Archives March 2018

Programmes

Adadley Community Development Program

by owda

Adadley Community Development Program

Adadley is one of the Gode zone Districts that locates in the south of Gode town about 12 km it is Agro-pastoralist & pastoralist.
In the efforts of poverty reduction by OWDA, ACD Project is running in the District in order to bring lasting development for the Adadley community both Agro-pastoral and pastoral
It is a   community development program funded by Development Fund Norway in cooperation with Ogaden Welfare and Development Association (OWDA) the implementer. This project aiming to provide development schemes with the community by enhancing the capacity of the people in different sectors. The main activities of this program as follows:
Intensive training at Kebale level
  • Capacity building
  • Micro-finance
  • Small business management
  • Animal health service management
Target beneficiaries:
Women groups
Civil societies
Woreda administration
Kebale admin
Vulnerable groups
This program also provides development activity for the rural community where we give training on Animal health management and how to promote its health service.
Programmes

Somali Region in Ethiopia Hit by New Deadly Floods

by owda

Somali Region in Ethiopia Hit by New Deadly Floods

During the last two weeks heavy rains have been raining in the Somali Region, Ethiopia where human and livestock casualties have been reported as well as shelter and communication system (Roads and bridges) damage. As a result more than 60 human casualties have been said by Mr. Muktar Mohamed the DPPB Coordinator of Somali Regional State.

Ogaden Welfare & Development Association (OWDA) has distributed 1000 Mosquito Nets to the victim families.

In this respect, all Rivers, valleys and lakes have overflowed and broken down to the around areas. The most affected areas are many districts and villages in Gode Zone particularly those along side the SHABELE River namely Qallafo and Mustahil where 17 villages in Qallafo and 14 in Mustahil are being circled by the flood water, some villages in other Zones also reported being under emergency. High quality facilities for rescuing the people are needed for.

As a humanitarian response, Ogaden Welfare & Development Association (OWDA) has paid a visit to the affected areas and preparing emergency aid action to the victim community.

The highly recommended aids and facilities:

  1. Food aid
  2. Non-food items
  3. Medicine
  4. Clean water
  5. Livestock health service
  6. Small Boats, Helacobters and Bulldozers
Programmes

Urgent Appeal

by owda

Urgent Appeal

Emergency Appeal for  Somali Regional State of Ethiopia (Ogaden)
The Somali region of Ethiopia remains highly vulnerable to catastrophic potable water and food shortages and the crisis is not restricted to a few areas. Much of Gode, Warder, Fik, Qorehay, Dagahbur , Liban and Afder  Zones  are affected or at serious risk. Emergency reserves have so far staved off the worst water and food shortages but stocks are dangerously low and weather forecasts are not good.
Potable water and Food must be urgently pre-positioned in remote areas before people are at risk.

There is a pressing responsibility on the National and international community to respond quickly and effectively to find a solution to the problem. That is why Ogaden Welfare and Development Association to ask for help from International Community in alleviating the problem.

» Why has famine struck again?

The failure of the rains may have triggered the crisis in the Region but it is not the fundamental cause of the famine. The coping mechanisms of vulnerable communities are so fragile that minor climatic variations can result in crisis conditions. Alongside the emergency response, long-term investment is required to consolidate coping mechanisms and address food insecurity.
Government and Non-Government Organizations warned of the developing emergency and lobbied donors for responses well before the situation deteriorated. However, these systems have not elicited adequate and timely responses. Early warning systems are only effective if they are responded to in a timely fashion.
Ogaden Welfare and Development association offices and Representatives along the region,  have indicted that the famine situation is far worse in that region  than any other even 1999-2000 famine.  Close to 1,000,000 people are affected with many moving from rural areas to urban areas hoping to receive life-saving assistance from groups working throughout the area. , the people are fleeing from their Origin land searching for water and pasture for them and their livestock. Even the neighboring pastoralists from Somalia (Sol, Galgudud, etc) were moved in to the region which is adding fuel to the fire (conflict of water and pasture resource)
To save the lives of those living in the Somali Regional State of Ethiopia (Ogaden), immediate financial assistance is urgently required by all agencies to purchase food from the remaining food-surplus areas within Ethiopia. Food surplus expected from overseas will arrive much too late to save many of those lives.
» Not just an emergency response – developing ling-term, sustainable program
Ultimately, food aid is not the solution to the region’s problems. The solution to the region’s ongoing food crisis is in developing long-term food security policies that will ensure a steady food supply despite the climatic conditions. If the National and International community is serious about averting this and future famines in Ethiopia, it should be prepared to invest serious funding into long-term development programs. It is a question of looking further and to replace assets to reduce vulnerability, to prevent this happening again.
The Rehabilitation and self-sustainability for the famine and displaced population. The extensive Webe Shebelle River in the south east of the country is being considered for an irrigation scheme to assist the Internal Displaced people to resettle and establish farm and vegetable plots for future food supplies.
Most importantly, the cycle of crisis must be broken. The people in the need peace, more development assistance, and debt relief. Commitment to them in these efforts must be sustained
We anticipate your Urgent Humanitarian respond of this Appeal; please donate what ever is appropriate to you through the following Account:
                                                Ogaden Welfare and Development Association
                                                A/C No: 003
                                                Wegagen Bank, Meskel Branch
                                                Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Or Contact:
                                                Tel: +251 921 5932 Fax: +251 153 7051
                                                E-mail: owda@telecom.net.et
News and Events

