Oral Intervention - Challenges Facing Inclusion, Equality and Economic and Social Participation of Minorities in Ethiopia Session 2 Partners for Transparency Foundation Thank you, Mr. President, Concerning agenda Item 2 (socio-economic empowerment), Partners for Transparency is deeply concerned about the worsening challenges of inclusion, equality and economic and social participation of minorities in Ethiopia, in particular challenges related to discrimination against individuals from ethnic minority groups in accessing public services including healthcare services and lack of educational opportunities. Mr. President, Minority communities in Ethiopia suffer from marginalization, exclusion and discrimination in access to healthcare and education services. According to reports reviewed by Partners Foundation, individuals belonging to minority groups in Ethiopia are less likely to enrol in school and complete their education compared to the other population. For example, 75.3% of women and girls in the Somali region did not receive any educational opportunities, and 46.7% of females in the Benishangul region did not receive any educational opportunities. Mr. President, Ethiopia also continues to achieve negative results in terms of access to health care services for minority communities. For example, child mortality rates in areas with minority concentrations are currently high, although they are declining at the national level. In the Afar region, for example, the mortality rate is Among children,