Beza Foundation’s ability to think creatively and enable practical, positive change is particularly relevant as the UK social care sector faces further cuts
By Tom Jones (The Guardian)|
Halfway through my social work MA, I decided to use part of my summer holiday to travel around Ethiopia, and so in July last year, I visited the Beza Association, a foundation supporting communities affected by HIV in Lalibela, a town in the north of the country. The experience was humbling and, to my surprise, affected my social work learning and development.
The first thing that struck me about the foundation was seeing how its volunteers overcame a lack of resources with imagination and creativity. All 30 of Beza Foundation’s volunteers are HIV positive themselves and they provide social support and community care to more than 1,000 members living with HIV and their families, including orphans and vulnerable children.
Many of the volunteers work as tour guides, bringing in money that is spent on medicine and home-based care within the foundation. The volunteers also make injera – a type of sourdough flatbread which is an Ethiopian national dish – to sell to local hotels.
Read the complete story at The Guardian
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See also:
- Strong Coffee, Stronger Women
- Community Based Newborn Care (CBNC) in Ethiopia
- OP-ED: Ending Malaria for Good is a Sound Investment
- U.S. Government Inaugurates New Regional Public Health Laboratory in Mekelle
- Supporting Improved Access to Pharmaceuticals and Services (SIAPS) in Ethiopia: USAID