The end is nigh…hopefully not.

Ambachew, his wife Workie, and I – Ambachew has a lot of penguin qualities also. His support was invaluable in the workplace and at his house during afternoon ‘chats’.

It looks like it’s good-bye VSO Ethiopia and hello to secondary history teaching in Khartoum, Sudan.  It is never easy leaving a place.  Where would I be without my driver Desalegn?  We were encouraged to come to our placements and find metaphorical penguins.  In Cuso pre-departure training, two cultures were presented as icebergs because icebergs are largely hidden from view.  A penguin would be able to come to the surface and act as a guide through Ethiopian culture. I’m not sure if this means that I have to become a penguin too.  Everyone calls Desalegn my driver here, but there is no vehicle involved.  Everyone recognises the guidance he has given me, and that generosity has earned him the nickname.  What Cuso termed as ‘penguins’ the people here term as ‘drivers’.  Either way, they are invaluable.

There are other drivers that do not carry the moniker, though.  Desalegn, Ousman and Eshetu have made a social life possible.  They introduced me to the DSTV house.  It shows Premier League Football and serves cold beer.  It’s a rare combination in these parts.  They also introduced me to everyone in the town, so that now when I walk the streets it feels like I was born and raised in these parts.  It’s a complete flip from 6 months ago, and it’s thanks to the efforts of these people to go around town, tell people who I was, and get them to accept me.   Solomon, Abdul Moujid, and Ambachew have made work life run smoothly.  Solomon and Ambachew are department heads and help me navigate the College.  Abdul Moujid is my counterpart in coordinating the ELIC, and has been enormously helpful in getting the English conversation classes to take root at the College.

This experience was made possible because of the kindness of those around me here.  Asaita is an isolated town, but it has not felt so isolated in recent months.

to be continued…

Desalegn and Eshetu were always willing to squeeze me in when they went on school visits.

Solomon consults with a member of staff at Wanis. Again, school visits would have been difficult to facilitate without a guiding hand.

Ousman prepares for the bumpy ride back, but was also happy to include me in his school visits.

riding the road between Asaita and Wanis

Eshetu was off to observe student-teachers

Higher Diploma Programme participants engaging in some active learning., The HDP Programme was run by Ambachew. Solomon attended the sessions enthusiastically. Invaluable support came from all members of the group.

Asaita CTE English Language Improvement Centre (ELIC) Biographies – Asaita ELIC Centre

Here are some biographies written by students at the College that are working to improve their English.

First of all I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Abubeker Yimam Ali.  I am second year language student. I was born in Aseb on December 24^th, 1986.  I was there for 3 years, then I went to Mille and I learned from Grade 1 up to 10.  When I was in elementary school I was lazy student, but when I got to high school I started participating in the class very nicely and I got good results and also I was late only one day over 2 years.  Now I live in Ayssayta because I am learning how to teach English.  I’m a hard-working student now.

First of all I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Abel Tegegne.  I am a second year biology student in Asaita College of Teacher Education.  I was born in Wichale on September 3^rd, 1987.  I studied in elementary school from Grade 1 to 8 in Wichale Primary School and then in Wichale Secondary School.  Next, I came to Asaita CTE to study natural science.  My favourite food is fish.  This is the history of my short life.

Agenew studies English hard and has great pronunciation

Mohammed Ahmed Mohammed

First of all I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Agenew Tantu Leza.  I am a second year biology student.  I was born in Melkasde on June 19^th, 1986.  I came to Asaita two years ago.  I studied from Grade 1-10 in Melkasde.  At that time I was a mediocre student, but now I am a great student.  There are three people in my family.  I have one sister.  My father died in 1999.  My mother is alive at this time.

First of all I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Mohammed Ahmed Mohammed.  I am a second year biology student at Asaita CTE.  I was born in 1980 on December 20^th.  I got my education in central Amhara in Kombolcha.  I graduated from that city, then I came to Asaita to study at the teacher’s college here.  After one year I will graduate and become a teacher, but first I would like to attend university in order to continue studying education.  In the future, I hope to become a fair, loyal and polite person and teacher.  I want to be a responsible citizen, and help Ethiopia avoid poverty.

Everyone smiles more when they aren’t alone in the picture.

