The Ethiopian Women Fuel Wood Carriers Project

Energy, Gender and Poverty Alleviation

Ethiopia ’s energy sector depends heavily on traditional biomass fuels (fuel wood, charcoal, branches, leaves, twigs, and, dung), which account for more than 90 percent of final energy consumption. Most of this is delivered by women fuel wood carriers (WFC), who walk many kilometers out and back daily to collect and bring loads of branches, leaves, and twigs to markets.

The World Bank’s Ethiopian Women Fuel Wood Carriers Project will assist the estimated 30,000 women fuel wood carriers in the cities of Addis Ababa, Bahir Dar, Dessie, Mekele, Awassa, Nazareth, Harar, and Dire Dawa. Funded through the Japanese Social Development Fund ( JSDF), the project will be implemented jointly by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the Former Women Fuel Wood Carriers Association.

The WFC include girls and women, ranging in age from 16 to 63. In the capital, Addis Ababa, fuel wood comes from plantation projects located in the city’s outskirts; and 35 percent of this is delivered by close to 15,000 women fuel wood carriers. While the women carriers perform an essential service for the urban energy sector, they average a daily income of less than US $0.50 cent and operate under extremely harsh conditions, having to walk long distances on harsh terrain, often barefoot, with heavy loads. Border guards will sometimes harass them, demanding bribe money to allow them to bring the fuel to market. The women are also prey to sexual assault, placing them at high HIV/AIDS risk.

The first component of the project intends to maximize WFC revenues, improve working conditions, and introduce environmentally sustainable operational principles and practices to their activities. It also aims to increase the overall operational and economic efficiency of their fuel wood trading practices. The project will establish a revolving fund for the WFC to cover operating expenses for the establishment of economically viable fuel wood sourcing schemes. The system of grants will be managed by a non-government organization qualified in micro-finance and selected through standard WB procurement arrangements.

A second component will support the WFC in identifying and establishing other economically viable and sustainable activities to diversify and increase their incomes and economic prospects. Grants will serve as the initial working capital to cover operating expenses for the new economic activities.

The third component focuses on providing institution building and human development support to the WFC. It focuses on improving their access to education, training, and health services, with an emphasis on HIV/AIDS and family health.

The total implementation period will be of four years. The grant agreement between IDA and the Ethiopian Government was signed on August 12, 2005 and the subsidiary agreement between the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the FWFCA was signed in January 2006.

For more information contact Gelila Woodeneh (gwoodeneh@worldbank.org), Boris E. Utria (butria@worldbank.org) or Yusuf Haji Ali (yali@worldbank.org).