Addis Abeba — Around 1,020 teachers in three zones of the Amhara Region resigned during the 2025/26 academic year, with officials and educators attributing much of the exodus to migration to Arab states in search of better pay and living conditions, according to a report by Deutsche Welle (DW).
The departures were recorded in South Wollo, North Wollo, and the Oromo Nationality Zone, where local education authorities say the trend is worsening existing challenges in the education sector. Teachers interviewed by DW cited the rising cost of living and salaries that no longer match market realities as key factors behind their decisions to leave.
In districts such as Kobo and Habru in North Wollo, as well as Bati woreda in the Oromo Nationality Zone, including Saint, Wagdi and Albko woredas, teachers have increasingly resigned to pursue opportunities abroad, the report said.
Yasin Mohammed, a teacher in the area, told DW that economic pressure is the primary driver. "The general situation is related to the high cost of living," he said, adding that many educators feel their current salaries are inadequate. While migration is not an easy choice, he noted, it is increasingly viewed as a pathway to improved livelihoods.
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Another teacher, Mohamed Ali, said the trend is particularly visible in lowland areas bordering North and South Wollo. He noted that teachers are seeking more stable and rewarding prospects abroad, especially in Arab countries, and recounted that several of his colleagues--including two women and one man--had already left.
Local education officials confirmed the growing attrition. Qedmezhu Belay, head of a district education office in Saint woreda, said 26 teachers had resigned since the start of the current Ethiopian fiscal year. He added that while migration to Arab countries was previously uncommon in the district, it is now emerging as a noticeable pattern.
At the zonal level, Mamaye Demise, lead coordinator of the Teacher Development Team at the South Wollo Zone Education Department, said that although some teachers leave to upgrade their qualifications or relocate to Addis Abeba for better opportunities, the "main reason" behind the recent wave of resignations is migration abroad. "The number of people going to Arab countries is increasing; we have lost more teachers than we anticipated," he said.
In the Oromo Nationality Zone, officials reported higher-than-expected attrition. Ali Tefera, head of the zone's Education Department, said around 400 teachers had resigned, exceeding planned projections. While many resignations are formally attributed to relocation to Addis Abeba for improved working conditions, he acknowledged that the department has not conducted research to verify the claims and that some teachers are known to have left the country.
In North Wollo alone, 247 teachers resigned during the reporting period, according to Serkalem Funte, head of the Teachers and Education Leadership Group at the zonal education department. She said detailed reasons for the resignations are not systematically documented, as reports focus primarily on aggregated quarterly figures. "We do not know their specific reasons," she said.
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The resignations come amid longstanding migration trends in the Amhara region, where young people have travelled both legally and irregularly to Arab countries in search of improved economic opportunities. According to DW, the continued outflow is placing significant strain on schools across South Wollo, North Wollo and the Oromo Nationality Zone, as they grapple with staffing shortages and rising attrition rates.
