ROOTS ETHIOPIA INC

Roots Ethiopia's goal is to support community identified solutions for job creation and education in Southern Ethiopia. By partnering with educators, government entities, churches, and community groups in the areas we serve, we are able to focus on developing sustainable education initiatives and job opportunities. We believe there should be no barriers to Ethiopian families succeeding in work and at school. Our goal is to improve access, equity, and quality of education by providing material and technical support to schools and communities and by encouraging families to send their children to school. Our approach focuses on reducing the obstacles that inhibit children from attending school and equipping under-resourced schools with essential educational resources, improved facilities, and teacher training. Along with educational support, Roots Ethiopia focuses on empowering families through education and economic empowerment. By providing small business grants and business training we hope to create sustainable employment solutions for women and their families.

Program Strategies: By partnering with local organizations and existing agencies, Roots Ethiopia developed its programs to meet the needs voiced by the community. School sponsorships support tuition, uniforms, and medical and nutritional support for the student and their families. Thus, families have the support they need to send their children to school and release them from labor often needed to sustain families. Self-Help Entrepreneurs (SHE, formerly SHG/IGA) form the foundation of economic self-reliance. Each recipient receives a one-time business development grant to start a small business. Participants gather with their SHE Group and a locally trained facilitator who leads a support group to help one another grow their businesses. SHEs meet once a week for basic business training and leadership classes and to setting up savings and lending practices for the group. Learning Resource Projects (LRPs) are designed to support schools with resources that are utilized by both students and the surrounding communities. The school staff and community members determine what improvements will most benefit the students and community. A library, science lab, desks and chairs, sports equipment and other supplies allow students to do what they have come to school to do: be curious learners and become educated community members. Everyone at the school, including parents, become inspired to improve their communities.

Our organization is run by a US-based Board of Directors who oversee all strategic, programmatic, and fundraising initiatives for the organization. Our professional staff in Ethiopia including a Country Director, a Program Manager, MERL manager, operational staff, field staff, and a network of partners in each community work tirelessly to implement our programs. Our deep-rooted partnerships with local government entities, community members, local institutions, and other international nonprofit organizations allow us to have the most impact and maintain the most efficient use of resources.

Roots Ethiopia has successfully sponsored over 300 students in our School Sponsorship program. The relatively new work means that many of the sponsored students have not yet graduated from school. This includes three pilot programs of 40+ special needs students in a specially-equipped classroom and future plans for a Special Needs Center that will function as a special needs school and training center to increase the capability of govt schools to serve this important population.

We have supported 35+ schools through LRPs serving the needs of over 50,000 students and their community members. We have seen increases in school attendance rates, and the pass rates on national exams at each of our LRPs have increased by a minimum of twenty percent.

Previously, we have funded over 300+ small businesses and have over 300+ women participating in Self-Help Entrepreneur Groups. We are monitoring the average life cycle of each SHE Group and the small businesses of each woman in the group and will collect more data to reflect the successes in the coming years. We will strive to understand how long each business can be expected to last, and develop strategies with communities so that small business owners can successfully transition to other means of income.