Today is Father’s Day, and we want to celebrate the strength of paternal bonds with this selection of beautiful images from our Flickr of fathers spending time with their children.

Model Farmer Wondossen and his son and sister outside their latrine in Romey Village-Amhara Region ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2012/ Getachew

Father and son at the Derer Ebija Health Post where they have come to get the newly introduced PCV vaccine. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2011/Lemma

A young family wade across Shebele river in Gode Town in Somali region of Ethiopia ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Ose

Ali Faraa, 57, walks his daughter Hussini ali Faraa, 8, to Awash city ABEC (Alternative Base Education Center) ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Ose

Ibro Bekeri Yusef feeds therapeutic milk F75 to his severely malnourished five-year-old daughter Khesna ©UNICEF

A child sits on his father’s shoulders as they wait for food at a drought relief centre in the north-eastern town of Bati. ©UNICEF

By Bethlehem Kiros

Girls socialize in their dorm rooms at the Semera Girl’s Boarding School, a school that serves as a safe haven for many girls that escape their home villages after being forced to marry at a young age, in Semera, Afar Region, Ethiopia, 8 January 2015. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Bindra

AFAR Region, 8 January 2015 – At the Semera Girls’ Boarding School, Zahara Abdu is granted a new lease on life. Three years ago, at the age of 13, she was forced to marry a man who is decades older than her. “I was his third wife, and he has children that are older than me,” says Zahara. Refusing to take others’ choice for her life, she chose to flee and, fortunately wound up at the boarding school where she is now attending the 7^th grade.

Next to the Amhara region, Afar has the highest rate of child marriage in Ethiopia. One of the reasons for this is the availability of few schools especially after finishing the Alternative Basic Education (ABE) which runs from grade 1-4 in their locality which limits girls’ option and directly justifies early marriage as the only viable. This fact is well entwined with an aged Afari tradition known as absuma which entitles a man full right to marry his cousin, specifically the daughter of his paternal aunt. Zahara was promised to several cousins already, in the name of absuma, but none of them took advantage of this traditional practice. “They are all educated which is probably why they didn’t demand to marry me,’’ explains Zahara.

Desperate Times Call for Desperate Measures

However, this did not stop Zahara’s father from finding her another man. She was not aware of the arrangement until the last minute and was attending 4^th grade in her local ABE. When she found out, she tried to reason with her father who only turned a deaf ear to her plea. Distraught and out of options, Zahara followed her instincts and ran away at the night of her wedding. She sought refuge among her friends where she learned about the possibility of escaping to the Semera Boarding School. “There are three girls in my neighborhood who go to the school and they told me that the administration welcomes girls who are in a situation like mine,’’ she recounts. “They also promised to take me with them when their school break ends.’’

After twenty-seven days of hiding, her family found her in one of her friend’s house and dragged her back to her husband’s village, where his other two wives and children also live. Regarding what happened next, she says, “I knew what would await me, so I ran away again that very night.’’ To minimize the risk of being caught again, this time, she chose to stay out in the wilderness, surviving on the food and water her friends brought her. In the meantime, her friends were secretly raising money from other girls in the village for her trip to Semera, the capital of the region. Zahara recalls that her older sisters, who were both married at the time, were also part of the plan of her escape.

A Safe Haven

Zahara Abdu, 17, poses for a photo in her dorm at the UNICEF-supported Semera Girl’s Boarding School, a school that serves as a safe haven for many girls that escape their home villages after being forced to marry at a young age, in Semera, Afar Region, Ethiopia, 8 January 2015. Zahara escaped from her village after her forced Absuma marriage to her cousin. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Bindra

After quite an ordeal of sleeping in the open desert, Zahara joined her friends on their trip back to school. The school administration referred her case to the regional Bureau of Women, Children and Youth Affairs (BoWCYA) and a decision was reached immediately to admit her to the school. Zahara is among the several girls in Semera Boarding School who have run away from their coerced marriages, often to men that are significantly older than them. In order to make education accessible to orphan or vulnerable girls from remote pastoralist communities, the school was built in 2009 by the regional government with the support of UNICEF. It currently provides education from grades 5 through 8 and mainly enrolls graduates of ABE, which is the most common form of education in pastoralist communities of Ethiopia.

Zahara says that she went to the extent of defying her father’s will and putting herself through considerable hardship during her escape, because it was simply unthinkable for her to forgo her education. “I know my potential, and I can’t let anyone ruin the future which I believe I can have,’’ she declares. She adds that the school has become an ideal place for her to tap into that potential as she can focus entirely on her studies without worrying about marriage or household responsibilities. ‘’All we have to do here is maintain our personal hygiene and clean our rooms, which leaves us with ample time for our school work,’’ she explains. Consequently, Zahara managed to complete the 5^th and 6^th grades at the top of her class and hopes to maintain this status for the years to come.

Facing Social Denigration

Girls play at the Semera Girl’s Boarding School, a school that serves as a safe haven for many girls that escape their home villages after being forced to marry at a young age, in Semera, Afar Region, Ethiopia, 8 January 2015. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Bindra

In the last two and half years, Zahara visited her family twice, during her school breaks, and her relationship with them is now restored. On her first visit, she was accompanied by a BoWCYA representative who explained to her father about the importance of letting her go to school while gently laying out the legal repercussions for arranging underage marriage. “In the presence of the BoWCYA representative, my father gave his word that he will not force me to go back to my so-called husband,’’ states Zahara. Though she is safe, she fears that her younger sister who recently turned 13 might be given away soon. “My sister is really worried, so if it comes to that, I guess I’ll have to notify the authorities since my family does not listen to me,’’ she says with frustration. According to her, their society generally considers girls in her position – who defy social norms for the sake of education – as bad influences on other girls. “Uneducated people like my father just don’t see the worth of a girl’s education,’’ she complains. ‘’They belittle us saying that the reason we insist on going to school is to have the freedom to be with boys.’’

Zahara strongly believes that the only way she and her friends can gain the respect of their families and communities is if they prove themselves as successful adults. “I think if we finish school, get jobs and start giving back to them, they’ll start to recognize that we have something valuable to offer, besides giving birth to children,’’ she concludes.

Child Marriage and Female Genital Mutilation/ Cutting don’t just cause physical and emotional pain. The practices reflect the value of girls and women in society that have been passed from generation to generation. Such values in turn limit their contribution in society thereby sustaining the cycle of poverty.

The good news is that things are changing. In communities across Ethiopia more and more people are saying no to FGM/C, child marriage and other harmful traditional practices. But there is much more to do.

In July, 2014 at the Girl Summit in London, the Government of Ethiopia committed to achieving the total elimination of FGM/C and Child, Early and Forced Marriage by 2025 through a strategic, multi-sectorial, girl-centred and evidence-based approach.

On 25 June, 2015 the government of Ethiopia will host a National Girl Summit to reiterate its commitment. The summit will provide an opportunity for key actors including girls to renew their vow to end the practices through concerted actions. We can end FGM/C and child marriage within a generation – but only if we work together.

