School Uniforms for 1721 Displaced Children

In Ethiopia, school uniforms are mandatory. They have an important social function: they protect children from particularly poor families against the need to attend classes in their worn-out everyday clothes.

In Debre Berhan, a city two hours by car north of the capital Addis Ababa, local tailors produce a simple school uniform from synthetic fiber for only 835 Birr, equivalent to around four Swiss Francs.

Yet even this amount is unaffordable for many internally displaced families in the city. Therefore, the city administration decreed that children could attend classes in their everyday clothing.

However, this measure, intended to provide relief, had a price for the children. "Many of us were ashamed because of our old clothes," says 15-year-old Dawit. Children from displaced families often own only the clothes they wear. The textiles are often faded, threadbare, and torn. "We were instantly recognized by everyone as displaced persons," says Dawit. "This made us outsiders and often also targeted us with hostility."

School is an anchor

"We learned of the suffering of the refugee children during a monitoring visit to Debre Berhan," reports Claudio Capaul, co-managing director of the Swiss aid organization Menschen für Menschen. "So we provided funds because school is an anchor for children to arrive and integrate at their new location."

Local tailors came to the Tebase Medahnialem Primary School, took measurements of the children, and noted sizes and names. "Supporting the local economy was a welcome side effect," says Claudio Capaul. The tailors of Debre Berhan have their workplaces at street corners under plastic tarps or in the narrow living rooms of mud houses. Fabric was cut, seams were set, and buttons were sewn on. The foot-operated machines ran for days. Now, during a festive handover, 1721 children have received their uniforms. "I finally feel equal to the others," says Erhemia, a 14-year-old girl. "I am more eager to learn. I now think: I can make something of myself."

Conflicts in the multicultural state

Numerous internally displaced people live in Debre Berhan, forced to flee from violence and insecurity in their home regions. The city has three registered official camps where 25,608 people currently live. Additionally, 11,822 more people are housed in private apartments. Thus, about ten percent of the city's residents are internally displaced. Many of the families come from different zones of the Oromia region, where long-standing conflicts have forced them to flee.

Ethiopia is a multicultural state with over 80 ethnic groups, where local and regional tensions repeatedly lead to violent clashes. For several years, especially since the war in the northern Tigray region, about two million people have been displaced within their own country. In addition, there are about one million people seeking refuge from conflicts in neighboring countries.

Dream job: Accountant

One of the displaced is 13-year-old Meseret. Her family fled from the Wollega area in the Oromia region. There, they rented land and lived off agriculture and livestock farming. When the security situation worsened and violent attacks occurred, the family lost their home and economic existence. Today, Meseret lives with her father in Debre Berhan. The mother has migrated to Saudi Arabia. She works there as a domestic worker to send a few dollars to the family. Therefore, Meseret now takes on house chores besides school. "I felt inferior without a uniform," says Meseret. "But now I no longer feel that everyone just sees me as the displaced girl."

She now wants to study hard. Accountant or banker, she wants to be. Putting numbers into a system, order, structure, security. For many, it sounds unspectacular. For Meseret, it is a dream job.

Menschen für Menschen is committed to fighting poverty and hunger. The foundation was founded by actor Karlheinz Böhm (1928-2014). In the spirit of the founder, the Swiss aid organization creates life perspectives for the poorest families in Ethiopia. The aim of the work is to enable them to live in human dignity in their home.

The focus of individual projects includes empowerment of women, vocational training, microcredits, child assistance, family planning, and agricultural development. The components are combined according to local needs and implemented with carefully selected local partners.

Donation account:
Post account 90-700 000-4
IBAN: CH97 0900 0000 9070 0000 4
Donate online: www.mfm.ch

For additional information or interviews with experts, please contact:
Michael Kesselring

m.kesselring@mfm.ch

Tel.: +41 (0)43 499 10 60

Editor's note: Image rights belong to the respective publisher. Image rights: Stiftung Menschen für Menschen Schweiz / Photographer: Yared Assefa