detections of new-borns and infants with illness through clear symptoms and signs and provision of essential interventions including provision of antibiotics to sick new-borns.  

Emushe Abebe, the HEW who provided the critical intervention that saved the life of Elias is one of the 2500 health extension workers who received training through EU-ESDE (European Union- Enhancing Skilled Delivery in Ethiopia) project support. She is saving lives of many children like Elias, and teaches mothers like Shure the importance of seeking health care.

Statement by UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin and UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake on the 2016 International Day of Zero Tolerance for FGM

Mariame Habib, 17 years old and 9 months pregnant, was subjected to (FGM/C) Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting ) when she was a child. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Tsegaye

NEW YORK, 5 February 2016 – “FGM is a violent practice, scarring girls for life — endangering their health, depriving them of their rights, and denying them the chance to reach their full potential. 

“FGM is widespread.  It is a global problem that goes well beyond Africa and the Middle East, where the practice has been most prevalent — affecting communities in Asia, Australia, Europe, North and South America.  And the number of girls and women at risk will only get larger if current population trends continue, wiping out hard-won gains. 

“FGM is discrimination.  It both reflects and reinforces the discrimination against women and girls, perpetuating a vicious cycle that is detrimental to development and to our progress as a human family. 

“FGM must end. In September at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit, 193 nations unanimously agreed to a new global target of eliminating FGM by 2030.  This recognition that FGM is a global concern is a critical milestone.  

“But the recognition, while important, is not enough.  To protect the wellbeing and dignity of every girl, we need to take responsibility as a global community for ending FGM. 

“That means we need to learn more — improving our data collection to measure the full extent of the practice — and do more. We need to encourage more communities and families to abandon FGM.  We need to work with larger numbers of medical communities — including traditional and medical professionals — persuading them to refuse to perform or support FGM.  We need to support more women and girls who have undergone the harmful practice and provide them with services and help to overcome the trauma they have suffered. And we need to support and empower girls around the world to make their voices heard and call out to put an end to FGM.  

“All of us must join in this call. There simply is no place for FGM in the future we are striving to create –  a future where every girl will grow up able to experience her inherent dignity, human rights and equality by 2030.

Momina Gida, 17 years old in Aasero village, Sabure Kebele, Awash District in Afar region represents the new generation of uncut girls in the Region. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mulatu

In Ethiopia, despite a steady reduction in FGM/C nationally over the past decade, still 23 per cent (nearly one out of four) girls between the ages of 0 to 14 undergo this practice (Welfare Monitoring Survey (WMS) 2011). According to the same source, FGM/C is practiced across all regions in Ethiopia with varying degree with the prevalence in Amhara (47 per cent), Benshangul-Gumuz (24 per cent) and Tigray (22 per cent), Oromia (17 per cent) and Harari (14 per cent). The regions with the highest prevalence rate are Somali (70 per cent) and Afar (60 per cent). The impact of FGM/C in these two regions is severe as the two regions practice the worst form of FGM/C which involves total elimination of the external female genitalia and stitching, just leaving a small opening for urination.  

The Government of Ethiopia has taken strategic and programmatic measures to eliminate FGM/C. Some of the key actions include; endorsement of the National Strategy and Action Plan on Harmful Traditional Practices against Women and Children and communication strategy for social norm change and establishment of the National Alliance to End Child Marriage and FGM/C. Moreover, the Government has shown a ground-breaking commitment to end FGM/C and child marriage by the year 2025 at the London Girls’ Summit and reinforced by setting a target to reduce the practice to 0.5 per cent in the Growth and Transformation Plan II (GTP II). 

UNICEF is supporting the Government of Ethiopia in developing a roadmap which defines the long term strategic and programme interventions and the role of different actors, strengthening the National Alliance through supporting the establishment of functional secretariat, enriching the Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) module to include better data and consensus building sessions with religious leaders in collaboration with UNFPA and other Alliance members.

UNICEF and UNFPA have been working hand in hand for many areas in Ethiopia for the abandonment of FGM/C. One of the exemplary programme that can be sited is the joint programme on the abandonment of Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting in Afar Region. The programme has a social mobilization component which includes; facilitated community dialogue, working with religious and clan leaders, youth dialogue targeting in and out of school girls and a care component which involves tracking cases of complications with linkage to health facilities. Also, improving enforcement of the law through increasing legal literacy, strengthening special units in the law enforcement bodies for better reporting and management of cases. The programme has recorded pronounced success in facilitating declaration of abandonment of the practice in 6 districts in Afar Region, and eventually expanding to other districts in Afar and other regions.