Let girls be girls!

During and around the summit, together with partners we will bring our messages to social media using #GirlSummit follow us and join the conversation.

#girlsummit Tweets

By Wossen Mulatu

Participants of national girl summit 2015 at Sheraton Addis on 25 June 2015. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Ayene

25 June 2015, Addis Ababa: Today, the Government of Ethiopia reiterated its commitment to put an end to child marriage and Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) at the National Girl Summit held for the first time in its capital. The Summit was held as a follow up to the Girl Summit in London held in July 2014 where the Government of Ethiopia took a heroic step by making a ground breaking commitment to end child, early and forced marriage and FGM/C in the country by 2025.

The historic National Summit in Ethiopia was officially opened by H.E. Ato Demeke Mekonnen, Deputy Prime Minister in the presence of H.E W/ro Zenebu Tadesse, Minister of Women Children and Youth Affairs with over two hundred partners drawn from Sector Ministries of Justice, Health, Education and Finance and Economic Development, UN representatives, representatives of religious council, development partners, civil societies, the private sector, members of the media and nine adolescent girls as guests of honour.

H.E. Demeke Mekonnen Deputy Prime Minister of Ethiopia gives opening speech and officially launches National Girl Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Ayene

“We all have an obligation to fight and eliminate harmful traditional practices that are violating the rights of girls who will take over as the future leaders,” said H.E Ato Demeke Mekonnen. “If we are expecting good results and a lasting change to tackle these issues ones and for all, we need to work in a coordinated manner and there has to be accountability. I would like to reaffirm that the Government is on top of the agenda to eliminate early marriage and FGM/C and to build a harmful traditional practice (HTP) free country by working together with all partners.”

The Government of Ethiopia has formulated policies and legal and strategic frameworks to establish an environment whereby all citizens, regardless of gender, should have the right to determine his or her own future. However, harmful traditional practices (HTPs) such as child marriage and female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) are still commonly practiced in the country, due to deeply entrenched traditional norms and values that degrades the lives of girls and women.

According to the Demographic Health Survey (DHS), the national prevalence of child marriage declined from 33.1 per cent in 1997 to 21.4 per cent in 2009/10 and among children aged 0-15 declined to 8 percent in 2011.As to FGM/C, the national prevalence rate was 74 per cent in 2005, 56 per cent in 2008 and 46 per cent in 2010. Among children aged 0-14 years, 52 per cent in 2000, 37.7 per cent in 2010 and 23 per cent in 2011 which shows a consistent decline.

Minister Zenebu on her part said that the Ministry of Women Children and Youth Affairs will continue to work closely and jointly with its sector Ministries and partners to support all the efforts on the ground including community conversations and also reinforcing the laws associated with harmful traditional practices.

On her keynote address, Gillian Mellshop, Acting UN Resident Coordinator and Representative to UNICEF Ethiopia said that Ethiopia has made significant progress in developing polices and strategies as well as in building the capacity of individuals and institutions to tackle those two harmful practices. She stated, “Now it is our turn as the UN in Ethiopia to maintain the momentum and pledge our support to translate the commitment into concrete action for girls. Let us use this occasion to recommit ourselves to empowering adolescent girls through strategies, interventions and partnerships that deliver results so we can jointly end child marriage and FGM/C by 2025 or sooner.”

“Female circumcision is neither in the Bible nor in the Koran and it should not be associated with any religion. How could one try to cut and harm a human body that has been created as complete?” exclaimed Dr. Aba Hailegabriel Meleku, Representative of the Inter Religious Council. “Our council condemns both child marriage and FGM and we hope there will be a platform to have one voice at the federal level to eliminate both evil acts.”

At the Summit, adolescent girls’ messages were geared towards the need for more support from religious leaders and law enforcement bodies; more schools for more girls to be educated; education on reproductive health; and above all the support from boys and young men to change their attitude towards harmful traditional practices.

Dr. Kestebirhan Admassu, Minister of Health said, “We should empower, educate and protect girls. Ethiopia’s Health Extension Workers are a great example to the rural girls and women to inspire them pursue their education and give back to their communities. ”

The Ministry of Women, Children and Youth Affairs established a national HTP Platform in order to realise the multi-sectoral mechanisms and to ensure effective coordination and collaboration between and among different development partners involved in the fight against HTPs. This National Implementation and Monitoring Platform will be established from representatives drawn from relevant stakeholders (Government line ministries, multilateral and bilateral donors, CSOs, women and youth associations and national federations, faith based organisations, and national associations) working towards the prevention and elimination of HTPs.

Finally, the event was made colourful through the viewing of a rap song entitled, “Yalemachin Get” by young rap star- Abelone Melesse, UNICEF Ethiopia National Ambassador. The song sends a powerful message on children’s rights and making the world a better place for girls by educating, protecting and not turning our back on them as they need all our support.

Moreover, an exhibition was part of the summit where local and international NGOs, CSOs and the UN working on the themes of child marriage and FGM/C showcased their work through print and electronic media.

Photos, videos and other resources can be found here

A south Sudanese refugee Nvakuache Tut takes a shower by the way of water poured from a jerry can. 26, June 2014 Burbie South Sudanese Refugees Reception Centre Gambella Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Ayene

Final MDG progress report on water and sanitation released 

NEW YORK/GENEVA, 30 June 2015 – Lack of progress on sanitation threatens to undermine the child survival and health benefits from gains in access to safe drinking water, warn WHO and UNICEF in a report tracking access to drinking water and sanitation against the Millennium Development Goals.

The Joint Monitoring Programme report, Progress on Sanitation and Drinking Water: 2015 Update and MDG Assessment, says worldwide, 1 in 3 people, or 2.4 billion, are still without sanitation facilities – including 946 million people who defecate in the open. 

“What the data really show is the need to focus on inequalities as the only way to achieve sustainable progress,” said Sanjay Wijesekera, head of UNICEF’s global water, sanitation and hygiene programmes. “The global model so far has been that the wealthiest move ahead first, and only when they have access do the poorest start catching up. If we are to reach universal access to sanitation by 2030, we need to ensure the poorest start making progress right away.”

Access to improved drinking water sources has been a major achievement for countries and the international community. With some 2.6 billion people having gained access since 1990, 91 per cent of the global population now have improved drinking water – and the number is still growing. In sub-Saharan Africa, for example, 427 million people have gained access – an average of 47,000 people per day every day for 25 years.

The child survival gains have been substantial. Today, fewer than 1,000 children under five die each day from diarrhoea caused by inadequate water, sanitation and hygiene, compared to over 2,000 15 years ago.

On the other hand, the progress on sanitation has been hampered by inadequate investments in behaviour change campaigns, lack of affordable products for the poor, and social norms which accept or even encourage open defecation. Although some 2.1 billion people have gained access to improved sanitation since 1990, the world has missed the MDG target by nearly 700 million people. Today, only 68 per cent of the world’s population uses an improved sanitation facility – 9 percentage points below the MDG target of 77 per cent. 

