GOOD PRACTICES
YOHANNES DEMISSIE
Before the project:
Yohannes was ex-soldier, wounded as he joined the defense force, disarmed soon due to the fall down of the Derge regime and 20 years ago he came back home. Since he had no skill he could utilize except military training and was handicapped, he was forced to the street of Addis. While he was living in his plastic shelter on the street in Lideta Sub City, he read SDE’s announcement posted by the Office of Labor and Social Affairs of the city calling homeless people to apply for skill training. He applied and joined SDE’s Homeless People’s Project in 2012. He has been trained on tailoring and shoemaking skills and graduated in 2013.
AWUGICHEW NEGASH
Before the project:
As Awugichew stated, the cause of his street life is the conflict between his grandmother and his mother-in-law followed by the selling of the house in which they had been living in. Then he started to be addicted to Chat(local street drug) and Cigarette and his grandmother declined to have him back consequently. He decided to lead street life by moving to Adama City from Kality Sub City. He found it very tough so that he pledged to come back home, but grandmother rejected him hence forced to live in Addis Ababa Street for 1½ years. Later, he heard about SDE from his other friends, applied and joined in 2012 and graduated on bead making and tailoring skills in 2013.
TIGISTU TEREFE
Before the project:
When the breadwinner of the house (his Father) passed away, Tigistu (the elder children in the family) came to Addis Ababa to support his mother, brothers, and sisters through a financial backup. But, he found himself that he had a wrong perception about Addis-no jobs; no shelter; no supporter, however plenty of evils of life. Therefore he was forced to live in the street for 5 years until he joined Siddartha after hearing from his friends. Finally, he applied to and joined SDE’s homeless people (Gloriu) Project in 2014 and was graduated in shoemaking and tailoring skills in 2015.
ASRAT SHOWA
Before the project:
Asrat had been leading her life by a very small amount of income earned through the selling of handmade embroidery products using her former knowledge till she has joined SDE’s women project in 2014 and graduated in 2015 after trained on sewing and modern hand embroidery skills.
TSIGEREDA AYALEW
Before the project:
Tsigereda was a divorced woman who had been earning her living through very small and non-reliable routine businesses when joining our women heads project in 2007. She has been trained on shoemaking and sewing skills and graduated in 2009.