Dear Friend of ACN (formerly OCE),

In a time where there is so much unrest and uncertainty around the globe, it is exciting and encouraging to see monumental progress in Ethiopia regarding the care and support of orphaned children and vulnerable families in need through the work of Alliance Care Now (Formerly Orphan Care Ethiopia).

During a mid-October 2023 trip to Ethiopia, the ACN team successfully facilitated a signed agreement with the Ethiopian government pledging support for orphaned and vulnerable children of the country through ACN’s prototyped community-based volunteer services. The agreement, signed by the four ministerial agencies including the Ministry of Women and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Labor and Skills, Alliance Care Now, the agency for Civil Society and the mayor of Addis Ababa, is significant as it now lives as part of the national agenda, methods and programs dedicated to serving orphans and distressed families. An agreement among local and national governmental agencies is a difficult task to accomplish. Therefore, this is a historic occasion and we praise the Lord for his open doors and prepared hearts for collaboration.

Over the past five years, Alliance Care Now has implemented seven strategic programs in 11 different sites throughout the country including Addis Ababa, Bishoftu, Holeta, Sebeta, Butajira and Adama, offering support, training, and care for the millions of orphaned and disabled children within the society. Recently, Alliance Care Now strategically moved forward a plan to reach 14 more sites in 2024.

“The signing of this document today marks the beginning of an important partnership between ACN and our government partners,” stated ACN Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Naomi Haile. “Working together and harnessing the spirit of the local volunteers will indeed bring relief and hope to the vulnerable children of Ethiopia for generations to come.”

First to sign the document was Her Excellency, Dr. Ergogie Tesfaye, Minister of Women and Social Affairs, who championed the collaboration with ACN as a “tripartite cooperation model,” including government, civil society and local volunteer mentors, working in tandem to achieve a common goal. 

Attending as the guest of honor for the signing event was His Excellency, Dr. Seleshi Bekele, the ambassador of Ethiopia to USA, who contributed greatly to Alliance Care Now’s success in the charitable works in Ethiopia. During his remarks, Dr. Bekele stressed that the level of commitment, cooperation, and coordination the country has experienced with Alliance Care Now is extremely beneficial for the overall development of the country and should be encouraged at every turn. We are thankful for Dr. Bekele’s leadership during the recent trip to Ethiopia, and we are grateful for his continued leadership to host the 2023 ACN Christmas Gala on December 8, 2023, at the Embassy of Ethiopia.The purpose of the event is to raise funds to sustain the current 11 sites and to grow into 14 new sites for a total of 25 locations served in Ethiopia in 2024.

With this MOU, a policy will be proposed to the Ethiopian Parliament to build these volunteer run strategic programs into the nations core programs in education, health, social services and jobs. This policy will also create a demand for volunteers and we need your help to create a supply of volunteers needed to cover more grounds.

As we expand our pilot sites to six regions in 2024, we need your support to recruit, vet, train, place and monitor volunteer mentors. It takes $.50 on a dollar to mobilize volunteers for each program. 

WAYS TO GIVE:

• Visit www.AllianceCareNow.org/giving
• Click the red "Give Today" button below
• Mail a check made out to Alliance Care Now to:
  P.O. Box 8205 McLean, VA 22106

For those donating through a foundation, please continue using the name Orphan Care Ethiopia as we're in the process of updating to ACN.

With Gratitude,

Naomi S. Haile
President and CEO
Alliance Care Now