ABOUT US

Name of the organization

“Yezewditu Meshesha Yehitsanatna Beteseb Yebego Adragotna Limat Mahber” was registered by the Agency of Charities and societies with a registration number first 3023 in 2010 and later during registration period with reg. number 0528.

Establishment

Since its establishment in 1991 Zewditu Meshesha Yehitsanatna Beteseb Bego Adragotna Limat Mahber (Zewditu Meshesha Children and Family Welfare Development Association) has fostered over 250 children. Most of these children are orphans and vulnerable coming from very poor families. Zewditu had fostered these children without any support from any organization except from her friends and relatives. She sold her house and her two automobiles for the same purpose. Zewditu who is asthmatic sometimes goes to Sodore near Nazaret, for hot holy water bath. In one of her trips she met people who were displaced from their regular residence of Arbagugu, in Arsi. They were tired and in very bad shape. She offered to take them what little she had. At the time she lived in a house with large compound rented from a Government Agency. 26 children and 7 adult followed her. As time went on, people who lived around her residence and elsewhere seeing that she is doing a humanitarian work began to bring orphaned and vulnerable children for help thus the number of children who needed help grew extremely large. She was unable to foster so many children. So she was advised by her friends to register as an NGO that she may be able to get fund.

Vision of the organization

To see that the Demand of children are maintained and they get a better condition of education, health and social services.

Mission

• To create a better condition for the upbringing of the child where his basic needs are fulfilled;
• To ensure that orphans and vulnerable children get formal education and vocational skills training;
• Exert all effort so that children are kept healthy and are cared for by the community as well and
• To cooperate with other bodies to enable the fulfillment of children’s basic needs.

Objective of the organization

• Create conditions for orphans, to get education and become self-supporting citizens;
• Help children who are in difficult situations get the necessary support from the community and
• Create conditions that, low income families get economic support.

Structure

The highest authority is the General Assembly. There is a board which is accountable to the General Assembly. There is also an administrative staff accountable to the board.

Membership

Anyone keen to the general development of children can be member of the society. Income of the organization The major supporter of the organization is FINADO which is based in Belgium. Other supporters are local donors among which the following could be mentioned; Kidist Dingel Mariam Friends Association, Volunteer Members of pilots and hostesses of the Ethiopian Airlines, members and other donors. The organization has not yet secured enough resources from the aforementioned donors to foster more children. This has been strongly noted by the supervisors of Yeka Finance and Economic Development office.

Current Beneficiaries

Due to financial constraints the number of beneficiaries is 75 including those who serve the beneficiaries. Out of these 35 are children sent to the organization from by Yeka Wereda Women, Children and Youth office. These children only get support of educational materials.

Achievement

Till March 2018 the Organization has supported 40 out of these 12 children graduated with BA and BSC and 12 college diplomas and another 16 children with certificates. Among these beneficiaries 16 of them are married and have started a new life. Fortunately all but one is employed.

Conclusion

Though the organization supports 75 beneficiaries in all, the fund that it secures both from overseas and within the country is meager. The organization had to evacuate the house, at Gulele Wereda, rented from Governmental Housing Agency because the house was to be demolished to give way for a ring road. This coupled with the meager resource it secures from donors has put a limitation on the number of beneficiaries the organization can support. After suffering for a period of time with the beneficiaries, the founder was able to get a house at Kotebe, Wereda 12, House number 1274 from a generous person. The house, though has a large compound the premises were not large enough to accommodate all the beneficiaries. There were not enough rooms for study, dining and others. In 2020, the Ethiopian first lady’s office extended its generous hand to provide the organization with a large compound and constructed a building that can accommodate 100 children.