Sex work thrives as girls struggle to survive

ZIMBABWE: Sex work thrives as girls struggle to survive

Via: IRIN
Photo: IRIN
Dressed in a tiny white skirt and a top, Linda, 16, (not her real name) struts into a nightclub in Madlambuzi, a sprawling rural settlement in Zimbabwe's Matabeleland South Province. Swinging to the deafening music, she scans the room for potential customers.

She joins a group of visibly drunk girls with pints of clear beer in their hands. Sex work is a last resort of girls desperate to make a living in this poverty-stricken village, or just to "get money to feed our families," Linda told IRIN.

"I was deported as an illegal emigrant from Botswana in December last year, where I used to work as a maid. I have no means of getting money to feed myself and my little child. This is why I am here," she said.

"My parents died two years ago, and I am the one responsible to fend for my two siblings and my only child. They look forward to me to bring food home. There are no jobs here, [and] food is very expensive," she added.

Desperate times
Gordon Chavhunduka, sociologist and political commentator, said Zimbabwe's "social fabric is fast collapsing, just the way the economy is. It's sad that people, especially the vulnerable ones - let alone young girls - would do terrible things just to survive in this economy. It's a sad story."

Linda has many difficulties to contend with besides soaring food prices and the rocketing inflation that has sent the economy into a tailspin, but worst, she feels, is facing criticism from her neighbors and relatives for selling her body.

According to village elders, sex work has been spreading rapidly in rural Matabeleland, especially where there are drinking spots or nightclubs. "These girls are a disgrace. We know survival is not easy, especially considering that commodities are expensive in shops and the there are no jobs, both here [countryside] and in towns, but selling their bodies is wrong," said Methuseli Dumani, a village elder. "We have tried talking to some of them to abandon their evil deeds but they would not listen. Each time the sun sets, you see them trickling in [the club] and start soliciting. We don't know how they can be stopped, at least for the preservation of our culture, which disapproves of prostitution," he added.

Linda and her colleagues know they are seen as immoral people, but say they have no choice. "I know what I am doing is wrong - it is even forbidden in the Bible - but there is no other means through which I can make a living. If I don't go out and sell my body, then my family will starve. Relatives and neighbours say I am a disgrace, but when I go to them and ask for maizemeal or money to help the family, they just look aside; yet they love to be critical."

After a while, Linda gets a "customer", a bald-headed man old enough to be her father, and disappears with him. 'Anita', another sex worker, said the poverty ravaging Matabeleland often forced girls as young as 13 to sell their bodies.

"Save for those who have breadwinners in South Africa and Botswana, many families here have no one looking after them at all. Many of us dropped out of school because our parents could not afford the school fees," she said.

Despite the dangers
Anita is adamant that she understands the dangers of sex work. "Everyone knows there is AIDS; it has actually killed a lot of people here, and some are even ill right now. I am personally afraid of the disease and I always insist on the use of condoms," she said. "For an all-night session, I charge something like Z$200,000 [US$8 at the informal market rate], and half that amount for a short-time session, which normally lasts for only two hours," Anita explained. "Our customers are normally truck drivers who deliver beer from Bulawayo, and those who go or come from Botswana to deliver or collect some goods."

An official of the Matabeleland AIDS Council said a recent survey in southern Zimbabwe had revealed that rural Matabeleland was worst affected by the AIDS pandemic, mainly because of its proximity to South Africa and Botswana. According to 2005 UN estimates, HIV prevalence among people aged 15-49 was 18.8 percent in South Africa and 24.1 percent in Botswana, with Zimbabwe estimated at 20.1 percent.

"Many people in this province work in Botswana and South Africa. Often it's a single partner of the family, say a husband or a wife, and because they stay away from their partner for long, they end up engaging in extramarital relationships, which have the potential of spreading the virus," the official told IRIN.

"Prostitution is another cause [of spreading HIV infection], and it is sad that we are seeing it rearing its head in rural areas," he said. "It just shows how desperate people are."

ETHIOPIA: I knew the risk I was taking, but my family had to eat

Via: PlusNews
Picture: PlusNews

Article:ETHIOPIA: I knew the risk I was taking, but my family had to eat

The following are excerpts from an article written and published by PlusNews:

By day, Aster Beyene [not her real name], 21, is a saleslady at a boutique in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa; by night she attends computer school. After losing her mother and older brother to AIDS-related illnesses, Beyene has been left with the responsibility of feeding and clothing her remaining siblings. "Even though I am the last born, I have experienced the struggle for survival first hand, and I vowed to rescue my family from the pit of poverty that seemed to get worse as the days went by. A middle-aged guy who lived next door had always had his eye on me, but I never considered going out with him before the problems at home.

I pushed all the frightening thoughts aside and opted to have a relationship with him; in return, he offered to give me money, including my tuition for night school. Despite repeated warnings from people in my community that he was infected with the HIV, I continued having sexual relations with him without protection. I was aware of what was at stake, but my family relied on me to provide for them and I felt I had no other option.

Click here to read this article!

*Note all credit and references should be afforded to the authors/sources for this article.

A Simple Reflection...

by: Nasir Al-Amin
I wrote this to a friend today and thought I would share it….

I think the best intentions and initiatives that address the plight of marginalized populations both domestically and abroad originate in the heart. And like in any relationship with the heart, the turning of the heart towards an individual or issues is a connection that could be instantaneous or gradual, but that connection—a station of the heart, which motivates one to love for humanity that which one love for oneself—is the aim. One of the responsibilities that comes with reaching and/or aspiring for this station of the heart, is to create an atmosphere and/or environments that will nurture that connection for others—so that this desire for the best for all is contagious. That’s actualized through the facilitation of presentations, workshops, downtime during meetings, and random conversations on the subway or at a dinner with the waiter/waitress.

One never knows what will be their moment of awakening, nor does one know what it will be for someone else, as I was oblivious to the magnitude and meaning behind my encounter with a little 5 year old street girl I bumped into in Mercato (a bustling market in Ethiopia). This girl was the spark that created ALIF. When I reflect on it now, this initiative to send 50 orphans and vulnerable children to school (the Hiwot Campaign) is merely a response to that “accidental” meeting with the 5 year-old child laborer in Ethiopia. That was my moment of turning, my awakening!

So yes, people will say to you that you are just one person and that’s true. However, the beauty in this whole process is that neither you nor the one that makes that statement knows the beauty inside that one child you will serve and what that encounter will awaken in you.

In difficulty I find solace in the following:
"Past the seeker as he prayed
came the crippled and the beggar and the beaten.
And seeing them... he cried
"Great God, how is it that a loving creator
can see such things and yet do nothing about them?"
God said "I did do something. I made you."
(Sufi Teaching)

Nasir Al-Amin

Overview of Services for Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Ethiopia

by: Tsegaye Chernet
via: CRIN

The first part of the report attempts to give a “birds eye view” of basic statistical indicators in Ethiopia. Brief descriptions of the current situation of orphans and vulnerable children is also part of the report. The recurrent droughts as well as the civil unrest are discussed as major factors that influenced the expansion of institutional care. Subsequent discussions are made on problems associated with residential services for orphans. In this connection, a case of the ‘Ethiopian Orphanage’ is presented to help readers gain a better insight of the
situation.