Alleviating chronic water shortages through water harvesting Birkas: A case of Malka-Sallah

by owda

Organization For Welfare and Development in Action  (OWDA) had implemented an integrated pastoral and agro-pastoral development project in Adadle Woreda of Gode zone from 2007 to 2011.The project beneficiaries’ livelihood system composed of pure pastoral livelihood and agro-pastoral community residing in the Shabele river bank. The pastoral communities’ livelihood is based on livestock and is very sensitive to droughts and water shortages. Out of the targeted 10 Kebeles 4 were chronically water insecure and faced water shortage on numerous occasions.

Malka-sallah Kebele, 55 Km south of Gode and with population of 300 households, was one of these Kebeles and was known for its chronic water shortage history. The community in Malka-sallah, like other communities in the region, has developed water trucking dependency syndrome. The project prioritized ways to address this problem by developing new water points (Birkas) and rehabilitating existing ones. The number of the functional water points in the Kebele increased from 1 to 6 and these water points increased water availability during the dry season to cover the needs of the community from less than a month to 5 months. The household level water consumption was below 20 litters a day that cost them over 4 hours before the project inception. This has improved now to over 45 litters a day that will not take them more than 15 minutes. Daily household allowances are followed normally followed but adjustments are based on the prevailing situation.

Community skills on service management were also enhanced by organizing and training water management committee. The main functions of the committees are ensuring proper utilization of water, collection of fees from users and administering water fund, determining household consumption ceilings, community mobilization for labour contribution and sanitation of the Birkas and surroundings.

Water fee was introduced and 1 birr/40 litters is charged. Assigned person from the committee, mostly woman member, collects the water fees. Daily collections are submitted to cashier and recorded on logbook. Birkas are opened one after another. The Committee has opened a saving account at Gode CBE branch in the name of community water fund. The process was co-facilitated by OWDA and Woreda Rural Supply Development. After checking the cash on hand against the log book, the proceeds from each Birka are deposited in the Bank.

Withdrawals can be made with signed minutes of at least four members of the committee. The committee uses the Kebele stamp on minutes. The committee operates with simple saving pass book in which the photos of the signatories are affixed. Two designated persons, chairperson and cashier, from the water committee co-sign. Community water fund is earmarked for the expenses like for maintenance and repair of Birkas, leveraging as community contribution for construction for new Birkas and emergency water trucking.

For the first time in its history, Malka-sallah was not in the list water Kebeles under water trucking in Adadle Woreda during the last Jilaal period. Over 440,000 birr worth of money that would have been used for water trucking was saved (assuming 60 days water trucking at 4000 birr per 12m3 tanker cost). It received the Deyr rains while two Birkas were still full of water and locked (360m3).

As of February 28, 2012, two and half Birkas were remaining and over 46,000 birr deposited in the bank. Community and other stakeholder’s confidence on the system increased.
News and Events

Regional food security updates

by owda

According to the regional Disaster prevention and preparedness bureau The food security condition remain stable in many parts across the Somali region in this month compared to the last months, due to a combination of factors such as onset of Gu season improved water availability, regular distribution of relief and PSNP food, good livestock body condition and the existence of internal livestock market demand.

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News and Events

OWDA and its DENAN Health Services

by owda

Organization for Welfare & Development in Action (OWDA) in partnership with The Denan Project (TDP) is vigorously running the Denan Health Center which is fully staffed with an exceptionally dedicated team of more than 35 staffs headed by medical doctor.

Denan health center is equipped with ultrasound, laboratory chemist, refrigerators and 20 beds for inpatient wards. There is emergency department with standby ambulance for referral of seriously ill patients. Moreover, there is well established maternity ward with vaccinations, pre- and post-natal, well-baby care, and have TB clinic adjacent to the health center. Likewise, both Out-Patient Therapeutic Program and Therapeutic Feeding Unit Nutritional programs are actively operational in the health center. OWDA in collaboration with TDP managed to successfully treat more than 100,000 patients ailing with different diseases. All the services are delivered for free. (details will be posted soon in the annual performance report).
News and Events

General Assembly (GA) Meeting

by owda

Organization for Welfare and Development in Action (OWDA) conducted its 3rd annual General assembly meeting on March 24th after the establishment of the Charities and Societies Agency.

The meeting was held in Hamda Hotel at the association’s headquarter of Jijiga. The Meeting was participated by the General assembly members, invited guests and representatives from the regional government line bureaus.

