Summary of project accomplishmnets by sectors
All basic public service provider sectors were the targets for AGOHF
supported project interventions including: education, health, water
supply and agriculture and emergency food aid. The details of project
implementation are presented as follows.
7.1 Education
ODA has built 27 standard elementary schools with the fund it received
from AGOHF. A total of 27 schools of first cycle (1-4 Grades) were
constructed during 2002-2005 (4schools in 2002, 5 in 2003, 14 in 2004
and 4 schools in 2005.) In addition in year 2003 one senior secondary
school (Bojji Senior Secondary School) was furnished with basic classroom
furniture (chairs and desks) with the cost of 142, 629.14 Birr ( 16,780
USD).
Schools that are built during year 2002 and 2003 were contracted
out to private contractors and schools built in years 2004 and 2005
were built by ODA’s own force construction team (please refer Annex
for details).Out of the 27 schools, the constructions of 9 schools
during 2002 and 2003 were distributed in 9 zones and 9 waradas based
on the needs of education bureau and of the community.ODA contracted
out these projects to private contractors based on standard guidelines
and procedures. The bid was evaluated by a joint committee involving
ODA staff and experts from Oromia work and urban development bureau.
After evaluating the performance of project implementation of the
year 2002 and 2003 ODA changed project implementation strategy to
undertake with own-force approach.
During the subsequent years of 2004-2005; ODA was able to construct
18 schools, 14 in 2004, and 4 schools in 2005. The process of own-force
construction includes procurement of industrial construction materials,
availing transportation facilities to each project sites and contracting
out the actual construction to an organized team of construction workers.
This made possible to ensure the quality of construction work with
significant cost reduction. In this regard the Association was able
to construct 14 schools with a budget meant to build 6 schools.
7.1.2 Qualitative Achievements
Settlers displaced from other areas as a result of drought and natural
disaster are among the beneficiaries of the school projects sponsored
by A-Glimmer of Hope.
Out of the 27 primary schools built in 10 zones of the region, 14
are in the new settlement sites in East and West Wellega zones. This
idea was highly supported by the foundation’s leaders after they had
visited drought affected rural community in rift valley area of Oromia
region in 2003. 1) W/ro Mezgebi displaced from North Shoa and settled
in Kellem Wellega, Lalo Kile woreda in 2004. Her worry was that her
children may not have access to education in their new settlement
area. But during this reporting period four of her seven children
were attending education at Wabera village school just at a walking
distance of 15 minutes.
2) Mezgebi’s son Getu had started his education in his previous village
in North Shoa before he came to the new village. He pursued his education
just upon his arrival without interruption thanks to A Glimer of Hope.
Now Getu is 7th grade and his sister Emabet is a 5th grade student.In
addition to an office and a pedagogical center, there are two classrooms
to the single block, each capable of accommodating about 60 students
making the class manageable as opposed to the mud block classrooms.
Currently, 894 students from five villages, four of which are settlers’
villages, attend their education here in two shifts.
3) By constructing additional blocks, in Jirma Primary Village School,
in East Wellega zone and Diga woreda, the number of boys increased
from 554 in 2002 to 823 in 2008.Similarly, the number of girls increased
from 443 in 2002 to 678 in 2008. This has increased the total number
of students attending Jirma Primary school from 997 in 2002 to 1501
in 2008.
4) Besides enhancing education access, the schools have also greatly
contributed to the improvement of education quality. Before the construction
of these schools in the villages, a large number of students were
squeezed in a single class room due to lack of adequate classroom.
Now the schools have helped reduce the number of students in the class
making it much easier for the teachers to do a better job. In most
schools where additional blocks were built by the financial support
of A Glimmer of Hope, the class size has been reduced from 100 or
more to around 60 students. This is big move to ensure the quality
of education in the region. Besides enhancing education access the
support of A Glimmer of Hope has also a significant impact in reducing
drop out.
7.2 Health
Construction, furnishing and equipping of 31 health
posts were accomplished and the facilities have created access to
primary health care service for 162,549 populations of the target
areas.
