Update from Addis Ababa: Experiences of youth aging out of institutionalized care

August 2, 2013 

 

It’s hard to believe that I’ve spent over a month in Addis, and that I’ll be leaving in just three short weeks.  I am now able to get around the city confidently and comfortably, I have favorite restaurants and cafés, and I’ve made many friends that I’ll be sad to leave.  Moreover, my work has finally changed from meetings with organizational staff to interviewing young people who grew up in care:  hearing their stories and experiences of transition.  This is the work that I am most interested in, and it will be the basis for IOFA’s decisions moving forward on the Transitions Initiative in Ethiopia.  We want to know what the personal experience of transitioning from care institutions to independence.

Mikiyas and three research participants from Kidane Mehret

So far, Mikiyas Feyissa (IOFA’s Ethiopian representative and translator) and I have conducted four interview sessions, each with adults from different organizations.  We heard from 5 youth from CIAI who spent much of their time on the streets until CIAI’s shelter took them in.  We met with 10 individuals who grew up in L’Esperance:  an Adventist orphanage on the outskirts of Addis.  We talked to 5 adults who grew up in Abebech Gobena (Addis Ababa’s most famous orphanage) and who are now employed by that institution.  We also met 4 girls from Kidane Mehret orphanage, who have just started transitioning to independent life.  Additionally, I have been able to have great, informal conversations with two young men who grew up in care and who are now living independently.

Each individual and group has a unique story, but there are common themes that we hear over and over again.  One challenge that every youth seems to face when they leave care is the extreme culture shock of joining the outside community.  Most orphaned children grow up isolated in institutions with very little community interaction.  Basic social skills that most children pick up through observing adults are completely foreign to orphaned youth.  Tamerat, who now works as a psychologist in a Catholic orphanage, told me that he didn’t know how to buy food or clothes because everything had always been provided in the orphanage.

“[Orphaned youth] have no budgeting skills and don’t know how to save money.  They also don’t have any role models for working and responsibility.  Other children see their parents go to work every day, [orphaned youth] don’t have that experience.  They don’t know how to manage their time to make sure everything is done.”

Every group has commented on how difficult it is to converse and interact with other people outside of the institution.  The youth feel that the community will ostracize them, which leads them to be very reserved; most Ethiopians generally do not trust reserved people, so they treat the youth as though they were of bad character.  This confirms the youth’s fears and leads to further psychological distress.  The youth also have no sense of “good” and “bad” behavior in other people; they are often easily trusting of strangers.  Because their only interactions with adults have been in the orphanage, the youth often do not possess the healthy dose of suspicion that most of us employ when meeting new people, looking for a job, and searching for housing.

 Research participants answer yes/no questions by forming a Y/N shapes with their bodies

“Children who grew up in this orphanage have similar thinking and conduct. We respect people and we do not pretend like people do in the society. If we trust others; we give ourselves.  On the other hand members of the society do not give themselves, they rather are selfish.”

We are also hearing that although institutions often assist the youth in pursuing some sort of education or vocational training, the support stops as soon as they graduate.  In Ethiopia, the biggest challenge for young people is finding employment.  While young people with family support often have the option of staying with their parents while looking for a good job, orphaned youth must enter the job market immediately so that they can support themselves.  Families also function as a job search and referral system in a place where social connections are the key to getting a good job.  This lack of material and social support leads orphaned youth to take jobs that they are over-qualified for, jobs with low wages and little opportunity of advancement.

“We suffer long periods of time without any finances…Students who graduated with fewer qualifications and lower grades secure better employment.  We graduate with honors and do not get a job at all.  You can only explain this by people having contacts: relatives, families, etc., and we do not have that.”

For many of the participants in these interviews, telling their stories can be cathartic.  The four girls that Mikiyas and I interviewed at Kidane Mehret orphanage were disappointed that we would not be meeting again.  This was the first time anyone had asked them about their experience or showed an interest in how the transition was affecting them emotionally.  The group from L’Esperance meets weekly for fellowship.  They said that they discuss the challenges they face and lean on each other for support.

