Ethiopia has been passing through multidimensional challenges that are made worse by manmade and natural disasters, including war, conflict, drought, and COVID-19. While the war in the North and conflicts erupting here and there had a devastating role in claiming the lives of many innocent people and hampering the nation's economy, it also displaced millions and caused damage to property and infrastructures. Severe droughts, fierce locust swarms, and the COVID-19 pandemic have threatened people's lives and livelihoods, including our sponsored children, their families, and partner church staff. These complex situations have made the meeting of basic needs an uphill battle. Many families of sponsored children were forced to live with the guilt of the inability to provide a proper livelihood for their children. Bound by this bitter reality, a mother of two shared her story that she was about to take her life so that she wouldn't see the suffering of her children.

Compassion and local churches have joined hands to be there in critical times like this. This desperate mother and thousands of others in the same situation, got immediate food support and house rent assistance before being pushed out to the streets. Thousands of the sponsored children and their families have received food packs containing at least 25 kg of cereals, five liters of cooking oil, and five kilos of sugar. Families have received support in cash when distributions of items have not been possible. Compassion has also provided food and non-food items and contributed to rehabilitating basic services like schools and clinics for war-affected communities. We have given equal priority to psychosocial needs as well.

Through material and psychosocial support, Compassion has played a significant role in keeping families of sponsored children intact, facilitating trauma healing, returning displaced families, and bringing overall market and social stabilities in communities of intervention. Receiving food support, the mother who was to take her life says, "I cried when I was told to come and collect 50 kilos of flour and cooking oil; to this day, I shudder whenever I think about the day that I almost ended my life. I thank God for helping me realize I was not alone". Individual families praise Compassion's intervention in such critical needs, as well as local, regional, and federal government agencies. The Federal Authority for Civil Society Organizations awarded Compassion a certificate for providing material and cash support for people suffering from war and drought.

We thank God that the sponsored children, are supported to pursue their holistic development program despite the critical challenges of instability and food crisis being faced on the way. Cognizant of the difficulties, Compassion has emphasized disaster response as part of the holistic child development program. Provision of relief and rehabilitation support along with reconciliation, peace, and resilience building will continue to be critical components of our holistic child development program.