Today, on the International Mother Earth Day, we would like to address the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) set by the United Nations and give you an insight on how PROJECT-E works towards them. Sustainability, climate change and environmental awareness are extremely important topics in our current time. Which is why we are going to show you an extract of our Strategic Plan from 2018-2022, that sets the internal goals and visions of the project. The Plan names the SDG “Strategic Objectives”, which are supposed to guide PROJECT-E on a general level. 
“The United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals […] are a set of 17 goals dedicated to resolve the social, economic and environmental problems of our world. The SDGs address the root causes of poverty with a special focus on vulnerable groups. PROJECT-E considers its overall strategic objectives to be in line with the SDGs, especially SDG numbers 1, 4 and 5.
SDG 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere
PROJECT-E aims to contribute to a reduction (and ultimately the elimination) of poverty by enhancing access to higher education for women in Ethiopia – an essential contribution to tackle the lack of income and resources that many women struggle with. A high-quality education in the current booming hotel industry provides our students with sustainable jobs, (promoting confidence, self-sufficiency, and therefore, equality).
SDG 4: Ensure inclusive and quality education for all and promote lifelong learning
PROJECT-E is dedicated to the promotion of women empowerment through education. A comprehensive and high-quality approach (including regular internship opportunities, true students/teacher ratio and life-skills-training) towards the vocational training we offer has enabled us to educate independent and highly skilled young women who become part of the Ethiopian labour market. We encourage our beneficiaries to not only do their best in their studies at our Institute, but to also think ahead: All our graduates have been employed within a short period of time after finishing their education with PROJECT-E, and many have pursued or are currently pursuing a university degree. By empowering our students, we contribute to promoting equal education on all levels in Ethiopia. Taking this further, we also plan to increase the inclusiveness of our training programme by encouraging women with disabilities to apply for it and by adjusting the programme to meet special needs.
SDG 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls
PROJECT-E is fully committed to the promotion of women’s rights and the reduction of gender inequality, which remains high in Ethiopian society*. We aim to counter the prevailing discrimination and violence towards women by educating them to become self-determined and independent. By offering vocational training with a comprehensive focus on life-skills-training (including lectures on health care and human rights) we contribute to the promotion of equal access to education, health care, employment opportunities, and representation in political or economic decision-making processes.”
* In Ethiopia, the labour force participation rate for persons aged 15+ (2014) is at 64,2% for women and at 80,3% for men. Ethiopian Women spend on average 4,96 hours on unpaid domestic and care work (2013), while men spend 1,83 hours. (Source: Minimum Set of Gender Indicators UN Statistics Division & Office of Information and Communication Technology).
Source: PROJECT-E: Strategic Plan 2018-2022.
