News and Events

News and Events (19)

Action for Development (AFD) held a forum in Moyale town, Borena zone, advocating for the pastoralists' rights to free access and use of land, and the right not to be displaced from their land.
The forum also urged the government to enact appropriate laws and expand market infrastructure to facilitate cross-border trade.
 
The Ethiopian Constitution, in Article 40, Sub-article 5, stipulates that Ethiopian pastoralists have the right to free access to land for grazing and cultivation, as well as the right not to be displaced from their own land. It also recognizes their traditional systems of communal land and natural resource use. However, a detailed law that implements these land rights has not yet been enacted and enforced.
 
On the other hand, cross-border trade in border areas is fundamental to the food security and income of the local community. Although a trade agreement exists between Ethiopia and Kenya to facilitate this, the low financial ceiling allowed under the implementation guideline and its lack of enforcement have resulted in informal and small-scale cross-border trade activities in the border region.
 
Furthermore, this trade is often accompanied by security problems, poor access to market infrastructure, and the absence of an appropriate regulatory framework.
 
This forum, which is part of a project being implemented by Action for Development in collaboration with Welthungerhilfe, was held for three days with the participation of the Federal Ministry of Trade, the Oromia Trade Bureau, and the Oromia Irrigation and Pastoral Development Bureau.
 
 
 
አክሽን ፎር ዴቨሎፕመንት መንግስት የአርብቶ አደሮችን መሬት በነፃ የማግኘት፣ የመጠቀምና ከመሬታቸዉ ያለመፈናቀል መብታቸዉ እንዲከበር እንዲሁም ተገቢዉን ህግ በማዉጣትና የገበያ መሰረተ ልማት በማስፋፋት ድንበር ተሻጋሪ ንግድን እንዲያሳልጥ የሚወተዉት ፎረም በቦረና ዞን ሞያሌ ከተማ አካሂዷል፡፡ 
 
የኢፌድሪ ህገ-መንግስት አንቀፅ 40 ንኡስ አንቀፅ 5 የኢትዮጶያ አርብቶ አደሮች ለግጦሽ እና ለእርሻ የሚሆን መሬት በነፃ የማግኘት እንዲሁም ከገዛ መሬታቸዉ ያለመፈናቀል መብት እንዳላቸዉ ደንግጓል፤ መሬትንና ሌሎች የተፈጥሮ ሀብቶችን በጋራ ለሚጠቀሙ ባህላዊ ስርዓታቸዉም እዉቅና ሰጥቷል፡፡ ነገር ግን ይህንን መሬት በማዉረድ መብታቸዉን ተግባራዊ የሚያደርግ ዝርዝር ህግ ፀድቆ እየተተገበረ አይደለም፡፡
 
በሌላ በኩል በድንበር አከባቢ የሚደረጉ የድንበር ተሻጋሪ ንግድ ለአከባቢዉ ማህበረሰብ ለምግብ ዋስትናዉ እና ለገቢዉ መሰረቱ ነዉ፡፡ ይህንን ለማሳለጥ የኢትዮጲያና የኬኒያ ንግድ ስምምነት የተደረገ ቢሆንም በማስፈፀሚያ መመሪያዉ መሰረት የሚፈቀደዉ የገንዘብ ጣሪያ አነስተኛ በመሆኑና ወደ ትግበራም ባለመገባቱ በድንበር አከባቢ የሚስተዋለዉ የድንበር ተሻጋሪ የንግድ እንቅስቃሴ መደበኛ ያልሆነና አነስተኛ የሆነ ነዉ፡፡
 
በተጨማሪም በፀጥታ ችግር፣ በደካማ የግብይት መሰረተ-ልማት ተጠቃሚነትና ተገቢዉ የቁጥጥር ማዕቀፍ ያለመኖር ታጅቦ የሚፈፀም ነዉ፡፡
 
አክሽን ፎር ዴቨሎፕመንት ከዌልት ሀንገር ሂልፌ ጋር እየተገበረዉ የሚገኘዉ የዚሁ ፕሮጀክት አካል የሆነዉ ይህ ፎረም የፌደራል ንግድ ሚኒስቴር፣ የኦሮሚያ ንግድ ቢሮ እና የኦሮሚያ መስኖና የአርብቶ አደር ልማት ቢሮ በተገኙበት እነዚህ ዘርፈ ብዙ ችግሮች እንዲፈቱ የሚወተዉት ፎረም ለ3 ቀናት ተካሂዷል፡፡
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A visit was conducted in Adama and Mojo to empower pastoralists to have better market

linkage opportunities.