“Until everyone has access to adequate sanitation facilities, the quality of water supplies will be undermined and too many people will continue to die from waterborne and water-related diseases,” said Dr Maria Neira, Director of the WHO Department of Public Health, Environmental and Social Determinants of Health. 

Access to adequate water, sanitation and hygiene is critical in the prevention and care of 16 of the 17 ‘neglected tropical diseases’ (NTDs), including trachoma, soil-transmitted helminths (intestinal worms) and schistosomiasis. NTDs affect more than 1.5 billion people in 149 countries, causing blindness, disfigurement, permanent disability and death.

The practice of open defecation is also linked to a higher risk of stunting – or chronic malnutrition – which affects 161 million children worldwide, leaving them with irreversible physical and cognitive damage.

“To benefit human health it is vital to further accelerate progress on sanitation, particularly in rural and underserved areas,” added Dr Neira.

Rural areas are home to 7 out of 10 people without access to improved sanitation and 9 out of 10 people who defecate in the open. 

Plans for the new Sustainable Development Goals to be set by the United Nations General Assembly in September 2015 include a target to eliminate open defecation by 2030. This would require a doubling of current rates of reduction, especially in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, WHO and UNICEF say. 

WHO and UNICEF say it is vitally important to learn from the uneven progress of the 1990-2015 period to ensure that the SDGs close the inequality gaps and achieve universal access to water and sanitation. To do so, the world needs:

• Disaggregated data to be able to pinpoint the populations and areas which are outliers from the national averages;
• A robust and intentional focus on the hardest to reach, particularly the poor in rural areas;
• Innovative technologies and approaches to bring sustainable sanitation solutions to poor communities at affordable prices;
• Increased attention to improving hygiene in homes, schools and health care facilities.

Early childhood care and education is the first stage of lifelong learning and development. It lays the necessary foundation for building higher-level cognitive and non-cognitive skills and has the potential of breaking down inequity in learning from the beginning by leveraging the tremendous capacity of early brain development and function. Most importantly, it can have a serious impact on the education of adolescent girls later on in life.

That’s why I was honoured to share a panel on the importance of early childhood education and care with UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake and Nobel Laureate Economist Professor James Heckman at the World Education Forum from May 19-22 in Incheon, South Korea. For me, learning started when I was a baby. I know this because I know my parents – and education has always been their number one priority.

Even before I was old enough for kindergarten, my father and I frequently went to the library together to read. My parents were still recent immigrants in Canada, where we live. At the library, there were literacy and support programmes. I remember that I loved the maps and photographs in geography books – especially pop up books with pieces I could touch.

My parents encouraged my interest and they sacrificed a lot so I would have a good education. I have no doubt that these early experiences formed my interest in books and the world and set me on my current path as a student and an advocate for education.

I know from my own journey that there is a direct connection between what a child learns early in life and what happens later. As an advocate for adolescent girls, I have travelled a lot. I have met girls my age and younger who are mothers. For very young mothers, it is incredibly important that they have knowledge, resources, programmes and support to help them provide their children with a good start in life. If we support these young mothers, we are also providing their babies with a fair chance to grow into young people and adults who can make the world a better place.

I think it is up to youth advocates like me – advocates who see the benefits of a strong early start in life – to speak about the issue.

Unfortunately, one of the reasons we are discussing this topic today is because not all children have access to early learning and care. Most of the children who go to pre-primary school live in more wealthy countries. In low-income countries, pre-primary enrollment ratios are only 19 per cent.These disparities in early childhood learning between wealthy and poor are not fair.

Over time, they also compound and the children who miss out early face ever greater challenges as they get older. Investing in learning from a child’s very earliest days is one of the best ways we have to make sure that all children – no matter where they live or who their parents are – have a good start in life.

Many of the individuals gathered at the World Education Forum for important discussions about investment in education and the Sustainable Development Goals. I came to the Forum to ask all to start early – to start investing and prioritizing learning for all children from the very earliest days of their lives. I can tell you from my personal experience: Those very first learning experiences make all the difference – they can change a girl’s life.

Vigilance in Somalia and region still needed before the region is declared polio-free once more.

By Shalini Rozario

Dr. Jean-Marc Olive, Horn of Africa (HOA) Polio Technical Advisory Group (TAG) Chair, chairs proceedings of the HOA Polio Outbreak Final Assessment, and is seated with representatives from the Kenyan Government, WHO, UNICEF and partners such as Rotary International, The Gates Foundation, CDC among others. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Rozario

17 June 2015, Nairobi, Kenya. Government representatives, technical experts, donors, and polio partners gathered on Wednesday, 17 June 2015 to review the polio outbreak status in the Horn of Africa (HOA) Region. The final assessment concluded the following:

• The assessment team commends the overall robust outbreak response in the HOA with strong vaccination, communication strategy and strengthened surveillance.
• The assessment team believes that transmission in Kenya and Ethiopia has been interrupted; however, continued undetected low level transmission cannot be ruled out in Somalia

Overall progress in the region was reviewed since onset of the outbreak in April 2013, which resulted in a total of 223 WPV cases across the region (10 in Ethiopia), and remaining challenges ahead were identified. Chaired by the Horn of Africa polio Technical Advisory Group (TAG) Chair, Dr. Jean-Marc Olive, the meeting gave opportunity to strategically reflect on the current outbreak status and required next steps for all three countries. Dr. Ephrem Tekle, Director of the Maternal and Child Health Directorate, Ethiopia Federal Ministry of Health responded positively to the wild poliovirus (WPV) interruption in Ethiopia, and also acknowledged the work ahead to further improve routine immunisation. “Successes achieved in the polio response are due to the political commitment and the support of partners,” said Dr. Ephrem. “We have been successful on SIAs (supplementary immunisation activities) and NIDs (National Immunisation Days). However, I don’t think we are yet fully successful on routine immunisation; there is a lot to do on routine immunisation even though WPV transmission is interrupted.” Dr. Ephrem acknowledged the strong focus on the involvement of religious and clan leaders in the Somali Region, and mobilisation of the community which have been instrumental to some of the immense achievements in the polio legacy process. He cited an example of community leaders asking for a generator so they could continue routine immunisation services. In moving ahead, Dr. Ephrem stressed the importance of sustaining the polio gains made, using the momentum to improve routine immunisation in the country, and also emphasised the importance to intensify the same efforts in regions bordering South Sudan, such as Benshangul Gumuz and Gambella, in light of the immense population migration. The HOA TAG Chair congratulated Dr. Ephrem and the Ethiopia team on their efforts and wished the country success for strengthening routine immunisation in the country, a challenging task. Closing remarks were provided by governments and partners such as Rotary International, CDC, The Gates Foundation, Red Cross, Core Group, USAID, Communication Initiative, UNICEF, WHO and the HOA TAG Chairman. Next steps for countries include working towards the polio legacy transition plan and using polio assets and achievement to further strengthen routine immunisation and beyond. Countries will continue to implement specific recommendations from the external assessment team, and the outbreak response in Somalia will be assessed again after three months. Following the Somalia assessment, the next HOA TAG meeting in August, and continual monitoring of regional progress, it is hoped that soon, the entire HOA region will be declared “polio-free.”

