March 12, 2018 // Uncategorized

CRS in Ethiopia

Children pose with Bishop Rhoades on the first day of a Catholic Relief Services trip to visit its projects and programs in Ethiopia. CRS works with local Catholic churches and bishops in the country to provide humanitarian aid, assist with agricultural projects and carry out a range of social programs.

Below, Bishop Rhoades stands at St. George Church at Lalibela, Ethiopia. The Catholic Relief Services team viewed the process of food distribution to the poor in the northern city, and visited the famous rock-hewn churches from the 12th and 13th centuries, which prominently feature iconography.

A man prays at the rock church in Lalibela. Ethiopian Christians trace their religious roots to King Solomon, the Queen of Sheba and the Ark of the Covenant.

St. George Church at Lalibela, Ethiopia. The Catholic Relief Services team viewed the process of food distribution to the poor in the northern city, and visited the famous rock-hewn churches from the 12th and 13th centuries, which prominently feature iconography.

Emergency food supplies provided by CRS have saved millions of lives in Ethiopia and continue to sustain a large portion of the population. CRS also leads a local-international coalition that distributes food provided by USAID.

March 5, 2018 – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – CRS visitors and donors are greeted with a traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony at the office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The group was on hand to visit CRS projects across the country.

March 5, 2018 – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – A map on the wall of the CRS office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. For nearly 60 years, CRS has taken the lead in responding to natural and man-made disasters affecting Ethiopia’s most vulnerable communities. Moving beyond emergency response, CRS’ disaster mitigation and recovery projects in drought and flood-prone areas have rebuilt individual and community assets through non-food aid in the form of agriculture, livestock, health, nutrition, and water and sanitation assistance.

March 5, 2018 – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – CRS President and CEO Sean Callahan addresses the staff of the CRS Ethiopia office on hand to greet him, CRS board members and donors. The group visited CRS projects in several areas of the country.

March 5, 2018 – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – Zemede Zewdie, Head of Programming for CRS Ethiopia, briefs President Sean Callahan, Bishop Kevin Rhoades and visiting CRS donors on CRS operations in Ethiopia. The group visited the Missionaries of Charity in Addis Ababa, water catchment projects in the state of Tigray, and JEOP food distributions in Lalibela.

March 6, 2018 – Mekelle, Ethiopia – CRS Board member Bp. Kevin Rhoades and President and CEO Sean Callahan are briefed on CRS food operations at a CRS warehouse in Mekelle – one of 9 such warehouses CRS operates in Tigray to carry out emergency food operations in the state, which has been impacted by ongoing drought.

March 6, 2018 – Mekelle, Ethiopia – CRS Ethiopia Country Representative John Shumlansky (right) briefs CRS Board member Bp. Kevin Rhoades and President and CEO Sean Callahan on CRS food operations at a CRS warehouse in Mekelle. The group toured the warehouse, which houses more than 13,000 bags of grain provided by USAID for CRS emergency operations in the state of Tigray.

March 6, 2018 – Mekelle, Ethiopia – A CRS warehouse in Mekelle, which CRS board member Bp. Kevin Rhoades and CRS donors and staff visited on March 6, 2018. Funded by USAID/Food for Peace, the Joint Emergency Operation (JEOP) is a massive food relief operation assisting more than 2.8 million people each month in Ethiopia with food aid.

March 6, 2018 – Mekelle, Ethiopia – A CRS water catchment project site near Mekelle, Ethiopia. This check point funnels rainwater into two irrigation channels local farming families rely on to irrigate their fields. The water allows farmers to grow 3 crops per year, vastly increasing household food security and income from the sale of produce.

March 6, 2018 – Makelle, Ethiopia – Bp. Kevin Rhoades says mass at the Don Bosco center in Mekelle for CRS visitors and staff on their way back to Addis Ababa.

March 6, 2018 – Makelle, Ethiopia – Bp. Kevin Rhoades says mass at the Don Bosco center in Mekelle for CRS visitors and staff on their way back to Addis Ababa.

March 6, 2018 – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – CRS Board member Bp. Kevin Rhoades (left) and Ethiopia Country Representative John Shumlansky (right) meet with Cardinal Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel at his office in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. CRS works closely with the Catholic Church in Ethiopia to carry out a range of social programs.

March 6, 2018 – Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – CRS Board member Bp. Kevin Rhoades, CRS President and CEO Sean Callahan and CRS donors and staff pose with Cardinal Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The group visited with the Cardinal on March 6 to discuss the state of the Catholic Church and various collaborative efforts between the Church and CRS in Ethiopia.

March 8, 2018 – Lalibela, Ethiopia – A warehouse at the site of a food distribution carried out by CRS partner agency Food for the Hungry and the Organization for Rehabilitation and Development in Amhara (ORDA). The distribution was part of the Joint Emergency Operation, funded by USAID/Food for Peace, reaching 21,200 people in this community.

March 8, 2018 – Lalibela, Ethiopia – A warehouse at the site of a food distribution carried out by CRS partner agency Food for the Hungry and the Organization for Rehabilitation and Development in Amhara (ORDA). The distribution was part of the Joint Emergency Operation, funded by USAID/Food for Peace, reaching 21,200 people in this community. The site stores wheat and cooking oil provided by USAID.

March 6, 2018 – Salam Genet, Ethiopia – CRS staff and donors visit a large CRS water catchment project site in Salam Genet, Ethiopia. The site uses terraces too trap runoff rainwater and channel into a large cistern, pictured here. The water flows to taps just below this cistern and can be used for both agriculture and drinking, serving 400 families in this arid region of Tigray.

March 6, 2018 – Salam Genet, Ethiopia – CRS staff and donors visit a large CRS water catchment project site in Salam Genet, Ethiopia. Through Food for Work and Cash for Work projects, CRS employs locals to build stone terraces which trap runoff rainwater and channel it to settlement tanks and, ultimately, to this large cistern.

March 6, 2018 – Adigrat, Ethiopia – Father Abraha Hagos, the diocesan director for Adigrat Catholic Secretariat, briefs CRS staff and donors on projects supported by CRS. CRS partners with the group to implement a range of water projects in this arid region of the country’s north.

March 6, 2018 – Adigrat, Ethiopia – CRS President and CEO Sean Callahan is briefed on CRS projects implemented by partner agency the Ethiopian Catholic Church Social and Development Commission, Adigrat Branch.

March 6, 2018 – Adigrat, Ethiopia – CRS President and CEO Sean Callahan (left) and Board member Bp. Kevin Rhoades (center) meet with Bishop Medhin Tesfaselassie of the Diocese of Adigrat. CRS partners with the Ethiopian Catholic Church-Social and Development Coordination Office of Adigrat Diocese on a range of projects.

March 8, 2018 – Lalibela, Ethiopia – A warehouse at the site of a food distribution carried out by CRS partner agency Food for the Hungry and the Organization for Rehabilitation and Development in Amhara (ORDA). The distribution was part of the Joint Emergency Operation, funded by USAID/Food for Peace, reaching 21,200 people in the current emergency period in this community. At this site, 1,560 people received a monthly distribution through this distribution today.

March 8, 2018 – Lalibela, Ethiopia – A young beneficiary of the CRS Joint Emergency Operations (JEOP) project looks on as CRS staff, Board members and donors visit his family home near Lalibela, Ethiopia.

* * *

The best news. Delivered to your inbox.

Subscribe to our mailing list today.