I want to join CARE

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Eilawit Teshome is 14 year old girl from Ifabas Kebele, West Hararghe, Oromia. She is a grade 8 student. Her father is a farmer and her mother is a housewife. She has 3 siblings and she is the youngest. The Kebele (the lowest administrative level) that she lives in, is one of the productive safety net program Kebeles (economic support is provided by CARE SPIR-DFSA project since the area is food unsecured). She wants to join CARE and believes that education is the way to realize her dream.

Most of girls in my neighborhood drop out of school because their parents cannot afford to buy them school materials. In addition, the community does not understand the importance of sending children to school. The situation is even worse on girls. They are not given the chance to go to school and even if they did, they will be forced to drop out of school to get married at their early adolescent years. In our community, there is a belief that girls would reach nowhere educated or not.  We did not have a person look up to and be a model for young girls like me. I used to be so shy to talk to people, I had poor communication skill and was not that much interested in attending school. I used to miss classes a lot. I did not see the point of learning.

CARE Ethiopia, Abdi Boru project recruited young adolescent girls in my neighborhood a year back. Village Saving and Loan Association groups were formed with girls’ age 10-14 years of age. I was part of the group. Our group name is Chaltu (outstanding). We meet every week and save money. We were given trainings in reproductive health and the importance of staying in school. I was happy to join this group. We were all eager to know what the group was all about.

After I have joined Chaltu group, I took a loan and bought a goat and 3 hens. I have more than enough money to buy me school materials so I do not have to drop out of school due to economic problems. I now can talk in public places without fear, I have developed good communication skill and my education has become my priority. I now attend my classes attentively. I am one of the outstanding students in my class.

Picture of Edilawit with her goats, West Hararghe, Oromia, 2017
I see women from CARE facilitating our discussions. They help us to become a better version of ourselves. In the future I want to attend higher education and join CARE. I want to help other girls in my community as CARE has helped me and be a role model. 

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