Through the generous support of polio donors and partners such as the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention; Crown Prince Court, Abu Dhabi, UAE; European Union; the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; National Philanthropic Trust; Slim Foundation; Rotary International; Swedish International Development Cooperation; and others, successful interruption of the outbreak in Ethiopia has been achieved. Continued collaboration is critical to sustain gains for polio and routine immunisation for healthy children and families in Ethiopia.

WHAT: 

Discussion on the role of a global partnership and fund to end violence against children. 

WHO:

 Ms. Marta Santos Pais – UN SRSG on Violence against Children

H.E. Hon. Saada Mkuya Salum – Minister of Finance, United Republic of Tanzania

H.E. Hon. Christian Paradis – Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, Canada

Ms. Yoka Brandt – Deputy Executive Director, UNICEF

Mr. Nick Dyer – Director of Policy, UK Department for International Development

Ms. Gugulethu Ndebele – CEO, Save the Children South Africa

WHEN:        

13.15-14.450, Monday, 13 July 2015

 WHERE:      

Warka 1+2, Radisson Blu, Addis Ababa

WHY: 

Every 5 minutes a child dies as a result of violence. Almost 1 in 4 girls aged 15 to 19 worldwide report being victims of some form of physical violence since age 15. In 2012, 1 in 5 homicides deaths were children and young people under the age of 20. Aside from the incalculably damaging effects on children, the global economic impact and costs resulting from the consequences of physical, psychological and sexual violence against children could be as high as $7 trillion according to Overseas Development Institute.

 Children have a right to be protected from all forms of violence in all settings, in every country of the world. The establishment of a global fund and partnership to end violence against children would be a major step along the road to realising this fundamental right.  

PDG Dr Tadesse Alemu, President of Rotary National Polio Plus Committee, World Health Organisation (WHO) Director General Dr Margaret Chan, UNAIDS Executive Director Mr Michel Sidibe, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Ms Yoka Brandt and Ethiopian Minister of Health Dr Kesetebirhan Admasu poses for a group picture after vaccinating a group of children at Selam Health Centre, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Sustaining the Achievements in Polio Eradication in Ethiopia: High level Vaccination Session During the Financing for Development conference ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Westerbeek

Addis Ababa | 14 July 2015. Ethiopian Minister of Health Dr Kesetebirhan Admasu, World Health Organisation (WHO) Director General Dr Margaret Chan, The Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) Chief Executive Officer Dr Seth Berkley and UNICEF Deputy Executive Director Ms Yoka Brandt participated in a high level polio vaccination event at Selam Health Centre in Addis Ababa. Also present at the event were UNAIDS Executive Director Mr Michel Sidibe, US Ambassador Ms Patricia M. Haslach, Brazil Ambassador Mrs Isabel Cristina, President and CEO of PATH Dr Davis Steve, and Rotary National Polio Plus Committee Chairperson PDG Dr Tadesse Alemu as well as national and international EPI partners, health workers and mothers with their children. “Strong leadership, political will and coordination are key to sustaining the gains made in interrupting polio transmission in Ethiopia and Africa,” said Dr Margaret Chan, commending Ethiopia’s aggressive response to the 2013 outbreak of wild polio virus. “Horn of Africa countries should continue to immunise all at risk age groups until the threat drops to zero and eradication is achieved. And this is possible only through high quality immunisation activities for all communities.” When the wild polio virus outbreak in the Horn of Africa spread to Ethiopia in August 2013, the Government of Ethiopia intensified vigilance, surveillance and mass immunisation campaigns, together with partners like WHO, UNICEF, USAID, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Rotary International. Fifteen supplementary immunisation campaigns were implemented with a focus on high risk areas. Cross-border coordination was heightened, with Horn of Africa countries coming together to implement synchronised response activities. It has been 18 months since the last case of wild polio virus was reported in Ethiopia, and 11 months since the last case in Africa. Dr Kesetebirhan Admasu said, “We will focus on equity and quality for every child and mother in Ethiopia,” adding, “The Government of Ethiopia continues to be committed to eradicating polio from Ethiopia, and Africa.” He further affirmed that “The Government of Ethiopia will continue to engage communities for active participation in routine immunisation, and will continue to build strong health partnerships.” With a view of sustaining the achievements in interruption of wild polio virus transmission, and strengthening the immunisation system, the Ministry of Health of Ethiopia, with support from partners, is currently implementing a two-year Routine Immunisation Improvement Plan 2014-2015. The plan pays special attention to low performing prioritised zones and accelerating efforts to support such vulnerable zones to improve performance, among other priority initiatives.

Ms Yoka Brandt, Deputy Executive Director, UNICEF gives an anti polio drop to a child at Selam Health Centre. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Ayene

Ms. Yoka Brandt, asserted, “Immunisation, especially routine immunisation, is a core priority within UNICEF, and it will continue to be. With the availability of new innovations, new vaccines, and new research and evidence, we can go fast and far.” Immunisation is among the most cost effective interventions we can provide to our children. Yet, one in five children are not fully immunised worldwide. In Ethiopia and Africa, children in remote and marginalised communities are more likely to be missed. It is these same children that carry the highest risk of diseases that vaccines can prevent. Therefore we must refine our strategies to reach these children and include them in our services. Reaching every community is an approach that strives at inclusion of all communities, especially the marginalised children, ensuring resources and services are available and monitoring is in place. Dr Seth Berkley, highlighting GAVI’s commitment to strengthening routine immunisation, said, “Strong routine immunisation systems are a bedrock of healthy societies and are central to global plans for the eradication of polio. By working together, we are reaching more children than ever before with lifesaving vaccines and the GAVI partners are committed to supporting countries like Ethiopia to sustain and build on their progress on immunisation.” WHO, UNICEF, GAVI and other immunisation partners remain committed to support African governments in reaching every community with vaccination – the gift of life.

Rahmat and her baby Ne’ema Abdu-Dessie Zurie Woreda © UNICEF Ethiopia/2013/Tsegaye

NEW YORK/ADDIS ABABA, 15 July 2015 – At the close of the Third International Conference on Financing for Development, UNICEF challenges the international community to turn its promises to invest in children and young people into concrete action that reduces inequities and provides every child with a fair chance in life.

UNICEF welcomes the Addis Ababa Conference’s recognition that investing in children and young people is “critical to achieving inclusive, equitable and sustainable development”. This represents a significant shift away from the perception of children as passive recipients of social spending towards viewing them as agents of future growth and development. 

