Ethiopian Review

By Addis Mulugeta

There are an estimated 5.4 million plus orphans and vulnerable children (OVC) in Ethiopia, out of which around a million are without parents due to HIV/AIDS Many of these children need love, support and a reason to hope.
Bethlehem Abebe, 16, was born in Addis Ababa and is currently in the 10th grade. When she was speaking to a large audience at the Hilton Hotel on Tuesday during the closing ceremony of the five year US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) project, she said: “We are not vulnerable and orphans because of our own actions. But we need care and support to achieve our vision because many of our parents were very poor and some passed away due to HIV/AIDS.”
Bethlehem’s mother had been struggling to cover educational and food expenses of her two daughters by earning money from washing clothes. In this case, very fortunately, when Bethlehem was in the eighth grade, she got support from PEPFAR and its implementing partners.
This support came from the Children, Communities and Care (PC3) program, which is a five year project running from 2004 to this year, designed to provide care and support for orphans and vulnerable children.
During the closing ceremony, it was stated that positive changes in the lives of the children and their carers have taken several forms, including access to education; better nutrition and health care; physiological support; training in life skills to help make transition to independent life easier; protection from abuse and exploitation; and the promotion of children’s participation in making decisions that affect their lives.
It also stated that the PC3 program has had an effect on families by supporting both traditional and non-traditional practices with the creation of community saving groups; refurbishment of homes; and the provision of community support groups.
In addition, the program also provided essential capacity building, technical assistance and skills training to local community groups so that they could provide essential services and support to vulnerable children.
Abby Maxman, Country Director of Care Ethiopia, said that this positive change approach and the power of partnership resulted in positive faces being seen on hundreds of thousands of children in Addis Ababa and other regions whose lives have been affected by the various interventions and activities.
Tsigaye Teferi, Chief of Staff, Advisor of Director, HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Office (HAPCO) said that over a half million OVCs, 575 communities based organisations, and 36 NGOs have benefited directly from the project, adding that it focuses on quality of care and support services. The program has also been involved in supporting the drafting of a national standard of quality of care and service delivery guideline, which is currently in its final phase. It is hoped the guideline will provide clear directions on the provision, management, and monitoring of OVC care and support services nationwide.
PC3 is currently the largest orphan and vulnerable program in Africa. The program is funded by the PEPFAR through USAID. Save the Children USA is the lead agency and works in close collaboration with four international partners, including CARE Ethiopia, Family Health International (FHI), World Learning (WL), and World Vision (WV).

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