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NEWS FOR WELLWISHERSWould you like to receive our quarterly email newsletter?
Relative calm in much of Tigray WellWishers Annual Report: Jan-Dec 2023 2023 was the first full year of relative calm in much of Tigray Region in northern Ethiopia since the outbreak of war between the Tigray Defence Forces on one hand and the Ethiopian Army, Eritrean Army and Amhara militia on the other. This followed the Pretoria Peace Agreement forged between the Tigray People’s Liberation Front and the Ethiopian Government in Pretoria, South Africa on 2 November 2022. The conflict began almost two years earlier. The cause of the conflict can be debated, but the outcome of the conflict is very evident. As many as 600,000 civilians and fighters died, hundreds of Tigrayan women and girls were raped, almost all factories in Tigray were destroyed, villages burnt and farming capacity laid waste. Schools, universities and churches were looted. Many of our WellWishers wells, lovingly constructed and cared for over the last 20 years, were rendered non-functional. Peace agreementThe Peace Agreement has restored the possibility of rebuilding for a normal life in most of central and eastern Tigray, but western Tigray remains occupied by Amhara militia and some northern border towns remain occupied by Eritrea forces. Both these groups were not party to the agreement, and the Ethiopian government is yet to deal with these occupations.
Training village women for repair and maintenance of their community well pump The good newsThe good news is that our partner in Tigray, the Relief Society of Tigray (REST) worked bravely during the two years of conflict to restore water wells with whatever limited resources they could muster. At the outbreak of relative peace over twelve months ago, REST staff and communities with damaged wells have worked tirelessly to get wells functional again. During 2023 WellWishers funded the rehabilitation and reconstruction of wells in 61 villages for over 12,500 rural Tigrayans. WellWishers Trustees cannot acknowledge the commitment of REST staff enough.
Mereseit Gebru at the Mai Tabaq well, Samre district Much remains to be done in Tigray. Drought has affected Tigray and the neighbouring Amhara and Afar Regions, and over 400 deaths from starvation in Tigray alone have been documented. The international community has been slow to respond with food aid due to distribution misuse by the Ethiopian authorities, and ordinary village folk have paid a big price. Our partner REST is mustering limited resources to directly support food needs. We can only hope that concerned institutions can see a way forward to resume vital food supplies and ways to enable rural Ethiopians to get local food production going. Much still needs to be doneWhat of 2024 for WellWishers? Our generous supporters have given the Trustees confidence to provide support to REST at a similar level to 2023. You can read our Report for the 2023 Financial Year here. Thank you to our donors. You make so much possible. Over our 21 years we have raised almost six million dollars, over 98% of which has gone or will go directly to provide clean water to more than 350,000 rural Ethiopians. An amazing collective effort by our donors but much still needs to be done. Please dig deep now. We have an enormous task of rebuilding in front of us. Every dollar you can send will make a difference. Our friends in Tigray have been through hell, let's help them on their journey to a better place. THANK YOU! Please click here to continue reading more of the story in our latest Newsletter. Our receipts for the tax year FY23: 01 July 2022 - 30 June 2023 were posted or emailed in July 2023. If you need a receipt and do not receive one, please contact us on info@wellwishersethiopia.com or phone on 0419 559 138 Donate nowOptions for your donation are listed at the end of each Newsletter. Alternatively you can click here to donate now. Borehole repair (charity:water) DOWNLOAD OUR NEWSLETTERSDecember 2023 | June 2023 | February 2023 December 2021 | June 2021 | April 2021 Nov 2019 | June 2019 | March 2019 December 15 | August 15 | May 15 December 14 | May 14 | February 14 November 13 | August 13 | May 13 | February 13 November 12 | August 12 | May 12 | February 12 November 11 | August 11 | May 11 | February 11 November 10 | September 10 | May 10 | February 10 November 09 | August 09 | May 09 | February 09 |
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