UNICEF also supports the Conference’s acknowledgement of the “vital importance of promoting and protecting the rights of all children, and ensuring that no child is left behind,” believing that this provides a strong basis for final negotiations on the post-2015 development agenda, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Yoka Brandt, Deputy Executive Director UNICEF, makes a remark at the Child Protection: Sustaining Investments in Childhood side event at FFD3 ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Ayene

“Here in Addis Ababa member states have agreed on a global roadmap for development finance that recognises in much stronger words than previous agreements that investing in children is central to inclusive and sustainable growth,” said Yoka Brandt, UNICEF Deputy Executive Director. “The Addis Ababa Action Agenda puts a strong emphasis on equity, on reaching the most vulnerable. Combined with the Sustainable Development Goals, which also give clear priority to the interests of children and equity, we now have a robust, new global foundation for making the world fit for children.”

However, UNICEF warns against complacency and calls upon the international community to build on the commitments made in Addis Ababa by:

• Prioritising investments in basic universal services such as education, social safety nets, health care, immunisation, water and sanitation and child protection;
  
• Identifying and targeting groups and communities with the greatest needs;
  
• Progressively mobilising additional resources to address financing gaps in underfunded SDG priority areas with the greatest impacts for children such as nutrition, children protection and early childhood development;
  
• Improving reporting on child-related spending including documenting how much funding goes to groups or areas with greater incidences of child deprivation.

“We must make sure that the most vulnerable and disadvantaged children are at the heart of the SDGs, and at the heart of how we go about mobilising the financing that is needed to achieve these goals,” Brandt said. “We have a unique opportunity to translate commitments and promise and into action. To turn rhetoric into practical results for all children.”

By Jasmine Pittenger, UNICEF consultant and writer

For many nomads in Ethiopia’s Somali Region, home is a hand-sewn tent. To reach families that are constantly on the move, it is essential to tap into the nomads’ own communication networks. This house-marked tent shows children were reached with the polio vaccine during the campaign. Awbare woreda of the Somali Region, November 2014. © UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Rozario.

The patches that make up the nomad’s tent say it all. Yellow, orange and red cloth is sewn together with broad stitches — even a pair of trousers is sewn into the mix. Yet the tent is greater than the sum of its parts. It protects a large family from scorching desert sun, from cold nights and rain.

When a polio outbreak struck the Horn of Africa in 2013, WHO and UNICEF with the help of the European Union had to find a way to reach every last child across Somalia, Kenya and Ethiopia. It was a daunting task to deliver multiple doses of OPV (Oral Polio Vaccine) into the mouths of some of the world’s hardest-to-reach children – from war-torn parts of Somalia to the diverse landscapes of Kenya and Ethiopia. Among the very hardest-to-reach are nomads in Ethiopia’s Somali region, which shares a porous 1,600 kilometer border with Somalia. Here, over 80 per cent of the 5 million people are nomadic, herding cattle, camels and goats across broad stretches of desert in search of water and pasture. For many families, home is a tent sewn together from patches of cloth and carried from one watering hole to another on the back of a camel.

To end the outbreak, it was crucial to deliver messages to families constantly on the move. Yet only 11 per cent of people here have access to newspapers or radio. How, then, do you inform families about polio’s risks and the need for children to take OPV? What is the patchwork that makes up this particular community? How do the nomads themselves pass on life-saving information, and receive it? And who is in a position to mobilize families?

One answer is with the Sheikhs and Imams. The Somali Regional Health Bureau and UNICEF reached out to the Somali Region’s IASC (Islamic Affairs Supreme Council). This part of Ethiopia is close to 100 per cent Muslim, and the IASC Sheikhs and religious leaders, are amongst the most respected and influential personalities amongst nomadic communities here. The communities have faith and belief in what they say, and seek out their teachings even as they’re on the move. Once the highest-level Sheikhs and Imams became engaged in warning parents about polio’s risks and the need for OPV, Islamic leaders at all levels got on board.

“We have partnered with UNICEF and WHO because we believe this is a noble cause that is completely in line with our religion, Islam,” says Sheikh Abdel Rahman Hassan Hussein, President of the IASC in Jigjiga, capital of the Somali region. “From the city to the most remote villages, you will find every person working in this project motivated and doing his/her best. They know they are doing something that almighty Allah will reward them for, at the last day. They know they are saving the lives of children and their future by protecting them from this disease, polio. We take every occasion to tell people about this – from Friday prayers to feasts.”

Another answer: children themselves. Messages about polio and OPV are also being taught in schools, including the religious schools or madrassas that many children attend.

School children – like these, at a religious school near the border with Somalia – can be powerful advocates for polio eradication. Awbare woreda, Somali Region, 2014. © UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Mohamed.

“How many drops of the polio vaccine must be taken, every time the vaccinators come, by each and every child in your home?” asks a teacher at a small IASC-run madrassa on the border with Somalia. “Two drops, two drops!” shout the school children. “How do you know when a child has been vaccinated?” “The finger! The mark on the pinkie finger!” Children clamor to show off where the ink-marks should go on their fingers. Children can be great transmitters of polio messages to their parents. Says 10-year-old schoolboy Hassan: “At home I tell my mother and father about the importance of immunisation to protect little ones under the age of five.”

Parents pay attention – especially when the messages their children bring home are backed up by their local Imams, clan leaders and female community mobilisers who work for polio eradication. In Lafa’isa kebele 04 in the Awbare woreda of the Somali Region, Mrs. Hibo Abdikarim Ibrahim, mother of one-and-a-half-year-old baby boy Mohamed-Amin Abdusalam Abdosh proudly shows his vaccination certificate:

Hibo Abdikarim Ibrahim proudly shows the vaccination certificate for her son, Mohamed-Amin Abdusalam Abdosh, which is a record of his completed routine immunisation schedule. Lafa’isa kebele, Awbare woreda, Somali Region, November, 2014. © UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Rozario.

“I am so happy my child is fully immunized now. Every National Immunisation Day I also immunize him to protect him from polio. I learned all of this from our lady community mobilizers and we heard the same message in the mosque.”

From Sheikh and Imam to female community mobiliser to clan leader from madrassa student to mother and baby – this is how a movement is built. Each forms a piece of the patchwork to protect children from polio. Just like each dose of polio vaccine, generously funded by the European Union, strengthens the immunity of the community.

Yet there is still much to be done. In the last campaign, 5 per cent of children reached were “zero dose” – they had never before received even a single dose of OPV. This is both hopeful, we are reaching children never reached before, and potentially troubling – are there further pockets of zero dose children we have not yet reached, who are entirely unprotected from polio? And while OPV and Routine Immunisation can go a long way toward protecting children from ten life-threatening, vaccine-preventable diseases, ongoing threats to child health and survival in Ethiopia’s Somali region, and across the Horn of Africa, are great.