Thank you my friend.  I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Edris Abdalla Salih.  I was born in 1986 (Ethiopian calendar).  I have two brothers and four sisters.  I started my education in 1994 in Konoba PS where I studied from Grade 1 – 8.  After completing the national exam at the end of grade 8 I began studying grades 9 and 10 in Konoba.  After I completed grade 10 I came to Asaita CTE.  I am a second year student in the Natural Science department.

Ali

First of all I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Ali Mohammed.  I come from the town of Kuteba and I live in Asaita.  I have two brothers and a sister.  I like playing football and drinking Coca-Cola.  I am Ethiopian.  I learnt from Grade 1-8 in Sinble Primary School in Asaita.  Then I went to Mohammed Hamfre High School for Grades 9 & 10.  At this time I am a second year language student at the College.  In the future I will be a teacher and I will have a laptop.

Please let me introduce myself.  My name is Endris Ali Outba.  I was born in July 1983 (e.c.) in Dalole.  I started my education in 1994 (e.c.) at Asafara PS.  I studied Grade 9 in Dalole and Grade 10 in Koneba High School in Afar.  Then, I came to Asaita CTE to study to be a teacher in the geography department.

Abdu

First of all I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Abdu Ahmed Ali.  I am a first year student in the history department.  I was born in Asaita in 1986 (e.c.).  I am close to my father and my mother.  My father’s name is Ahmed Ali and my mother’s name is Issa Hassan.  I used to go to Eokechora PS and then I went to Mohammed Hanfrere HS after achieving good results in primary school.  I took the national exam in grade 10, but I didn’t get a good result.

First of all I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Ranma Oumar Ahmed.  I am a second year language student at the Asaita CTE.  I was born in Desse.  When I was in grade 3 I was a lazy student, but nowadays I am focused on my education.   I studied in primary school until grade 8 and high school until grade 10.  But I didn’t do very well at math, and I did poorly on that section of the national exam.  That is how I ended up studying education at this college.

Please let me introduce myself.  My name in Gebre Egzabihir Assefa.  I was born on December 19th, 1986.  I was born in Aba Ala, where I studied primary and secondary school.  Now I live in Asaita because I am a student at Asaita  CTE in the Biology Department.

First of all, I would like to introduce myself.  My name is Solomon Adefa.  I was born on June 16th, 1986 in Dessie, Ethiopia.  I went to primary and secondary school in Dessie.  Now I live in Asaita and study at the Teacher’s College.  I have one brother and one sister.

Abdu

Ali

Everyone smiles more when they aren’t alone in the picture.

Mohammed Ahmed Mohammed

VSO Ethiopia – Summer Placement Activities – 2012 – Cuso International Ethiopia – International development agency

Summer 2012 has been a busy one in Addis.  My time has been split doing work for VSO Ethiopia and for the Cafod/Sciaf/Trocaire Joint Ethiopia Office.  Here is a summary of what I have been up to over the last few months:

 

Task 1 – SCIAF (Scottish arm of Caritas) application for independent registration with the Government of Ethiopia’s Charities and Services Association submitted

International non-governmental organisations wishing to operate in Ethiopia must register and be licensed by the Government of Ethiopia’s Charities and Services Association.  Cafod, Sciaf, and Trocaire operate a joint office in Ethiopia and in the past have been able to register with the CSA jointly as well.  This year the CSA demanded that each register separately and distinguish which projects each organisation is responsible for funding.  In order to complete the narrative of SCIAF’s application to the CSA, I interviewed each of the Senior Programme managers in the CST joint office to learn about which projects received funding from SCIAF.  The four project areas supported by the CST joint office are:  Humanitarian, Sustainable Livelihoods, HIV/AIDS, and Civil Society. Although SCIAF is the smallest partner in the joint Ethiopia office, they support elements of projects in each of the programme areas.  SCIAF’s application for registration with the CSA was submitted at the end of August 2012. 

 

Task 2 – €500 000 matching funds application for Oromia Self Reliance Association to expand water infrastructure in the Borana region of southern Ethiopia sent to CAFOD

The lack of potable water supply in Oromia National Regional State, South West Shewa Zone, Wolisso and Goro districts is the source of ongoing problems in the area. Water supply and sanitation coverage in the districts is low and the majority of the people rely on surface water such as small streams and unprotected traditional hand dug wells, which are not potable, to get water for human and livestock consumption.  Moreover, sanitation and hygiene education coverage in the district is low.

