Ethiopia Education Initiatives (EEI) was founded by Rebecca Haile and Jean Manas in 2016 for the purpose of bringing excellent educational opportunities to talented students in Ethiopia, and to help ignite positive change in education more broadly. EEI’s first project is Haile-Manas Academy (HMA). HMA is a model, first-of-its-kind secondary boarding school for Ethiopia’s most promising and motivated students, admitted independent of financial circumstances to the extent possible.

Click below to visit HMA’s campus and meet its students

The timing is right for this transformative undertaking. As one of the world’s poorest countries, with a GDP of just $1,020 per person (PPP $3,058), Ethiopia is burdened with an antiquated education system. Yet Ethiopia until recently had one of the world’s fastest growing economies, and with a population of over 114 million with a median age of 19, its demographics are compelling. Ethiopia can transform itself into a regional leader and economic powerhouse—but only if Ethiopia’s talented young people, its greatest asset, are equipped to forge the way forward.