In 2011, Birtukan founded EVS to ensure that children would not have to learn in a dark, unsafe classroom again.

Our Founder’s Story

Ethiopian Village Schools (EVS) was founded in 2011 by Birtukan Beyenssa, a native of Ethiopia and resident of California since 1988.

On a trip to Ethiopia, she decided to visit the village of Bilo (close to Ambo, which is around 80 miles West of Addis Ababa) in Oromia, where her father was born. She was taken by the warmth and fellowship of the people, but was shocked by the poor condition of the schools. Children sat on rocks in dark, moldy rooms with no windows or doors, and hardly any educational material. In spite of that, they were eager to learn. She returned home, determined to try and make a difference, and started the non-profit organization Ethiopian Village Schools.

After many years of tireless work as the face and heart of EVS, Birtukan has recently retired from her position.

Why We Exist

Background :

Ethiopia is a poor country, particularly so in the rural areas. In the state of Oromia, where EVS is involved, the average living income of rural inhabitants is around US $2-3 per day.

It is also a very young country, with the median age of the population at 19 years, as compared to almost 40 years for the US.  40% of the population is less than 15 years old, therefore, in the age range for elementary school education. In rural Oromia, school attendance among children under 15 years of age presents a significant challenge.Less than 50% of children aged 7-15 years attend school as compared to about 90% in urban areas. This low attendance rate is largely attributed to the high prevalence of child labor; by the age of ten, nearly all children are involved in some form of work, averaging almost 30 hours per week. Rural adolescents enrolled in school miss approximately  1/3rd of total school days.

Multiple studies from organizations such as UNESCO, UNICEF, or the World Bank show that children who have received elementary school education have, among many other advantageous outcomes:

  • Higher lifetime income

  • Reduced poverty rate

  • Better access to jobs and lower unemployment rate

  • Better health outcomes

  • Lower rate of gender based violence

  • Lower rate of underage pregnancy 

  • Reduced rate of childbirth complications

Where We Work

The country is divided by ethnicity and language into twelve regional states and two cities, the capital, Addis Ababa, being one of them. Oromia is the largest region both by size as well as population, followed closely by Amhara. The country’s most widely spoken language is Amharic, which is the language used by the federal government, even though there are more native speakers of Afaan Oromo. In addition to these two main languages, there are still more than 80 other languages spoken in Ethiopia.

The country has one of the lowest urbanization rates globally. Nearly 80% of Ethiopians reside in rural areas as compared to around 20% in urban areas, and in Oromia almost 85% of the population live in rural areas. The majority of inhabitants are engaged in agriculture and livestock production.

With more than 135 million people, Ethiopia is the second most populous country in Africa, after Nigeria. By geographic size, it is the 1Oth largest country in Africa. It is in the sub-Saharan East African area called the “Horn of Africa”.