Women and children who assume the responsibility of fetching water are the most affected portion of the community enduring hardship from the lack of this facilities. They have to travel long distance to fetch unpotable water for household consumption.  As a result, the communities are exposed to water borne diseases, such as diarrhoea, endangering their health status.  Schools and students will also benefit from this project as lack of water supply and sanitation facilities are also one of the critical problems of schools in rural areas in the target districts.

The Oromia Self Reliance Association aims to expand water infrastructure in the area by:

• Developing of 18 shallow water wells. It is planned to develop 12 community managed water wells and 6 schools based water wells for 6 target schools during the three year project period.
• Constructing of wellheads and distribution structures for community and schools, respectively
• Constructing 12 community managed shower blocks and 12 washing basins
• Training community members on hygiene and sanitation, Community led total sanitation (CLTS), participatory hygiene and sanitation transformation(PHAST) approaches
• Constructing 12 blocks of child and gender friendly ventilated improved latrine blocks for students and teachers
• Establishing and training WATSAN committees, local water technicians, health clubs
• Conducting baseline assessment and feasibility studies for the water sources
• Conducting environmental and gender analysis of the project

• Training of  health/environmental clubs members in the schools to support hygiene and sanitation activities including outreach activities
• Organising and support 360 poor women in to self help groups and provide them with entrepreneurial skill training so that they will be engaged in income generating activities

 

Task 3 – Google web developer tools to raise the quality of hits for Google searches of CAFOD/SCIAF/Trocaire employed

Conducting a search using google for “CAFOD SCIAF Trocaire Ethiopia”, “CST Joint Office”, or any combination of these terms returned results limited to expired job postings on Ethiopian employment websites and little information about activities undertaken by the organisation.  Using my blog and google web developer tools. I have changed the search results for these terms so that the results now contain details of projects at the CAFOD/SCIAF/Trocaire Joint Ethiopia Office.

 

Task 4 –   Destinations for those Google searches created

In addition to creating the pathways for google searches, I also created the content contained at the destination by writing visibility brochures, and project summaries of projects at the CST Joint Ethiopia Office and posting them on my blog.  The visibility brochures are available for viewing at https://morenewsfromafar.wordpress.com

 

Task 5 – Planned, tailored and delivered English classes to the staff at CAFOD/SCIAF/Trocaire Joint Ethiopia Office

English classes were designed for and delivered to staff at the CST Joint Ethiopia Office.  Advanced and upper intermediate conversation classes were offered, along with specialised classes to improve listening and writing skills, and idiomatic English.  We discussed everyday topics, such as the difference between living in the city and the country:

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We sang some songs:

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We watched some episodes of ‘Friends’

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And we practised writing:

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Task 6 – Results-based Management training

Results-based management training has equipped me with the tools necessary to organise and present my work in a manner consistent with international development organisations.  The most useful tool in my new management toolkit is the logic model:

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Task 7 – Interviewed candidates for the International Citizenship Service (ICS) programme

ICS is a youth volunteer programme funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID).  It pairs UK youth volunteers with Ethiopian youth volunteers and places them in local work environments in Ethiopia.  Over the summer I had the opportunity to interview candidates to serve as Ethiopian national volunteers in this program.  It was great to learn about the ICS programme, as well as to meet some highly motivated and talented young Ethiopians. 

Task 8 – Planned and facilitated September In-country Training for incoming VSO volunteers

Thirty-five new volunteers and accompanying partners arrived in mid-September for a twelve day training at the Ethiopian Red Cross Training Institute in a suburb just outside of Addis Ababa.  The training was facilitated by myself and two other serving VSO volunteers.  Delivering to an audience comprised of teachers, doctors, midwives, engineers and architects was somewhat daunting, but made easier by everyone’s positivity and flexibility.  The days were long, but the job satisfaction level was very high. 

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The summer is not quite over, and there is still a workshop to conduct next week for Ethiopian partner organisations participating in the inaugural ICS programme in Hawassa in January.  But my time in the city is winding down and soon I’ll be back in the desert. 

 

 

Overview of the Ethiopian Education System – VSO Ethiopia Education Sector Workshop

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Jah Lude – Modern Ethiopian Reggae Music

Jah Lude is sweeping the nation with his modern brand of reggae coming out of Shashemene.  CDs are available on all the street corners, and Jah Lude can be heard in cafes around the city.

