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Ongoing 🎓 Education & training

Financing Faith-Based Schools in Ethiopia: Cost, Access & Quality

What community-led schooling really costs

An examination of the financial sustainability of community-led and faith-based schools in Ethiopia — balancing affordable fees, transport, and scholarships against the cost of delivering quality education.

📋 Overview

Community-led schools across Addis Ababa and regional towns widen access to education, but their finances are fragile. This project maps the real per-student cost in ETB, the share covered by fees versus donations, and the trade-offs schools face between keeping fees low, funding transport, and offering scholarships to the poorest families.

The study surveys a sample of community schools, models break-even enrolment, and identifies which levers — modest fee tiers, sponsored scholarship pools, shared transport, or endowment support — best protect both access and teaching quality.