Action For Development is implementing a project aimed at strengthening the capacity of pastoralistsby building resilient livelihoods. As part of this project, this visit worked on creating and strengthening market linkages by connecting pastoralists with abattoirs and livestock exporters.
This visit helps them to breed livestock with good health and management conditions, enabling them to practically observe better livestock handling practices and increase their competitiveness. Additionally, by creating market linkages, it enables them to find additional markets and income. The visit aimed to demonstrate that pastoralism can be a viable livelihood if given due attention, and a total of 26 pastoralists from the Borana zone participated in it. 
አርብቶ አደሮች የተሻለ የገበያ ትስስር እድል እንዲያገኙ ለማብቃት የሚያስችል ጉብኝት በአዳማና ሞጆ ተካሄደ፡፡አክሽን ፎር ዴቨሎፕመንት አደጋን የሚቋቋም የኑሮ መሰረት በመገንባት የአርብቶ አደሮችን አቅም ለማጎልበት የሚያስችል ፕሮጀክት በመተግበር ላይ ይገኛል፡፡ የዚሁ ፕሮጀክት አካል የሆነዉ ይህ ጉብኝት አርብቶአደሮችን ከቄራዎችና እንሰሳትን ወደ ዉጪ ከሚልኩ ኤክስፖርተሮች ጋር በማገናኘት የገበያ ትስስርን የመፍጠርና የማጠናከር ስራ ሰርቷል፡፡
ይህ ጉብኝት የተሻለ የእንሰሳት አያያዝ ሁኔታን በተግባር እንዲመለከቱ በማስቻል ጤናቸዉ እና የአያያዝ ሁኔታቸዉ የተጠበቁ የቤት እንሰሳትን እንዲያረቡና ተወዳዳሪነታቸዉን እንዲጨምር ያግዛል፡፡ በተጨማሪም የገበያ ትስስር በመፍጠር ለእንሰሳቶቻቸዉ ተጨማሪ ገበያና ገቢ እንዲያገኙ ያስችላቸዋል፡፡ ጉብኝቱ አርብቶ አደርነት ተገቢዉን ትኩረት ከተሰጠዉ አዋጭ የኑሮ መሰረት እንደሚሆን ለማሳየት ያለመ ሲሆን በአጠቃላይ ከቦረና ዞን 26 አርብቶ አደሮች
ተሳትፈዉበታል፡፡
    
On International Women's Day, we reaffirm our unwavering commitment to safeguarding women's rights. Creating a truly Gender just world, one where women are liberated from all forms of abuse and harassment, demands a concerted, collaborative approach. A safe world for women ensures a safer and
more equitable world for all. A secure world for women is not merely a moral imperative; it is the cornerstone of a prosperous and equitable future for all. This International Women's Day, let us commit to building their resilient future together. Partnering to empower women with holistic resilience is imperative in the fight against abuse.
 
Wednesday, 05 March 2025 08:02

From Prosopis to Productivity

Written by

Witness the remarkable journey from invasive takeover to thriving productivity in Kangaten town, Nyangatom Woreda, South Omo Zone, where the resilient people of Nyangatom have reclaimed their land from Prosopis and cultivated a vibrant future.

The area has been invaded by the harmful Prosopis juliflora at a rapid pace and spread, hindering the community's ability to produce agricultural products and significantly reducing the area's productivity. The harmful and invasive Prosopis juliflora has invaded native plants, disrupted natural processes, and disturbed biodiversity interactions. This has restricted plant movement, led to water scarcity underground, and depleted grazing land.

Moreover, the area's natural forests were being heavily deforested for illegal charcoal production, placing them at severe risk of depletion. Similarly, the area, invaded by harmful and invasive plants, reduced grazing and water for livestock, causing the community to turn to the Omo Park, inevitably impacting the park as well.

                               The harmful and invasive plant in the area (Prosopis juliflora)

 

To address these interconnected problems, Action for Development, in collaboration with the Horn of Africa Regional Environment Centre and Network (HoAREC&N), implemented an environmental protection project. The project tackled the root causes of biodiversity threats, enabling the recovery of natural forests through sustained protection efforts. Furthermore, land previously covered by invasive and harmful plants, rendered unproductive, was cleared, enabling the community to grow sorghum and beans for food consumption and income generation. Pastoralists also gained access to grazing land for their livestock.

                     The sorghum yield obtained from the land where Prosopis was removed, after agriculture

                                             was practiced on the land that had been invaded by it

Action for Development cleaned the area of invasive and harmful plants by organizing young people, previously involved in illegal charcoal production through deforestation, into three groups. They provided training, essential equipment, charcoal storage facilities, and start-up capital. Melkamu Matewos is the chairman of the "Melkam Charcoal Production Enterprise." The group, consisting of 10 members, cleared Prosopis juliflora from 12 hectares of land and produced 600 quintals of charcoal using the removed plant material. By selling this charcoal, the group members were able to support themselves and their families, and even save money.