Bora Robu Etu, a father in Haro Huba kabele, says that people are not only angry at not being able to feed their children – but their cattle too. © UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Ayene

Almost one million children are in need of treatment for severe acute malnutrition in Eastern and Southern Africa, UNICEF said today. Two years of erratic rain and drought have combined with one of the most powerful El Niño events in 50 years to wreak havoc on the lives of the most vulnerable children.

Across the region, millions of children are at risk from hunger, water shortages and disease. It is a situation aggravated by rising food prices, forcing families to implement drastic coping mechanisms such as skipping meals and selling off assets.

“The El Niño weather phenomenon will wane, but the cost to children – many who were already living hand-to-mouth – will be felt for years to come,” said Leila Gharagozloo-Pakkala, UNICEF Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa. “Governments are responding with available resources, but this is an unprecedented situation. Children’s survival is dependent on action taken today.”

Lesotho, Zimbabwe and most provinces in South Africa have declared a state of disaster in the face of growing resource shortages. In Ethiopia, the number of people in need of food assistance is expected to increase from over 10 million to 18 million by the end of 2016.

Releasing its latest briefing on the impact of El Niño on children in the region, UNICEF notes that:

• In Ethiopia, two seasons of failed rains mean that near on six million children currently require food assistance, with school absenteeism increasing as children are forced to walk greater distances in search of water;
• In Somalia, more than two thirds of those in urgent need of assistance are displaced populations;
• In Kenya, El Niño related heavy rains and floods are aggravating cholera outbreaks;
• In Lesotho, one quarter of the population are affected. This aggravates grave circumstances for a country in which 34% of children are orphans, 57% of people live below the poverty line, and almost one in four adults live with HIV/Aids;
• In Zimbabwe, an estimated 2.8 million people are facing food and nutrition insecurity. The drought situation has resulted in reduced water yields from the few functioning boreholes exacerbating the risk to water-borne diseases, especially diarrhea and cholera;
• Malawi is facing the worst food crisis in nine years, with 2.8 million people (more than 15 per cent of the population) at risk of hunger; cases of severe acute malnutrition have just jumped by 100% in just two months, from December 2015 to January 2016;
• In Angola, an estimated 1.4 million people are affected by extreme weather conditions and 800,000 people are facing food insecurity, mainly in the semi-arid southern provinces.

The UN Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) estimated that it will take affected communities approximately two years to recover from El-Nino exacerbated drought, if agricultural conditions improve in the latter half of this year.

UNICEF humanitarian appeals are less than 15 per cent funded across El Niño-impacted countries in southern Africa.

UNICEF humanitarian appeals in El Nino-affected countries:

• $US 26 million in Angola
• $US 87 million in Ethiopia
• $US 3 million in Lesotho
• $US 11 million in Malawi
• $US 15 million in Somalia
• $US 1 million in Swaziland
• $US 12 million in Zimbabwe

By Araya Mengistu

Misra Redwan unloads a water jerrycan she just collected from a newly built water point by UNICEF with the support of DFATD. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Sewunet

For the community in Lode Lemofo Kebele, Sire Woreda in the Arsi Zone of the Great Rift Valley of Ethiopia, access to water was an ongoing problem. During the annual dry seasons in this hot, low-land area, community members had to walk for hours under a blazing sun just to get water.

In January 2016, the communities of Lode Lemofo and neighbouring Chenge Kebeles have seen a marked improvement in their day-to-day lives, thanks to a water supply project that was commissioned and constructed with UNICEF support. About 6,500 people in two Kebeles, particularly the 3,250 women and girls who are usually charged with collecting water for household use, are reaping the benefits of improved access to clean and safe water, including increased school attendance among children.

Yesunesh lives with her husband Getachew, and 10 year old daughter Genet and 2 year old son Samuel in Lode Lemofo. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Sewunet

Lode Lemofo community member Yesunesh, mother of 10-year-old Genet and two-year-old Samuel, says, “Fetching water used to be the most demanding task we had to endure on a daily basis. Sometimes we had to do it twice a day. It is very tiring and takes up to three hours to and from the river. At times it is also dangerous, because sometimes hyenas try to attack us or our donkeys.”

