Digitization in Ethiopia Social Work

Introduction

Social work, as a profession, has originated in the 19th century in Europe and North America to address the problem of rising rates of poverty in a developed and productive economy at the time. By the 1920s, social workers could be found in hospitals, schools, child welfare settings, and more, and by the 1930s, social work was considered to be a professional status. Throughout the decades afterwards, it is documented that social workers played a crucial role in the keeping of children and family health and also aiding war veterans in their mental health after the World War and Great Depression.

In Ethiopia, social welfare services began with traditional services provided by extended family services and religious groups, as these groups were strongly accepted by the people of that time. From the 1920s, the traditional service was gradually replaced by organized welfare services by voluntary and public agencies.

Digitization has been defined throughout the digital era by many experts, and their definition can be summed into the transformation of raw data into the digital language. Integrating various digital tools into day-to-day business, healthcare, finance, etc., can be the alternative meaning for the term.

Social Work in Ethiopia

Social work has passed several paths to get where it currently is. The first organized welfare service, which was driven by public and voluntary service, started from the 1920s, which replaced the traditional welfare system and was believed to erode the strong social fabric.

Monarchy-led social service marks the second phase, which was put in place in response to the increase in social problems that the previous system was unable to solve. In the 1940s, voluntary and semi-government welfare institutions were put in place. In 1955, the Haile Selassie I Welfare Foundation was founded as an umbrella of old people’s homes, schools for the blind, orphanages, hospitals, clinics, and sheltered factories. It was funded by the state. The Ministry of National Community Development and Social Affairs was formed in 1957 and provided these services: rural and urban development (community centers), social welfare, labor welfare, youth (Training Center and Remand Home), children programs, women programs, rehabilitation (Rehabilitation Agency for the Disabled formed in 1971), and coordinating private voluntary organizations (registering, supervising, and providing grants). Social services at this phase were provided by people who were not trained.

In response to the training gap, the first school of social work was established in 1959 by the Ministry of Public Health at University College of Addis Ababa. The initiative was good, but again, the training service was provided by people who were not trained.

The third phase began in 1974 during the era of Mengistu Haile Mariam. During this period, the ideals were socialist, and the social structure was also changed with the formation of Peasants Associations responsible for maintaining and providing social welfare at their level. The new regime recognized the need for social welfare services. The Haile Selassie I Welfare Foundation was nationalized. The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs provided policies and services. However, due to famine (1972-4) and wars, social services were relegated with very meager funding. Social work education was discontinued after the revolution.

The fourth phase, also referred to as the “Re-birth of social work,” began in 2004, which restarted the School of Social Work at Addis Ababa in 2004 after its halt for more than 30 years. It was during this time that social work was started at a master's level. Following this, two years later, social work was offered at a PhD level. The University of Gondar started training social workers in 2010. When social work reemerged, there were some challenges of having qualified staff. To address this gap, the program started at master's level, with a few local and expatriate staff who worked part-time or as visitors. Some of the master's students were involved in administering the program. From the master's program, seven students were selected to do PhD. While doing their PhD, they also taught and administered the program as assistant and associate deans.

The fifth phase, or Indigenisation phase, was notable for the promotion and use of African theories, the main reason being the need to incorporate the Ethiopian social, cultural, political, and economic context, as over 80% of the population is from the rural side.

Digitization in Ethiopia

In the digital era, where technology has modernized the traditional system efficiently, it is quite hard for a country not to see the benefits and transform itself to the current trend. In this sense, Ethiopia has implemented numerous strategies to make use of technology to improve public service and economic growth. The comprehensive plan published in 2020, “Digital Ethiopia 2025 Strategy,” can be seen as proof of that. Its main focus areas in the economy are agriculture, manufacturing, and services.

Ethiopia has approximately 25 million internet users, representing about 19.4% of the population as of 2024, which has a huge gap compared to countries such as Morocco, Libya, and Seychelles, which have more than 80% of their population using the Internet. The current government recognizes that a fast and reliable telecommunication network is essential to support the country’s digital ambitions and works in partnership with the private sector, making significant investments to provide quality service and also to increase internet penetration in the country.