I am glad that IOFA’s interview process gives some of these youth the opportunity to process and reflect on their experience, as well as assurance that people do care about them and want to make the experience better for youth aging out of care.


Sarah Lyn Jones
Transitions Initiative Intern

Greetings from Addis Ababa!

July 12, 2013

It has now been two weeks since I arrived in Addis, and already I have learned much about the situation of orphans and vulnerable children in Ethiopia, as well as the obstacles they face in transitioning out of care and reintegrating into the outside community. After many long conversations and meetings with various NGOs and care institutions here, this is the general picture of the future of those children growing up in care institutions:

First, most institutions in Addis are orphanages whose main goal is international adoption for their children. As they grow older, their chances of adoption grow slim. Many of the orphanages that focus on adoption do not have plans for children who have grown too old for adoption, and the children keep hoping and dreaming that they will leave Ethiopia one day. Some care institutions move children to group homes after a certain age, or try to reintegrate them with their extended families.

Some care institutions are not interested in adoption. These institutions can be private and well-funded (like Selam Children’s Villages) or public institutions (like Kolfe and Kechene orphan homes). The private institutions usually have an organized plan for transition and reintegration, including gradual transitions to independent living, scholarships for university, vocational training, etc. The public institutions are overpopulated and understaffed, and often do not have the funding or the manpower to thoroughly address the issues that these children will face outside of the only home they have ever known.

The challenges that these children will face when they age out of care are many. The biggest challenge seems to be the culture shock that they encounter as soon as they leave the institution. Many of these children have been isolated in these care institutions for their entire lives. They often do not have the social skills necessary for community life in Ethiopia, which is a different culture than the in which they grew up; this seems to be especially true for young people from large institutions that have a more dormitory living arrangements. Some institutions work with a village model, raising the children in homes of 8-10 that effectively function as family units. Still, the children in these village-based organizations have very little contact with the surrounding communities and have developed a certain set of social and cultural skills that allowed them to function within the institution but not outside. Without social and cultural education, these young people often find it challenging to integrate themselves into the city of Addis Ababa.

A complementary challenge to transition comes from Ethiopian community-based culture itself. Most children in Addis grow up in a community in which their family is established. They often do not move far from that community, even when they reach adulthood. People do not move to new neighborhoods and communities like we do in the United States. Young people leaving care must find homes in established communities and they are often viewed as invaders. Because no one knows who they are or much about their background, the community often does not trust or engage with these young people. Being an orphan or an unsupported youth in Ethiopia also carries its own stigma—they are often seen as delinquents, which creates another barrier to community integration. In a culture and society so focused on communal interaction, this kind of social isolation can be psychologically and emotionally devastating.



The social and cultural challenges that these young people face are difficult enough, but often added to this burden is lack of support in securing basic needs. Some youth attend university, some get vocational training. The quality of education is variable, depending on not only an individual’s academic performance but also on how much financial support they get from their institution. Because Addis attracts many people from all regions of Ethiopia and because the youth are the fastest growing population in Ethiopia, there is a shortage of good jobs. Many young people cannot get a job for at least a year after graduating from college. If and when young people do find work, they often do not make enough to support themselves. It is common for young people to live with their parents after they have graduated from university or vocational school until they get married—a good 2-6 years. Without the support of a family system to fall back on, many orphaned and unsupported youth are forced to take job opportunities that others pass up—jobs that are low-paying. Some institutions do support their former residents by giving them housing and food allowance, but these are in the minority.

Fortunately, the Ethiopian government is finally realizing that there is a service gap in reintegration and transition support. Along with moving away from the traditional dormitory/orphanage model of care for unsupported or orphaned children, the government is trying to incorporate models of care that mimic community and village life. UNICEF Ethiopia is also collaborating with Kolfe and Kechene orphanages in Addis on reintegration education and support programs, though the funding and results of their efforts are still unclear.

All of this information has come from administrative staff of various NGOs and care institutions here in Addis Ababa. I am very interested to hear from those individuals who have transitioned into the city of Addis about their own experiences, to hear their own individual stories.

If you are interested in learning about the organizations with which IOFA will be working with this summer, here is a list. Each is doing great work and deserves to be known.

