Transforming Access to Services for Millions of Rural People
It’s estimated that 67 million Ethiopians live more than a mile from a road that is accessible year-round – making for arduous journeys on rugged and varied terrain. Helvetas is working to improve access to essential services and economic opportunities.
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Project NameTransformative Rural Access for Improved Livelihoods (TRAIL)
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Project Phase2022 to 2025
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FundingLeona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust
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Thematic focusRural Access
Private Sector Development
Partnership & Capacity Development
Millions of Ethiopians live in rural, isolated areas and have limited access to markets, education and healthcare. Reliable, year-round access is catalytic; it enables these rural populations to reach the resources, services and income-generating opportunities they need to build resilience and lift their families out of poverty.
The Transformative Rural Access for Improved Livelihoods (TRAIL) project is a multi-year rural infrastructure initiative. Helvetas and our partner Bridges to Prosperity are collaborating with the Ethiopian government and the local private sector to develop the policies, practices, technical expertise, supply chains and buy-in to end rural isolation in Ethiopia. It is designed to operate through cost-sharing with the government — particularly regional road bureaus, which finance 80% of bridge construction costs. Helvetas helps ensure the sustainability of the project by providing capacity building and institutionalization assistance.
This capacity building is supported by the South-South Cooperation Unit, which was born out of the successful institutionalization of trail bridges in Nepal. The country recently inaugurated its 10,000th bridge and continues to build an average of 500 new trail bridges each year. The unit embeds Nepali engineers across regions in Ethiopia and leverages the group's lived and technical experience to guide governments, businesses and communities toward the infrastructure solutions that connect rural people with the opportunities they need to thrive.
Other major achievements in systemic change from the project will include hundreds of newly trained designers, engineers, consultants, fabricators and construction companies, the integration of trail bridge curriculum into over a dozen university and vocational education programs, and the development and integration of trail bridge guidelines into Ethiopian standards.
