Three Roots International

Ethiopia operations: we partner with rural communities to create sustainable pathways out of poverty by:1) delivering high-quality health education and empowering community health workers so that people can live long and healthy lives.2) restoring the opportunity for children and adults to learn through high quality early childhood, primary, and vocational education.3) equipping men and women to earn a predictable income through business development training and savings groups to create financial resilience.4) building the capacity of community leaders to maintain program initiatives, so that communities can sustain gains and thrive for years to come.as ethiopia continues to react to the challenges created by the covid pandemic and internal conflict, our programming continued to address widening inequities, as noted in the multidimensional poverty index (mpi). In 2023, we saw expansion of our savings groups for peer-to-peer lending and business development, as 326 women participated across 17 groups saving a total of 314,720 et birr/$5,550.00 this year. 151 loans were distributed. As women build financial literacy, so too, do families increase household assets, build savings for crises, and strengthen shared decision-making. 100% of women report increased social support and resilience through the program. We launched our powerful new health program to improve maternal and child health, training 82 women for participation as volunteer health educators using the care group model. 42 women were trained in vocational skills to include: design, sewing, craft construction, and quality control. In 2023, Three Roots strengthened the quality and learning environment at the babogaya primary school (bps). Bps served 409 vulnerable students, grades k-8, provided after school tutoring and 10 clubs for students, ranging from social skills, to advocacy, to sports and recreation. Three Roots first came alongside of the bps in 2017, funding and rehabilitating the facilities and investing heavily in quality instruction and teacher training. At that time, school rating was 0, out of 4. We are thrilled that the oromo regional government awarded Three Roots with commendation regarding the increased quality of instruction and learning environment, with a rating of 3 in 2023. The school now has water, 3 latrine blocks, a full staff of teachers and a thriving kindergarten program. In 2023 we added another kg class, and finalized renovations to the library and teacher working space. Our commitment to community transformation was evident in 2023, as our community-based leadership structures and church engagement grew. The parent teacher association and community development committee strengthened their mobilization of parents and community leaders to manage challenges and increase participation. Additional committees were launched. Additionally, we continued to support 138 families who are highly vulnerable, in our critical care program through provision of school uniforms/supplies, nutritional support, to defer indirect cost of school and food insecurity.

Mobilization: our mobilization work centers on education and awareness raising in the united states through training volunteer teams to travel to ethiopia for the purposes of advancing the mission and program activities. Teams traveling to ethiopia assist in vocational skills development, parenting training, health training/clinics, teacher support and training and conducting a sports outreach program for children and youth.