Women In Self Employment (WISE)
Selam Children’s Village
AHOPE Ethiopia
Children’s Heaven
The Organization for Rehabilitation and Development in Amhara (ORDA)
The Italian Center for Children’s Aid (CIAI)
ReTrak
Kingdom Vision International
Rehabilitation Center for Victims of Torture in Ethiopia (RCVTE)

Sarah Lyn Jones
Transitions Initiative InternPhoto 1: AHOPE for Kids
Photo 2: ReTrak Vocational Training Program

Welcome to Addis Ababa, Sarah!

July 4, 2013

After finishing my undergraduate degree, I had the incredible opportunity to live and work in South India, teaching girls and young women conversational English and volunteering at different women’s organizations.  It was there that I fell in love with youth-centered service work, and am now pursuing my Masters in Social Work at the University of Chicago, focusing on international social work.  After graduating, I hope to find work with an internationally-focused organization that invests in, supports, and empowers vulnerable youth and young adults around the world. 

I am excited to start my work as the Transitions Initiative Intern with IOFA!  This summer, I will be in Addis Ababa doing research on the experience of adolescents who have left institutional care (orphanages, group homes, etc.) to make their own way in the world.  Youth and young adults who lack the support of family networks face severe challenges in transitioning to adulthood, and are much more vulnerable to the problems of exploitation, poverty, and violence.  Throughout the next two months, I will be working with local organizations to identify and interview individuals who grew up without traditional family support and record their transition stories.

I have been in Addis for only 10 days, but am already falling in love with the city and its people.  As I meet with organizational directors, humanitarian workers, and children at group homes/orphanages, I am learning much about the needs of these youth and am energized and inspired to continue the amazing work that IOFA does with the Transitions Initiative. 

Sarah Lyn Jones

Transitions Initiative Intern

Children Belong with Families - A Guest Blog from Michael Pease, Director of Substitute Families for Abandoned Children (SFAC)

IOFA is delighted to present a thought provoking post from guest blogger, Michael Pease, Director of Substitute Families for Abandoned Children (SFAC).

Michael is a strong and committed advocate for reducing the institutionalization of children and supporting permanent loving families for all children. SFAC is a global ally in IOFA's Transitions Initiative effort!

Families, Children and Institutions - Michael Pease

Family is the most natural phenomenon that exists across all tribes, race and cultures. A family is where a child is born and where it should remain unless there are serious reasons why not; for example abuse, trafficking or disasters. Children are born into a family whether a couple, married or single parent. They inherit the genetics of their biological parents as well as the traditions of the extended family members and community. That is their heritage and origin. Poverty alone is not a good enough reason for placing children into institutional care as most families in poverty resist that temptation.

Many children deemed to be orphans actually have a parent or relative living somewhere. Just because they have been placed in an orphanage doesn’t make them an orphan! Organisations need to think more about the child’s longer term interest and invest more in reunification programmes or in the event there is no family or they’re not suitable, then substitute families. A family is the most natural place for children and not institutions; always has been and always will be. Of course not all families are safe or good for children but it should be the first and not the last port of call when considering the best options for orphaned and abandoned children.

Often children are placed and received into institutions because it relieves the immediate problem without thinking through the implications it has for the child and organisation in the longer term. The child may well have material provision and education but many lose out on what family means and how it operates on the smaller scale leaving them without the important life model of being parented in order to learn how to be a parent. Organisations have their own problem continually raising much needed funds to sustain their work as their numbers inevitably increase.

SFAC’s focus is to promote family based care programmes in less developed countries for orphaned and abandoned children where they have the biggest problems and the least resources.

Learn more about the critical work of SFAC at: www.sfac.org.uk

Youth Aging Out of Care in Ethiopia Not Prepared

When preparing for the focus groups to begin in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Nikel Bailey and Carly Loehrke searched for individuals to work as translators. IOFA believed it was critical to have translators with social work backgrounds provide English-to-Amharic interpretation for the youth and adolescents who participated.