The meeting was officially opened by the General assembly chairman, Najeeb Aden, who welcomed the participants and introduced the meetings agendas as follows;

  • Annual performance and audit report presentation
  • 2012 action plan approval
  • Accepting new  general assembly membership applicants
  • Electing two new board members

OWDA’s executive director presented the organization’s 2011 performance report while the accountant presented the financial report prepared by the external certified accountant. The performance report revealed major achievements, constraints and challenges faced during the year. In addition the reports revealed that the budget of the organization increased significantly compared to the last year.

Consequently the annual action plan was presented to the participants. After serious discussions, Questions and answers the general assembly members approved both the reports and the action plan.

Finally the General assembly meeting accepted the applications of the new members and also elected two new board members replacing two out-going members and lastly the General assembly chairman made closing remarks and officially closed the meeting.
adadle-community
News and Events

OWDA’s Adadle Community Development Project: Impacts and Beneficiaries’ Testimonies

by owda

Adadley Community Development project (ACDP) is a five year development program implemented by Ogaden Welfare and Development Association (OWDA) and funded by Development Fund Norway – DF in Adadley Woreda of Godey Zone, Somali Regional State, Ethiopia. The goal of the project was to provide capacity building and effective model of public services that addresses community priority needs and reduce their vulnerability.

The project beneficiaries’ livelihood system is composed of pure pastoral livelihood and agro-pastoral community residing in the wabi-shabele river bank. The pastoral communities’ livelihood is based on livestock and is very sensitive to droughts and water shortages. Out of the targeted 10 kabales 4 were chronically water insecure and faced water shortage on numerous occasions. The project prioritize ways to address this problem by developing new water points (Birkas) and rehabilitating existing ones. The project increased number of the functional water points per kabale from 1 to 3 on average and these water points increased water availability during the dry season to cover the needs of the community from less than a month to 3 months. If the gu rains are normal and recharge and fill the Birkas, the communities in these kabales will not require water trucking that was common in them before the project implementation. The household level water consumption was below 20 litters a day that cost them over 4 hours before the project inception. This has improved now to over 45 litters a day that will not take them more than 15 minutes.

The above information was collected from the project beneficiaries in different villages and here is one case from Birlays village under Malko-salah kabale. Abdiqadir Osman lived in the village before and after the project commencement and he compares the situation in his own words.

“I am a father of 5 children and lived in this village for long enough to compare the situation before and after the project implemented water points (Birkas) in our village. I personally remember fetching water from Karoodka hand dug wells, which took me 6 hrs per trip, and I did not have a donkey to carry the water from this long distance. I used to borrow it from my neighbors. The capacity of the donkey was about 50 liters per trip and it was every other day that we used to bring water from this source. The owner of the donkey took half of what we brought and my family was getting the other half. My wife was either pregnant or lactating and I used to fetch the water most of the time, which was taking a lot of time from me and this has stopped me to involve in income generation of the family. Now we do have 4 Birkas in the village which has been developed by the project except one. Now per day my family gets 40 liters of water, which does not need any draft animal and does not take me more than 15 minutes. Most of the time my wife fetches the water from the Birkas now. I have opened a tea shop since we have the water available at the village and I am better off now”.

Women and girls were generally responsible for fetching water from long distances and spend quarter of their time per day on it. Now women and girls get time for involving in household income generating activities and going to literacy classes. The project initiated alternative basic education classes for the adult people and majority of the persons attending are women.

Similarly, the project assisted the development of the small scale irrigation farming by providing water pumps and other technical assistances. Dama’ Yusuf Mursal, mother of six children, lives in riverine Kebele called Hilologududo, 17 Kms from Gode town. Dama’s family was one of the households who received water pumps from the project in 2010. She relates her story of how the water pumps helped her family and livestock survive the last harsh drought of 2011.

‘’We were among 40 households who received a water pump from the project in 2010. We were told that the water pump can irrigate 10 ha and our family got share of ¼ ha. We planted maize with it and harvested 4.5 quintals. This was just barely enough the family food needs. In addition to the small farm, we have 20 heads of cattle. Then, the harsh Jilaal drought of 2011 came. There was no pasture and cattle have nothing to feed. The carcass of died animals littered everywhere. Only those who have the means were able to save their livestock by purchasing feed or producing themselves. We didn’t have that opportunity. The small plot we irrigated again this year was meagerly enough the family subsistence. We were afraid that we will lose all of the cattle. I discussed this problem with my husband and decided to ask the Water User’s Association (WUA) to give us additional ¼ ha to produce fodder. They agreed but insisted that we water our field after others and cover the additional costs. We borrowed fuel, lubricants and money for the operational expenses from a relative of mine in Gode and promised him to pay after the drought. With the help of the Kebele DA, We managed to get 2Kgs of Sudan grass at the cost of 140 birr from the research center. We sowed the seed and watered for three consecutive periods. We harvested 6 quintals of maize from the first plot and 34 bales of Sudan grass from second. In addition to the maize stalks, we stored fodder and fed the cattle. There were four dairy cows and my children were able to get milk. We managed to pass through the Jilaal period and all of our cattle survived. Finally, we