By Joan Townsend | Executive Director, Retrak America
The latest success story to come from Retrak Ethiopia is that of Ahmed*, who joined Retrak’s program two years ago when he was 17 years old.
Upon leaving his rural home in search of a better life in the capital of Addis Ababa, Ahmed soon found himself living on the streets. Ahmed realized his mistake and, despite desperately wanting to return home to his family, he could not afford to do so.
Luckily, Ahmed heard from other boys living on the street about Retrak’s local center. Soon after, he met with Retrak’s outreach workers and was invited to join our program. With the guidance of social worker Biruk Nidaw, Ahmed flourished through both our counseling and education services, before being successfully reunited with his family in October 2012.
Biruk has been following up with Ahmed on his many achievements since reuniting with his family. While only 15.7% of boys in Ethiopia attend secondary school (UNICEF, 2012), Ahmed’s business brain has shined through against the odds. Not only has he completed grade 10 of secondary education, but he has also gone on to set up his own highly profitable business selling clothes in his local community. Through this entrepreneurial venture, Ahmed has been able to support his family, but his dreams are even bigger still. He next has his heart set on establishing his own woodworking business after completing his vocational training in carpentry.
Biruk believes that Ahmed’s family played an important role in his success. In offering their love and support, Ahmed was encouraged to keep up his motivation for change. Commenting on the Income Generating Activity grant Ahmed received from Retrak to support his work ambitions, his father noted ‘I was unable to give him that help, so I was serious and followed him to make sure he spent the money wisely. I never took his money to use for our daily expenses’. Ahmed himself added ‘I had no hope of returning home by myself. If I had been ignored by Retrak and not joined the program my life would have ended on the street being addicted to different drugs’.
We look forward to bringing you more stories of young people like Ahmed. Thanks to the fantastic work of Retrak staff and your amazingly generous support, more children can now look forward to a positive and prosperous future in 2015 and beyond.
*Name changed to protect the child’s identity
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