Zalanbessa-Irob Rehabilitation and Development Association (ZIRDA)
Projects, Progress, Challenges, and Appeals:
Dear Rev. Abba Tesfamariam Baraki
Once again thank you very much for posting on the IRROB.ORG my previous letters and appeals to help us promote our sustainable development projects. I really appreciate what you have been doing to help us.
On the 14th of October 2006, His Excellency, Mr. Kenjiro Izumi, Japan's Ambassador in Ethiopia, went to Zalanbessa (click to see Pictures.pdf ) with his two distinguished diplomatic bodies to inaugurate the primary school. The residents of Zalanbessa town warmly welcomed him. Honorable Ambassador opened the newly constructed primary school. He was so much happy to see multitude of children felt owing classes. He said that the children are the future human power of the nation, therefore, they have a right to get good education. The praiseworthy Ambassador visited the Ethio-Eritrean border and devastated high school in Zalanbessa town.(To see slides, click: ZIRDA: Japan's Ambassador Visits School in Zalanbessa)
It was a time of great honor for the Zalanbessa-Irob Rehabilitation and Development Association to open the newly constructed primary school in Zalanbessa in collaboration with the Japan Embassy in Ethiopia. The Honorable Ambassador gave his witness that ZIRDA has integrated its development mission and objectives at the heart of community. indeed, he said that ZIRDA as a community based organization has a best possibility to identify community problem and find out the best possible solution in communion with the need community.
The Ambassador appreciated the commitment of ZIRDA to rehabilitate the war damaged areas of Irob and Zalanbessa. The association mobilized the community at the grass root level to create innovative development ideas in the mind of community members.
I do believe that God is behind all holistic ideas, therefore, as long as we prove the worthiness of our Organization to address the community problem, there is nothing that can hold us back from achieving our planned developmental objectives. And this is good sign that we have been able to demonstrate some positive results and insert the notion of development ideas in the heart of the community.
Pray that we may be able to address and solve all social problems affecting the peoples of the two woredas.
Thanks again and God bless!
Guelay Welde 27 October 2006
Dear Rev. Fr. Tesfamariam,
Peace and Love in the Lord Jesus!
I went with the Japan's Ambassador, His Excellency Izumi, to Zalanbessa to inaugurate the newly constructed school. The people of Gullomakda and Irob Woredas aware that the organization (ZIRDA) belongs to them, they assured us that they are ready to cooperate with us in any development endeavors. It was a good opportunity to mobilize the entire community for the development activity.
The project attracted political and developmental attentions in the area. The Ethiopian mass-media transmitted the news of the event extensively.
I am still looking forward to hear a positive response from you about the project that I forwarded you some months ago. If we are lucky to get some money, we are going to build additional class-rooms in Alitena, because there are more than 700 students attending classes inside the iron sheet rooms. It is not difficult to imagine how it is terrible to attend classes in the iron sheet rooms in such a hot lowland-area like Alitena. It is a harsh environment for those students to attend classes in such a hot area under the iron sheet roofs and walls.
I cordially invite you and all the natives and friends in the United States to collaborate with us to help us build additional classrooms in Alitena.
Thank you very much in advance for the cooperation we can get from you all in the United States.
Yours in Christ,
Guelay Welde General Manager, ZIRDA Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 19 October 2006
Thank you very much for your greetings and best wishes for the new Ethiopian year and the feast of Holy Cross. This year, the feast was so colorful and peaceful. Everything was good and peaceful during the feast in Addis and across the nation.
I went to Zalanbessa with the Japan's project consultant before two weeks. He has seen what we accomplished in partnership with them. He promised me another fund to facilitate the ZIRDA's project. The Japan's Ambassador in Ethiopia is going to visit our project in Zalanbessa. I am going to accompany him to Zalanbessa in the middle of October. It will be a good opportunity to build a partnership with Japan's embassy in Ethiopia.
The Irob project, the construction of full primary school and rehabilitation of some primary school need more amount of money. In fact, we are going to negotiate with the regional government if they could allow us to open grade 9 and 10 in Edalgeda. There are a lot of student who cannot study in other places due to financial restriction. I discussed with the Irob woreda education office about the possibility of opening grade 9 and 10 in Edalgeda. The woreda education office was positive with the proposal. The project will be magnificent to the advancement of education in Edalgeda. As you might know, Edalgeda is quite far from town and people are so poor that they cannot afford to help their children study elsewhere. They have a possibility to finish unto grade 8 in their place. the vast majority of students who finish grade 8, do not have any other option but they have to go to Saudi Arabia through Somalia or Djibouti. The way is extremely terrible and dangerous but there is no other choice. Unfortunately, girls run away with the soldiers. The best possible way to upgrade their intelligence and shift their thinking paradigm is only through education. There is no other choice to address the problem of the youth in Irob. Thus why our organization highly committed to upgrade education facilities in the woreda.
The Japan's Embassy in Ethiopia promised about 780,000 Ethiopian birr. The Ethiopian community in Saudi-Arabia promised us 200,000 Ethiopian birr. The board of directors decided to construct one full primary school in Edalegeda-Irob which will cost about 1.3 million birr. But if the Regional government allows us to open grade 9 and 10, we will shift the fund from the construction of primary school to high school that is grade 9 and 10.
Any contribution you can offer us (from the United States) to facilitate the project we planned to eradicate poverty through education is highly appreciated.
In fact, I have been discussing with some of our educated people the advantage of opening of the public library in Dawhan. It is extremely advantageous to the young people who spent hours and hours on drinking and involving in various vices. This is my idea that I shared with some people, how do you see it?
