FINALLY BACK IN THE OMO-VALLEY
A REPORT by Carmen Kisters, OMO Child Germany
March 2022
News about the children
After two failed attempts in the last two years, the time had finally come in March: as part of a two-week trip to Ethiopia, I visited Omo Child in Jinka from March 22nd to 26th, 2022.
At first I was completely surprised by the size of Omo Child. About three years ago, Lale and his Omo Child family moved into the current compound. The children’s home is significantly larger and more comfortable than the old, rented building. 51 children are growing up there and are lovingly cared for by their 10 “mums”. The children are now between two and 19 years old, and the first three children have even started university this year. What a success story considering that these children were sentenced to death by Mingi superstition. The children made an extremely happy impression on me. After school in the late afternoon they played in the corridors and outside. Since they learn English at school, I was able to chat with the older children and answered many curious questions about life in Germany and my family. It was nice to see how friendly, well behaved and at the same time curious the children were.
Gifts from Germany
For my welcome, Lale had invited all the children and employees to injera and cake. Speeches were held and the children were told where I come from and how we support from Austria and Germany. I sat with the children and there was a lot of laughter and whispering.
The next day was probably the most exciting part of my visit for the children. We had financed school bags for all children via online crowdfunding, which we handed over in a little ceremony. In addition, a 30 kg suitcase with clothes, painting materials and hygiene articles was opened and the clothes were distributed among the children. In the next few days, the new favorite clothes were worn right away and it was nice to see how little it takes to bring a smile to the children’s faces. And of course, I fell in love with my godchild, the two-year-old Metsenanat.
The following video gives an idea about the little celebration.
SCHOOLBAGS FOR THE CHILDREN
OMO Child Primary School
A year and a half ago, a primary school has become part of Omo Child. There are currently seven classes for grade one to seven. An eighth grade will be added next school year. There are currently 325 children attending the school, 290 of whom are external. They are taught by 15 teachers, three of whom are volunteers from Kenya. Comparing to the other schools I have seen in southern Ethiopia, the school is absolutely top notch, both in terms of equipment and teaching methods. Much to Lale’s delight, I was able to finance a microscope for the school with the crowdfunding, which I brought from Germany. This was proudly tested the next day and I was very much impressed by a student of about 12 years, who, after a short introduction, was able to explain in English how it works. My local guide told me how excellent the reputation of Omo Child and the school has become. He said everyone in Jinka and the surrounding area now knows Omo Child, even in the remote villages of the Mursi tribe.
Please see the below video for more impressions of the school.
OMO CHILD PRIMARY SCHOOL
The affordable school fees cover part of the running costs of the school and thus reduce the dependency on donations. It is planned that the school will be self-sustaining in the future or that it may even be able to cross-finance part of the costs for the children’s home. This would be very helpful, because the financial situation remains tight, even if there are now regular donations from the USA again.
Therefore, we are very grateful for your continued support and look forward to help the children of Omo Child with your donations also in the future.
If you want to get more impressions of my visit, I recommend the following video.
IMPRESSIONS OF MY VISIT AT OMO CHILD
YOU CAN HELP TOO
Through sponsorship, you will not only ensure that a child is looked after, you will also be looking after the child´s future.