We will soon be supplementing our regular financial support to SWDA by providing Siiqqee with an extra pair of hands in the office. As SWDA grows in its scope and reach, it needs more than ever to be able to write strong bids for more funding and to document its work in a business-like way. It also needs to account for its activities and impact to the Ethiopian government and the charities (like LUCIA) that fund it.

To support these requirements we have arranged a student placement with SWDA, providing an English-speaking student with a strong academic background to work alongside the local staff. We look forward to introducing you soon to Kirsty Bate, a student at Coventry University, who will be flying out to Addis Ababa in September.

This as an exciting 3-way partnership:

• SWDA gains an extra member of staff, with academic expertise in aspects of international development and experience of report writing

• Kirsty will gain valuable field experience before she returns to England for the final year of her degree

• LUCIA will enjoy a strengthened relationship with SWDA, hearing news and reports back from the field, and working through Kirsty on ideas for future initiatives that we can support

LUCIA is contributing the direct costs of sending Kirsty to work for SWDA, including travel and living expenses. This is in addition to the regular financial support that we guarantee to SWDA to help finance the Women’s Self Help Groups and the Orphaned Girls Programme. We are very excited about this new development and the opportunities it will bring.