The lack of access to water also affected health centres and schools.  Communities had to support the provision of water in these facilities themselves. Visiting patients and members of neighbouring households carried water to health centres while school girls and boys carried water to school on a daily basis.

All this has changed when the new water supply scheme became operational. The scheme draws its source from a 265-metre deep well and includes 16 kilometres of pipe network, 11 water distribution points and a 100,000-litre reservoir. One primary school and one health centre have also been connected to the water distribution system.

Yesunesh underscores the difference the scheme has made, saying, “All that suffering is now gone. My girl Genet – as you have seen – can get the water we need for cooking and other household use in less than ten minutes.”

Health centres can now provide better care to community members, particularly pregnant women, while boys and girls are better able to learn at school.

In total, 24 other Woredas in Oromia Regional State are benefitting from UNICEF’s water and sanitation programme. This is part of the overall progress in water and sanitation in Ethiopia, where 57 per cent of the population now relies on improved water supply sources such as water taps or hand pumps, rather than unprotected and risky sources such as rivers and streams. This increased access to clean and safe water has benefitted the children of Ethiopia tremendously, contributing to the reduction of under-five child mortality by two-thirds and the significant reduction of child stunting.

Yazew Tagela and Degu Eneyew are both Priests of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and members of the UNICEF supported Community Conversation Group against Child Marriage in the Bandani Kebele (neighbourhood) of the Dangla Woreda (district) in Amhara, Ethiopia.

Both are vehemently against child marriage, but come from different perspectives:

Yazew Tagela, 41, has directly experienced financial loss as a result of marrying his daughters as children.

Priest Yazew Tagela, 41, has directly experienced financial loss as a result of marrying his daughters as children. He is a member of Bandani Kebele’s Community Conversation Group against Child Marriage, Amhara, Ethiopia ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Mersha

Yazew Tagela comments: “If I had known before what I know now, I could have helped save so many girls. I married both my daughters at age 12 and 16, and I really regret it. I spent 20,000 ETB (around $1,000) on the marriages of my two girls. I could have bought urban land with that, which would now be worth up to 200,000 ETB ($10,000). The girls lead a rural life like me, and do not enjoy life like their peers who were educated.

“Three years later, neither are yet pregnant, but I really worry about that. With the poor living conditions they have, if they give birth life will get more complicated. If I had not married them, they could have contributed a lot to their country through their being educated.

“My own wife was 15 when we married – I was 25. She showed such childish behaviour but I supported her and she became pregnant straight away.”

“As a priest I am responsible for these marriages as I have to marry a virgin girl, so there is so much pressure on the girls being of younger ages. But I am no longer prepared to bless a marriage if a girl is below the age of 18.

“The government has committed to stop child marriage by 2025, but I know we can stop it way before then. This Kebele is a role model for what can be achieved, a learning site. Everyone here shares ideas and supports each other against child marriage.”

Degu Eneyew, 50, has seen first-hand how girls thrive when they are educated.

Priest Degu Eneyew, 50, has seen first-hand how girls thrive when they are educated. He is a member of Bandani Kebele’s Community Conversation Group against Child Marriage, Amhara, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Mersha

Degu Eneyew comments: “At the age of 38 in 2003 I went back to school. It was then that I saw the impact education has on the girl – how well she can do in life. But the community sees education negatively as they associate it with a girl’s exposure to risk. We are teaching the community that if a girl is educated she will support the family. Every Sunday I include in my regular preaching to say “no to child marriage” and send girls to school instead.

“Look at the difference between two families – one which is fast to marry its girls too young, one which does not. You can see life’s consequences from child marriage – giving birth early, scarce resources, limited land. You marry a girl before 18 and it is like killing the very life of the girl. Where families are strong enough to send their girls to school the girls have jobs. Her life will be completely different.

“In the past, a priest would bless the marriage of a child. But today, if the girl is under 18 the priest will not be told. The family will conduct a customary marriage instead with any elder, but witnesses to such marriages are criminally liable.

“Hereafter if a marriage involves parties who are under 18 I will denounce it and report it to the police. If the couple are 18 or above I will bless the marriage. I want everyone to condemn the practise as an evil act.”

Zewde Fentaw dances during her wedding ceremony in Shumshah kebele, Lasta Woreda ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Bindra

NEW YORK/ADDIS ABABA, 8 March 2016 – A new multi-country initiative to accelerate action to end child marriage will help protect the rights of millions of the world’s most vulnerable girls, UNICEF and UNFPA said on International Women’s Day.