The natural forests around Kangaten town, previously deforested for various purposes, are now protected and recovering well.

Finally, Melkamu concluded our conversation with the following: "This success is a game-changer, enabling us to rescue grazing and agricultural land from invasive plant invasion, support ourselves with food and income, reduce the pressure and danger on Omo National Park and the surrounding forests, and transition from deforestation to productivity. Overall, the community's awareness of biodiversity and environmental protection has increased. They are also active participants and supporters of the project's positive changes, being the first witnesses. We plan to expand our income base by engaging in agriculture. We also aim to create market linkages, strengthen our group financially and in spirit, and eradicate harmful plants even further."

      

                                                                  Melkamu Matewos - Chairman of the Enterprise

Action for Development's environmental protection project, implemented since 2020, has successfully rescued the ecosystem from the threat of depletion and facilitated a transition to productivity for the community. AFD is achieving its goal of enabling citizens to break free from dependency and establish a strong and resilient livelihood foundation. The positive changes within the community are a living testament to this.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 28th General Assembly of AFD took place on 30/March 2024 in Addis Ababa.

Among other things, the General Assembly endorsed the annual and external audit reports for 2023, and the annual plan and budget for 2024.

 

Stay connected via

Face book https://www.facebook.com/AFDEthiopia/

Website https://www.afdethiopia.org/

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Twitter @afdethiopia

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Empowering women is not merely an act of social justice; it is a cornerstone of community development.

When women have access to education, healthcare, economic opportunities, and political participation,

they become agents of positive change within their families and communities. Their empowerment leads

to improved health outcomes, increased economic stability, and greater social cohesion, ultimately fostering

more equitable and prosperous societies for all.

 

 

Action For Development signed an agreement with Salzburg 4 Ethiopia to empower ethnic minority women and young girls through expanding economic opportunities and socio-political space. The project will be implemented in four kebeles of South Ethiopia, Semen Ari Zone.

The girls in South Ari Woreda, Gazer town could not access sanitary pads. Hence, it wasn’t uncommon for schoolgirls to stay home during their period. As a result, their effectiveness in education was highly compromised. To ease this situation, #Action_for_Development is currently implementing a project aimed at creating access to reusable sanitary pads for girls. The project is being implemented in partnership with #NCA.

In connection with this, AFD organized three groups of young women to produce reusable sanitary pads. One of these groups is the "Tadagi Sanitary Pads Producer Group", which has nine members. AFD provided them with sewing training, experience-sharing visits, two manual and one electric sewing machine, and the production of a sales outlet facility with a power connection. The Tadagi group is now producing reusable sanitary pads and selling other garments and additional items like tea, coffee, and snacks. The girls are availing reusable sanitary pads at an affordable price to school girls & other women in the locality.

This has helped ease the burden on girls, and supports the members financially with the income they are generating. From the proceeds of their work, they now have Birr 34,000 in their saving account. The group members are proud of being of service to their community, while also earning a living and improving their livelihoods.

 

የወር አበባ ንፅህና መጠበቂያ እጦትን በማቅለል በኢኮኖሚ ራስን የመቻል ጉዞ 

በደቡብ ኢትዮጲያ ክልል፣ የደቡብ አሪ ወረዳ ጋዘር ከተማ የሚገኙ ሴቶች የንፅህና መጠበቂያ ቁሰቁሶችን የማግኘት እድሉ ያልነበራቸዉ መሆኑ በወር አበባ ወቅት ሴቶች ከትምህርት ገበታ መቅረትታቸዉን የተለመደ ክስተት አድርጎታል፡፡ በዚህም ምክኒያት ዉጤታማነታቸዉ በእጅጉ እንዲቀንስ አድርጓል፡፡ ይህንን ችግር ለማቅለል አክሽን ፎር ዴቨሎፕመንት ለሴቶች የንፅህና መጠበቂያ ቁሳቁሶችን እንዲያገኙ የሚያስችል ፕሮጀክት በመተግበር ላይ ይገኛል፡፡ ፕሮጀክቱ ከ #norwegian_church_aid ጋር በመተባበር በመተግበር ላይ ይገኛል፡፡