Click here to read the article!

ETHIOPIA: Urban farming boosts families affected by HIV

Via: PlusNews

Picture: PlusNews

Twelve-year-old Woinishet Wujura's dedication to her gardening duties would be surprising in someone her age, but the land she is tilling has been a lifeline for her and her family because the farm is run exclusively by and for women and children affected by AIDS."I love this garden," she told PlusNews. "I come as much as possible, as soon as school finishes." Woinishet's garden is one of many plots of land in an unusual setting: a sprawling urban farm in the middle of the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.The farm, called 'Gordeme', is part of a successful urban gardening project that started in 2004 and now has several farms across Ethiopia, all managed and maintained by about 10,000 women or children.

Broad Benefits

The goals of the urban garden programme have been to combine HIV/AIDS education with nutritional support for HIV-positive people, but Kimberly Flowers, communications officer for USAID in Addis Ababa, said surplus vegetables were also sold to the surrounding community, providing much-needed income to the women and their families.An estimated 40,000 people buy their vegetables from the project's farms in Adama, Addis Ababa, Awassa, Bahir Dar, Dessie and Gondar, the six largest urban areas in Ethiopia.

The programme also helps reduce the huge social stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS. "The relationship with my neighbours has changed," said Akaki Kaliti, another single mother. "Before the garden they never came to my house. Now they come to my house for food."Ethiopia's HIV prevalence is estimated at about 3.5 percent, and of the estimated 1.32 million people living with HIV/AIDS in 2005, 55 percent - or 730,000 - were women.

Click here to read the entire article!

YEMEN-AFRICA: Smugglers drown African migrants

Via: IRIN
Picture: IRIN

A group of 33 migrants from Ethiopia and Somalia died on Friday after smugglers forced them off their boat near the Yemeni shore, a Somali community leader in Sana'a, the capital of Yemen, said on Monday. "Smugglers forced 120 [Ethiopian and Somali] migrants into the sea before anchoring at the shore for fear of the Yemeni coastguard authorities," Sadat Mohammed, head of refugee affairs in the Somali community in Sana'a, told IRIN. "Those who resisted were stabbed and beaten by smugglers, and then thrown into the stormy sea. Twenty of them were stabbed, and the shore became reddish as a result of the bleeding bodies," he added. According to Mohammed, Yemeni authorities buried the bodies in the local area. The victims were on three boats carrying 320 passengers in total that left the Somali port of Bossaso on 4 April and arrived in Bir Ali in Yemen’s southern province of Shabwa after a two-day perilous journey across the Gulf of Aden. Two other boats carrying 100 passengers each arrived safely. The incident came 15 days after at least 35 African migrants were confirmed dead and 113 missing while crossing the Gulf of Aden as traffickers forced 450 Somalis and Ethiopians off four boats into the sea off the Yemeni coast.

Click here to read the entire article!

ETHIOPIA: New strategy to tackle reproductive health issues

Via: PlusNews

Picture: PlusNews

Ethiopia has launched a national strategy on adolescent and reproductive health that aims to tackle the problems of early marriages and pregnancies, female circumcision, abduction and rape, and poor access to healthcare for 10- to 24-year-olds. Launched by the health ministry in collaboration with United Nations agencies on Tuesday, the Adolescent and Youth Reproductive Health Strategy (AYRH) will be implemented over eight years.

• The report cites the 2005 Ethiopian Demographic Health Survey which showed that 80 percent of women and half of men believed that there were situations when a husband was justified in beating his wife.

• Another widespread issue was female genital mutilation. More than half of 15- to 19-year-old girls had been circumcised. Although support for this harmful practice was declining, about a quarter of 15- to 24-year-old girls believed it should continue.

• The AYRH document noted that abduction was common, especially in Oromia and southern regional states, and young women in rural areas were twice as likely to be abducted. Nationwide, many married women reported having been abducted for marriage.

• Rape was common in both rural and urban areas. A study in six peri-urban areas found that 9 percent of sexually active adolescent girls and six percent of boys had suffered rape.

• Another study among street girls in the capital, Addis Ababa, found that 15 percent had experienced rape while 43 percent had been coerced into their first sexual activity. "

Click here to read the entire article!

Becoming Remarkable

"At a tender age I discovered that it isn't doing spectacular things that make you remarkable in the eyes of God, but instead, it is when you light just one candle to dispel a little bit of darkness that you are doing something tremendous. And if, as a global people, we put all the little bits of good together, we will overwhelm the world."
-- Archbishop Desmond Tutu

STRENGTH & COMMITMENT

by Nasir Al-Amin

I want to take a moment to introduce as well as acknowledged someone whose actions exemplify the commitment needed to aid in the global struggle to raise awareness and liberate children from bondage of child labor and poverty. Her name is Feven Shiferaw. I met Feven six months ago at one of ALIF’s CAF (Civic Action Forum) meetings, when she introduced herself to me, in which she indicated her interest in joining ALIF’s efforts to alter the life of impoverished children in Ethiopia. When she introduced herself, I remember thinking to myself that her name was familiar, then I remembered that I received a financial contribution from her the prior week. I went on to thank her for contributing to the Hiwot (Life) Campaign, an initiative to send 50 children to school in Ethiopia, and she maintained that she wanted to do more. However, at that point I had no clue that she would subsequently enter a triathlon in an effort to raise awareness and funds for the orphans and vulnerable children of Ethiopia through the Hiwot (Life) Campaign.

By no stretch of the imagination is a triathlon a simple task. The Liberty to Liberty-America’s Memorial Triathlon consist of a one-mile swim in the Hudson River, 91-mile bike through New Jersey to Philadelphia and a 10K run along Phil’s Schuylkill River ending at Philadelphia’s Art Museum famous for its scenes in “Rocky.”

When Feven and another friend told me of their plans to do this triathlon, I must admit I was in awe of their commitment to affect change in the lives of Ethiopia’s orphans and vulnerable children and inspired to push myself to do more for our children!

In the coming week ALIF will dedicate a page to Feven’s efforts, which we hope will inspire others to join in this global effort to affect change in the lives of Ethiopia’s orphans and vulnerable children.

I’ll close with a reflection from Feven on why she decided to take action:

Saving lives,

When I first found out about the Hiwot Campaign the first thing that came to my mind was to check out the website, and then I thought to myself how can I help? Sure I can donate money, but I wanted to do more than donating, I wanted to raise awareness, get more of our generation involve to help kids in Africa to achieve a better life through education.

When you drive around the streets of Addis Ababa and see hundreds of children roaming the streets, it can be very overwhelming and disheartening. You just want to help all of them. We can change their lives by helping one child at a time.

We're blessed to live in a place of comfort and opportunity. I also feel doubly blessed to have the chance to share and give, to give them hope and opportunity. For me this is a journey, a journey to better children's lives through education.

Click here to find out how you can help Feven raise funds for the Hiwot (Life) Campagin!