The UNFPA-UNICEF Global Programme to Accelerate Action to End Child Marriage announced today will involve families, communities, governments and young people. This is part of a global effort to prevent girls from marrying too young and to support those already married as girls in 12 countries across Africa, Asia and the Middle East where child marriage rates are high.

“Choosing when and whom to marry is one of life’s most important decisions. Child marriage denies millions of girls this choice each year,” said Dr. Babatunde Osotimehin, Executive Director of UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund. “As part of this global programme, we will work with governments of countries with a high prevalence of child marriage to uphold the rights of adolescent girls, so that girls can reach their potential and countries can attain their social and economic development goals.”

The new global programme will focus on five proven strategies, including increasing girls’ access to education, educating parents and communities on the dangers of child marriage, increasing economic support to families, and strengthening and enforcing laws that establish 18 as the minimum age of marriage.

“The world has awakened to the damage child marriage causes to individual girls, to their future children, and to their societies,” said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake.  “This new global programme will help drive action to reach the girls at greatest risk – and help more girls and young women realize their right to dictate their own destinies. This is critical now because if current trends continue, the number of girls and women married as children will reach nearly 1 billion by 2030 – 1 billion childhoods lost, 1 billion futures blighted.” 

Child marriage is a violation of the rights of girls and women. Girls who are married as children are more likely to be out of school, suffer domestic violence, contract HIV/AIDS and die due to complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Child marriage also hurts economies and leads to intergenerational cycles of poverty.

The global community demonstrated strong commitment to end child marriage by including a target on eliminating it and other harmful practices in the Sustainable Development Goals. UNICEF and UNFPA call on governments and partner organizations to support the new Global Programme to help eliminate child marriage by 2030. 

The UNFPA-UNICEF Global Programme to Accelerate Action to End Child Marriage is being supported by Canada, the European Union, Italy, Netherlands, and the UK.

Note to editors

In Ethiopia, two in every five girls is married before the age of 18 and this practice is prevalent across all the regions. According to the Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey (EDHS) 2011, 41 per cent of girls between the ages of 20 to 24 are married by age 18, compared to 7.3 per cent of boys. Similar source also indicates that 63 per cent of girls between the ages of 25-49 are married as compared to 13.55 of men. The median age at first marriage is 16.5 for women age 25–49 compared with men who marry later, at a median age of 23.2.

In terms of regional variation, the highest prevalence rate is in Amhara (44.8 per cent), followed by Tigray (34.1 per cent), Benishangul-Gumuz (31.9 per cent) and Addis Ababa at 32.3 per cent. From the 1997 baseline survey up to the follow up survey of 2008 of EGLDAM, the highest decline is observed in SNNP regional state where the prevalence rate declined from 18.7 per cent to 9.9 per cent and in Benishangul-Gumuz where it declined from 50.1 per cent to 31.9 per cent. Nationwide, the legal age of marriage is 18. However two regional states namely Afar and Somali have not yet promulgated their regional family laws in alignment with that of the federal level. Thus, by implication, the legal age of marriage in these two regions is still below 18 and customary law condoning child marriage prevails. 

The Government of Ethiopia has taken strategic and programmatic measures to eliminate child marriage. Some of the key actions include; endorsement of the National Strategy and Action Plan on Harmful Traditional Practices against Women and Children and communication strategy for social norm change and establishment of the National Alliance to End Child Marriage and FGM/C to coordinate and synergize national level efforts. Moreover, the Government has shown a ground-breaking commitment to end child marriage by 2025 at the London Girls’ Summit and reinforced by setting a target to reduce the practice to 0.5 per cent in the Growth and Transformation Plan II (GTP II).  

UNICEF is supporting the Government of Ethiopia in developing a roadmap which defines the long term strategic and programme interventions and the role of different actors, strengthening the National Alliance through supporting the establishment of functional secretariat, enriching the Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey (EDHS) module to include better data and consensus building sessions with religious leaders in collaboration with UNFPA and other Alliance members.