Mikiyas Feyissa was one such translator. He received his Bachelors of Arts degree in Business Management from Haramaya University. In the past, he has worked as the Cooperative Affairs Officer and as the Research & Communications Officer for the Organization for Women in Self Employment (WISE). Mikiyas is currently the Program Manager for Livelihood and Capacity Building at the Organization for Child Development and Transformation (CHADET) located in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

It is with this experience that we asked Mikiyas to be a guest blogger for IOFA this week. Below, he shares some insights into this vulnerable population:

With a total population of over 73.9 million, Ethiopia is the second most populous country in Africa after Nigeria. Children below the age of 18 make up fifty five percent of the population (CSA, 2007). As of 2009, it was estimated that about 5,459,139 orphans live in Ethiopia, of whom 855,720 are orphaned due to HIV/AIDS[1]. The existence of orphanages and community support in Ethiopia has been instrumental in contributing to the provision of basic services and life skills for some of these children. After the youth leave the orphanages and community support systems, they become vulnerable due to the lack of structured support in the country for youth who leave care.

I was able to discuss these issues with youth during a focus group discussion I co-facilitated for a study conducted by IOFA in Ethiopia. The opportunity helped me to realize that youth who aged out of care were endangered when they faced the cold world by themselves. Even those who are currently in care developed a fear for the time when they would age out of care. The youth even said that they will ‘beg’ if the service provided halts. The orphaned youth said that they are not yet prepared for and acquainted with the process and problems associated with aging out. They have also illustrated that they are not equipped to live independently and are uncertain of where and how they will maintain their livelihoods when they leave care, which clearly shows their vulnerability to sexual and labor exploitation.

The issue calls for a consolidated Transitions Support system in the country which would provide wholesome skills and support for youth who have just left care and for those who are about to leave care. The design of this intervention could partly include, but is not limited to: provision of a practical life skills training that will help the youth become bold enough to face the intimidating outside world, a mechanism where the youth could support each other in harsh times, a marketable vocational skills and business training for employment and self-employment, and the formation of a referral network to link youth to benefits.

Mikiyas Feyissa
Program Manager for Livelihood and Capacity Building
Organization for Child Development and Transformation (CHADET)

[1] Standard Service Delivery Guidelines, for Orphan and Vulnerable Children’s Care and Support Programs, February 2010,Federal Democratic republic of Ethiopia, Ministry of Women’s Affairs

"No One is Doing Anything"

From Nikel Bailey, IOFA Program Development Intern:

Living in Addis Kidan Guesthouse in Ethiopia has been just as much of a learning experience as working in the field. Every week new people have moved into the house. Whenever a new person moves in, we are asked the same question: “What brings you to Ethiopia?” It has surprised me that everyone is doing some sort of work with orphaned youth in Addis. However, they are often working only with small and young children. When I explain to them what I am doing here in regards to the Transitions Initiative they often respond by saying:

· “Wow…this is fantastic…we worry about what will happen to these youth as they get older.”

· “Where will they go?”

· “Who will help them when they are too old to stay at the orphanage that I volunteer at?”

This feedback encourages me to learn as much as possible about the youth transitioning into adulthood here in Addis. As IOFA visits different organizations and we ask if anyone is focusing on this group of youth, we are consistently told:

"No one is doing anything."

The organizations are eager to establish some sort of center, referral program or network for this population. This is exactly what IOFA’s Transitions Initiative intends to do.

In the upcoming weeks, IOFA will conduct focus groups with youth who have left care or are about to leave care. Several organizations have referred youth to participate. We have translators that have experience in the social work field confirmed to assist throughout the focus groups. I am excited to hear the youth’s personal stories of how life is/was like for them once they left the care of an orphanage and what would have helped them during that transition. It is critical that the voices of youth are heard and that IOFA integrates this feedback and ideas directly into development of the the Transitions Initiative.

Visit IOFA-Talk soon to hear about the experiences of young people aging out care in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

IOFA Begins Transitions Initiative Work in Ethiopia!