GMU ETHIOPIAN STUDENT ASSOCIATION (ESA) 6TH ANNUAL CULTURAL SHOW

Please come out and celebrate with the ESA of George Mason University (GMU) as they host their 6th Annual Cultural Show. This event promises to be one of excitement and purpose. Admission is FREE, however everyone is encouraged to bring a textbook to donate for Africa and/or a $5 donation. Lastly, ALIF will have a booth, as well as an opportunity to briefly speak about the Hiwot (Life) Campaign.

I look forward to seeing you all there!

Tuesday, April 10th
7:30pm-11:00pm
Located @ SUB II
(Student Union Building 2)
On the GMU Fairfax Campus

For more information contact
Ms. Yodit Gebreyes
703.801.8057

ygebreye@gmu.edu

The world of modern child slavery

By Rageh Omaar
Presenter of BBC Two documentary Slave Children

The world of modern child slavery

Via: BBC

Slavery is a word which immediately conjures up very specific images in our minds. When it is mentioned we tend to think of people, almost always black people; degraded, abused and bound in chains, and we tend to think of such images, and the word slavery itself, as belonging to another era. We do not see slavery as belonging to our world, not as something which is still happening today.

Yet the truth is that if William Wilberforce were alive today and he travelled to different parts of the world - not just in Africa, but also in large parts of Asia, the Middle East, South America and even parts of Europe - he would find children living in conditions and circumstances which Wilberforce would understand and which I am sure he would describe as slavery. It is believed there are nearly nine million children around the world today who are enslaved. There are international charters and covenants which try to come to a legal definition of what constitutes slavery.

In essence these documents define slavery in the modern world as a situation where a human being and their labour are owned by others, and where that person does not have the freedom to leave and is forced into a life which is exploitative, humiliating and abusive.

Click here to read the rest of the article!

The child slaves of Saudi Arabia

By Rageh Omaar
Presenter of BBC Two documentary Slave Children

The child slaves of Saudi Arabia

via: BBC

On the wealthy streets of Jeddah, in Saudi Arabia, thousands of young child-beggars, under the auspices of ruthless gangmasters, are simply trying to survive. Many hail from countries like Yemen which, despite bordering one of the Middle East's richest states, is a world away in terms of economic prosperity. These children are often sold by families who are either duped into believing their offspring will get a better life or sometimes simply threatened. Once in the country, they are likely to face beatings and are sometimes even mutilated as their Dickensian masters stoop to any low to try to improve the chances of them earning more money.

The Ministry of Social Affairs in Saudi Arabia's western province has a unit dedicated to picking up children who are illegal in the country. It is tasked with taking these children from the streets and then investigating their stories. Efforts are made to try to find their families but often no relatives are found. In such cases, these youngsters are deported as illegal aliens back to their country of origin.

But to bring these children in, the unit must carry out night-time swoops to find children begging without families. When these children are found, they are often frightened and desperate to get away from the Saudi officials. One child found by the team during a raid, Ali, is a typical victim of the slavery business. Initially, he attempted to convince officials that he was in the city with his brother. However, it soon became clear that this was not the case.

'Smuggled'
Eventually, Ali revealed that he slept under a bridge or in "any house" he could find. He avoided using shoes, to boost his chances of getting money. While the details of Ali's story are sketchy, we know that Ali was smuggled across the porous border between the Yemen and Saudi Arabia. In 2005, the Yemeni Ministry of Social Affairs acknowledged that about 300 children were crossing the border every month.

It is not always possible to know the entire truth about these children but what is clear, is that they are working for others, out of education, and kept in a cycle of poverty and danger.
Ali told officials at the shelter: "I was smuggled in, in order to beg. I told him (the gangmaster) I don't want to beg, so he beat me up." The boy said he ended up begging because of physical abuse involving metal wire attacks to his back. He also said he was forced to beg all day, but claimed that he only gave some of his earnings back to his paymaster.

Click here to read the rest of the article!

Waking Up: An “Authentic Moment,” joining the Human Soul to the World

by: Nasir Al-Amin

Almost a year ago, a fellow traveler gave me a book of poetry entitled “Ten Poems to Change your Life.” Due to the daily demands of life I never got around to reading this text until the other day.

It was a normal day, a million and one things to do, functioning as usual off of a coffee addiction due to sleep deprivation. However while waiting for the D train to go home before a meeting, this quite inner voice told me to ‘call it a night.’ I have to admit I was feeling drained, my first love, coffee, had let me down so I began to wrestle with myself on how I can cancel this appointment and rearrange my scheduled so that I can take care of the other things on my To-Do list.

Subsequently, I conceded to the voice, canceled my appointment, trashed the To-Do list, took a shower changed into a pair of jeans, t-shirt and blazer (one never knows who you will meet, I have 50 kids to support, I was tired but its still business first!). Still feeling out of it I left for the mosque, as my intention was to simply pray and just sit their and clear my mind, yet before I left I turned back and picked up the book of poems while thinking to myself ‘this isn’t work related I’ll read it.’ Yet what I soon realized is this collection of poems is work related, as I’m blessed in the sense that my work is my passion. It evolved out of various life altering moments, which lead to an awakening, this transformation in life and the subsequent path I’ve chosen to take.

Once in the taxi, I opened the book to the poem, “The Journey” by Mary Oliver, which begins: “One day you finally knew what you had to do, and began.” At that moment the words spoke to me as it brought me back to Mercato, this bustling market in Ethiopia when I first encountered this 5 year old girl who spent her days begging in the market; it brought me back to the grandfather I met in Maginaya who explained to me that he lost his daughter and son-law to AIDS and that he could no longer support his grandchild in their absence; it brought back to the moment when tears poured from the face of Mintesnot’s mother as she explained the pain of pulling him out of school because she could not afford to pay the school fees and afford to feed him; it brought back the conversation I had with a teenage girl in Addis whose eyes brighten when she spoke of her plan to open a clothing boutique, yet quickly became despondent when she spoke of selling her body to support herself and her son, and her fleeting dream of opening that boutique.

Also, I read “Last Night As I Was Sleeping” by Antonio Machado. Both poems speak of this “authentic moment”, this “waking up,” in which the human soul connects to the world. As Roger Housden maintains, it’s a “moment when you dare to take your heart in your hands and walk through an invisible wall into a new life.” The new life that these poets allude to is a life that is deeper than the selfishness of our desires, a life that shuns conformity to the status quo, to systems of power and inequality, while simultaneously rejecting “habitual perceptions of life” in favor of taking a journey towards the inward, beyond mere vain pursuits, conspicuous consumption and materialism. In essence, an awakening to the true self, and what that authentic self yearns for.

For me that “authentic moment,” which in previous writings I have referred to as an ‘Awakening’ when I knew what I had to do, first occurred in the streets of Ethiopia. However that clarion call to the inner self is not bound by geographical location, as it was in the streets of Harlem that I was reminded of “The Journey.”

“Beyond living and dreaming there is something more important: Waking up.”
(Antonio Machado)

SWAZILAND: Community gardens flourish to feed the vulnerable

Via: IRIN PlusNews

Picture: UNICEF Swaziland/2005

NGOs in Swaziland are shifting the emphasis of their operations from handouts of donated foodstuffs to training households and communities to set up projects that produce food and generate income, to find a lasting solution to perennial food shortages.

