(February 13/2017) The Minister of Education, Professor Berhanu Nega, who attended the consultation forum, said that it is necessary to work hard to be effective in the sector.

In particular, we must work to ensure that all Ethiopians have equal opportunities in obtaining quality education; we must work to reduce the gap between the rich and the poor, he said.

The Minister, who said that this country can be changed only when the education system can be changed, noted that many reforms have been designed and implemented.

He said that there is a need to work on improving teaching and learning in government schools, and that the movement to improve the infrastructure of schools for the next generation should be maintained.

He said that preparations are being made for 150,000 grade 12 students to take their exams online this year.

He stated that in the current situation, secondary school student textbooks have been delivered one-to-one, and urged the regions to work diligently since primary and middle school student textbooks have not been delivered one-to-one.

He also stated that in order to address the problem of teacher supply, graduates from various fields of education will be trained in special teaching professions (pedagogy) and will be allowed to enter the profession.

The State Minister for General Education Development, Ms. Ayelech Eshete, for her part, said that this consultation forum will discuss the main activities carried out in the sector in the past six months.

She also explained that this is a place where one can learn from each other’s experiences in the implementation of these reforms and main activities, and discuss the challenges and solutions encountered, and set a future direction.

The consultation forum was attended by leaders of the Regional and City Administration Education Bureaus and other stakeholders.