 

 

A living map of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – VSO Ethiopia Map – getting around Addis Ababa

Here’s a living map of Addis Ababa.  Please note that you can click ‘view larger map’ below the map.  Let me know if you would like anything added or would like to be added as a contributor to the map:

Amharic Language Resources

Here are some resources that will help students of Amharic:

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Ethiopia – News Update

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Towards a Resilient and Diverse Economy – TRADE – Borana, Ethiopia – CAFOD / SCIAF / Trocaire – CST Joint Ethiopia Office – Sustainable Livelihoods Programme – International development agency

Life is tough in Borana.  According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), there were over one million recipients of food aid between January and June 2012.  Unicef received $6.5m from OCHA in order to supply this food.  Borana is one of the administrative zones of the Oromia Region, in the southernmost part of Ethiopia.  The region is a victim of climate change.  Droughts have been increasing in frequency, and rainfall patterns have changed.  Rains have been coming for shorter periods of time, but with more intensity.  These changes have strained the ability of the local population to cope using traditional methods.  A more resilient and diverse economy is a way to help the local population achieve long-term food security. 

The changing rainfall patterns have led to increased land degradation and conflict over scarce resources.   The Borana people are pastoralists, and cattle comprise their assets.   Diversifying their livestock, and developing new methods of managing farmland and grazing land are vital for the region’s survival.  Educating the local population about climate change is another important step.  The Borana people have been adapting to the region’s shifting climatic patterns for centuries, but the pace of climate change is accelerating.  This has amplified the effects of drought, and is forcing the region’s people to adapt at a quicker rate.  New livelihood strategies must be adopted quickly.

Local people get water from a network of ancient wells called ‘tula’.  Some of the wells are over 30m deep.  The wells tap into the region’s groundwater, and they have traditionally continued to supply water during dry seasons and droughts.  They are known as ‘singing wells’ because of the singing human chains which bring the water to the surface.  But droughts over the past few years have caused some of the wells to run dry for the first time.  Helping villages re-dig and reinforce traditional ‘tula’ wells is a short-term strategy, but in the long-term, a more diverse economy is seen as the key to the region’s food-security.

The United Nations has identified resilience-building projects as the key to establishing long-term food security in the region.  Resilience projects are necessary in order to lessen the vulnerability of the region’s population to natural disasters and the chronic food shortages which accompany them.  Resilience projects ensure that people and livestock maintain access to water during droughts.  One strategy adopted by the Cafod/Sciaf/Trocaire Joint Ethiopia Office is helping villages clear silt from their water sources.  But a longer-term strategy for building resilience is diversifying the local economy.  By helping the pastoralist communities diversify their livelihoods and access markets and credit, family incomes will increase.

Diversifying livelihoods in the Borana region requires developing the economy’s value-chain.  At the moment, cattle are sold at local markets to businesspeople who take them away for fattening.  After the cattle are fattened in another part of Ethiopia, they are sold for consumption on either domestic or international markets.  Teaching Borana herdsmen about the advantages of fattening their cattle locally and then selling them directly to exporters will help the local people to increase their incomes.  The same process applies to the other two value-chains in the area:  the milk value-chain and the non-timer forest products value chain.  There is potential to diversify the Borana region’s economy by developing the skills of local people to produce goods which are further down the value-chain instead of simply supplying raw products to tertiary industries. 

Diversifying the region’s economy and producing goods which are further down the value-chain requires access to capital.  There are many Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations (SACCOs) in the Borana region, but membership is low.  SACCOs are a way to promote savings in the community.  Savings can be used not only as a means to get through droughts, but also as a way to expand economic activities.  Cafod/Sciaf/Trociare conducted two sensitisation sessions at SACCO offices to increase awareness of cooperative membership criteria and opportunities.  Raised awareness will increase SACCO membership and provide access to credit for the local community.  SACCOs support members to improve product processing, and increase product value.  They also strengthen their market presence through organization and networking, and develop the skills necessary for developing businesses and planning for sustainability.  Community access to appropriate rural financial services will boost small business growth and contribute to local economic development.

Three of CST-JEP’s local partners:  Action for Development, SOS Sahel Ethiopia and Gayo Pastoral Development Initiative (GPDI) will contribute to the establishment of new SACCOs.  GPDI will establish six new SACCOs and support three existing processing and marketing cooperatives (PMCs) focusing on livestock production and marketing.  This effort will raise SACCO membership to more than 11 000 people, 83% of which will be female.  Leaders from the newly established six SACCOs will be given training in organisation and leadership to enable them to fulfil their duties.  GPDI will work with three existing processing and marketing cooperatives focusing on livestock, and will work with these groups on adding value to their livestock through fattening.