 In addition, UNICEF is supporting the government of Ethiopia in implementing ending child marriage programmes in Amhara, Afar and Somali regions. Similarly, UNICEF and UNFPA have developed a joint programme to end child marriage based on the lessons learned from the successful implementation of the joint programme on the elimination of FGM/C. The key results of the joint programme include; enhancing girls’ capacity to better exercise their choice, changing the attitudes of families and communities to value investment in girls and enabling service providers to respond to the needs of adolescent girls. In addition, it focuses on ensuring alignment of existing legal and policy frameworks with international standards and allocation of adequate resource to strengthen the data management system.

Left-Right: H.E Ms. Chantal Hebberecht, Ambassador of the European Union, Mr. Birara Melese, National Nutrition Programme Team Coordinator, Ms. Gillian Mellsop, UNICEF Representative to Ethiopia, at the launch of a document entitled “Situation Analysis of the Nutrition Sector in Ethiopia” from 2000-2015 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Tesfaye

In recent years, the global momentum on nutrition has been growing rapidly. The Scaling-Up Nutrition Movement has united world leaders and brought the UN, governments, civil society and the private sector together in a collective effort to improve nutrition through shared goals and resources to effectively scale up nutrition policies and programmes.

Ethiopia’s continued reduction of extreme poverty and chronic malnutrition has received international recognition and continues to inspire the international community to remain ambitious in the level of progress it aims to achieve.

Today, 10 March 2016, a document entitled Situation Analysis of the Nutrition Sector in Ethiopia from 2000-2015 was launched which was made possible through funding provided by the European Union to UNICEF, as part of the EU+ Joint Cooperation Strategy for Ethiopia, which aims to ensure a coherent and consistent response to Ethiopia’s development challenges.

Speaking at the launch of the situation analysis, Ms. Chantal Hebberecht, Ambassador of the European Union said, “The study has synthesised the trend and causal analysis of undernutrition, mapping of nutrition specific and sensitive interventions and gap and opportunity analysis. In so doing, it has tried to provide evidence based guidance for future nutrition related policies and interventions in the country.”

As the world embarks on a new sustainable development agenda, the Government of Ethiopia and its development partners can look back on the 15 years of remarkable progress in the Nutrition sector through this Situation Analysis document that we are launching here today. The findings of the Situation Analysis provide evidence of a steady and substantial improvement in stunting over the last 15 years in Ethiopia where the stunting prevalence has dropped from 57 percent to 40 percent. At the same time, food consumption and expenditure have increased on average from about 2,200 calories per household per day in the year 2000 to 2,450 calories per household per day in 2011.

UNICEF applauds the achievements made and the strong commitment of the Government of Ethiopia to improve the nutritional status among children and women, encouraging continued development and expansion of policies and programmes for nutrition interventions. However, there is still a long way to go and the eradication of undernutrition among children and women will require multi-sectoral efforts to ensure a more equitable and sustainable impact.

The report highlights critical gaps in terms of existing policies and programmes which we must address urgently to accelerate nutrition results for women and children.

Some of the key findings of the situation analysis report includes; educating mothers as key factor for improving nutrition, high risk factors for child stunting associated with poor water supply and sanitation and the need to improve production diversity, nutrition knowledge and women’s’ empowerment by making sure that diverse and nutritious foods are available and accessible at all times. In addition, the study highlights the need to expand existing nutrition programmes to improve undernutrition in the Developing Regional States (DRS) with increased resources and improved targeting.

These findings from the situation analysis will be key to inform programming for a wide range of nutrition specific and nutrition-sensitive stakeholders in Ethiopia. The findings will feed into the second National Nutrition Programme (2015-2020), which targets to reduce child stunting prevalence to 26 percent by 2020, as well as the second Agricultural Growth Programme which strives to increase agricultural productivity with a ‘nutrition lens’.

The recommendations in the situation analysis will help support the Government in the realisation of the Growth and Transformation Plan 2 and the achievement of the Seqota Declaration to make undernutrition, in particular child undernutrition, a history in Ethiopia.

Malnutrition is one of the greatest symptoms of injustice and inequality that we are fighting in Ethiopia today. By accelerating our joint nutrition interventions, we can transform the lives of millions of children to become healthy citizens and reach their full potential with their hopes and opportunities restored.