IOFA is proud to announce the launch of start up activities for the Transitions Initiative in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Graciously funded by the Phyllis Pehlke Fund, IOFA has placed two graduate interns (see introductions below) from the University of Chicago's School of Social Service Administration with our partner organization, Children's Heaven. Children's Heaven is a community-based support program for young girls who have been orphaned due to HIV/AIDS. From July to September, IOFA will assist Children's Heaven in the adaptation of IOFA's Project Prepare curriculum to prepare older girls in the program for their transition to adulthood and independent living. Additionally, IOFA will be conducting focus groups with young people across Addis who have aged out of institutionalized or other forms of temporary care. Similar to our assessment in Cambodia, we will gather their perspectives and experiences on emerging into a community, as a young adult, with few resources and social connections. At the end of the assessment, IOFA will determine how to pursue the Transitions Initiative in Ethiopia and will begin development of an effective and innovative support and services program for this vulnerable group.

On July 28, I led an informational meeting with 20 local non-governmental organizations working with youth in Ethiopia. The response to the Transitions Initiative was extremely positive and it is very clear that there is an extreme gap in services to youth aging out of temporary care and a high risk of exploitation and abuse as they emerge into their young adult years.

IOFA wishes to thank all the donors who gave to the Phyllis Pehlke Fund in honor of my mother-in-law. We know she would be very proud of this project and the support that IOFA will provide to vulnerable young people as they age out of temporary care and begin their transition to adulthood.

More information to come! Thanks to everyone for supporting IOFA and this critical work!

Shelby
ED

INTRODUCTIONS TO NIKEL BAILEY AND CARLY LOEHRKE
IOFA PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT INTERNS

Nikel Bailey, IOFA Program Development Intern:

Helping people and communities has always been an interest of mine. This is why I continue to work in the field of social work. Having had experience working with youth and families that have suffered from trauma and are infected/affected with HIV/AIDS, I have worked as a counselor, case manager, program coordinator and facilitator. My experiences also include program research and evaluation. Currently, I am a graduate student in The School of Social Service Administration at The University of Chicago and will be graduating with a master’s degree in March 2012.

Throughout my work experience I have always asked the question: How can I best help you? I ask this question instead of jumping to give advice because it is critical that we take time to learn the strengths and needs of the people we are serving before creating an ill-fitting solution. This is why I am excited about the Transitions Initiative in Ethiopia.

During the next couple of months, we will be conducting research and assessing the needs of youth in alternative care and youth aging out of care. Through these in person interviews we will be able to shape the Transitions Initiative according to the needs of this population in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Our findings will help us best serve these, often overlooked, youth. I look forward to the remaining time I will spend at Children’s Heaven in Ethiopia this summer gathering information and implementing this new project. I am also very thankful to be a part of this new initiative.

Carly Loehrke, IOFA Program Development Intern

Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does. -William James

Throughout the world, regardless of religion, profession, gender, or culture, I have encountered people who are agents of change in their community. Living examples of change, these community leaders’ contributions are contagious- inspiring us to strive toward being able to say, “I made a difference today.”

The first time those words authentically represented my experiences came while I was working as a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin, West Africa. While there to teach English as Foreign Language at the local secondary school, I saw that the needs of our community extended well beyond that. By two years end, I was involved in several community projects- managing the construction of a community basketball court, collaborating to improve English education curriculum, and participating in an HIV/AIDS formation bike ride. However, what truly changed the trajectory of my life was the implementation of a girls’ empowerment camp. During the camp, for the first time, not only could I see the message of purpose and meaning seeping into the fabric of our girls, but it was seeping into me, too. As trite as it made sound, a year into my service, after the conclusion of the first girls’ camp, I had a new energy about me—an energy that pushed me toward professional social work.

Soon after my time in Benin ended, I began my graduate education at the University of Chicago, School of Social Service Administration (SSA). I plan to work in International Social Work, continuing to collaborate with youth across cultures. More specifically, I intend to focus my work on addressing barriers to girls’ education.

Following our first week of introductory planning meetings here in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, I am energized to be working as an intern for the The Transitions Initiative with IOFA, a comprehensive support program for orphaned youth aging out of temporary care. The same inspiration that motivated my work in Benin is present here, too. I am honored and excited to be a member of IOFA and to be here in Addis Ababa working on the Transitions Initiative.