"AIDS has made food security more difficult to achieve. You cannot separate food from health. People living with HIV/AIDS require food to boost their strength: antiretroviral drugs must be taken after nourishment," said Sibongile Hlope, Director of the Baphalali Red Cross Society. "We do give food assistance to children: a 50kg bag of maizemeal, 10kg of corn-soya blend that is rich in protein, five kg of beans and three bottles cooking oil every month," said food coordinator Kunene.

COMMUNITY STEPS IN

"More people require food assistance; that is why we are also doing community gardens," said Kunene, who supervises six community gardens around the Sigumbeni settlement, about one hour's drive southeast of the capital, Mbabane. "There is a problem with irrigation affordability, especially with our communal gardens. They all depend on rain - but even with proper watering, the hot weather harms the crops. The heat brings pests, but we discourage [these by] using pesticides - we don't want people consuming chemicals."

Besides food production and income generation the gardens are also social gathering spots for HIV-positive people and AIDS-affected families, who comprise the bulk of the volunteers who till, weed, water and harvest. Until recently, HIV-positive people were stigmatised in their villages, and support organisations for HIV-positive people were located in some towns but rarely in rural areas.

"The communal gardens allow HIV-positive people to discuss matters important to them, and be with other HIV-positive people. They get out of the house, and they take charge of one part of their lives," Kunene said. Volunteers working in the gardens divide the food amongst themselves and the vulnerable children in the area. Some fields are even large enough to generate food surpluses, which are sold and the profits divided among the workers.

In Zandondo, a settlement in the northern Hhohho Region, one community donated a 28.5ha field for this purpose. "Last year one field provided school uniforms and basic school supplies to area orphans. We expect other fields to follow suit when this year's harvests come in, starting in May," said Kunene.

Click here to read the full report!

ETHIOPIA: Nearly half of the children orphaned by HIV/AIDS

Via: IRIN PlusNews

Ethiopia has one of the largest populations of orphans in the world with nearly half of the children having lost at least one of their parents.A government official said on Tuesday that HIV/AIDS, disease, hunger and poverty threatened to drive the number of orphaned children from 11 percent to 43 percent of the 45 million children in Ethiopia by 2010.

This could mean some 19 million children will have lost one or both of their parents, according to the figures, said Bulti Gutema, the head of the government's taskforce on the problem of orphans and vulnerable children. He said the figures were based on projections by the health ministry.

Bulti said antiretroviral drugs are vital in curbing the explosion but less than five percent got the drugs. Cheap antibiotics costing less than US $0.03 cents could also cut the numbers of child deaths from HIV/AIDS in the country by half but less than one per cent of the children got them, he added.The UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) estimate that looking after each orphaned child in Ethiopia would cost around $300 a year, totalling some $1.38 billion. But the organisation has less than $10 million available even though Ethiopia has one of the largest populations of orphans in the world.

Some 300,000 children already live on the streets, according to the UN body."It is easy to stand and look at the problem from a distance and wring our hands at how big and impossible the problem is," he said. "But we must confront this."There are currently 4.6 million orphans in Ethiopia - with around 540,000 of them having been orphaned by the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Click here to read the full report!

ETHIOPIA: Inequality, gender-based violence raise HIV/AIDS risk for women

Via: IRINPlusNews

ADDIS ABABA, 8 January (PLUSNEWS) - Efforts to address the plight of women infected and affected by HIV/AIDS are lagging behind in Ethiopia's profoundly conservative society, while they continue to bear the brunt of the epidemic. "Women are more vulnerable to HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia, mainly due to a lack of know-how and control over how, when and where the sex takes place, particularly in the rural areas, where culture and religion dominate the rights of women," Alemu Anno, in the advocacy department of Ethiopia's Federal HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office (FHAPCO), told PlusNews.

According to FHAPCO's latest report, of the estimated 1.32 million people living with HIV/AIDS in 2005, 55 percent - or 730,000 - were women. They also accounted for 54.5 percent of AIDS deaths and 53.2 percent of new infections in that year.Women and girls often have less information and access to services, especially in rural areas. Girls make their sexual debut early - either through early marriage or sexual abuse - and their partners are typically much older men.

According to the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), marriage at the age of seven or eight is not uncommon in Ethiopia.The results are usually premature pregnancies, which cause higher rates of maternal and infant mortality, and increased vulnerability to sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS. Physical and sexual violence within marriage are also common, and women have little room to negotiate the use of condoms or to refuse sex to an unfaithful partner. A 2005 World Health Organisation (WHO) multi-country study on women's health and domestic violence revealed that in a one-year period nearly a third of Ethiopian women reported being physically forced by a partner to have sex against their will.

"This high rate of forced sex is particularly alarming in the light of the AIDS epidemic and the difficulty that many women have in protecting themselves from HIV infection," WHO said."Women in Ethiopia have the larger AIDS burden because of factors like economic dependence and difficulty in meeting basic needs, insufficient proper knowledge of prevention, lack of enough access to prevention, and lack of proper information about sex and sexuality," Berhane added.

Click here to read the full report!

The Journey

by Mary Oliver

On the day you finally knew
what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you
kept shouting
their bad advice —
though the whole house
began to tremble
and you felt the old tug
at your ankles.
‘Mend my life!’
each voice cried.
But you didn’t stop.
You knew what you had to do,
though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers
at the very foundations,
though their melancholy
was terrible.
It was already late
enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen
branches and stones.
But little by little,
as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn
through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly
recognized as your own,
that kept you company
as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do
the only thing you could do —
determined to save
the only life you could save.

EVENT: Reflections

Reflections, is an event to provide Ethiopians and non-Ethiopians who have just returned from Ethiopia with a venue to share their experiences and images from their trip and outreach efforts with vulnerable populations in Ethiopia. Reflections will be facilitated on Friday, February 23rd from 7PM- 9PM.

Location:
Columbia University’s Teacher College (Room 305)
525 W. 120th St.
New York, NY 10027


Please join ALIF for this event as we hear about the enriching experiences of three individuals who have recently traveled to Ethiopia. This event is sure to be an edifying and insightful affair for all who attend.

Textbook Fundraiser for Black Lion Hospital Dept. of Pediatrics

ALIF is engaging in an initiative to purchase pertinent textbooks for medical students and residents of Black Lion Hospital’s Department of Pediatrics. On Friday, February 23rd ALIF will be hosting a fundraising event at Duke City located in Washington D.C. to secure the funds to purchase the following textbooks: Nelson’s Textbook of Pediatrics 17th edition and Neonatology Textbook

Location:
Duke City
1208 U st NW
(bet: 12st & 13st)

10PM-Until
$10 at the Door

The following is a letter written by Dr. Abdulrahman:

Books for Black Lion Hospital Department of Pediatrics
This initiative is the result of seeing the need for textbooks after doing a rotation as a graduated medical student at Black Lion Hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Black Lion Hospital is the only government owned tertiary care center serving not only the heavy populated capital city Addis Ababa, but also persons who walk miles from the rural areas to seek health care. While the hospital is a teaching center, the library holds very few up-to-date textbooks that medical students and residents need to read about their patient’s diseases. Although, there are many issues that need to be addressed to improve health care in Ethiopia, one way to make a difference is to provide newer edition textbooks for medical students and residents. It is my belief that it is important to support the physicians in Ethiopia as they tackle the very difficult task of working with minimal resources. Since my visit in 2004, I have kept in touch with the Dean of Medical School, pediatric residents whom I worked with and medical students that are active in the Ethiopian Medical Student Association (EMSA). They have confirmed what books are desperately needed. I hope that this is the beginning of a life-long collaboration with this teaching hospital in Ethiopia.

