2019 WEEMA Board Retreat

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This past weekend, the WEEMA board and US staff met to review our work and plan for the future.  Much accomplished!

Highlights include:

  • Passing our 2019 budget with exciting investments in public library networks, market linkages for beekeepers and hospital improvement activities

  • Discussing our 2019-2021 strategic plan with stepped up focus on women and girls and people with disabilities

  • New messaging-- to be released soon-- that communicates WEEMA's vision and emphasizes our community partnerships and equity

  • Birthday cake surprise!

Looking forward to an exciting year!  

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WEEMA's Mobile Health Expands to New District

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WEEMA has expanded its mobile health program to the neighboring district of Hadero-Tunto - and is now reaching 35,000 children between this program and the one in Tembaro.  In Hadero-Tunto, WEEMA recently trained 20 community health workers - all women - to use their smartphones to provide evidence-based care to sick children.  Before the phones, it was difficult for these healthworkers to follow the paper-based guidelines, leading to frequent errors and misdiagnoses.  All of this has now changed.

Diarrhea, pneumonia and malaria remain the top causes of death for children under 5 years of age.  The phone-based program walks health workers through a checklist to optimize diagnosis and treatment of these childhood killers. Because of its simplicity and ease of use, community health workers report increased confidence in the care they are providing.  And we're seeing better outcomes, according to the mothers.  Parents are telling us they see results, and because of this, they are now more likely to bring their kids to health facilities -- the first step to treating disease in children!

Check out the data dashboard below.

To learn more about this work and receive regular updates, follow us on social media (FacebookInstagram and Twitter) and sign up for our newsletters.  

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Women's Self Help Groups: the next steps

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We are excited to announce that WEEMA will begin to register Women's Self Help Groups as legal entities starting this year!

Recognizing women as agents of change, we currently work with 2,200 women in rural Ethiopia who comprise 112 Women's Self Help Groups. Each Self Help Group consists of 20 women and meets weekly to save money, make loans, learn from each other, and provide social support.  

In order to strengthen this work, we will begin to register these groups as legal entities.  Legal registration extends rights such as access to courts, linkage to micro-finance institutions and the ability to create unions.  In addition, WEEMA will organize cluster level associations which are self-governing institutions that can provide leadership, group coordination and political influence.

To learn more about this work and receive regular updates, follow us on social media (FacebookInstagram and Twitter) and sign up for our newsletters.  

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Assefa and his passion for inclusive education

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Assefa, WEEMA's Education Program Manager, is passionate about inclusive education. He believes that "education is irreplaceable" and will build WEEMA programs to support education for all children.  He brings years of previous experience in inclusive education and will definitely put his knowledge, skills and commitment to good use!

"Our aim is to include all children with disabilities- those with hearing impairments, visual disabilities, and physical impairments. There are a number of children who are not given a chance to go to school because of their disability. These children have the capacity to read, to write, to speak or  communicate but because of a disability they don't get the chance," Assefa explains.

Creating inclusive environments means addressing the stigmas of disabilities and creating friendly school environments that accommodate every child. One method to support children with hearing impairments, for example, is building "print-rich" classrooms that contain a diversity of education materials and teaching aids that help children grasp lessons simply by seeing those words and concepts in their classroom.

WEEMA is committed to creating and strengthening inclusive programs and can't wait to see the launch of these innovative projects under the guidance of staff like Assefa!

What I am thankful for...

A beekeeper from WEEMA's newly formed Gaecha beekeeping cooperative

A beekeeper from WEEMA's newly formed Gaecha beekeeping cooperative

I just returned a few days ago from my second trip to Ethiopia to visit WEEMA's projects. Even though the days were long, the trip left me inspired, energized, and filled with gratitude for WEEMA's work.
 
Below are just a few examples of the powerful changes I saw taking place in our community—changes that you made possible with your support.

Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing additional stories of inclusion, empowerment, and dignity, and how WEEMA is serving as a catalyst for igniting our community's highest potential.

Thank you for being an important part of our mission to create a more just and equitable world for all.

What I’m grateful for…


Hearing how empowering the Tunto women’s Self-Help Group has been for its members. Participation in the group has enabled the women to “feel like investors,” “enjoy more freedom of speech in the community,” and (my favorite) “be financially independent from their husbands, which increases the bonds of love.”

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Knowing that WEEMA’s Menstrual Health Management program has helped thirteen-year-old Gedonet think of her menstrual cycle as a “beautiful and natural thing,” and how the pads WEEMA provided have allowed her to "stop worrying... and enjoy school more."


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The passion that WEEMA's Education  Program Manager, Assefa Tadese, brings to his work, particularly when he talks about the importance of “inclusive education for an inclusive life...it makes me happy to see kids with disabilities have the chance to lift themselves out of poverty and become independent through education”


Happy Thanksgiving,

Amber Oberc
US Managing Director