Afar Elshadai Center

Elshadai Relief and Development has developed a project to support 131,532 street children in Gambella and Afar Region and support the government by implementing wider development work beyond the humanitarian it has done so far.

1. Purpose of the Serdo Project

The Serdo Agricultural Development Center envisions training 66,532 vulnerable youth for three years in several rounds, provide them with life skills, job creation and work culture. This will create a sustainable and productive local economy and sustainable food markets thereby generating foreign exchange that will be model center of development in the country.

2. The main goals of the project

• Performing preliminary tasks;
• Carry out the infrastructure of the center.
• Provide the youth with psychological and vocational training.
• Meeting the resources required to carry out production;
• Enhance production through animal fattening, livestock of goats and sheep, poultry, crops, fruits and vegetables;
• Establish national and international market links.
• Ensure the benefit goes to youth by engaging them in employment, training, monthly salary, dividends from the income they generate;
• Establish a center of excellence that gives best practices as a model development center.
• Ensure the local community benefit from the low-cost production, modern agriculture and employment opportunities;
• Conduct intensive monitoring, support and evaluation to ensure the effectiveness of the project.

3. Feasibility of the project

• The availability of adequate natural and human resources;
• favorable government policies that will benefit the youth;
• The government’s commitment to development
• The produce have high local and international demand
• The location of the project is conducive to transportation
• The implementation strategy of the project follows a research-based approach.

4. Expected results from the project

The project has short-term, long-term economic, social, political, and individual benefits, including:

• Creates employment opportunities for vulnerable youth mired in various problems
• Build an active, addiction free generation with greater work culture, positivity, skill and self-reliance;
• Establishing a model development center will serve as an example especially for the lowland areas of our country;
• Create a fair distribution of income and wealth;
• Creating a peaceful and stable community by engaging citizens in development;
• Contribute to the development of the country in terms of the country’s gross domestic product and foreign exchange;
• By providing high agricultural products to the domestic market, it will satisfy the needs of the community at low cost;
• Since the project is a pastoral area, it will ensure the benefit of local communities through training in agricultural activities, utilizing the results of development activities, supporting their activities in their own resources,
• Maintenance of the natural environment is one of the most important output.

5. Activities to deploy beneficiaries of the project to work

The activities to be undertaken by the center to deploy successful youth after 3 years and 9 months of stay are as follows;

• Provide psychological and business skills training so that young people can develop better work culture when they come to the center,
• Enable them attain three and more skills in various field of development (in agriculture, livestock and construction)
• In the last year and half of their training before leaving the center, they will be trained in skills other than agriculture to expand their opportunities.
• Consultation and training will be undertaken based on the feasibility and cost of capital available to the individual;
• After entering the training, they will be provided with sufficient experience and skills in the vocational sector,
• The center will develop a business plan for the youth in the area of their choice in the business sector;
• Help on facilitating preparatory tasks and prerequisites of the area/city administration, depending on the areas in which they want to work before leaving the Center
• It works to ensure that the youth utilize the capital, dividend and skills that they gained for their business or the institution they get employed at.
• Develop a system for monitoring and supporting the youth in employment based on their information;
• A forum will be set up so that the youth meet once a year to form a society and exchange experiences.
• A strong follow-up and support will be provided by Elshadai, regional and city administrations to ensure that the young people are successful.