Abandoned at birth because Mum could not care for you; Mum and Dad had both died and no one wanted you, or you were too small to understand and there was no one to mediate on your behalf, so you ended up in a children's village. The village is now home; the staff mediate for you, they trace any potential family on your behalf. When they find family, they negotiate for a place for you in that family, an aunt, an uncle or grandparent. Abraham's Oasis provides follow up to ensure you are now safe.
Ten years ago there were many highly vulnerable children in northern Ethiopia with no place to go. Grace Village was created for 60 highly vulnerable children. Since then the government has strongly recommended that institutionalized children must be reunified with family. The project has started and reunified 47 children with their families and 3 are in process. The families are mainly subsistence farmers and though willing to take in extended family can ill afford this extra financial burden.
The project provides a monthly child sponsorship for three years to the host family. This is used for school expenses, food, medical costs and clothing for the child. The project Social Worker does follow-up to ensure all is well and at the end of the third year and on condition that all is satisfactory within the host family and reunified child, a once off contribution will be made to be used to increase the family income and offer sustainable care for the concerned child.
The project will enable 50 rural subsistence farming families to rise out of poverty and care for their kinfolk children in a dignified and auto-sufficient manner whereby the former highly vulnerable children will grow up part of a community that is theirs by right. The project will also through involvement with grass-root and local authorities encourage rapid assimilation of highly vulnerable children into host kinfolk families and eventually do away with the need for childcare institutions.