አላማዉን ለማሳካት ኤኤፍዲ የሚታጠብ የንፅህና መጠበቂያ ቁሳቁሶችን የሚያመርቱ ወጣት ሴቶችን በአባልነት የያዘ ሶስት ቡድኖችን አደራጅቷል፡፡ ከነዚህም መካከል "ታዳጊ የንፅህና መጠበቂያ ቁሳቁስ አምራች ቡድን" አንዱ ሲሆን ዘጠኝ አባላትን በዉስጡ ይዟል፡፡ ኤኤፍዲ የስፌት ስልጠና፣ የልምድ ልዉዉጥ ጉብኝቶችን፣ 3 የስፌት ማሽኖችን(2 ለኤሌትሪክና 1 በኤሌትሪክ የሚሰራ) እና የኤሌክትሪክ አገልግሎት ያለዉ የሽያጭ ቦታ ለቡድኑ በማዘጋጀት ወደ ስራ አሰማርቷል፡፡ በአሁኑ ሰዓት "የታዳጊ ቡድን" የሚታጠብ የንፅህና መጠበቂያ፣ ሌሎች የስፌት ስራዎችን እንዲሁም እንደ ሻይ፣ ቡና እና ብስኩቶችን በመስራትና በመሸጥ ይገኛሉ፡፡

የሚታጠብ የንፅህና መጠበቂያ በተመጣጣኝ ዋጋ ለሴት ተማሪዎችና ለአከባቢዉ ሴቶች ማቅረብ መቻላቸዉ በሴቶች ላይ የነበረዉን የንፅህና መጠበቂያ ቁሳቁስ እጥረት አቅልሏል፤ የቡድን አባላቱም በሚያመርቱት የንፅህና መጠበቂያ በሚገኘዉ ገቢ ራሳቸዉን እየደገፉ ይገኛሉ፡፡ በአሁኑ ሰዓትም 34 ሺ ብር መቆጠብ የቻሉ ሲሆን የቡድን አባላቱ በአንድ በኩል የኑሮ መሰረታቸዉን እያሻሻሉ በሌላ መልኩ ማህበሰረባቸዉን በማገልገላቸዉ ኩራት ይሰማቸዋል፡፡ 

  

 

AFD came to the rescue when the people needed help.

Action for Development, in partnership with Norwegian Church Aid, has made it possible to provide potable water to the residents of Aynalem and Pelpa kebeles in the South Ari district of the South Omo zone. Due to the lack of rain in consecutive years, the drought that occurred in the area not only prevented the residents from getting potable water; but also caused them to be exposed to water-borne diseases. This has exposed the residents to many social, economic, and related complex problems. The potable water project enables the residents to get clean and sufficient water near them and saves the community from suffering and expenses by protecting them from water-borne diseases that used to occur in the past. It has greatly contributed to preventing students from dropping out of school due to health issues. 

 

በአንድ ድንጋይ ብዙ ወፎች

አክሽን ፎር ዴቨሎፕመንት ከኖርዌዥያን ቸርች ኤይድ ጋር በመተባበር በደቡብ ኦሞ ዞን ደቡብ አሪ ወረዳ አይናለም እና ጴልጳ ቀበሌዎች ለሚገኙ ነዋሪዎች የንፁህ መጠጥ ዉሀ አገልግሎት እንዲያገኙ አስችሏል፡፡ በተከታታይ አመታት በነበረዉ የዝናብ እጥረት ምክኒያት በአከባቢዉ የተከሰተዉ ድርቅ የአከባቢዉ ነዋሪ ንፁህ የመጠጥ ዉሀ እንዳያገኝ ከማድረጉም ባለፈ ለዉሀ-ወለድ በሽታዎች እንዲጋለጡ ምክኒያት ሆኗል፡፡ ይህም ነዋሪዉን ለበርካታ ማህበራዊ፣ ኢኮኖሚያዊና ተያያዥ ዉስብስብ ችግሮች አጋልጦት ቆይቷል፡፡ ይህ የንፁህ መጠጥ ዉሀ ፕሮጀክት ነዋሪዎች ንጹህ እና በቂ የሆነ ዉሀ በአቅራቢያቸዉ እንዲያገኙ በማስቻል ከዚህ ቀደም ይከሰት ከነበረዉ የዉሀ ወለድ በሽታዎች ማህበረሰቡ ጤናዉ እንዲጠበቅ በማድረግ ከእንግልትና ወጪ ታድጎታል፤ እናቶች ጊዜያቸዉን ለምርታማ ነገር እንዲጠቀሙ በማድረግ በሴቶች ላይ የነበረዉን ተደራራቢ ጫና ቀንሷል፤ ተማሪዎች በጤና ማጣት ከትምህርት ገበታቸዉ እንዳይጎሉ ከፍ ያለ አስተዋፅኦ አድርጓል፡፡ አክሽን ፎር ዴቨሎፕመንት የንፁህ መጠጥ ዉሀን ተደራሽ በማድረግ የዜጎችን ጤናዉ በተጠበቀና ለአደጋ በማያጋልጥ ሁኔታ የመኖር ሰብዓዊ መብታቸዉ እንዲጠበቅ ከፍ ያለ አስተዋፅኦ አድርጓል።

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