Digital Social Work and E-Social Work

Digital social work and e-social work are the terms that are being used in the era of digitization of social work. Even though they may share a similar meaning, it is important to distinguish the difference between them. E-social work is a field of social work that mainly focuses on digital technology in the provision of social services. As it is solely within the digital realm, it is mandatory for professionals to have basic digital skills. Digital social service is a field of social work with a hybrid approach, having both physical or face-to-face interaction as well as digital aspects. It is important to note that both digital social work and e-social work strive to provide the necessary social work service.

Social Work and Public Health

Social work plays a significant role in public health by focusing on social determinants such as housing and employment, in addition to preventive health measures and integrated health care. Health and economic outcomes for vulnerable adults, children, pregnant women, and older adults have been found to be improved with the provision of social work services, particularly when the involvement of the social worker is at a leadership position.

The emphasis given to social determinants for vulnerable and marginalized groups, internationally and locally, makes social work an important piece for ensuring better public health outcomes in poverty-stricken countries such as Ethiopia. The national healthcare access and quality index in Ethiopia was 33 out of 100 in 2019, which shows a significant improvement from 1990, when it was 10.6. Cities such as Addis Ababa and Dire Dewa had HAQ index scores of 45 and 40, respectively, according to the National Data Management Center for Health, published on October 6, 2021.

It is evident that the digitization of social work has a great contribution to public health, as modern technology can be used as a bridge between the social worker and targeted groups. It facilitates flexibility and feasibility in the provision of the services, without distance, finance, and time barriers.

Challenges and Opportunities?

Ethiopia, as a country, is trying to facilitate its growth via digitization by making policy and partnerships with the private sector. The change, despite bringing opportunities, has limitations in trying to implement it.

Challenges?

Infrastructure limitations?

• Connectivity Issues: Despite having approximately 25 million internet users in the country, the percentage of internet penetration at 19% is one of the lowest compared to other African countries such as Morocco.
• Electricity Access: Access to electricity in Ethiopia was reported at 55% in 2022, according to the World Bank in October 2024.

Digital skill gap

• The majority of the population don't have the necessary digital skills to utilize the different online platforms productively. Observing this gap, the government of Ethiopia has made moves in joint collaboration with the United Arab Emirates to provide courses in Programming Fundamentalism, Data Science, and Android Kotlin Developer Fundamentalism, which is a great leap towards the digital era. However, with limited access to internet and electricity, the skill gap is not showing significant improvement.?

Resistance to change?

• Even though data regarding resistance to change in Ethiopia is currently unavailable, an article published by the University of Málaga shows that social workers had some sort of resistance to digitization due to demographic influence, prevalence of reluctance, and perceptions of the digital tools.

Data management issues?

• In Ethiopian health facilities, only 45.7% of the medical information had been completed, which shows the poor quality when it comes to data storing and management.

Opportunities?

Enhanced Service Delivery?

• Digitalization can enhance service delivery significantly by improving communication between social workers and those in need, improving the accessibility of data remotely, reducing the time it takes for data searching, and also improving the data collection process.

Increased Accessibility?

• ?In a country where most of the population is dispersed in remote areas, such as Ethiopia, digital platforms play a crucial role in accessing this population without physical travel via different platforms. It facilitates and enhances the delivery of social services to those under served communities.

Youth engagement?

• The current trend shows that the youth are eager to use technology and also have a better attitude towards it. Thus, the youth can be the bridge between traditional social workers and digitization.

Data quality?

• The use of technology can facilitate the completeness of data collection when paired with trained youth and also improve data storage.

Conclusion?

To conclude, the digitization of social work in Ethiopia presents major obstacles such as the 19% internet penetration rate and the 55% reported access to electricity. Furthermore, there is a clear digital divide as very few people are able to use the web for information as they do not possess the required skills. Social workers have also exhibited a certain degree of resistance to change based on their demographic background as well as how they view technology; this has made it difficult for the embrace of modern ways of working. However, the service provision faces many challenges that can be alleviated by the effective provision of services and the level of accessibility especially in the case of the disadvantaged groups residing in far-flung regions. Young people are the answer because they can marry the old ways with the new technologies. If the above mentioned challenges will be tackled and opportunities used, they will go a long way in social work services delivery in Ethiopia which in turn has positive impacts on public health and quality of life.

Source

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