Inspirational sayings

_{© Enigma Images}

“Can you afford to live on 99% of your income? If we all donated 1% of our income, the dent in our finances would be minimal, but the impact on good causes would be huge ... wealthy people may want to give even more.”
_{Lord Joffe, Chair of the (UK) Giving Campaign.}

The continual economic dependence of Africa on the “developed” world should be an international disgrace.
Africans do not want to be dependent on our charity, nor need they be.
Africa has all the resources it needs to help itself, not least human resources, with highly intelligent and hard working people.
The foundation for all development needs to be education and this is our mission at A-CET - to educate Africans and let them develop Africa.

* I have worked most of my life in Africa, and became increasing concerned at the appalling poverty and the lack of opportunities.
* I always saw how keen Africans were on education but often how difficult for them to access.
* On my retirement from Red Cross over 10 years ago I started A-CET helping a few youngsters in Northern Ethiopia.
* A-CET now helps thousands of youngsters mostly orphans, abandoned or disabled - through scholarships and also helping upgrade and build country elementary schools. We give our students easier access to better education, which gives them more opportunities, self-confidence & self-reliance.
* We work through local partners led by our ex-students at community village level - supporting them to do what they want to do.
* We are run in the UK by unpaid volunteers from my small flat - so low overheads and no professional fundraisers.
* We rely entirely on private voluntary donations, we get no government or lottery grants - this is challenging but it means we retain a certain amount of independence.
* We are caring and professional. Where we work ALL are honest and there is no corruption. We are careful with our money and account for it all well.
* There is so much big talk of ending poverty.
* We don’t talk much, but we act with the firm belief that the way to end poverty is through educating the youngsters. This should be every youngster’s right and is enshrined in so many papers over the last 80 years.
* All Africans/Ethiopians are desperate and highly motivated to be educated, but whilst education may be nominally free of “fees”, there are so many hidden costs (clothes, shoes, food, books & pens plus loss of labour to families). Also available schools are often too far from where they live. Our support aims to rectify these deficiencies.
* Please if you can help us educate them so then let them develop Africa; they know what they want far better than we do.

When available, David or our Trustees would be happy to come to talk to any group anywhere about our work. We rely entirely on your private voluntary support.

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