Christmas celebrations
SOS Children in Ethiopia
Ethiopia is Africa's oldest independent country and, with the exception of a five-year occupation by Mussolini's Italy from 1936-1941, it has never been colonised. Although relatively free from the coups that have plagued other African countries, drought, famine, war and internal politics brought millions of its people to the brink of starvation in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, Ethiopia remains one of Africa's poorest countries, with nearly 40% of its 83 million people living below the poverty line, earning approximately $1 per day. More than half of all Ethiopians are illiterate. Continuing food and water shortages are causing high levels of malnutrition, and the incidence of communicable diseases is rising. The already limited educational opportunities are being further disrupted by the displacement of families and the struggle for survival, taking away children's opportunities to acquire basic life-skills.
HIV/AIDS is a critical issue for Ethiopia. According to UNICEF, 2.1% of the population is infected, including 120,000 children. UNICEF puts the number of orphans in Ethiopia at five million, or 12% of all children, with more than half a million being orphaned due of AIDS. You may be interested in more details about Aids Orphan Projects in Ethiopia, Africa.
SOS Children's Villages provides orphaned and abandoned children in Ethiopia with a new mother, a family and a home where they can stay until they are ready for independent life (each family house can give a home to up to 12 children). The charity began its work in the country in 1975 as a result of the 1974 famine and the government's appeal for international aid. It currently cares for more than 800 children at its six purpose-built Children's Villages, and a further 583 teenagers at its five SOS Youth Homes, where young adults live while they complete their college studies or vocational training, and where they are taught the life skills needed for independent living.
SOS Children also runs schools, medical centres, vocational training centres and social centres in Ethiopia. Its Family Strengthening Programmes (FSPs) aim to stop child abandonment and to keep vulnerable families together by providing childcare, counselling, vocational training and medical support. In total, through all of its Villages, schools, training centres and social programmes the charity is providing support to over 64,000 Ethiopians.
The first SOS Children’s Village was constructed in Makalle, the capital of Tigray, northern Ethiopia, the region worst hit by
the 1974 famine. The Village has 18 family houses, 2 SOS Youth Homes, an SOS Nursery, Primary and Secondary School, an SOS Vocational Training Centre (including a nursing school), an SOS Farm to teach children basic agriculture and to provide a source of food, an SOS Medical Centre, and an SOS Social Centre that runs a Family Strengthening Programme. The SOS Farm, Medical Centre and Schools are all open to the local community. In 1985, drought and famine again hit Ethiopia. An artificial reservoir was constructed at Makalle to supply the SOS Children's Village and the Farm, as well as the surrounding community. SOS Children established a wide-reaching emergency relief programme feeding over 1,000 people a day and providing emergency accommodation in Wukro, about 31 miles north of Makalle, and in Awassa in the Rift Valley.
SOS Children’s community Harrar, 360 miles east of Addis Abeba, the capital, opened in 1978. The region is frequently devastated by drought. Harrar has 15 family houses, and an SOS Nursery, Primary and Secondary School.
The charity's third community was built in Addis Abeba in 1981. It provides a new home for over 200 children and young people in its 15 family houses and two SOS Youth Homes. Here, older children can take their first guided steps towards independence, living together while they complete their education or acquire a trade at the SOS Vocational Training Centre which has workshops for carpentry, metalwork and car mechanics. The charity also has an SOS Nursery School, SOS Medical Centre and SOS Social Centre in the city.
SOS Children opened a Children's Village in Awassa in 1985, with 15 family houses. Two SOS Youth Homes have since been added. The Village also has an SOS Nursery, Primary and Secondary School, an SOS Medical Centre and an SOS Social Centre. In 1985 the SOS Andassa Farm was set up at Bahir Dar, north of Addis Abeba on the banks of Lake Tana, to supply basic foodstuffs to all of the SOS Children's communities in Ethiopia. The main emphasis is on dairy farming and vegetable production. It has an animal feeding unit and it also provides agricultural training to SOS youths.
Bahir Dar, one of the most dynamic and fast-growing towns in Ethiopia, is the site of the country's fifth SOS Children's Village. The village has 12 family houses, an SOS Youth Home, and educational and medical facilities.
Another catastrophic drought in 2000 led to a further emergency relief programme, this time in Ogaden in the south-east, near the border with Somalia. An emergency relief centre was set up in Gode to provide food and basic medical treatment, while work began on a new SOS Children's Village in Gode. The completed village opened in August 2004 and has 12 family homes. In September 2005 an SOS Nursery for over 100 children, an SOS Primary and Secondary School for over 400 pupils and an SOS Medical Centre for over 4,000 patients a year, were opened.
Land has been secured in the area for the construction of a seventh SOS Children’s Village in Ethiopia.
See also Aids Orphan Projects in Ethiopia, Africa.
Zenaye Solomon grew up in SOS Children’s Village Addis Abeba. She is a vibrant young woman who worked in the USA, France, South Africa and Ghana before she took on the post of Strategic Initiative Advisor for SOS Children's Villages in Zimbabwe. This is her story:
"A smile lights up my face as I look back to my golden days as a child in house seven at SOS Children's Village Addis Abeba. I hold dearly the memory of me standing in front of the stove stirring the "watt" [an Ethiopian traditional food bowl]. I am carrying my dearest baby brother Erimas (may his soul rest in peace) on my back and whilst the food is cooking I am reading my geography textbook. Whenever I have this memory I give credit to my dearest SOS mother, Almaz Abate, for instilling the value of hard work and for nurturing genuine love and care for others in me at such a young age.
"Education certainly unlocked my potential. I am a firm believer in the power of education to enable one to make better choices in life. SOS Children's Villages gave me this opportunity to make it in this rather competitive world, and I understood I needed to take an active part in shaping my future because I was fortunate enough to have the love, care and support I needed from my SOS family."
"Education is the key to secure a brighter future and it is crucial for the development of yourself, your community and your country. Your future career is highly dependent on the kind of education and professional training you get. You literally have to regard your education as a key to unlocking the dream of a bright future that lies ahead.”
Local Contacts
SOS Children's Villages Ethiopia, P.O. Box 3495, Addis Abeba, Ethiopia
Tel +251/11 6611 501, +251/11 6611 655
Fax +251/11 6611 633
Email: sosethno@telecom.net.et
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