Like the patches that make up the nomad’s tent, no single square of cloth is enough on its own. When we join together, from the Sheikh and Imam to the nomad to the international community, the whole is much greater than its parts. Together we can keep building a tent of protection to end polio and improve child health in the Horn of Africa – and to wipe the virus from the face of the earth for good. This can only be done with generous contributions from donors such as the European Union who have enabled the programme to reach the hardest to reach with life-saving polio vaccine.

By Tesfaye Simerta

Ayele Feyisa Laboratory technician takes sample blood at Chancho health centre, Oromia special zone surrounding Finfinne Sululta woreda, Ethiopia ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2014/Ayene

CHANCHO TOWN, OROMIA REGION, ETHIOPIA, 23 October 2014 – The Chancho Health Centre, 45kms north of Addis Ababa, is where Rediet* goes for her follow-ups, having discovered she was HIV positive back in 2013. Today, there are lots of people waiting alongside Rediet to utilise the laboratory services. Chancho is one of the health centres that the Ethiopian Government – supported by the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), UNITAID and UNICEF – is using to advance access to Point of Care Technologies (POCT). These provide results on the same day, in order to make HIV testing and treatment more effective, efficient and easier for both health care workers and patients.

Now, Rediet is a mother of a one-year-old baby girl and is still following up on her status regularly.

“Now I have stopped having to wait to hear my CD4 count status at the Fiche Hospital, far from here,” said Rediet, who used to have to travel to Fiche Town to get the test done. “When I went to Fiche, I was paying transport expenses for a round trip, but here it is accessible – about an hour and half walking distance from my home. Previously, when my blood sample was sent to Fiche Hospital, I was not able to know my CD4 count status for a month or more and could not receive treatment. Now that the machine has arrived in the Health Centre, I get my results just after 20 minutes of testing, receive my treatment here and then go home.”

According to Mr Asfaw Referra, Anti-Retroviral Treatment (ART) Focal Person at the Chancho Health Centre, there are now around 500 clients using the CD4 count of POCT, of which one in ten are children. “Clients are very happy about this machine, since they can discover their CD4 count status just after 20 minutes,” he told us. “There were clients whose CD4 counts had dropped as low as 93. As they start their ART treatment immediately after we know their CD4 count, however, we are very excited when these people show signs of improvement.”

In addition, before the POCT machine was introduced to the Chancho Health Centre, the number of clients allowed to give blood samples was restricted.

“The sample we used to take to Fiche hospital was restricted to between 10 and 15,” Abebe Gelme, Chancho Health Centre Laboratory Technician, informs us. As a result, Chancho Health Centre was forced to transport the samples every week. “Despite the large demand, we appointed only 10 to 15 clients to give their blood sample to our Health Centre up until 9 am every Friday morning, since the collected blood samples had to be taken to Fiche right away.”

Some clients coming from far away could not reach to the Health Centre before 9am and missed their chance. They were then appointed to come back again the following week. Often, they did not get the opportunity to have their blood samples taken and felt helpless.

“I know a client whose CD4 count was found to be eight,” Abebe told us. “Now, thanks to the POCT machine, I can have the data and tell the exact status of my client’s CD4 count with confidence.”

The POCT services are now becoming popular, both at the government level and at the grassroots level.

“The Oromia Regional Health Bureau is committed to working with partners,” Asfaw Endebu, Woreda Health Office Head, told us with great pride. “The woreda cabinet knows about the service provided at this Health Centre and we have recently started introducing it to the Health Workers and Health Extension Workers. We are informed about the availability of the machine, and that is why other HCs and HPOs refer cases to this centre.”

With the support of partners, 45 sites with high patient volume, like Chancho Health Centre, have received POCT machines at the initial stage. This ensures that women, like Rediet, and children in remote areas especially will not have to spend time and resources in order to discover their results. This will remove delays and enable more individuals to receive the treatment they need.

*Name changed to protect identity

This blog is re-published from reachwater.org.uk website

21 July 2015

By Andrew Dansie, DPhil Researcher at Oxford University who joined the REACH diagnostic field visit to Ethiopia, June-July 2015.

A seemingly never-ending line of activity crosses the wall of the Gum Selassa dam to the village of Adi Gudem. It is Saturday and women, men and children are ferrying goods, mainly in the form of livestock, to market. Those that have made the longer journey from the east, climbing up from much drier rift valley of the Afar region, are easily spotted with camels in tow.

Adi Gudem is situated 40km south of Mekele in the Tigray region of the northern Ethiopian highlands at an elevation of 2,100m. The Gum Selassa dam is a micro dam built in the mid-nineties with a 12m high earthen dam wall and a reservoir of around 45 hectares when full. Built to provide water for agriculture, two main channels serve approximately 300 irrigators downstream.

Micro dams such as Gum Selassa are being built in Ethiopia to reduce the variability of water availability for agriculture, but are facing severely reduced life expectancy due to sediment filling up the dams, leaving less and less water storage capacity every year. Vast agricultural land use has long replaced native vegetation in the region, which combined with short duration but high intensity rainfall, contributes to the sedimentation problem.

At the Gum Selassa dam, there is no respite for the camels as they pass by. The reservoir is dry, containing only accumulated sediment which supports a burst of green vegetation, contrasting with the rich brown of the freshly-tilled fields in the surrounds. A number of crops are grown in these fields but the largest by far is teff, a native grain and the staple food of Ethiopia. The grain is ground and fermented then cooked as flat, spongy ‘pancakes’ called injera. Slightly sour in taste but nutritionally high in value and packed with iron, injera forms the base of every Ethiopian meal.

The tilled fields mark the beginning of the wet season with farmers anticipating the first of the rains that come over a short two-month burst. The skies then remain largely dry until the same cycle is, assumedly, repeated the following year. The vast majority of farmers practice subsistence farming. Their small land plots produce enough for feeding themselves but not much, if any, surplus to be sold or stored for years of low yields or crop failure. Read more on the REACH website

By Wossen Mulatu

Media meets UNICEF Ethiopia National Ambassadors-Hannah Godefa and Abelone Melesse on Friday, 24 July 2015 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Sewunet

ADDIS ABABA, 24 July 2015 – Today, UNICEF’s Media and External Relations Section has organised the third media get-together with UNICEF National Ambassadors to Ethiopia – Hannah Godefa and Abelone Melesse. Also present on the occasion as guests of honour were the fathers of Abelone and Hannah- Ato Solomon Melesse and Ato Godefa Assegahen respectively.

Since their appointment as UNICEF National Ambassadors, Hannah and Abelone have shown a true commitment to the issues of women and children by involving in different advocacy activities both in Ethiopia and abroad. At the media get- together, both Hannah and Abelone shared their current activities in relation to the rights of women and children including their recent field visit to Amhara region to see UNICEF- supported child protection and health activities.

At the occasion, the media had the opportunity to ask questions to Abelone and Hannah on their role as ambassadors, their inspiration and their future plan. The media also forwarded their questions to their fathers on how they have raised their daughters and how they support them.

