CSE in Ethiopia; who decides it's implementation?

Some of the major social media outlets in Ethiopia have recently been flooded with a divide in views and opinions on the CSE. The Comprehensive Sexuality Education was proposed by the UN to be given in Ethiopian public schools. Ever since its introduction to the public it has gathered a major outcry amongst parents, school figures, community and religious leaders as well as other businesses and organizations. However, despite the amount of criticism it has gotten, it has also managed to gain the support of the Ministry of Health as well as other international organizations and NGOs in Ethiopia.

 

As a traditional and religious country, Ethiopia has always been known to have a culture that was more sex negative and queer phobic. And so, the public criticism did not come as a shock to many, as a sex education program is known to teach sex positive and gender identity theories. But though smaller in scale, the ongoing support for the program, along with the pressure from the UN agencies, seems to be a factor that is keeping it in consideration for policymakers and government officials. The Ministry of Education and Health have already expressed their willingness to work with partners so that issues of CSE can be effectively integrated into the school curriculum.

 

Ethiopia's signing on to the “Ministerial Commitment on Comprehensive Sexuality Education and Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights for Adolescents and Young People on Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA)” farther consolidates its commitment to improving the well-being of young people across the country. However, this signing is also being put into question as it is said to have been done without proper consultation with the appropriate branches of government. Capacity building workshops organized by UNFPA and UNESCO have also been taking place since 2018, aimed at integrating CSE into the school curriculum in a culturally sensitive and legally appropriate manner. It seems that once proper methods of implementation are found, the CSE will be put into action. However, since the basic foundations of the CSE are known to be culturally controversial and not at all sensitive, the proper implementation of the program is still very much in question.

 

Seeing the obvious uses of sex education programs, such as; prevention of teen pregnancy and STDs, delayed sexual initiation, prevention of gender violence as well as reduction in disparity towards LGBTQ+ youth and community, the majority of the Ethiopian youth have gotten on board with the CSE. However, there still seems to be a divide in opinions amongst them. This is clearly seen on social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Telegram, in which teenagers and young people with knowledge of the CSE have publicly taken sides by either supporting or denouncing the issue. However, one thing that is clear is that neither the anti-CSE campaigns nor the Ministry of Health as well as UN agencies have openly consulted the youth on their opinions about the proposed program. Regarding this issue, some young users on these platforms have expressed their anger, saying “our opinions are falling on deaf ears”. And though recommendations have been made during the UNFPA workshops that consecutive discussions should be held with parents and all levels of regional bureaus of education, such discussions regarding the CSE have not taken place on a wide scope.

 

This is one amongst many issues that a particular group by the name, Protect Ethiopia Children Coalition, is citing as reason to prevent the implementation of school-based CSE. This organization cites the execution of the program without first spreading the awareness of it to the public as an attack on parental rights, as it takes away the right of parents and guardians to direct their children's education. This group, since opening a telegram channel called We Stand Against The CSE on April 29, has managed to accumulate over twenty-four thousand followers that share and publicly advocate their views. The PECC has also formed an electronic petition in which they have accumulated over nineteen thousand signatures which are set to be presented to the Ministries of Health and Education.

 

The anti-CSE campaigns are mainly running on the claim that the program is a threat to Ethiopian cultural, ethical as well as sexual values under the premise of HIV and teen pregnancy prevention. It is thought of, by many who have the knowledge of it, as yet another western agenda being enforced by UN agencies. Multiple of these agencies revealed that the program recommends asking children to differentiate their sexual values and beliefs from their parents and question gender norms. This created a distrust between these agencies and the Ethiopian community, as it is a country in which over 60% of its people are Christian and 36% are Muslim. And so, the implementation of programs that recommends children to question aspects of theirs as well as their parent's beliefs on school ground is expected to have violent and potentially life-threatening outcomes.

 

Furthermore, the research that the UN uses to prove that CSE is effective in preventing teen pregnancy and STDs has been recently discredited. According to this new global analysis found at SexEdReport.org, CSE has the highest failure rate and highest rate of negative impacts in Africa, as the former is currently at 89% and the latter at 24%. The researchers in this study titled, “Re-Examining the Evidence for Comprehensive Sex Education in Schools – A Global Research Review,” looked at the research referenced by UNESCO and concluded that school-based comprehensive sex education has not been an effective public health strategy. Rather, it has shown far more evidence of failure than success. After nearly 30 years and 103 credible studies, the researchers have found that due to the compelling lack of evidence for the effectiveness of school-based CSE, they recommend that that policymakers abandon plans for its global dissemination and pursue alternative prevention strategies for reducing the negative consequences of adolescent sexual activity.

 

However, despite the conclusion of this research and the general lack of evidence of the CSE's effectiveness in countries such as Ethiopia, it seems to be on the road to being implemented on a wider scale. A pro-CSE organization known as, Edukans: Teaching With Impact, has revealed that they had helped 72 primary and secondary schools to include Comprehensive Sexuality Education in their curriculum using the 'My World My Life' and 'World Starts With Me' curriculum in 2016.

 

Programs such as this are known to have adverse consequences, either negatively or positively, on children as well as their families. Therefore, we have to ask ourselves, is it really ethical to enforce such programs on young minds without first educating their parents and guardians on the complex factors surrounding the issue. If a program is being implemented for the wellbeing of the youth and community, then shouldn't we let them have a say in it? Or are these communities too biased to clearly examine both sides of the issue in order to make these decisions? And if so, then it is important to determine who should make them on their behalf and in what terms they should do so in order to ensure the process proceeds smoothly and effectively.