The Salesian Sisters have been present in Ethiopia since 1986, from the South to the North: Dilla (1986), Zway (1987), Addis Ababa (1990), Adwa (1996), Addis Abeba-Bole Bulbula (2010) and Gubrie (2015). In the whole Country they are carrying out formal and non-formal educative activities, especially for the development of young women. They are running Youth Centres, Women Promotion Centres, Kindergartens, Literacy Programmes, Primary and Secondary Schools, Preparatory, TVETs and Colleges.
In 1987, the Salesian Sisters started Women Promotion Activities at “Mary Help” in Zway, reaching out to the needs of the girls and young women. In 1996 the programme was upgraded to a 10+3 Technical School. In the school year 2001/02 the Technical School started to be run according to the New Ethiopian Educational Policy, adding the field of Information Technology to the already existing of Fashion.
Currently the Mary Help TVET College is providing training in Garment an ICT sectors from level I to IV. The occupations are Basic Apparel Production (Level I), Intermediate Apparel Production (Level II), Advanced Apparel Production (Level III) and Apparel Fashion Design and Technology Supervision (Level IV) in Garment sector; and IT Support Service (Level I and II), Hardware and Network Servicing (Level III and IV).
On June 2010 ECUSTA (Ethiopian Catholic University Saint Thomas Aquino) and the Catholic Bishops Conference of Ethiopia request the Mother General of the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians to collaborate in upgrading the Mary Help College of Zway to a constituent College of ECUSTA offering a Degree program.
One year later, on June 2011, ECUSTA – Mary Help College – Zway Campus, received the accreditation of Information Technology Degree Program from HERQA and the Degree Program began in September 2011.