Resilience-building projects will allow the Borana region’s population to more effectively get through droughts.  Diversifying the economy and producing goods higher up the value-chain will enable the people there to weather the harsh climatic challenges.

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Civil Society Development Programme – CAFOD / SCIAF / Trocaire – Joint Ethiopia Programme – CST-JEP – International development agency

The question of whether international development programmes should aim to strengthen civil society is a tricky one to answer in Ethiopia.  Organisations are allowed to engage in civil society strengthening activities as long as they raise the funds for their organisations from domestic sources.  This limits the ability of foreign governments to influence these policy spheres.  After all, what sovereign country wants to have foreign values imposed on it?  The flipside is that if civil society is ignored by the government, no local efforts to strengthen it may take place at all, and civil society may decay. 

Another important issue regarding development programmes is whether non-governmental organisations should be compelled to limit the percentage of their budgets spent on administrative costs.  Limiting administrative expenditures means that Ngos cannot fill their offices with redundant staff being paid good salaries.  But what constitutes administration?  Is the cost of a teacher conducting a workshop on learner-centred pedagogy considered administrative?  Interpreting ‘administrative’ to mean anything that is not tangible has the potential to limit efforts to improve Ethiopian civil society.

The second phase of the CAFOD/SCIAF/TROCAIRE Joint Ethiopia Office (CST–JEP) Civil Society Programme was initiated in October 2009, and targeted ten Civil Society Organisations. The goal of the programme was to promote the effective representation of Ethiopian citizens through active participation and engagement in civil society networks.  In turn, the programme aimed to facilitate dialogue with government in formulating policy.  CST-JEP intended to achieve this by building capacity within the ten partner organizations.  This three year programme was aimed at institutionalising accountability and transparency in the ten targeted organisations, promoting linkages among them, harmonising and coordinating their national and regional networks, and developing constructive and sustainable relations with government.

One of the major challenges of governance in Ethiopia is achieving downward accountability, with authorities and institutions held accountable to citizens and communities, rather than simply towing the party line.  Institutionalised downward accountability will ensure a more effective and transparent local government that is responsive to citizens.  Civil society organizations should be catalysts in empowering communities and proactively engaging all levels of government.  The cumulative effect of this will be a more inclusive, participatory and sustainable development process.  Yet Civil Society Organisations have difficulty making progress in their efforts on this front due to a relatively recent governmental proclamation which has altered the regulatory environment in which they operate.

The Charities and Societies Proclamation (CSP) enacted by the Government of Ethiopia in early 2009 has created a fundamental change in the legal and institutional setup for operating Civil Society Organisations, by classifying them into categories based on their source of funding, and by limiting their activities based on those funding sources.  The goal of the proclamation is to limit the influence of foreign-funded agencies and to empower locally-funded ones. The proclamation established the Charities and Societies Agency (ChSA) and granted the institution wide-ranging discretionary powers governing the activities of Civil Society Organisations.  Uncertainty surrounding the status of foreign-funded institutions has been compounded as regional governments work to adapt their regulatory policies to match the demands of the CSP.

Foreign assistance in fields such as drought recovery and sustainable livelihoods are welcome, but Article 2 of the Proclamation has identified several “no-go areas” for organisations that receive more than 10% of their funding from foreign sources.  The list of prohibited areas includes a broad range of issues: human rights, justice and women’s rights. For Civil Society Organisations to engage in activities related to these areas, they need to register as an Ethiopian Society or Charity, and raise at least 90% of their operating budget from Ethiopian sources.  This entrenches the sovereignty of the Ethiopian government in formulating policy within these areas.  It also means that Civil Society Organisations registered with the Charities and Societies Agency that receive more than 10% of their budget from international sources are barred from engaging in activities promoting human rights, justice, and women’s rights.

Facilitating trust building and positively communicating with all levels of government are the keys to strengthening Ethiopian civil society. Civil Society Organisations need to cultivate constructive engagement with the government and learn how to creatively link advocacy and policy dialogue with service delivery interventions implemented at the local level.  The support should focus on internal governance; constituency building; local fund raising and income generation; evidence-based research; and practical skills on lobbying and policy dialogue.  Only this way can long–term sustainability be ensured and Ethiopian civil society’s dependency on foreign funding be reduced.

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