Ecumenical Response

June 11, 2007 - Aba (Father) Serekebirhan Woldesamuel and his dedicated team from the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahido Church Sunday School HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Project are one example of the important role played by the many faith-based organizations that have been funded by the Ethiopia Multi-Sectoral AIDS Program.

Aba Serekebirhan

The Sunday School Program’s efforts began with the objective of educating its own young members (up to age 30), but soon expanded. They now reach out to needy people in 12 communities through the church’s branch offices.

The church’s wide geographical coverage, and the respect and trust accorded to it by the community, makes it well placed to contribute to the national response to HIV in Ethiopia. Over the past three years, with financial support exclusively from the MAP, the project has provided the following services, all of which are offered irrespective of religion:

Training and initial start-up funds for youth and young adults (up to age 30) living with HIV. Beneficiaries receive 1,000 birr ($120) to help them get off the ground, and most have used the money to start micro-business activities such as trading and small-scale wooden furniture making.

Support for AIDS orphans, whose growing numbers are over-taxing the ability of communities to respond on their own. The children face a range of problems from lack of family love and care, to ostracism from the community, to lack of financial resources. The project has responded by providing counseling, community education, and school uniforms and instructional materials so children can stay in school and off the streets. It has also provided 100 birr ($12) a month for each orphan, to assist the neighbors, friends and extended family members who care for them. A total of 900 orphans (75 per branch) have been supported.

Home-based care for those bedridden with AIDS. This critical community service is offered directly by volunteers from the Church’s Sunday School HIV/AIDS Program, who receive funds for transport. In addition to the personal love and care they bring into the homes of people in need, these volunteers help with bathing, washing clothes, house cleaning, and cooking. During their daily visits they also ensure that drugs are taken correctly and on time.

Return to the main page: 'Dawn of Hope' in Ethiopia

The Role Model

SUPPORTING 6,000 COMMUNITIES TO HELP THEMSELVES

In 2000, Ethiopia committed to developing a participatory, community-driven response to HIV and AIDS. The initiative was funded with a $60 million grant from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA) through the Ethiopia Multi-Sectoral AIDS Program (Ethiopia MAP). The program which closed on December 30, 2006, funded about 6,000 community and NGO initiatives including those described in this note.

The Ethiopia MAP has provided the only systematic support to civil society organizations working on AIDS in Ethiopia and helped to establish the decentralized local response system that is in place today. The project has funded local activities that have had a positive impact on attitudes about people living with HIV and about the importance of knowing one’s status. It has financed home-based care, care of AIDS orphans, treatment for minor opportunistic infections, food for needy people with HIV, and income-generating activities. Without the project's support for life-saving drugs for opportunistic infections, many HIV-positive Ethiopians would have died before anti-retroviral treatment became available in 2004. One of the lessons learned is that food is an overarching basic need for many HIV-positive people in Ethiopia, since most Ethiopians living with HIV are very poor and undernourished. Especially for those on ART, lack of sufficient and nutritious food makes it impossible to regain or maintain their health.