"ORDA Made Me to Have a Car"

Farmer zeki Hussen, aged 45, lives in Kachur kebele around kemise town, Oromo Nationality Zone. He is married and has 7 children.

His livelihood bases on agriculture. But due to low productivity of his farm, his earning was getting low, and he was in boubt to feed his family. Even he was in in trouble to send the children to school. He was searching off work Opportunities to survive his family.
The residence of farmer Zeki, Kachur kebele is located in Dewa chefa worda. It has a short summer and hot weather condition.

The farmer’s farm land is covered by over flow of Borkena river in summer. He could not cultivate crop, and when the over flow retreats, the summer outs soon and no moisture at all.

The locality farmers earn their annual food by sewing sorghum & teff on a land which is free from the Boreken over flow. As result farmer zeki and his neighbours used to live in food insecurity. Unless he did a daily work, he could not afford his family food and other basic need expenses.
As his family member is getting large, zeki was thinking how to accommodate his family food expense. He had thought to conduct irrigation but there was no water there, and he became hopless again. In this occasion ORDA’s Growth for the Future: Enhancing market system for improved sustainable livelihood project has began to be implemented in Dewa chefa woreda with 25.7 million birr secured from Sweden International Development Agency implementing through consortium by farm Africa, Mercy corps and ORDA. Zeki had shown a great interest to participate in the project and has been selected.

First, Zeki had gotten a technical training on modern horticulture practice. In addition, he shared an experience from Raya kobo farmers whom conduct horticulture farming.
The project first convinced the farmers to make a group in 10 farmers to have one communal Pond. The project follows cost sharing scheme and the farmers cover the digging of the pond basement by renting digging machine. Then the project constructed the pond and transferred to the the farmers. And the farmers have been growing different vegitables & fruits on their yard. They got a solar water pump, which costs 18 thousand birr from the project.
ORDA’ G4F Project supplied different hybrid horticulture seedlings of Banana, Onion, Tomato and Rice for the beneficiary farmers.

Now farmer Zeki cultivates three times a year by using the pond. In 2018/19 crop season, he produced Teff, onion, greenpeper, Tomato and chickpea in three rounds and got a good income.
“Aftre oRDA’s G4F project constructed the community pond; I had grown an onion and got 25 suck of onion which was sold 50 thousand Birr. Then I earned 23 suck of chekpea from the same land. In the 3rd season I had sowen greenpeper and earned 13 thousand birr, from Tomato 16 thousand birr & from Mung bean 8 thousand birr. In general I earned 260 thousand Birr, and I bought a small lorry. Now I expand my income beyond the farming; ORDA made me to have a car”, said farmer Zeki.

The farmer has consulted other farmers to buy a medium tractor in share and to mechanize their farm.
In parallel to expansion of his farm, a marketing commite is organized to address more market for their product in the future.

                                             Critical Hand washing Time!

Washing your hands correctly is the most effective thing you can do to protect yourself against a number of infectious diseases, such as influenza (the “flu”) and the common cold. Not only will it help keep you healthy, it will help prevent the spread of infectious diseases to others.
Even if your hands appear to be clean, they may carry germs. Hands pick up micro-organisms (germs) in a number of ways

Benefits of washing your hands

Lowers Risk of Diarrhea and Intestinal Problems

Washing hands lowers the risk of having diarrhea and developing intestinal infections, an important benefit particularly for children. Diarrhea disease is one of the leading causes of death in children under 5 throughout the world. Contact with fecal matter causes such illnesses and can be prevented by washing hands with soap. It may also prevent complications connected to intestinal worms.

Prevents Eye Infections

The spread of bacterial eye infections, such as trachoma, can be reduced through regular hand washing. It can also lower the likelihood of contracting conjunctivitis, or pink eye. This irritating eye condition causes eye pain, itching, light sensitivity and discharge. It is spread a number of ways, with the most common being through viruses. Always wash your hands before putting in contacts, as being a contacts wearer increases your risk of having pink eye.

Lowers Respiratory Infection Risk

You can lower your chances of developing an acute respiratory infection by making hand washing a priority. The pathogens that cause respiratory complications are commonly found on surfaces and hands. Some of the pathogens associated with diarrhea also cause respiratory problems. Hand washing significantly reduces your chances of getting sick.
When should you wash your hands

• Before, during, and after preparing food

• Before eating food

• Before and after caring for someone who is sick

• Before and after treating a cut or wound

• After using the toilet

• After changing diapers or cleaning up a child who has used the toilet

• After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing

• After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste

• After touching garbage

Although hand washing might seem like a simple task, you should follow these steps to thoroughly rid your hands of germs.

How to wash your hands

• Wash your hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Alcohol-based hand cleansers are useful when soap and water are not available. In most cases antibacterial soap is not necessary for safe, effective hand hygiene.

• Remove any hand or arm jewelry you may be wearing and wet your hands with warm water. Add regular soap and rub your hands together, ensuring you have lathered all surfaces for at least 15 seconds. How long is 15 seconds? The length of time it takes to sing Happy Birthday.

• Wash the front and back of your hands, as well as between your fingers and under your nails.

• Rinse your hands well under warm running water, using a rubbing motion.

• Wipe and dry your hands gently with a paper towel or a clean towel. Drying them vigorously can damage the skin.

• Turn off the tap using the paper towel so that you do not re-contaminate your hands. When using a public bathroom, use the same paper towel to open the door when you leave.

• If skin dryness is a problem, use a moisturizing lotion.

                           Hygiene and Sanitation for a better life!

                        
Alike individual toilets at household level, institutional ventilated pit latrine plays a significant role in improving the lives of people. ORDA in collaboration with WHH completed construction of 2 blocks ventilated pit latrine schemes having 4 seats each in Degolema primary school in Debre Elias woreda. The scheme benefits a total of 1,166 students (male 541 & female 625.)

These latrine can be exemplary that it’s inclusive for people with disability and females’ block is constructed in opposite direction from males.

In the same token, 2 blocks ventilated pit latrine schemes having 4 seats each in Gidimbil primary school (a total of 412 students and teachers) in Sinan Woreda is fully completed.

Acknowledgement- ORDA gratefully appreciates the strategic partner WHH and funding donors Viva Con Agua, J2XU, ANRS Bureau of Finance & Economic Cooperation.

Improved Hygiene and Sanitation for a better life!

            Over 5 thousand Gofchima kebele residents will be free from water shortage and hygiene and sanitation deficits

ORDA John’s Rig WaSH Project in partnership with Welt Hunger Hilfe (WHH) is funded from Viva Con Agua, J2Xu, Government of Amhara region have been working to address water, hygiene and sanitation gaps in 5 selected woredas of East Gojjam Zone.

Debre Elias woreda Gofchima kebele is among the intervention kebeles that is going to get safe water sooner. With good enough discharging capacity, water is already drilled out in deep well. A 1,500 meter HDP pipe is lined beneath the ground from the source to tanker and to distribution point (3634 meter) to benefit the community of Gofchima, health center and primary school through generator & gravitational pressurized pumping system respectively.

A 9 meter concrete elevated tower construction is about to complete which can carry 75 thousand litres /75m3/ of water tanker (resorvior). The scheme will benefit a total of 5,446 people (2,945 men & 2,501 women.)