The Stories : Ethiopia

The Church that listened

For years Gotera Church in Addis Ababa was one of the city’s best kept secrets. Church members were a close-knit, inward focused community with little interaction with the world beyond its doors. Gotera Church was hidden from view. The community surrounding the church was poor – the people destitute and ignored by the church.

Then it happened: Mesfin, a Tearfund development worker visited the church and taught them how to help their community out of poverty.

There’s really a whole book’s worth of everyday miracle material here. The work of Gotera Church in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa is remarkable, effective and wrapped around a storyline that stays with the imagination for days.

It all starts with the city. Addis is not wealthy, but certain districts are poor – properly poor. Thousands live without water or electricity, jobs are things which belong to other people in other areas, yet the massive migration of families from rural areas to the city continues.

And then there’s this one particular church – Gotera. For years it was one of the district’s best kept secrets. Church members were a close-knit, inward focused community with little interaction with the world beyond its doors. Gotera Church was hidden from view. The community surrounding the church was poor – the people destitute and ignored by the church.

From small beginnings

Then it happened: they got a visit from Mesfin, a Tearfund-supported development worker from their church denomination. He told them Bible stories, sparked off discussions and opened their eyes to the possibility that all these barriers between them and their community might not be such a good thing after all.

The first step, Mesfin suggested, was to get out and visit non-church people in their homes, to ask about their concerns and listen to what they had to say. Out of the 40-strong congregation just one overcame the fear and took up the challenge. Gradually others followed, returning with a sense of shock, their own poverty dwarfed by what they had seen among the widows, orphans and outcasts around them. It was time to act.

Listening to the poor

Within months the church family had visited 600 households – not preaching, but listening, learning and inviting others to join up for a community meeting. It was there that they decided to identify and work with the 200 poorest households, most of which were headed by women.

What followed next was simple, yet life changing. The church helped group these 200 households into ten self-help groups and appointed two part-time community workers to support, train and advise. The groups saved together, worked and raised funds together. And as they saw their funds increase, so too did their confidence and self-esteem.

Within six months there was enough money saved to start supporting women as they put business ideas into practice; one set up a road-side tea shop, another bought, farmed and sold a cow. One group even made a ‘loan’ to one of their members dying of HIV to buy medicines, even though the money will never be paid back.

From pennies to prosperity

Richard Barkley, a Tearfund Ireland board director and retired banker, visited Ethiopia in October and met Asnakech, a lady who was part of a similar self-help group in another city.

Askanech served popcorn and coffee to her guests and talked of how she and her neighbours were encouraged to start a self-help group (SHG) four years ago. ‘My husband had lost his job. I was only able to give my family one meal a day. We had nothing. We were not used to the idea of saving, and we did not think we could improve our situation.’

‘Initially we were given some training. We then came together in a group, and started saving 50 cents (about €0.02) each week. Over time this increased to 2 Birr (€0.09) and then I took a loan of 100 Birr (€4.50) to start trading second-hand clothes in the market. I repaid the loan and took another bigger one. Now I have a loan of 1,000 Birr (€45.45) and I have a small shop to sell the clothes. My husband is working with me and we are now able to send our son to university to study engineering. This is a miracle!’

‘It’s remarkable’ says Richard Barkley ‘The church and community working together. It began with pennies being saved. Gradually small businesses were started and families began to escape poverty. As a businessman I am impressed by the abilities of these ladies. This isn’t charity, this is the church helping people stand on their own feet.’

Across Ethiopia, Tearfund and its local partner Kale Heywet Church is supporting around 1,000 SHGs involving 15,000 people. With the average family numbering six people, that means 90,000 people are directly benefiting from SHGs. It’s become clear that these truly local banks are not only transforming lives but relationships within communities as well.

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A business called Paradise: Giving women the power to help themselves

As board meetings go, it had to be one of the more unusual.
Sitting under the midday sun, cows grazing and children playing nearby, were a dozen Ethiopian women getting down to business.

Business that would break a moneylender’s heart. Fed-up at being financially exploited, and with encouragement from the local church, these women were meeting as members of a self-help group (SHG).

Like most great ideas, simplicity is the root of its success.

Each week the women come together to put aside some hard-earned Ethiopian birr.

Each week they also discuss loan requests from members which cover a variety of needs such as paying for food, schooling, medicine or launching a trading scheme.

Across Ethiopia, Tearfund is supporting around 1,000 SHGs involving 15,000 people. With the average family numbering six people, that means 90,000 people are directly benefiting from SHGs.

It’s become clear that these truly local banks are not only transforming lives but relationships within communities as well.

Group member Yaymite Kurka said, `We share with each other and we have compassion for each other. The social bonds are strong.’

Her group, called Genet (meaning paradise), started in September 2007 and has 19 members who have so far collectively saved 508 birr (€29) and lent out 400 birr (€23).

In euro terms, the numbers might seem small beer but for Ethiopian families with small incomes, 10 birr can make a massive difference.

Genet was started under the direction of Tearfund partner, the Wolaitta Kale Heywet Church.

The church, with its 850,000 members, is a big-hitter in southern Ethiopia, running relief and development programmes as well as a spiritual ministry. And it’s clear from talking to the women that its influence is well regarded.

‘God raised himself up for us in the form of the Wolaitta Kale Heywet Church and told them to form groups to start their own savings,’ said Yaymite.

‘If money lenders lend us 10 birr they expect we should pay them back 20 birr. That was exploitative, with the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer.

‘Initially we doubted if the SHG could succeed but we started saving 50 cents a week. Now if we borrow 10 birr we only have to pay back 11 birr.’

The reaction of the women’s husbands has been encouraging.

Yaymite continued, `In the past women didn’t have an independent source of income and used to go to their husbands for household expenses. Our husbands used to go and borrow money from their friends or relatives. Now we discuss our needs and what expenses need to be covered, so the family as a whole has benefited.’

Lack of rain has blighted their crops like many other areas but the SHG has held them in good stead, says fellow member Bogalech Chemiso:
‘We were able to trade despite the problems and to generate profits that pay for children’s healthcare, social expenses and generally allows us to be free from money lenders.’

Help us support more women in Ethiopia to develop self-help groups and lift their families out of poverty.

Donate €32 to help us start another self-sustaining group and impact an entire community.

This project is part-funded by the Bishop’s Appeal

• More about: Ethiopia, Vulnerable Women
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