Dessie, Ethiopia
March 27–April 9, 2010
Join us for a trip to Dessie, Ethiopia, where we will work with local families to build much-needed shelter. Expect basic accomodations and hard work, but also expect to share a unique and amazing experience. An extra, optional R&R excursion may be offered at the completion of the build.
About Ethiopia
Ethiopia is a land of dramatic variations—from lush mountain highlands to low-lying deserts to one of the highest peaks on the African continent. The Nile River winds its way through this country in the Horn of Africa before flowing to the Mediterranean Sea. Ethiopia’s Rift Valley has even been called the “cradle of mankind,” due to the discoveries of large numbers of hominid fossils there.
Unfortunately, Ethiopia is also one of the poorest countries in the world with the majority of its population leading destitute lives and living in poverty housing. A recent United Nations survey ranked the country No. 169 (out of 175) in terms of its population’s quality of life. Ethiopia’s problems are mainly attributed to frequent famine, civil conflicts, political turmoil and foreign aggression.
About Dessie
Dessie is located about 400 kilometers northeast of Addis Ababa and lies in a small valley between the lowlands and the plateau. Due to the long distance and bad roads it can take up to 12 hours in a bus to get to Dessie. This is one of the largest cities in Ethiopia. Approximately one-third of the citizens are migrants from neighboring rural communities and internally displaced people from the port of Assab.
Habitat started to build here in 2004 and this affiliate served as the pilot project for a shift in construction technology by Habitat Ethiopia. In an effort to reach lower-income families, Habitat Ethiopia tested more traditional chika (mud-plastered houses) here. It was the success of this project that spread this technique to the rest of the Ethiopian affiliates, reducing house costs by up to 60 percent.
About Habitat Ethiopia
Habitat for Humanity Ethiopia began construction in 1993 and has since expanded to build houses in 11 communities. Habitat Ethiopia has attempted to integrate its operations with those of community-based organizations in order to be more effective in its work.
There is a great need for simple, decent and affordable housing in Ethiopia. HFHE defines substandard housing as a home with dirt floors, leaking roof, breaking chika and/or no windows and doors, and lack of sanitation. A staggering 90 percent of the population has no access to decent sanitation facilities, and 73 percent of the population does not have safe drinking water, causing disease to run rampant.
Types of construction for volunteers
Your participation is vital to HFHE’s ministry. Volunteer manual labor helps the national program to reduce house costs by 10-20 percent for partner families. Typical work for a GV team may include: mixing mortar and concrete; carrying construction materials; fixing chicken wires; digging foundations; making bricks; carrying water; and more.
HFHE’s houses vary from 22 to 36 square meters in size and are built from a number of different materials. All houses have a latrine in a separate block and are built in such a manner that families can add further rooms in the future.
Standard itinerary
Day 1, typically Saturday: Depart for Ethiopia.
Day 2, Sunday: Arrive in Addis Ababa; dinner and overnight in Addis Ababa.
Day 3, Monday: Breakfast at hotel; travel to host project site; welcome and orientation with local staff and dinner with homeowner families.
Days 4–8, Tuesday–Saturday: Breakfast served before traveling to work site; work from 8 a.m.–4 p.m. with lunch on site; free time in the evenings; dinner; team activities.
Day 9, Sunday: Visit a local church and enjoy other cultural activities.
Days 10–12, Monday–Wednesday: Breakfast served before traveling to work site; work from 8 a.m.–4 p.m. with lunch on site; free time in the evenings; dinner; team activities. Farewell celebration on day 12 with homeowner families.
Day 13, Thursday: Travel to Addis Ababa; free time; dinner and overnight.
Day 14, Friday: Depart for home.
Note: There will be other opportunities for cultural activities in the evenings, during free time and during days off. As an option for those interested in staying a few extra days, a brief R&R excursion may be organized at completion of the build.
Accommodations
Accommodation will be in the Ghion Ambasal Hotel, where most rooms have their own bathroom and hot water is usually reliable. Electricity, however, is not always reliable so flashlights are necessary as a precaution. Teams will spend their first and last nights at a hotel in Addis Ababa. All three meals and bottled water will be provided each day.
Trip cost
$1,500
Trip cost includes: donation to the Habitat host program and HFHI; meals; accommodations; transport (excluding trip participant air fare); medical emergency evacuation and trip cancellation insurance; some local cultural activities and team coordination and orientation materials. Some portion of the team leader’s trip cost and estimated air fare will be included in the trip budget. The trip cost does not include trip participant air fare, R&R activities or visa and exit fees (not applicable for all destinations).
Team leader
Drew Harvey retired from an engineering career in 2005 and has since volunteered locally with Habitat in his hometown of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Drew travelled extensively internationally with his work and lived in Brazil for two years. He has been a team member on Global Village trips to Uganda and New Zealand, and led a GV team to Zambia in November 2007. Drew led a church work team to Nyadire, Zimbabwe, in 2006 and upon return, formed an organization—The Nyadire Connection—that continues to support the large medical, agricultural and educational complex. He returns regularly and will again be in Zimbabwe in October 2009.
Drew hopes to assemble a diverse team of enthusiastic people who are looking to learn something about the rich and fascinating African culture through hands-on experience. For more information about this Global Village trip, contact Drew at drewharvey@verizon.net.