Speaking of her visit to Amhara region, Hannah said the most fulfilling part of her visit was the interaction she had with the women and children in the community. “I have talked to women who were faced with child marriage instead of going to school- it’s really heartbreaking.”

Seventeen year old Hannah became a UNICEF National Ambassador in 2013. This year, Hannah has participated at the World Education Forum 2015 (WEF) from 19 to 22 May in the city of Incheon, Republic of Korea. Hannah joined the “Leaving no one behind – how education can drive inclusive development?” panel co-hosted by the UNICEF Executive Director and David McKenzie of CNN. On 16 June, Hannah became a panelist or the 29^th session of the Human Rights Council’s panel discussion on girls’ education held in Geneva.

Abelone on her part said, “My visit to Dera woreda in Amhara region has been an eye opener to see the progress made in the health sector in Ethiopia. I have witnessed how the health extension workers reach the most vulnerable population through promotive, preventive and basic curative health and nutrition services. My goal is to advocate especially for maternal health though my songs as a rap singer.”

Nineteen year old young rap star Abelone Melesse became a UNICEF National Ambassador to Ethiopia in 2014. This year, Abelone has attended a number of meetings and conferences in her new capacity as an Ambassador. On International Women’s Day, Abelone was invited by Ethiopian Women’s Association in Norway joined by high level Norwegian politicians where she had the opportunity to deliberate a speech and perform her songs on behalf of the women in Norway and in Ethiopia. Abelone also officially released her new single entitled “Jewels of the world” – a song which she has dedicated to UNICEF at the 25^th anniversary of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The song written by Abelone herself has received more than 10,000 views on Youtube 7,150 views on Facebook  and 70,106 views on DireTube.

Note to the media

How can UNICEF support the media? Our UNICEF Ethiopia website has many different resources, including: publications, photos, press releases, speeches, contact information, guidelines and other information useful for the media. In addition, we are present in many socialmedia platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, LinkedIn, Delicious and Youtube 

In addition, the Media and External Relations Section facilitates individual interviews with specialists and experts on different programmes in different languages including: English, French, Arabic, German, Swahili, Dutch, Italian and many Ethiopian local languages. We also organise media round tables with senior staff and programme specialists, respective government officials and partners on different topics affecting women and children.

Regular media field visits will continue to be organised to visit UNICEF-supported project sites in Addis Ababa as well as in the regions.

We wish to thank those who were able to join us and look forward to our continuous collaboration in 2015 and beyond.

By Wossen Mulatu

Staff children inaugurate UNICEF Ethiopia’s breastfeeding room ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Sewunet

7 August 2015:- Globally, World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated from 1-7 August. This year, World Breastfeeding Week focuses on working mothers with the theme, “Breastfeeding and work- let’s make it work! The aim is to empower and support all working women to breastfeed, whether in the formal or informal sector so they can combine work with child-rearing, particularly breastfeeding.

“Giving children the best start in life begins with breastfeeding”, said Gillian Mellsop, UNICEF Representative to Ethiopia during the inauguration of UNICEF Ethiopia’s breastfeeding room at its new office facility. The aim is to allow breastfeeding mothers in the office to continue breastfeeding their new-borns after returning to work. “By allowing our female colleagues the time, space and the necessary support to breastfeed in the working environment, children will receive the best food, care and protection possible. It also reduces absenteeism and increase productivity. We want the same for all Ethiopian babies and young children”

Exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of life yields tremendous health benefits including; providing critical nutrients, protection from deadly diseases such as pneumonia and fostering growth and development. Continued breastfeeding after six months, for up to two years of age or beyond, combined with safe and appropriate complementary feeding, is the optimal approach to child feeding.

“Having a breastfeeding room in UNICEF is wonderful because it allows me to spend quality time with my baby without having to leave the office”, says Lina Jalouqa, Donor Relations Specialist in UNICEF Ethiopia. ”Besides, breastfeeding is one of my favourite things about being a mother since I can spend my special time with my little one. In addition to its incredible health benefits, breastfeeding gives me and my baby a chance to connect and share love and trust,” she added.

“I am honestly thrilled that I can be able to nurse my nine months old baby at work,” says Sarah Sahlu, who works in Nutrition section at UNICEF. “Since I live far from work, the drive back and forth takes longer time and that decreases the volume of milk that is produced for my baby.”

For working mothers, a baby’s right to breastfeed can be interrupted or hindered by a nursing mother’s limited chance to combine breastfeeding with work due to lack of adequate support. For example, nursing mothers often do not have the necessary maternity leave or do not have access to the time, space and support that would allow them to breastfeed or express (pump) milk once they have resumed work.

Working women in the formal and informal sectors around the world face challenges combining work with breastfeeding. Women with full- or part-time work, those that are self-employed or have only seasonal or contract work, even those with unpaid home and care work, all require an enabling environment in order to succeed.

Worldwide, only 38 per cent of children under six months are exclusively breastfed.[1] Babies who are not breastfed have a higher risk of illnesses and death than those that are. They also face long-term physical, educational and economic setbacks. 

In Ethiopia, while 99 per cent of children are breastfed, only 52 per cent of children are exclusively breastfed within the first six months (EDHS, 2011). Additionally, among children 6-23 months, only 5 per cent received four or more food groups, and 49 per cent were fed at least three times per day (EDHS,2011).

With increasing urbanization and industrialization, more women will participate in formal labour forces and hence need to ensure their right to breastfeed in their workplace.

[1] UNICEF global databases, 2015, based on MICS, DHS and other nationally representative surveys

By Bethlehem Kiros

Ubah Jemal, 15, makes a call before a meeting of the Girls Club in Jigjiga, Somali Region, Ethiopia, 24 January 2015. Ubah is the vice president of the Somali Region Children’s Parliament, a position that enabled her to engage and empower girls in Jigjiga town, where she lives. In addition to heading the Girls Club in her own high school, she is responsible for setting up similar clubs in all the primary schools of her town. Ubah wants to pursue the field of medicine while continuing to serve in leadership position. “I want to become a doctor because it grants the opportunity to touch peoples’ lives directly, but ultimately, I want to become a leader, preferably a president,” she says. ©UNICEF Ethiopia/2015/Bindra

SOMALI REGION, 24 January 2014 – “Dreams won’t cost you a thing, so dream,’’ cheerfully exclaimed Ubah Jemal, as she concluded delivering one of her weekly pep talks to the Girls Club members from all the primary schools in Jigjiga town, the capital of the Somali region. A 12^th grader at the Jigjiga Senior Secondary and Preparatory School, 15 years old Ubah is well known among female primary and high school students in Jigjiga for her inspirational speeches and her ability to organise and lead. Even at her childhood, she was made to skip third and fourth grade because of her intelligence. Spotted first by the Regional government officials while presenting a speech as a representative of her School Parliament, Ubah was often invited to attend meetings that were organised by the Regional Bureau of Women, Children and Youth Affairs (BOWCYA). Then three years ago, upon the formation of the Somali Region Children’s Parliament, she was elected as vice president, acquiring a role that enabled her to spread her wings beyond her own high school. As part of the global initiative to promote the rights and roles of children in the society, children parliaments are formed in each of the nine regional states and the two city administrations in Ethiopia. Picked from various schools across the nation, Ubah and her fellow appointees serve as mouthpieces of all under 18 children throughout the country.

