SIrish Ethiopian Friendship Association
Supporting Young Women's Education
IEFA support local young education during secondary school and prepare them to enter oneof the five public higher education institutions in Mekelle:•Mekelle University•Mekelle Institute of Technology•Mekelle Middle :-Level Health Professionals Training Institute,•Mekelle Art School•Mekelle College of Teacher Education.
Mekelle is the sixth largest city in Ethiopia .Located in northern part of the country, it was established as an urban centre in 1869 1873 and is the capital of Tigray region. Since its establishment, the city has expanded tremendously by engulfing many small villages and towns. Mekelle is one of northern Ethiopia’s primary economic and educational centres, housing Mekelle University, a leading higher education institution in Ethiopia.
The main economic activities include agro-processing (in particular, vegetables and oil seeds), and the city also offers investment opportunities in manufacturing, livestock and tourism.Mekelle is also a city with one of the highest poverty rates in Ethiopia (Gebremedhin, 2006; Gebremedhin and Whelen, 2007), in part because it is located in a region that has suffered from recurrent drought over the past three decades (Gebremedhin and Whelen, 2007).
In 1994, it is estimated that 55.1 percent of the people in Mekelle lived below the poverty line of 79.36 birr ($8.35) per month (Gebremedhin and Whelen, 2007).(http://mci.ei.columbia.edu/files/2012/12/Mekelle-Education-Needs-Assessment.pdf).
