PROJECT IDENTIFICATION

imagine1day is currently bringing quality education to over 10,000 children and their families in 30 communities in the northern state of Tigray in Ethiopia.

imagine1day has seen how a primary school becomes the heart of a community in rural Ethiopia by educating not only the children who attend, but also the parents and elders. While children are being educated, an entire community benefits from clean water, improved health and hygiene, and sustainable income generation models that they can emulate in their own lives.

three key questions

When planning and implementing projects imagine1day finds answers to the following three questions:

1. What are the current barriers restricting children's equal access to quality primary education?
2. What is required to ensure the sustainability of the project?
3. Who are the key project partners?

identifying barriers to education

Working with our partners, imagine1day identifies and addresses the key barriers restricting equal access to quality education for a given community. Common barriers fall into four broad categories:

1. Shortage of Facilities or Resources: Lack of classrooms, water points, furniture, and teachers limit access to education for many children.
2. Compromised Quality: Lack of quality exists when student to teacher ratios are high, teachers are undertrained and teaching materials are limited, the learning environment is uncomfortable and distracting, and when students are sick, dehydrated or malnourished.
3. Cultural and Social-Economic Issues: Cultural and social-economic issues include safety concerns for children that have to travel long distances to arrive at school or do not have private latrine facilities available, child labor due to needs of the household, and lack of funds to pay for school expenses or supplies. These issues are especially significant for girls who are often excluded from education due to the family's preference for a girl to remain in the household and get married at a young age and due to family concerns over the safety of their daughters when attending school.
4. Lack of Policy: Lack of Policy is interlinked with all of the above issues. Policy or lack thereof at the state and national level can impose a significant constraint on access to primary education. Many policy issues are budget related such as percentage of government expenditure on education, while others are curriculum or planning related.

creating sustainability

imagine1day leaves a community knowing that it has the human and financial capacity needed to maintain and improve the school facilities for years to come.

The most effective way to ensure the sustainability of a project is to involve the community in all stages of implementation, from planning, to construction to project monitoring and evaluation. From day one, the community is a partner with a voice, a vote and a clear understanding of the established goals, the materials used, the time invested and the challenges overcome throughout the project cycle. imagine1day trains the Parent Teacher Association, who lead the community's creation of goals, objectives and action plans in the areas of fundraising, revenue generating enterprise and school maintenance and improvement.

Another critical step in creating sustainable projects is to address water scarcity. imagine1day works with experts from the Regional Water Bureau to build clean water points. Access to clean water improves health, reduces the burden of long walks to find water and creates a regular source of irrigation for planting trees and crops. imagine1day helps communities implement micro irrigation systems and plant community gardens and fruit trees to produce food for consumption and for sale and reinvestment into the school.

Through bi-annual monitoring and evaluation of project activity output indicators, imagine1day determines the real impact that each dollar invested has on a community. Through this process a community's capacity to stand on its own and sustain the project is evaluated and an appropriate phase out strategy for imagine1day is agreed to.

identifying key partners

imagine1day partners with the regional and federal Education Ministries in Ethiopia to find opportunities to work with communities that are steadfast in their pursuit to mobilize resources and build capacity. Once a community is identified, participatory planning exercises are undertaken to determine the educational requirements, visions and goals of the community. Women, men, children and elders are key contributors to this process. Where additional expertise or resources are required, imagine1day works with other organisations or government bodies (such as the water or agriculture bureaus) to ensure the highest level of quality and integrity in all aspects of project implementation.

summary of imagine1day's programs:

imagine1day focuses its efforts on addressing the Four Pillars of Education: Access, Efficiency, Equity and Quality, with emphasis on achieving sustainability in all aspects of project planning and implementation.

imagine1day's program activities include access components such as construction of schools, water points and latrines as well as quality and capacity building components in the areas of school supplies and furniture, curriculum enhancement initiatives, teacher training, and parent and community mobilization projects designed to ensure the ongoing sustainability of the schools.

To commence its work in Ethiopia, at the end of 2007, imagine1day entered into a three year agreement with the Tigray Regional Education Bureau to work with 30 community schools located in the Hintalo Wejirat District. In six of the 30 communities, imagine1day will build full school structures including a four classroom block, an eight stall latrine, and a water point. Over the three year period, imagine1day will work with each of the 30 schools by providing training and supplies to build the capacity of the community and enhance the children's learning experience. The total direct project costs are under this agreement are estimated at $1.1 million.

imagine1day's program activities

4 Classroom School and add-on Classroom Blocks to Existing Schools: Constructed of local materials (either stone or hollow concrete blocks) to replace and increase the capacity of existing "dass" schools.

Water Point, Kit and Training: Either a bore hole, a hand dug well or simply a pipeline added to an existing spring source brings a clean source of water with 24 taps directly to the school. The source of water is used by the entire community for consumption and agricultural irrigation. A committee is formed to receive training on managing and maintaining the water point and is equipped with a set of tools to do so. A micro irrigation system is provided to help the communities create gardens for consumption and sale.

Latrine: An eight stall latrine with gender division promotes a safe environment for girls to go to school.

PTA Training: Parents, teachers and a principle become the leaders of the school and are trained in administration and financial management. Action plans to generate revenue for the ongoing sustainability of the school are created and seed funding is provided.

Furniture: Stone seats are replaced with desks, teachers are provided with tables and chairs and classrooms are equipped with shelving, blackboards and notice boards.

Reading Corners and Reference Books: Each classroom is equipped with shelving and books chosen by the teachers to ensure cultural and curriculum relevance. The teachers and students are taught how to maintain a sign-out system fostering responsibility and shared ownership of the books.

Science Kits and Teacher Training: Teachers are trained to teach biology, chemistry and physics using interactive techniques with the equipment supplied in the science kits.

Sports Materials: A full set of sports equipment including volleyballs and nets, basketballs and hoops, handballs and skipping ropes are provided to encourage physical activity, team play and fun.

Creative Writing: A creative writing program to encourage self-expression and to develop writing skills in the local languages and in English. Inter and intra school writing competitions are also established.

School Clubs: Students will be given the opportunity to lead school clubs in the areas of environment, health, writing, music and sports.

Active Learning Teacher Training: Teachers are trained to deliver curriculum using a student-centered approach, encouraging the use of a variety of teaching aids and methodologies.

Tree Planting and Hand Tools: 2,000 fruit and shade trees are planted on each school ground and a set of tools will be provided to maintain the trees. Income from the fruit will be invested in the schools. For every tree we plant, it is estimated to contribute to a reduction of .73 tonnes CO2. By planting 2000 trees per project (18,000-20,000 trees per year) we are offsetting approximately 13,140-14,600 tonnes of CO2 in the atmosphere. An average Canadian produces 18.50 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year while an average Ethiopian produces 0.10 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year. (UN 2004). imagine1day's operations are estimated to produce less than 1000 tonnes of CO2 per year or 1/15th of our offset.

Life Skill Teacher Training: Life skill teacher training contributes to the promotion of personal and social development, the prevention of health and social problems, and the protection of human rights.