Thanks for your support,

Dr Eiman Abdulrahman
Second Year Resident Schneider Children’s Hospital- North Shore Long Island Jewish Hospital

UPDATE: Fundraising Event for Fresh & Green Academy

ALIF would like to thank everyone for his or her support in making Friday’s One School At-A-Time fundraising event for Fresh & Green Academy a success. The proceeds from this event will serve to financially assist the Fresh & Green Academy in paying the schools rent for two months, the purchasing of vital tools to serve potable water to the children, reestablishing the Academy’s internet connection, as well as send one child to school through the Hiwot (Life) Campaign.

Again, ALIF sincerely appreciates your support, and we look forward to seeing you at future events!

New ALIF Initiative: One-School-At-A-Time

One School At-A-Time is an initiative to reach out to children and their families through community-initiated schools that are responding to the needs identified by the community. The aim of this initiative is to link community-based schools to various indigenous and international organizations in an effort to enhance the services and the education these schools provide. The first beneficiary of the One-School At-A-Time initiative is Fresh and Green Academy.

Fresh and Green Academy
Fresh and Green Academy is a kindergarten created 6 years ago by vanguards Ms. Almaze Beyene and Ms. Muday Mitiku who realized the need to educate children that spent most of their day on the streets begging. Located in Yeka Kihe Ketema (woreda 28, kebele 19) the children of Fresh and Green Academy suffer from malnutrition and extreme depravation.

At present Fresh and Green affords 75 kids between the ages of 4 and 9 with the opportunity to access education. The kindergarten receives no government aid, and operates solely by sponsorship of local residents. Currently, only 20 children are sponsored.

On-Going Initiatives:

(1) Potable Water Project
We need to buy the following items in order to provide water to the children at school:

Items: Price USD
1 Stove $312
1 Fridge $282
3 Large Filters $30
Filter refills -
2 Large Pots $37.5
Water Jars $ 3.75
Cups (70 units) -

(2) Library Project
We need to buy the following items in order to create a libraryfor the kids of Fresh and Green Academy:

Items: Price USD
Shelves $300
Folding chairs $8
Folding tables $22.5
File Cabinet $115
TV $288
DVD Already donated! Thanks Kenia Valentin!

(3) Other Efforts:

School Supplies
We are collecting new/used school supply materials to be sent to Fresh & Green Academy.

Toys
We are collecting new/used toys to be sent to Fresh & Green Academy.

Clothing
We are collecting new/used adults’ and children’s clothing to be sent to Fresh & Green Academy and their community.

Contact Gabi Dias at gabidias@allianceinvestment.org in order to send your new or used school supplies, toys, and children/adults clothing to our children and the community of Fresh & Green Academy!

We also accept financial contributions for all of the aforementioned efforts. Checks can be sent to the following address:
Alif Fund
Columbia University Station
P.O. Box 250457
534 West 112 Street
New York, NY 10025

Pleased indicate in the memo section of the check the particular initiative you would like your contribution to be directed towards!

Girl, 6, embodies Cambodia's sex industry

By Dan Rivers (CNN)

PHNOM PENH, Cambodia (CNN) -- At an age when most children might be preparing for their first day of school, Srey, 6, already has undergone trauma that is almost unspeakable. She was sold to a brothel by her parents when she was 5. It is not known how much her family got for Srey, but other girls talk of being sold for $100; one was sold for $10.

Before she was rescued, Srey endured months of abuse at the hands of pimps and sex tourists. (Watch where freed girl is found upon reunion with reporter )
Passed from man to man, often drugged to make her compliant, Srey was a commodity at the heart of a massive, multimillion-dollar sex industry in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. "It is huge," said Mu Sochua, a former minister of women's and veteran's affairs who is an anti-sex trade activist.

The precise scale of Cambodia's sex trade is difficult to quantify. International organizations -- such as UNICEF, ECPAT and Save the Children -- say that anywhere from from 50,000 to 100,000 women and children are involved. An estimated 30 percent of the sex workers in Phnom Penh are under the age of 18, according to the United Nations. The actual figure may be much higher, activists say.

Global sex industry
Around the world, more than 1 million children are exploited in the global commercial sex trade each year, according to the U.S. State Department. The State Department believes Cambodia is a key transit and destination point in this trade.

Sochua said that with millions of Cambodians struggling to live on less than 50 cents a day, many women turn to the sex industry. Poverty is also often what drives parents to sell their child or themselves on the streets.
"Always a child is left behind, often a girl, who is preyed on by traffickers," Sochua added.

Click here to read entire article!

The Audacity of Hope

The Audacity of Hope
by: Nasir Al-Amin
Photo by: Menen Hailu

Recently, I purchased Senator Barack Obama’s book entitled “The Audacity of Hope.” Although I’m intrigued and admittedly inspired by Senator Obama’s ability to be a lawyer, professor, member of Congress and father, it was the allure of the title that made me purchase his text. As the phrase, “the audacity of hope,” reminds me of why I created Alif, rather it reminds me of the children who inspired me to create Alif.

The plight of orphans and vulnerable children is unacceptable by any standards: increased risk of physical and sexual exploitation, malnutrition, limited medical attention, loss of parental protection, an environment of chronic poverty and hopelessness, high rates of school dropouts and child labor. However, the children I met represent the 4 million plus orphans and vulnerable children in Ethiopia that are driven by this brazen and unmitigated optimism in themselves and their future, which I liken to Senator Obama’s phrase “the audacity of hope.”

Such children dare to dream. If you ask them what they want, most will tell you: “I want to go to school to become a teacher…I want to help my country.” These are children who have a vision and the drive. Thus through Alif, I want to match that resolve by affording orphans and vulnerable children with an opportunity to actualize their dream: to be able to attend school and disengage from child labor. For me this is my minute contribution to children who have “the audacity of hope.”

Short Video: The Plight of an Impoverished boy from the Oromo Region

Via: Global Goals

This film conveys the life of 13-year old Gezahegn, who due to his impoverished status has difficulties obtaining a basic education.

Click here to view this short film!

Video: A short film about life in Addis for the impoverished

Via: Global Goals

This film depicts the plight of an impoverished girl, Elene, and her obstacles to education and a healthy, vibrant childhood.

Click here to view this short film!

SUCCESS STORY: Providing hope and support for HIV-affected women

Via: USAID
Battling the Stigma of HIV/AIDS: Providing hope and support for HIV-affected women

Challenge
Several years ago, a young mother in Ethiopia named Tadeleu contracted HIV from her husband, who later passed away from the disease. Her two children, who are HIV negative, live with her mother. She tells of the stigma she faces, both emotionally and socially. “When I found out I had the disease,” she said, “all I could think about was how much I hated myself, and I kept denying that I had the disease. I do not want to become intimate with people, because I fear they will find out my status.”