By H.E. Ato Motuma Mekassa (Minister of Water, Irrigation and Electricity and Chair of the ONEWASH Steering Committee)

Mekdes Zewdu drinks water from a newly built water. Since the UNICEF-supported pump was installed two weeks ago, life has changed dramatically. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Sewunet

The World has endorsed the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in September 2015 which is the master world document till 2030. The SDGs are “pushing” us all as water and sanitation professionals to look beyond the “low hanging fruits” of the MDGs and start working for water supply, sanitation and hygiene provision in urban areas, remote rural settlements and in rapidly expanding small and medium size towns. The SDGs are also demanding us to think “universally” and to bring technological and social engineering solutions for everyone, everywhere…always.

So comes to the Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) High Level Ministerial Meeting in Addis Ababa in March 2016. My Government (the Government of Ethiopia) are hosting this event as it presents an opportunity for us as Ethiopians to show how we have tried to practice a universal access plan for all, everywhere…always. Our ONEWASH national programme was launched during the Millennium Development Goal era in 2013 and we set out to rapidly scale up WASH services to our population by aligning ourselves and our partners around a ONEWASH programme with ONE plan, ONE budget and ONE report. So far, progress has been good and Ethiopia was able to declare that it had reached the MDG Goal 7c target 10 for water supply last year in 2015. We as Ethiopians are proud to share this experience during the SWA meeting in March.

However, looking forward, the SWA platform also provides us an excellent opportunity to take the Ministerial participants to visit our beautiful country and to see some of our work in the field. One area we are working hard to address is water supply and sanitation services in emerging small and medium size towns.  We call it URBAN WASH and it is very new for us. Until 2013, most of our people resided in rural areas. However now, our government is promoting a Growth and Transformation Plan-II (GTP)-II in which we are promoting small and medium towns as HUBS for industrial and manufacturing development….so naturally, more people (particularly our YOUTH) are migrating to our towns to work in enterprises. These all need water supply and sanitation that is appropriate and affordable. I therefore proud to say that we have partnered with the Government of Brazil and UNICEF to bring in new financial regulation and urban sanitation models to address this need.

I am personally looking forward to the SWA meeting in March and I hope to see you there.

Funds to reach over one million beneficiaries in Ethiopia 

Asmera Bere feeds her son, Amanuel Shibabaw, a nutritious porridge made from locally available products, at the health post as a demonstration to cook at home ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Sewunet

ADDIS ABABA, 21 March 2016 – The European Commission today announced a €3 million grant to UNICEF to improve the nutrition for severely malnourished children in the drought affected areas in Ethiopia. 

The EU funding aims to strengthen the current emergency response and reach an estimated 40,000 Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) children. It will help provide supplies (40,000 boxes of Ready-to-use Therapeutic Food (RUTF) and 19,700 packs of amoxicillin). The funds will also support one round of Extended Outreach Strategy (EOS) screening which provides biannual vitamin A supplementation and de-worming to children under 5 years of age. Screening for acute malnutrition for children and pregnant and lactating women will also be covered.

“The El Niño phenomenon is impacting entire regions in Africa, notably Ethiopia. The EU support will help UNICEF provide life-saving assistance to the most vulnerable. It will help more than a million children suffering from malnutrition get treatment,” said Jean-Louis De Brouwer, Director of Operations in the European Commission’s Humanitarian and Civil Protection department (ECHO).

“We are grateful to the EU for its continued support for life saving interventions addressing malnutrition in Ethiopia,” said UNICEF Representative to Ethiopia, Ms Gillian Mellsop. “Children are always the most vulnerable group in emergencies but when support is made available, we can change their lives for the better.”

The EU funding targets close to half a million children under the age of five along with nearly 140 000 pregnant and lactating women in the Somali region. UNICEF, at the request of the Government, is responsible for the procurement of supplies for Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM) management as a key input to the emergency nutrition responses throughout the country. It also provides technical and financial support to ensure programme quality and coverage. 

UNICEF is supporting the Government in responding to the emergency by scaling up and strengthening the treatment of children with severe acute malnutrition, increasing the intensity and frequency of screening of children and pregnant and lactating women, and ensuring key preventative nutrition services are provided to prevent excess morbidity and mortality.

According to the revised Humanitarian Requirement Document (HRD), over 10.2 million people in need of food aid and estimated 435,000 in need of treatment for severe acute malnutrition by the end of 2016. This has significantly devastated livelihoods and greatly compromised the health and wellbeing of children and women, through malnutrition and hygiene-related diseases across Ethiopia with six regions hit particularly hard.

