| Mark Collins
In 1984 the Irish aid agency GOAL arrived in Ethiopia. It was one
of the lowest points in Ethiopian history. A civil war was raging
and one million people were dying of starvation. It was a tragedy
which shocked the world, especially the Irish. Ireland knew about
civil war. And Ireland knew about famine.
During this dark time a special bond developed between Ireland
and Ethiopia. Bob Geldof formed Band Aid and millions were raised
while GOAL started working on the ground, bringing emergency aid
to those most in need. GOAL only planned to be there until the famine
ended, but because of Ethiopia’s fragile state, they never
left.
Nowadays, GOAL still operates in some of the poorest parts of Ethiopia,
places which are at constant risk of drought and famine. These include
Awasha in southern Ethiopia where regional director Deirdre Murray
supervises their operations.
Awasha is situated on a large lake and is surrounded by rolling
hills. At times you wouldn’t think that it’s Ethiopia,
the land is full of lush plants and the colourful birdlife appears
tropical in appearance.
“Ethiopia has a terrible image abroad,” Deirdre explains.
“Everybody thinks that the place is a desert where nothing
can live, but when the rains come, parts of the countryside become
very beautiful.”
However, when the rains don’t fall, it is a different story.
Millions of people are dependent on rainfall for their livelihoods.
If the rains fail, crops aren’t harvested, and people and
their all-important livestock aren’t fed.
This year there was lower than expected rainfall. As a result,
GOAL, along with other non-government agencies (NGOs), implemented
a nutritional survey. GOAL visited hundreds of families living in
remote places, small habitats where people live in very primitive
conditions.
“Time stands still out in the bush,” says Deirdre.
Families live in small wooden huts with thatched roofs which they
share with their animals, usually a couple of goats and some chickens.
Despite chronic poverty, Ethiopians have very large families, averaging
between six to ten children. In areas which are predominantly Muslim,
men have multiple wives and sometimes as many as 15-20 children.
When we arrived at one small settlement, people were pleased to
see GOAL. Mothers happily co-operate with the survey as visits by
any health experts are rare, if not at all. Children under the age
of five were measured and weighed, a simple but effective way of
calculating their nutritional state.
For the most part, the families which we visited had healthy children.
However, there were still some who had large, round bellies, an
ominous sign of malnutrition. Does this mean that a famine is on
they way?
“Unfortunately, the situation is always so bad in Ethiopia
that around eight to ten per cent of all children under the age
of five suffer from malnutrition,” explains Deirdre. “It
is our job to help these people but also to make sure that the situation
doesn’t get any worse.”
It is generally recognised that a famine like in 1984 where one
million people died won’t happen again in Ethiopia. However,
this doesn’t mean that the place is ‘food secure’.
Around five to seven million people get fed by the World Food Programme
every year, nearly ten per cent of the population. Also, there are
organisations like GOAL who have early warning systems in place
to detect possible famine.
“Presently, Ethiopia just cannot produce enough food to feed
its population. It’s vital that we are here making sure that
the situation doesn’t get out of control” says Deirdre.
The most vulnerable people in Ethiopia are those living in the
countryside, and the most vulnerable people in the countryside are
the nomadic ‘pastoralists’. These people wander around
parts of Ethiopia bringing their animals to various pasture lands.
If the rains fail and the land becomes a desert then their animals
begin to starve. They lose weight and become worthless. At times,
they can’t even give them away for free.
In Western Ethiopia, GOAL have been assisting these pastoralists
for years. In one project, it involves creating a reliable drinking
water supply in a local school.
It was a strange sight to see the school near Metehara, 200 kms
west of the capital, Addis Ababa. The school was in the bush, unconnected
by any road. It lacked electricity and the three teachers who were
in charge lived in a hut at the back of the school.
A rain water retention system had been put in place by GOAL. Rain
which falls on the school roof flows into a sanitised drum capable
of holding 15,000 liters of water. Here the rain water is the safest
water to drink as the water underground has a high sulphuric content.
The rainwater retention system was installed two years ago. Before
that, there was no drinking water in the school. “Children
were walking five to 15 miles to school in temperatures of around
38 degrees and they didn’t have water to drink when they arrived,”
explained a teacher.
However, just because the children have safe drinking water, it
doesn’t mean that they are healthy. GOAL built a small kitchen
and everyday a special, vitamin-packed lunch is supplied by the
World Food Programme. This form of supplementary feeding is vital
when the teachers fear that the children are not being fed sufficiently
at home.
Not all of Ethiopia’s problems are confined to rural areas.
In cities such as Addis Ababa, there is a serious problems with
street children. It is estimated that around 60,000 children roam
the streets every day.
According to GOAL worker Louise O’Rourke who is based in
Addis Ababa, the street children are some of the most vulnerable
people in the city. “If you are a child and trying to stay
alive in the city, you are open to a lot of abuses. Some of the
children have serious health problems or have been forced into prostitution.”
GOAL operate a number of shelters for these children. Some children
spend 24 hours a day in GOAL’s care. Social workers and psychologists
are on hand to ensure that the children are properly looked after.
When we visited one of these shelters the children were sitting
in large classrooms enjoying non-formal education such as basic
literacy skills. Most of the children appeared healthy and happy,
but behind their smiles were tales of horror. Some of the children
were AIDS orphans, both parents having died from the disease.
“When both parents die, it is not uncommon that their children
are raised by uncles, aunts or neighbours, but sometimes the children
have nowhere to go and end up on the street,” explains Louise.
GOAL is well known in Addis Ababa and most street children are
happy to be taken into its care. It means that they’ll get
fed and have a room over their heads. Also, some older children
are taught skills in order to get jobs.
A few years ago 14-year-old Belete Michael was living on the streets
of Addis Ababa. He came to the attention of GOAL and was taken into
their street children programme. As he showed an aptitude for carpentry,
GOAL organised for him to spend six months learning the basic skills.
Now he’s working for the largest construction company in Addis
Ababa as an apprentice carpenter.
When we met him on the construction site, he was a confident man
of nineteen years old. While in Ireland his wage of one dollar a
day is worthless, here it’s enough for him to be self-sufficient.
Also, his job has given him hope for the future. “In six months
time I’ll be getting a pay rise, then I’ll start saving
for a car,” he said with pride.
If you talk to any Ethiopian about their history they’ll
always tell you the following, “We’re one of the oldest
civilisations in Africa and we were never colonised.” Ethiopians
are a proud race who don’t like to beg, but they are aware
of their short-comings and their dependency on organisations like
GOAL.
As Deirdre Murray explains, “Ethiopia is always in the news
for all the wrong reasons and sometimes people switch off. But it’s
vital that the West doesn’t forget about these people. They
need our help.”
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