Initiative
When Tadeleu discovered she had HIV, she started attending support meetings at the Hope Center, a church-based organization established with help from USAID funding. She found a sense of community and a program that would change her life. The Center provided skills, training, and start-up capital for her to begin a small sewing business.

Now, she is too busy to worry about disapproval from her neighbors. Her buyers are often from markets several towns away, because she does not want to deal with local people. Despite the stigma of living with HIV in Ethiopia, she finds relief in the Hope Center. “I am happy that the church has provided support,” she says. “They keep our secrets.”

Results
Vibrant fabrics grace the wall behind Tadeleu where she spends each day hard at work from sunrise to sunset at her manually powered sewing machine. Orders come in regularly, giving Tadeleu confidence in her work and a sense of security. Amidst her tears, a smile breaks out, and she says, “This program has given me life.” With funding for a small business, Tadeleu keeps busy with orders on her self-powered sewing machine.

“This program has given me life,” said Tadeleu, an HIV-positive mother who now runs her own small business.

Snapsot of the Situation: Orphans and Vulnerable Children in Ethiopia

Via: UNICEF
By: Andrew Heavens

Overwhelming numbers
More than 744,000 of Ethiopia’s {6 million} orphans have lost parents to AIDS. These huge numbers are overwhelming extended families and communities who struggle to help where they can.

As a result, many orphans do not go to school, and many are forced to live on the street. They get caught up in child labour, taking on the drudgery of domestic service and the dangers of sex work.

Many orphans have to become the heads of their own households, taking the place of their deceased parents. These young people often sacrifice their own education to guarantee a better future for their younger siblings.

Click here to read entire article!

Two Brooklyn youths join the fight against AIDS in Ethiopia

Via: UNICEF

By Gerrit Beger
ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, 30 November 2006 – Kimberly Canady, 19, and Elias Perez, 20, both from Brooklyn, look tired but have a sparkle in their eyes as they arrive in Ethiopia after the 16-hour flight donated by Ethiopian Airlines. It’s the first time either of them has travelled outside the United States.
Tired or not, there is no time to rest. Kimberly and Elias are youth activists on an important UNICEF mission to see firsthand what AIDS is doing to children and young people in a region that has been hard-hit by the disease.

Click here to read entire article!

AIDS impact on children
HIV-positive children orphaned by AIDS? Isn’t that an African story? Not necessarily. But although their story is similar to many others here in Ethiopia, the impact on their lives is worlds apart.

In Ethiopia, too many mothers are still passing the virus to their newborns, even though it could easily be prevented. Thousands of children wait for HIV treatment that is easily accessible in developed countries but a distant hope for most African children in need. Too many young people are infected because they don’t have the knowledge they need to keep themselves safe. And hundreds of thousands who have lost their parents to AIDS face hardships that challenge their potential to survive and thrive.

Click here to read entire article!

Teacher Training Initiative for sub-Saharan Africa (TTISSA)

UNESCO's Teacher Training Initiative for sub-Saharan Africa (TTISSA) is a 10-year project that spans 46 sub-Saharan countries with the mission to enhance national teacher policy and teacher education. The TTISSA aims to synchronize teacher policies, teacher eduation and labour practices with national development priorities for Education for All and the UN Millennium Development Goals for identified sub-Saharan countries.

What follows is the TTISSA National Report--March 2006:

This report was prepared by the TTISSA National Coordinator for Ethiopia to introduce and analyze teacher status in the country (training, status, living and working conditions, etc.), as well as existing teacher training actions. It was presented on the occasion of the First Meeting of National Coordinators for TTISSA held at UNESCO Dakar from 7 to 9 March 2006.
Click here to read the full report!


(Source: UNESCO)

The Polarity between Poverty and Privileged Induced Decisions: Sell myself or Die

by: Nasir Al-Amin

Me: Conjit…Endemensh? (Beautiful…How are you?)
Her: {She smiles at my broken Amharic}
Me: Denanish? (How are you?)
Her: {In her soft barely audible voice she says:}Dena. (Fine)
Me: Ta-faish? (Where have you been?)
Her: {She begins to look down}
Me: What’s going on? Lately no one knows where you are? I send people to your house to check on you and not even your sister knows where you are?
Her: {She continues to stare at the floor}
Me: Talk to me… what’s up?
Me: Conjit…
Her: yes…
--Moments of silence--
Me: Something is going on? And maybe it’s my fault; you told me about your sister’s work {prostitution}, I came to your mother’s funeral, but….
--Moments of silence--
Me: Are you receiving the money I sent?
Me: Did your sister get you into this?
Her: {She continues to stare at the floor}
Me: What happened?
--Moments of silence--
Me: Tell me something. Everyone knew but me…it got to a point that I kept asking about you, but everyone was mute or fumbled on their words. No one wanted to tell me you’re doing this…

As I sit comfortably in the West faced with decisions of either Macchiato or Cappuccino; slacks from Banana Republic or H & M; Indian food, Ethiopian or Thai; during that same breath she made the decision… sell myself or die!


*I wrote this in response to finding out that a girl I met in Ethiopia, who lost both of her parents is now selling her body for cash as a means to secure her basic necessities!

Mulu's Story

Via: UNICEF
Thirteen-year-old Mulu Melka’s soft voice and shy demeanour hide a character marked by courage, determination and steady nerves. When she was 11 years old, Mulu was abducted by a man who locked her up in his house for the night.

Click here to read Mulu's Story as well as the story of ther women!

State of the World's Children 2007 Report

Click here to read this report!

Violence Against Girls in Africa

Violence Against Girls in Africa: A Retrospective Survey in Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda
Via:CRIN

Summary:
On average, eight out of every ten girls surveyed in these reports are being physically abused by the people who they are supposed to trust most. Almost every girl will be psychologically abused in one way or another. And the majority of girls will be sexually abused (95% in Uganda, 85.2% in Kenya and 68.5% in Ethiopia).

Their mothers are tying them up. Their girlfriends are driving them into prostitution. Their teachers are psychologically abusing them. Their boyfriends are forcing them to have sex. Their brothers are kicking them. They witness their loved ones being beaten and even killed. In short, the girls representing the East African countries of Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda are being denied their fundamental right to be a child.

Multimedia: Africa's Children and Sexual Abuse

Via: NYtimes
Click here to watch a clip on Sexual Abuse of girls: Africa’s Children

Sex Abuse of Girls Is Stubborn Scourge in Africa

Via: NYtimes
SAMBAVA, Madagascar — Thirty miles outside this down-at-the-heels seaside town, Justin Betombo tends his vanilla plants and cheers the local soccer team as if he had not a care in the world. And in fact, what was once his greatest worry has been almost magically lifted from his shoulders. In the local prosecutor’s office, a file filled with accusations that he had sodomized his 9-year-old niece has vanished.

Mr. Betombo was arrested in 2003 after the girl, Kenia, said he had savagely assaulted her. The police obtained his confession, which he later recanted, and a doctor’s certificate that Kenia had been sexually violated, rendering her incontinent and anorexic. Twice they sent the case file to the prosecutor.

