HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Ethiopia is a country of paradoxes. Less than 1% of the population owns 90% of the wealth. The per capita
income for families is about $130, and more than 95% of the population lives on less than $2 per day.
According to recent United Nations statistics, more than 90% of children are orphans in Ethiopia. Over 10% of the population (over 6 million people) is orphans. In Ethiopia the term “underground children” is quite common. This refers to the children who live on the streets because they have nowhere to go. These ill-fated
children scavenge food for themselves at trash dumps and have their own close-knit communities or makeshift families within the slums.
There are three main contributors to the epidemic of
orphans in Ethiopia:
HIV/AIDS - Ethiopia has 7% of the world’s cases. The World Health Organization says that around 5% of the population (over 3 million people) is HIV positive and 5,000 adults are infected weekly. UNICEF estimates that 720,000 children are AIDS orphans.
WAR - War-related causes have led to the deaths of 579,000 people in Ethiopia between 1955 and 2002.
a. Eritrean War of Independence (1961-1991)
b. Ethiopian Civil War (1974-1991)
c. Eritrean-Ethiopian War (1998-2000)
d. Ogaden Conflict (1994-present)
FAMINE - Ethiopia’s conflicts have contributed to the famines they have had, the most well known occurring in 1984. Even today, Ethiopia struggles with famine in certain parts of the country.
VISION
A new orphanage in the Oromia Region of Ethiopia near Dandi Lake.
Project Eden is committed to alleviating poverty,
restoring dignity, and bringing about justice. We want to do our part to help alleviate the burden the overcrowded orphanages are facing by starting our own project.
Located on 123 acres of land our orphanage will consist of buildings for a school, counseling centers, health centers and skills development programs. A wind turbine on the land will provide 15,000 liters of water everyday for the center and the entire surrounding community. We will also develop a farm which will create a sustainable
program to feed the kids and will generate enough
income to run the entire center in just two to five years.
CONTRIBUTIONS
A portion of the proceeds from orders placed in Ethiopia will go to Project Eden.
We are also accepting corporate sponsors.