Leadership with results

Right after she assumed her position as vice-president, she was given the role to head the Girls Club in her school that was established that same year, when she was at the 9^th grade. The club absorbed other existing clubs like the anti FGM (Female genital mutilation) to address more issues of girls in the region, including FGM. “We wanted it to be a safe place where we can talk freely about all our issues as girls and learn from each other,’’ says Ubah. Besides offering the opportunity of growth through continued discussions, Ubah and her group mates opted for practical ways to help girls, after she had an eye-opening encounter with a classmate. “A girl who was sitting next to me was very stressed because her period suddenly came and she couldn’t leave the room fearing that the teacher and the students will see her cloth,’’ she recalls, ‘’and she was also very hesitant to tell me because apparently, it is a taboo to talk about such things.’’ She adds that an idea came to her right there to create a space in school where girls can access the proper sanitation materials, clean and freshen up, and even take painkiller pills and nap if they feel sick. Consequently, the Girls Club called a meeting of all female students in the school to raise money, and eventually made this idea a reality. “Once they saw that we made it possible, BOWCYA started supporting us and now UNICEF provides the sanitation supplies regularly,’’ says Ubah. She believes that the availability of the girls’ room has contributed to an increase in attendance of girl students, since some girls have the tendency of not showing up to school, sometimes for a whole week, during their menstruation period due to their inability to afford sanitation pads or painful cramps. According to a study conducted by Water Aid, 51 per cent of girls in Ethiopia miss up to four school days every month and 39 per cent show reduced performance, when they are on their periods. The severe cramps are especially common among girls who went through Pharaonic circumcision. Dubbed as the most severe form of FGM, Pharaonic circumcision–which refers to the removal of all external genitalia and then the sewing of the remaining parts of outer lips, only leaving a small whole for urine and menstrual flow–-was highly prevalent in the Somali region until its decrease in the last five years through the organised efforts of the local community, religious leaders and the government.

Passing the torch

After making sure that the same model of Girls’ Club is duplicated in the only other high school in Jigjiga town, Ubah spearheaded the formation of Girl Clubs in elementary schools. “I thought it would be beneficial if younger girls also got the chance to organise so I approached the BoWCYA head who regarded it as a great idea,’’ she recounts. In less than a week, Ubah met with the principals of all the four primary schools in Jigjiga town and established four Girl Clubs, each with 30 members. She now meets with them on weekly basis where they get to report and plan their activities, while receiving constant encouragement from her. According to Ubah, the girls keep watchful eye in their communities and offer assistance when they are needed. So far, they have stopped planned circumcisions, supported indigent children with school materials, and even found foster parents for few orphaned students. Ubah is confident that there will be many girls who are now empowered enough to take over her responsibilities when she goes to university, which is in less than eight months. Her plan is to study medicine either at the Addis Ababa University or go abroad, if she gets a scholarship. “I want to become a doctor because it grants the opportunity to touch peoples’ lives directly, but ultimately, I want to become a leader, preferably a president,’’ she laughs. “Who can charge me from dreaming?’’

Not so very long ago Ethiopia had one of the worst child mortality rates in Africa but it’s managed to slash the death toll by two-thirds, three years ahead of the Millennium Development Goal’s (MDG’s).

On a recent interview with CCTV, UNICEF Representative to Ethiopia, Ms. Gillian Mellsop, said “The key heroes in reducing child mortality by two third in Ethiopia are the 38,000, mainly women government salaried, health extension workers in addition to the political commitment and the vision of the government and sustainable funding.”

See the full programme which was aired on CCTV below:

Addis Ababa, 12 August 2015 – Support from the European Commission’s European Union has successfully contributed to efforts to contain the spread of the wild polio virus in Ethiopia, the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has announced today.

“Following a robust and aggressive response to the onset of the 2013 Horn of Africa polio outbreak in Ethiopia, the Ministry of Health, partners and frontline workers have worked hard to ensure millions of children have been vaccinated with the polio vaccine,” said Gillian Mellsop, UNICEF Representative to Ethiopia. “As a result of the response, transmission of the polio virus has been successfully interrupted. This success is due to the tremendous support from the EU and other partners, which has ensured teams on the ground have had the adequate vaccines to immunise and ultimately, protect children against polio and stop the outbreak.”

A recent Horn of Africa polio outbreak assessment in June 2015 declared that the transmission of wild poliovirus in Ethiopia and Kenya has now been interrupted, with the last case of wild poliovirus in Ethiopia confirmed almost 19 months ago in January 2014. 11 August 2015 also marks the one-year anniversary of the last reported wild poliovirus case in neighbouring Somalia, and on the entire continent of Africa.

The generous €4 million financial contribution, for polio eradication in Horn of Africa, provided Ethiopia and South Sudan with funds for the procurement of the oral polio vaccine to respond to the Horn of Africa polio outbreak.

In Ethiopia, a total of 23,873,000 doses of bOPV were procured for four polio supplementary immunisation activities (SIAs), in vulnerable, polio high-risk regions such as Somali, Gambella, Benshangul-Gumuz, Afar, Dire Dawa, Harari; in other high-risk zones in the country and refugee camps. The campaigns also included one nation-wide campaign covering all regions which aimed to vaccinate every single child in the country under the age of five years – over 13 million children. This supplementary immunisation complemented routine immunisation and sought to interrupt circulation of the polio virus by immunising every child under five years of age with two drops of oral polio vaccine for every round, regardless of previous immunisation status.

The campaigns, which were carried out in some of Ethiopia’s remotest parts, reaching hard-to-reach mobile and pastoral populations, successfully targeted children who were either not immunised, or only partially protected, and boosted the immunity in those who have been immunised.

The EU support contributed to regional efforts to interrupt polio and significantly accelerate the global push to eliminate polio. The polio virus can be swiftly transmitted through water or food contaminated with human waste from an infected person. There is no treatment against polio and vaccination remains the vital key to providing life-long protection for children. The vaccine – which is just two drops in the mouth – is safe, effective and prevents paralysis. Children should be vaccinated several times to ensure they are protected for life.

Through the generous support of the EU and other polio donors and partners such as The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention; Crown Prince Court, Abu Dhabi, UAE; the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation; National Philanthropic Trust; Slim Foundation; Rotary International; Swedish International Development Cooperation and others, successful closure of the outbreak in Ethiopia has been achieved. Continued collaboration is critical to sustain gains for polio, routine immunisation and child and family health in Ethiopia.