There matters ended. Mr. Betombo attended one hearing in the prosecutor’s office, but Kenia’s parents say they were not told about it. The records are nowhere to be found. And Mr. Betombo walked away a free man. Kenia’s parents, distressed by what they saw as a travesty of justice, asked that her name be published, hoping that her case would set an example.

Among sub-Saharan Africa’s children, such stories are disturbingly common. Even as this region races to adopt many of the developed world’s norms for children, including universal education and limits on child labor, one problem — child sexual abuse — remains stubbornly resistant to change.

Click here to read the entire article!

CIVIC ACTION FORUM MEETING & CAF DISCUSSION BOARD

CIVIC ACTION FORUM MEETING & CAF DISCUSSION BOARD: GET INVOLVED TODAY!
Alif would like to invite you to its Civic Action Forum (CAF) that will convene this Friday, December 8th at 7PM. CAF is an action-oriented initiative that convenes monthly with the aim to move beyond mere dialogue and debate and into the development of tangible interventions to address critical issues faced by Ethiopia’s underserved and marginalized populations.

The location for the CAF meeting on Dec. 8th is Teachers College (Columbia University Campus) Russell Hall 3rd Floor, room 306.

Additionally, please join Alif online as it launches its online CAF Message Board for the Civic Action Forum (CAF). The six priority areas identified by the group are the following:
A Book Drive
The Hiwot (Life) Campaign
The Awakening Project
The Lalibela Project
Investing in Africa
Girls’ Education

The priority areas are not limited to these 6, thus your input is welcomed.

I hope to see each of you on both the CAF Discussion Board and at this weeks CAF meeting. Feel free to invite anyone you think might be interested in either of these action-oriented endeavors.

Click here to join the CAF Discussion Board

THE AURA OF A PESSIMIST

The Aura of a Pessimist
by: Nasir Al-Amin

"The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty....” (Winston Churchill)
In times of difficulty, the optimist will spend his or her time thinking of ways to be an agent of change and the pessimist will spend his or her time talking! They both have a right to exist, but I also have the right to shield my soul and intellect from the aura of a pessimist, which siphons creativity, misguides the mind and cultivates a state of inertia.

“The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing....” (Albert Einstein)

A SINCERE COMMITMENT

A SINCERE COMMITMENT ON WORLD AIDS Day

As we wind down from the arduous demands of this work week—appointments, assignments, travel and deadlines—let’s take a moment to reflect on what also occurred, albeit clandestinely:

This week in Ethiopia, approximately 5,000 new HIV infections will have been recorded, exacerbating an already dire situation marked by an estimated 2.8 million people infected and close to a million children orphaned by AIDS.

Twenty-five years after the first case of AIDS was recorded, let’s make World AIDS Day a day of commitment: a sincere commitment both in time and resources, to these 5,000 new HIV infections and a commitment to the 2.8 million people infected, as well as the children orphaned by AIDS. Ethiopia has one of the largest HIV/AIDS-affected populations in the world. The time to act is now!

Join Alif in its efforts to address the plight of orphans and vulnerable children in Ethiopia!

“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
(Martin Luther King Jr.)

Click here to make the Commitment Today!

A Moment of Reflection on Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving & the Hiwot (Life) Campaign:
by: Nasir Al-Amin

“Investing In Our Shared Future”

A Moment of Reflection on Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving offers not only a time for families and friends to gather, but also a time to remember and reflect on the vital possessions that we have such as food, shelter, health and physical security. Thus, as we end this day of gathering and reflection, lets take a moment to reflect on the plight of the 4.6 million orphans in Ethiopia; on the 30 percent of girls in Addis Ababa aged 10-14 that are not living with their parents, who were forced to run away from child marriages; lets reflect on the 8,000 sex workers that extreme poverty has forced into the sex trade; on the widowed mothers that earn $7.50 a month collecting trash, which is not enough to pay for food, rent and school fees. Make this Thanksgiving different, help Alif in its effort to contribute to a family’s effort to secure food, shelter and an education for their child.

Hiwot (Life) Campaign
Is an initiative to disengage 50 children from child labor, while simultaneously affording these 50 children with the opportunity to go to school and contribute financially to their family’s survival. Additionally, the cost of school fees, uniforms and school supplies are covered through the Hiwot Campaign, as well as each family is provided with $20 a month in an effort to aid them in securing their basic necessities: food, clothing and shelter.

Click here to join the Hiwot (Life) Campaign!

A Night of Networking and Purpose

I would like to thank you all for joining Alif at Queen of Sheba Ethiopian Restaurant, for "A Night of Networking and Purpose,” on Saturday, November 18th in Alif's effort to raise awareness and funds for its Hiwot (Life) Campaign. The Hiwot (Life) Campaign is an initiative to send 50 orphans and vulnerable children to school in Ethiopia.

Through your support Alif was able to raise enough funds to educate 4 children next year! Your contribution/investment to the Hiwot Campaign will have both an immediate and long-term effect on the life of a child and Ethiopia. The immediate effect of your contribution is actualized by a poor family’s ability to secure food, shelter and other basic necessities. The long-term effect, is seen in affording a child an education, which enhances a child’s and Ethiopia’s human capital, thus aiding in breaking the intergenerational transmission of poverty.

Again, I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of you for attending and investing in a child’s life—Our Shared Future!

Sincerely,
Nasir

*Additionally, Alif would like to thank the owner of the Queen of Sheba Ethiopian Restaurant for affording Alif the opportunity to facilitate this event at the restaurant. For more information about Queen of Sheba click here!

Ethiopia: Steady increase in street children orphaned by AIDS

Via: UNICEF
“I have not seen one good thing about living on the street. Everything is horrible,”
(Mandefro Kassa, 14-year-old street child)

Ethiopia counts one of the largest populations of orphans in the world: 13 per cent of children throughout the country are missing one or both parents. This represents an estimated 4.6 million children – 800,000 of whom were orphaned by HIV/AIDS. The country has seen a steady increase in the number of children becoming orphaned because of AIDS. In the past, famine, conflict and other diseases were the main factors that claimed the lives of parents

Grim statistics
Many street children like Mandefro don’t have access to basic rights such as proper care, education, psychological support and supervision. Often, orphans and other vulnerable children are forced to work to earn an income. They are exposed to various forms of exploitation, including sexual exploitation.
In Addis Ababa more than 30 per cent of girls aged 10-14 are not living with their parents. Twenty per cent of these 30 per cent have run away from child marriages.

Twelve per cent of adolescents aged 10-14 – of the 30 per cent not living with their parents – surveyed in two areas of Addis Ababa were domestic workers. They are very young, very vulnerable to exploitation and abuse, and typically have no legal or social support.

In the Amhara region, the average age of marriage for girls is 14, while at the national level the mean age for marriage is 17. There are about 2.5 million children with disabilities.

No social net for vulnerable children
Very few government services help orphans. The primary coping strategy for communities has therefore been the extended family. Increasingly, however, the capacity of the extended family to support the growing numbers of orphans is declining.

“As more and more parents die, the capacity of the extended family to take care of orphans becomes smaller and smaller,” says Björn Ljungqvist, UNICEF Representative in Ethiopia. “In all countries where you have a big HIV/AIDS epidemic, at first you don’t see any orphans at all, as they are absorbed by the traditional systems. And then all of a sudden you seem to reach some type of breaking point and you start finding these children in the streets, you start finding them working in difficult conditions, you start finding even child-headed households.”

