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Ethiopia is increasingly experiencing the impacts of climate change, with stark consequences for the most disadvantaged groups, including youth, women and girls. Within climate action, there is limited understanding of how climate change responses address age and gender vulnerabilities. This article uses a gender and adolescence lens to explore how Ethiopia's climate mitigation and adaptation responses shape progress towards three Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 (gender equality) targets using a capabilities approach. It draws on qualitative data from the Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (GAGE) longitudinal study with adolescents aged 10–20, their parents and key informants, in three diverse regions. It finds that although climate mitigation strategies (including gender-sensitive social protection measures) are impacting gender equality positively by increasing access to water and supporting food-insecure households in times of drought, substantial challenges remain. The findings underscore that while climate actions are increasingly gender-responsive, they are less responsive to the age-specific vulnerabilities of adolescents, especially girls. To accelerate progress and ensure inclusive climate action, adolescent participation should be promoted at all levels, and climate actions should reach the most vulnerable populations, including those in remote rural communities and particularly vulnerable groups such as married adolescents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the social policy implications of the COVID-19 pandemic for adolescents and young people with disabilities in Ethiopia and Jordan. The article draws on qualitative research interviews carried out in person between November and December 2019 and by phone between April and June 2020 with 65 young people with hearing, visual and physical impairments in urban settings in both countries, complemented by interviews with key informants in government and civil society organisations working with young people. Whilst in Jordan social policy on disability is more developed, and in Ethiopia, systems are still embryonic, the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the marginalisation of adolescents and young people with disabilities in both contexts as health, education and social protection systems have been slow to mobilise targeted support and address social exclusion. This article identifies social policy gaps in Ethiopia and Jordan that must be addressed in order to support young people with disabilities during crises. Adolescents and young people with disabilities in lower- and middle-income countries are at high risk of both contracting COVID-19, and being harmed by efforts taken by governments to mitigate the spread of the virus. Our evidence shows that the COVID-19 pandemic response has negatively affected access to education, health care, employment and social protection support for adolescents and young people with disabilities in Ethiopia and Jordan, and magnified social exclusion within the community. In both contexts the pandemic has highlighted the limitations of current social policies for addressing disability-related inequalities quickly and effectively. Support that is targeted to the most marginalised adolescents and young people with disabilities, across education, health, labour and social protection sectors, should be at the forefront of social policy responses in line with the Sustainable Development Agenda 2030 to 'leave no one behind'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivation: Although many countries have made progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) on inclusive and equitable education for all, vulnerable children and adolescents in low‐income countries often face significant barriers to realizing educational opportunities, especially at secondary and post‐secondary or tertiary levels. Purpose: In line with the aim of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development to "leave no one behind", the article explores the factors that shape the educational trajectories of vulnerable population groups and contributes to evidence‐informed policy and programming to tackle school dropout in rural Ethiopia. Approach and Methods: The article draws on qualitative research on 150 girls and boys aged 10–19 years, along with their caregivers and key informants, in communities from three diverse regions in Ethiopia: pastoralist Afar, highland Amhara, and lowland Oromia. Findings: Although Ethiopia has made remarkable progress in increasing secondary enrolment since 2000, intersecting barriers put vulnerable adolescents' educational opportunities at risk. Children and adolescents from poor households, those with disabilities, and who are internally displaced, out‐of‐school or working face a range of challenges at the household, community and system levels. These barriers are also shaped by gender norms that restrict adolescent girls' and boys' education, often in contrasting ways. Policy Implications: A multi‐pronged approach is critical to promoting educational opportunities that leave no adolescent behind, including investments in school quality, positive disciplinary approaches, competency‐based grade progression, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) facilities and school‐feeding programmes; the wider enabling environment, including social protection and safe, subsidized transport; initiatives to tackle age‐ and gender‐based violence that discourages school attendance; and tailored strategies to support the most vulnerable young people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Adolescence is a time of particular risk for violence perpetrated by parents, teachers, peers and intimate partners. Social norms that condone violent discipline, promote masculinities focused on violence, and support gender inequality play an important role in perpetuating violence. However, little is known about the relationship between inequitable gender norms and children's experiences of violence from parents or other adults in the household. Utilising data from the Gender and Adolescence: Global Evidence (GAGE) study, this paper explores how adolescent and household attitudes and community-level gender norms influence experiences of violence among young adolescents (aged 10–12) in Ethiopia. Our results show that community norms, rather than adolescent and household attitudes, are significantly associated with experiences of household violence. This result holds for boys and girls, and in rural areas. In urban areas, however, adolescent attitudes were more influential than community norms, perhaps indicating less cohesive communities. Overall, these findings suggest that violence prevention programming should prioritise shifting community norms, particularly in rural areas, in order to promote adolescent girls' and boys' right to bodily integrity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Motivation: The Covid-19 pandemic delivered an unprecedented shock to education systems globally, with school closures affecting 1.6 billion children. Education systems in LMICs are facing significant budget cuts further constraining capacities to adapt to Covid-19 impacts. The need for evidence to inform policy dialogues about how best to mitigate impacts and support education systems to "build back better" is pressing., Purpose: In Ethiopia, schools reopened in October 2020 after a 7-month pandemic-related closure. Employing an adapted resilience systems analysis framework, this article focuses on the extent to which Ethiopia's education system-which has in recent decades seen rapid progress in enrolment rates-has adapted to the impacts of the pandemic on adolescents' education and learning, and has achieved this equitably., Methods and Approach: The article draws on mixed-methods data from Ethiopia collected virtually with a pre-existing cohort of 3,066 adolescents (1,683 girls & 1,383 boys) during the immediate onset of the pandemic (April-June 2020) and following the reopening of schools (November 2020-February 2021). Adolescent perspectives are complemented by 27 key informant interviews at community and district levels., Findings: Findings highlight that rural adolescents, girls and adolescents with disabilities were less likely to access distance education during school closures due to connectivity challenges and discriminatory norms, and to subsequently re-enrol. Implementation of adaptive measures, including hygiene guidance, smaller class sizes and catch-up classes, has been highly uneven, and outreach to support re-enrolment of socially marginalized adolescents very limited., Policy Implications: For LMICs like Ethiopia to build back better post-pandemic and stay on track to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 4's commitment to inclusive and equitable quality education for all, scaled-up investments in blended learning approaches, addressing the digital divide, and ensuring targeted outreach and social protection to support re-enrolment of socially marginalized adolescents is critical., (This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.)