The role of the European Commission in addressing the gender gap in education in least developed countries : a focus on Ethiopia

Abstract

This study has been chosen because 2015 was the European Year for Development, where each month represented an issue in developing countries. Two of the issues mentioned were education and the gender gap, which have been at the centre of the EU development and cooperation policy since the adoption of the Millennium Development Goals in 2000. This dissertation investigates the role played by the European Commission in addressing the gender gap in education in least developed countries, with a focus on Ethiopia. Ethiopia was selected since while having one of the lowest HDIs, it is experiencing sustained economic growth, which made it an interesting case study, given also the growing flow of resources being transferred by donor countries. There is a gap in understanding if any of these resources are being directed to addresses gender gaps in education. More specifically this research intends to answer to the question on whether, and to what extent, the EU development cooperation policy targeted the reduction of the gender gap in education in Ethiopia. This is done by applying a mixed methodology utilising both content analysis and descriptive statistics. This research finds that the EU addresses relatively well gender gaps in education in Ethiopia, however limitations in data availability for the single projects on the ground limit the application of these results and call for more transparency in the acquisition of such information.