A tale of two Tume's
The first Tume is a 37-year-old mother of six, currently living in a host community after the drought forced her family to leave their home.
"We used to depend on animal fat and milk. We used to be independent. And we used to help others,” she recalls. But when the drought devastated Tume's crops and caused the death of her livestock, everything changed.
"We have six children; my firstborn is deaf and disabled. We can't work and we can't farm. That is why our life is so hard. We eat once a day and sometimes we don't even get that one meal, then we sleep without eating. I feel very sad. When you don't have anything and your children are very hungry, you end up thinking negative thoughts," says Tume.
The other Tume is 10 years old and has been living in an Internally Displaced Persons (IDP) camp since the drought ravaged her family’s home and livestock too.
"Life was very good before the drought,” she remembers. “We depended on our animals. We lost all our animals and that is why we came here. Our father is sick and we don't have anyone to take care of us children."
40 years on from the famine that devastated Ethiopia, the country continues to face a range of food insecurity issues caused by weather events and ongoing conflict. Although Ethiopia has made significant progress since the famine of the 1980s, millions of people still don't know where their next meal will come from.
More than 13 million people in Ethiopia, including 4 million internally displaced people, are currently in urgent need of humanitarian food assistance, and millions of children are out of school or at risk of dropping out.
Plan International is actively helping families affected by the drought by providing cash transfers, livelihood support, and educational materials to help children return to school and complete their education.
37-year-old Tume was chosen by her community to receive assistance from Plan International, and already the support is making a difference. "My daughter, who is deaf, is supported by Plan to go to school, she received a school bag, pens and books and a torch so she can study. If it wasn't for Plan, she wouldn't be able to go to school."
"I also received household items such as buckets, jerrycans, pots, basins, blankets and dignity kits. I got four sheep and four goats and a cash transfer which I used to buy food and medicine. If it wasn't for Plan's support, we could have died. Now I have hope for the future because the goats Plan gave us are pregnant and I'm so happy because soon we'll have milk."
After arriving at the camp with only a few belongings, 10-year-old Tume could not attend school, but things have changed since Plan intervened. "I got schoolbooks and textbooks and was able to continue my studies. I also like going to the child-friendly space to meet friends and play,” she shares. “I have my hope back and I love education.”
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