#ClimateChain Instagram campaign will highlight water and the environment

Harko, 12, walks across the land with her younger brother. She is no longer going to school as is forced to go in search of water almost every day, travelling at night to avoid the heat and not returning to Haro Huba until well into the afternoon of the next day. © UNICEF Ethiopia/2016/Ayene

 New York/Addis Ababa, 21 March 2016 – On the eve of World Water Day, UNICEF said the push to bring safe water to millions around the world is going to be even more challenging due to climate change, which threatens both water supply and water safety for millions of children living in drought- or flood-prone areas.

In 2015 at the end of the Millennium Development Goal era, all but 663 million people around the world had drinking water from improved sources – which are supposed to separate water from contact with excreta. However data from newly available testing technology show that an estimated 1.8 billion people may be drinking water contaminated by e-coli – meaning there is faecal material in their water, even from some improved sources. 

“Now that we can test water more cheaply and efficiently than we were able to do when the MDGs were set, we are coming to terms with the magnitude of the challenge facing the world when it comes to clean water,” said Sanjay Wijeserkera, head of UNICEF’s global water, sanitation and hygiene programmes. “With the new Sustainable Development Goals calling for ‘safe’ water for everyone, we’re not starting from where the MDGs left off; it is a whole new ball game.” 

One of the principal contributors to faecal contamination of water is poor sanitation. Globally 2.4 billion people lack proper toilets and just under 1 billion of them defecate in the open. This means faeces can be so pervasive in many countries and communities that even some improved water sources become contaminated.

The safety concerns are rising due to climate change.

In March 2015, a year ago, Ethiopia celebrated the achievement of meeting MDG 7c by halving the number of people without access to safe water since 1990 – 57 per cent of the population now using safe drinking water. During the celebrations, it was noted that the majority of the MDG water supplies have been constructed in the densely populated highland regions. Thousands of hand dug wells, springs and small piped water schemes have been constructed to serve the highland populations using shallow and accessible surface water. 

In comparison, limited water supply development has taken place in the water scarce areas of Eastern Ethiopia. Inaccessible and deep groundwater resources make water supply to these areas costly and complex. Combined with this, the negative effects of climate change such as changing rainfall patterns and increased surface air temperatures are resulting in increased evapotranspiration of available limited water sources. 

For many years, UNICEF Ethiopia has worked to develop water sources in water scarce areas of the country. In its current Country Programme, UNICEF is assisting the Government of Ethiopia in exploring the use of satellite/remote sensing technologies to identify deep groundwater sources. These sources are then being developed through multiple village water schemes which supply water to residents (women and girls) in villages, schools and health centres. 

When water becomes scarce during droughts, populations resort to unsafe surface water. At the other end of the scale, floods damage water and sewage treatment facilities, and spread faeces around, very often leading to an increase in water-borne diseases such as cholera and diarrhoea. 

Higher temperatures brought on by climate change are also set to increase the incidence of water-linked diseases like malaria, dengue – and now Zika – as mosquito populations rise and their geographic reach expands. 

According to UNICEF, most vulnerable are the nearly 160 million children under 5 years old globally who live in areas at high risk of drought. Around half a billion live in flood zones. Most of them live in sub-Saharan Africa and in Asia.

Starting on World Water Day and ending with the signing of the Paris Agreement on 22 April, UNICEF is launching a global Instagram campaign to raise awareness of the link between water, the environment, and climate change.

Using the #ClimateChain hashtag, UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake, UN General Assembly President Mogens Lykketoft, UN climate chief Christiana Figueres, and other prominent figures will figuratively join hands with members of the public in a chain of photographs intended to urge action to address climate change. The images will be presented at the signing of the Paris Agreement. 

UNICEF is also responding to the challenges of climate change by focusing on disaster risk reduction for water supplies. For example:

• Nearly 20,000 children in Bangladesh now have access to climate and disaster-resilient sources of water through an aquifer-recharge system which captures water during the monsoon season, purifies it, and stores it underground.
• In Madagascar, UNICEF is helping local authorities make classrooms for 80,000 children cyclone- and flood-proof, and provide access to disaster-resilient sources of water.
• In drought-prone Kiribati, new rainwater-harvesting and storage facilities are improving communities’ access to safe drinking water.

 In a recent publication, Unless We Act Now, UNICEF has set out a 10-point climate agenda for children. It sets out concrete steps for governments, the private sector and ordinary people to take in order to safeguard children’s futures and their rights.