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Agarfa Improvement Association Meeting Report August 28 2013,

Addis ababa, Ethiopia

Conference skype call meeting with AIA executive committee at

6:30pm.
People attended: Bimrew Ambaye, Sinos Lema Partially, Abebe
Bayu, Ephrem Alemu alsp partially, Emdeshaw Tilahin and
Woinshet Mekuria.

Yesterday the executives committee of Agarfa Improvement

Association discussed about ongoing project and future projects
which will be held in 2006 Ec (2013/14).
Agenda:
The following agenda were discussed by the committee;
Reporting the accomplishment of the last year projects

 Developing of a website
Changing AIA logo,
And planning potential of future projects.
The first agenda was focused on our accomplishment also hot
to strengthen the ongoing projects. As it may or may not
known this year, 2005 E.C /2013 lots of activities have been
done by AIA.
These are:
Awarding outstanding students of different schools such
as Weyb Shenterer Elementary school, Anole Elementary
School and Agarfa High School and Preparatory School.
Tree planting project was another accomplishment. This
year 750 trees were planted on the main road of Agarfa
town on both side of the road with ten meter intervals
and around the bus station.
The other accomplishment of 2005 /2013 was organizing
art club for film industry.

The executive committee agreed on further strengthening of

existing projects empowering the theatre club by providing
needed materials including closing and other important items
for shows.
The committee also discussed that the theatre club should
start generating some income. There should be a play ready
for the New Years celebration.
The community sees the club being our representative. So
whatever they do would affect our names (AIA) so we have to
make sure the club functions well and being a good role model.
We believe the club is going to be a good way of educating
people about different things.
AIA will increase number of schooling for the award in the
coming school year.

The second agenda was developing AIA website and crate

a logo. Members and executives of Agarfa Improvement
Association raised different issue to AIA president
Woinishet Mekuria. All Members who attended the
meeting and executives came to the conclusion on
changing the current logo of AIA for new website and
forever. These executives and members raised their ideas
which they thought as an input to the new website.
Changing our logo

Woinshet is going to check with Dave or other friends and see

if there are any suggestions for our ideal Logo.
Sinos and the rest of the executive committee are also going to
check around and get back to Woinshet before Spe.5th.
We agreed the logo should express: greenness (little leaf), easy
to understand, our vision and mission also colourful and

attractiveness that is because it is going to be our forever

unique code/Identity.

Bimrew stress that; vision, objective, mission, news, feedback,

contact, photo gallery, support etc must inculcate/ included in
the new design website.
The committee asked Bimrew to create a group email so that
everyone can be always including in the mailing list.
After the meeting Bimrew mentioned that creating a group
mailing list was challenging because some of us have gmail,
yahoo or other. He added gmail will be the best to use for
everyone who want/have to be on the list. So, we kindly ask
you to contact Bimrew and get advice about this procedure.
Thank you.

Getting current info for our new Website

The committee liked the idea and suggested to include: Home

page, about us, mission, vision, contact, twitter, feedback,
Facebook, email, photo gallery, news, projects, how to
help(donation form), History of agarfa, names of executive
committee so the world would know who are on board and
responsible for AIA.

The committee also agreed that the community and the

members should forward information which helps an input to
this website.

The third agenda that AIA executives and members discussed

was the potential projects.
Here many ideas rose by the participants. The potential
projects that have been discussed were:
Sponsoring orphans or low income families
children/students (three to five children in total).

 Providing micro-finance service (lending money to

women who can start their own small businesses to
generate income to support their families).
Providing skill training by using volunteer or paid
experts (organizing a training session like making
handcrafts including making baskets, sewing machine or
urban gardening, chicken farming) for women and youth.
By working with the woreda officials in conducting
annual or semi annual sport festivals (that can be helping
organizing new sport clubs and empowering existing
sport clubs.
It can also be by providing jerseys (sweaters) for the
winners and balls to different clubs when it can.
Public library has been suggested as a long run another
potential project but (it may not be a short term plan
since is requires bigger funding).

 However, the first and the most interesting idea which

rose by our president woinishet Mekuria was sponsoring
low income families students. She said that, no need to
be billionaire to help others; the only thing that matter is
willingness of sharing what we have with those who are
disadvantaged. Ethiopians, particularly we Agarfians can
do this very proudly. If everybody contributes something
for example farmers can donate annually a small amount
of their products (Barley, wheat, corn or any other)
which can feed those kids for the whole year.
It is very possible to send children who lost their
parent/s as well as many low income families children to
school. We dont believe that there will be anyone who
would say not to this call. Giving is one of the most
rewarding things which give people a huge satisfaction.
Dont miss this opportunity. Be part of that group.

 Providing micro-finance service is other potential

project. Now days micro-finance is becoming an effective
way of helping the poor to help themselves. Therefore
AIA also consider micro-finance as a potential project in
the coming few years. Providing loan to low income
families is very essential and crucial to alleviate poverty.
The committee highly agreed that awareness creation is
the key to bring attitudinal changes to the community of
Agarfa in particular to the youth.
Now a days many people are dying from HIV and other
infectious but preventable diseases like TB) but by taking
ARV drug, there are also many people who are living a lot
longer and be there for their children and loved ones.
These diseases can be easily prevented from transferring to new
people.

It is very important that people avoid activities that can put them at
risk of getting HIV. Key steps in preventing HIV include:

o Staying educated about HIV and AIDS

o Limiting the number of sexual partners you have
o Knowing the sexual history of all new partners before engaging
in sexual activity
o

People who are already living with HIV can take antiretroviral drugs
and could live longer and healther.

Bookkeeping, Agriculture,etc. Abebe added that it is possible to

provide different training to the community by collaborating
with different stake holders such as Mada Walaabu University.
By strengthening this, Woinshet also added that might be

possible to find volunteers from abroad who can provide such

trainings to the community of Agarfa.

Finally strengthening the capacity of the film actors/ theatre

club by different mechanisms is an urgent issue which needs
an action taken immediately.

Among existing projects empowering the theatre club by

providing needed materials including closing and other
important items for shows.
The committee also discussed that the theatre club should start
generating some income. There should be a play ready for the
New Years celebration.
The community sees the club being our representative. So
whatever they do would affect our names (AIA) so we have to
make sure the club functions well and being a good role model.

We believe the club is going to be a good way of educating

people about different things.

The film actors should present a theatre to the community and

generate revenue for themselves. And also agreed that, they
have to play a great role in mobilizing the community for
development, educating the society about different current and
burning social and health issues through art.

More tree planting projects: how to take care of the trees that
are already planted; including facilitating reforestation project
replacing those trees which have been destroyed by the river
behind the town.
We have to work in close contact with the woreda officials.
We may have to hire a supervisor to overseas the trees.
Continuing giving
Budgeting

o Since our finance is low how have to be supper careful on

our budgeting system. All projects should be done at a
minimal cost as much as possible.
o That will give us a chance to do more projects at a time
with the fund we have.
o Searching for volunteers should be very important to
reduce costs and address more issue with less money.
o The committee was informed about the upcoming
fundraiser event here in Canada on September 7, 2013
and discussed what to present to the people at the event.
Woinshet will report how that may go.
Lastly but not least the members agreed on the necessity of
posting re clam at the entrance to Agarfa city coming from
Robe/Ali.

Your Agarfa Improvement Association

Reported by Abebe Bayu and Woinshet Mekuria