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ETHIOPIA: Saving lives with trained birth attendants

Like many teenagers in rural Ethiopia, Shekuria Mume, 19, became pregnant, quit school and got married at 15. The birth of her first baby remains one of her most traumatic experiences, as an untrained traditional birth attendant (TBA) delivered her. "I had heard that some women die while giving birth so I was scared most of the time during my pregnancy; I didn't sleep much," Shekuria told IRIN. With no health facility near her village of Shuna, in West Hararghe zone of Oromiya state, Shekuria...

ETHIOPIA: Can't eat, won't learn

Ethiopia's schools have opened for the new academic year, but severe food insecurity in some regions has kept thousands of children out of class. "This time last year we had already enrolled 2,300 students," said Solomon Desta, director of Bashiro primary school in Bona district of Sidama zone in the Southern region. "Now we have registered 1,800." Solomon had prepared for 2,500 children because he was forced to send some children to other schools last year as Bashiro could not accommodate...

ETHIOPIA: More parents saying no to FGM

Fewer Ethiopian parents are subjecting their daughters to female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM), according to an NGO campaigning to eradicate the practice. "The knowledge [that FGM is harmful] is increasing," said Abate Gudunfa, head of the Ethiopian National Committee on Traditional Practices (commonly referred to as EGLDAM - its name in Amharic]. "Children born more recently are safer." A network of 40 NGOs, including EGLDAM, the government and international organisations, are...

ETHIOPIA: Cappuccino with condom

Bellissima, on bustling Gabon Street in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, could be just another upmarket café, except that each order comes with a packet of 'Sensation' condoms, and is served in 'Sensation' cups by staff wearing 'Sensation' T-shirts. "I wanted to link business with a message for sexually active people," Bellissima's owner, Hayat Ahmed, 26, told IRIN/PlusNews. "I am the brand ambassador for 'Sensation' condoms in Ethiopia, and I want to spread the message that condoms can...