Click here to read entire article!

Meeting: Alif’s Civic Action Forum (CAF)

Alif would like to invite you to their Civic Action Forum (CAF) that will convene this Friday, November 10th at 7PM.

CAF is an action-orientated initiative that convenes monthly with the aim to move beyond mere dialogue and debate and into the development of tangible interventions to address critical issues faced by Ethiopia’s underserved and marginalized populations.

Location:
Teachers College Main/Zankel Hall (Gottesman Library)
Room 306 (3rd Floor Russell Hall)
525 West 120th Street

Agenda
I. Open Floor Part I: Discussion on issues of interest.
(30 mins)

II. Open Floor Part II: Discussion of views on selected issues of interest.
(30 mins)

III. Group Formation: The establishment of groups based on common interest. (5 mins)

IV. Action: Development of action-orientated initiatives.
(30 mins)

V. Summation: Briefing from each group and agenda for next CAF (25 mins)

We look forward to seeing you this Friday!

*For more information contact Nasir at nasir@allianceinvestment.org

An Account of Street Life in Ethiopia (VIDEO)

Via: UNICEF
“The street has been my home since I can remember. It’s been more than one year since I moved here (Bahr Dar) and all this time, I have not seen one good thing about living on the street. Everything is horrible,” says 14-year-old Mandefro Kassa, who grew up as an orphan on the streets of Woreta, a provincial town in Ethiopia.

Forced Labor In a 6-Year-Old’s Eyes

Via: NY Times
KETE KRACHI, Ghana —
Just before 5 a.m., with the sky still dark over Lake Volta, Mark Kwadwo was rousted from his spot on the damp dirt floor. It was time for work.
Shivering in the predawn chill, he helped paddle a canoe a mile out from shore. For five more hours, as his coworkers yanked up a fishing net, inch by inch, Mark bailed water to keep the canoe from swamping.

He last ate the day before. His broken wooden paddle was so heavy he could barely lift it. But he raptly followed each command from Kwadwo Takyi, the powerfully built 31-year-old in the back of the canoe who freely deals out beatings. “I don’t like it here,” he whispered, out of Mr. Takyi’s earshot.
Mark Kwadwo is 6 years old. About 30 pounds, dressed in a pair of blue and red underpants and a Little Mermaid T-shirt, he looks more like an oversized toddler than a boat hand. He is too little to understand why he has wound up in this fishing village, a two-day trek from his home. But the three older boys who work with him know why. Like Mark, they are indentured servants, leased by their parents to Mr. Takyi for as little as $20 a year.

Until their servitude ends in three or four years, they are as trapped as the fish in their nets, forced to work up to 14 hours a day, seven days a week, in a trade that even adult fishermen here call punishing and, at times, dangerous.
Mr. Takyi’s boys — conscripts in a miniature labor camp, deprived of schooling, basic necessities and freedom — are part of a vast traffic in children that supports West and Central African fisheries, quarries, cocoa and rice plantations and street markets. The girls are domestic servants, bread bakers, prostitutes. The boys are field workers, cart pushers, scavengers in abandoned gem and gold mines.

By no means is the child trafficking trade uniquely African. Children are forced to race camels in the Middle East, weave carpets in India and fill brothels all over the developing world. The International Labor Organization, a United Nations agency, estimates that 1.2 million are sold into servitude every year in an illicit trade that generates as much as $10 billion annually.

Studies show they are most vulnerable in Asia, Latin America and Africa.
Africa’s children, the world’s poorest, account for roughly one-sixth of the trade, according to the labor organization. Data is notoriously scarce, but it suggests victimization of African children on a huge scale.

A 2002 study supervised by the labor organization estimated that nearly 12,000 trafficked children toiled in the cocoa fields of Ivory Coast alone. The children, who had no relatives in the area, cleared fields with machetes, applied pesticides and sliced open cocoa pods for beans.

Click here to read the entire article!

Forced Labor, In a 6-Year-Old’s Eyes

Mark Kwadwo, 6, in the small dark room, where he sleeps on the dirt floor and rises before dawn to work on Lake Volta, a two-day trek from his family home. “I don’t like it here,” he whispered to a visitor, out of earshot of his employer.

Photo journal: Ethiopia shoe-shine girl

Via: BBC
Interviews and photos: Amber Henshaw

Easy
Meskerem, 12, is one of the few shoe-shine girls in Ethiopia's capital, Addis Ababa.
Her mother earns about $7.50 a month collecting rubbish, which is not enough to pay for food, rent and school fees.
At first Meskerem wanted to work as a domestic servant but she was advised to try shoe-shining. She likes being self-employed.
"Shoe shining is not difficult. It is easy for me because I have the power. If I want to work I can work," she says.

Shanty town
Meskerem lives with her mother, her uncle and four siblings in a one-roomed mud shack in the city centre.
It’s in a sprawling shanty area just behind the five-star Sheraton Hotel.
Meskerem’s father died just over a year ago.




Drunk
Meskerem’s mother, Bercha Yanaga, 29, says life was hard when Meskerem was younger.
"When she was a child I raised her in difficult conditions but now she’s growing up and helping me I feel so happy.
"My husband was a drunk and we were fighting about money all the time."
He died when Tigist, right, now two years old, was just a few months old.

Threats
Meskerem shines shoes after school and all day at the weekend.
She charges 1 birr (11 US cents) to clean a pair of shoes. On a good day at the weekend she can earn between 5 to 7 birr.
"When I first started the boys came up to me and told me to go away," she says.
"They told me they would earn less because I was a girl and men would prefer to come to me. The boys threatened me. Sometimes customers and passers-by insult me and make me cry."


Long day
"I wake up just before 0700 and go to a food centre. If they have food I have breakfast, if not I just go home.
My mother leaves home for work at 0600 and gets back at 0800. I sweep the floor and do other chores until she returns.
Then I go to school until 12.30 and come home for lunch. If there’s lunch I eat, if not I go back to school for the afternoon session, which lasts until 1530.
Then I go home to collect my shoe shine boxes and work until 1800. Then I sleep.

Knowledge
Meskerem uses some of the money she earns to pay her school fees - of 15 birr ($1.65) a month.
"I had to go to school because I want to get knowledge - knowledge is how you become somebody," she says.
She hopes to become a teacher one day.


Admire
The government and donors are trying to increase the number of girls who go to school in Ethiopia.
Muluembet Gebereyes is the head teacher at Meskerem's school.
"There are more girls than boys at this school, which is private," she says.
"The boys go to other schools and the girls go here because it is close to their homes. Parents worry about girls getting abducted [as brides] so they like to keep an eye on them. It is unusual for girls to shine shoes. I admire Meskerem very much.

Frightened
"Sometimes I play with my friends and my sister Guenet, 9, (far right)when I came back from work at the weekend.
"I am frightened that bad things will happen to me if I leave the compound, so I always stay here to play," Meskerem says.
"Once I tried to teach her how to shine shoes too and I wanted to buy her a box and some materials but she couldn’t do it, so I am the only one in the family shining shoes."

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