In the year 2002 and 2003 all 16 projects were constructed by contractors
and in the year 2004, 15 health posts construction works were undertaken
by own force. In the second phase, the fence work as well as site
work was given for the community to construct by locally available
materials.
The health post has one main block with an examination room, a treatment
room, 2 store rooms, an office and a dry latrine block. Such standard
works are believed to be gradually upgraded to cluster health centers
with additions of emergency wards where necessary .This is Choba Lencha
health post, in North Shoa zone, Barak Aleltu Woreda. It is accommodating
more than 5,000 people. According to Besirat Haile, a nurse at Choba
Lencha health post; the health posts provide two types of services
for the community. She says “In addition to the prevention of diseases,
providing curative health services was found very important. Due to
this reason Clinical Nurse has been assigned to the health post in
addition to health extension workers. We are providing basic health
services. Among others, mothers and children are the most benefited
group.”
The Prevention and curative services are very much integrated at the
health posts. The health extension workers provide services like vaccination,
family planning, Antenatal care, sanitation and also midwifery some
times. The beneficiaries are over delighted for getting the service
at their locality, as it profoundly solved past problems.
Tura Eliku one of the beneficiaries of Choba Lencha health post says
“We used to travel more than three hours to get medical services in
Sandafa town. Many pregnant women lost life on their way to the town
for delivery. There were no timely and proper medical services in
our village. There was also no vaccination for our children. As a
result many children died of simple disease like measles. My child
died of measles on the way to Sandafa town where we used to get medical
services and it is too far to get there on time on foot. Had this
health post been built here at that time, my child could have been
saved.” Ato Shallo Dhaba Health Bureau Head says “The government has
paid due attention to the prevention of diseases. Being very close
to the grass roots the health posts are very much supporting the implementation
of the government health extension policy that prioritize the prevention
of diseases The construction of these health posts especially in resettlement
areas was crucial in providing primary heath services to the new settlers.”
7.3 Water
Among the projects implemented in this program, water was a great
challenge for ODA during the 2005 community based hand-dug water well
schemes as ODA did have experience of own-force implementation by
then. ODA was encouraged and committed to be engaged in to this business
for the following reasons: 1) the problem of potable water in rural
areas was and is directly linked to health related issues
2) The second encouragement came from the foundation itself. The
foundation announced by then that it gave top priority for water supply
projects and invited for proposals.
Encouraged by the above factors; ODA implemented 600 hand-dug wells
in the year 2005.
In the first phase of the program 3 deep well construction works
was organized in consultation with and close supervision of Oromia
water office, and Oromia water work as a contractor, and lastly, Daletti
water supply project run by zonal water office. The deep wells have
components like; among other things, the sinking deep well (300 m
average depth), distribution points (public fountain), laying pipelines
between the source and the distribution points, the installation of
electro-mechanical parts to pump the water. In implementing these
deep well schemes; ODA has utilized the capacity of Oromia region’s
water bureau, the machines and workers, even some resources in this
respect. Accordingly, all these activities were undertaken properly
and the communities, through representatives, were trained on basic
operation and maintenance. Among the deep well water schemes Dalatti
deep well is the largest one. Dalati on the outskirt of Addis Ababa,
about 25 Km in the south west, was forgotten for a century to get
clean water. In the past, the people in this village would have to
walk about two hours to fetch water from the nearest sebeata river
and then wait long to get a jar of dirty water.
Some of them who could afford were forced to buy water form a nearby
Sebeta town with expensive price and the majority of the people were
using rain water collected in small lake which gets dry in the middle
of the year. This water project has liberated the Dalatti people from
the century old water problem. Today in Dalatti apart the communal
water distribution posts, a significant number of families have their
own water tap in their compound.
Muhammad Amana resident of Dalatti says “We are very happy. We could
get potable water just near our gate. Now we drink clean water. We
also wash our clothes at home. Our children easily fetch it for us
after they come back from school.”
In the past many children in Muhammad’s Village were forced to miss
school to fetch water walking several hours. Now no more children
or women travel far to fetch water. Instead they have to go to school.
This is the big benefit that villages in rural Oromia got from the
water projects