Case Stories
“We empower communities to lead their own change”
Case Stories
Acure’s Journey to Stability and Hope
Bede, one of eighteen kebeles in Moyale Woreda of Borena Zone, Oromia Region, lies 746 kilometers south of Addis Ababa. Home to 682 households and over 8,200 people, life here has always followed the rhythm of the rains—Ganna and Hagayyaa. When they came, cattle thrived, milk flowed, and families prospered. But climate change broke that rhythm. Seasons failed, drought gripped the land, and hunger became a constant visitor.
For Acure Luke Malicha, a mother of seven, the drought of 2021 was devastating. “I lost 36 cattle and was left with only two heifers and six goats,” she recalls. Food shortages forced her family to eat once a day, children dropped out of school, and desperation led them to produce charcoal—just to survive.
In 2023, APCfC, with CST Ethiopia/Trõcaire, launched a five-year project: “Building Resilience, Empowerment, and Sustainable Economic Wellbeing for Vulnerable Communities.” When Acure joined a Women’s Self-Help Group (WSHG), everything changed. She began saving 20 birr weekly, received training in financial literacy and goat fattening, and accessed her first loan of 15,000 birr. With it, she bought goats, fattened them, and earned a profit of 11,300 birr. Soon, she expanded into poultry and petty trade, reinvesting profits to open two shops—one managed by her son near Moyale Customs.
Today, Acure raises 31 chickens, runs two thriving shops, and supports her children’s education, including one studying in Shashemene. “Training gave me courage. Knowledge is more important than donations,” she says proudly. Her husband, once skeptical, now shares the workload: “Our life is joyful and stable now.”
Acure’s story is echoed by hundreds of women in Moyale and Dire Districts. Since 2023, APCfC has supported over 1,552 women and girls, disbursing more than 7.9 million birr in loans. Women have entered value chains in shoat production, poultry, and trade—turning resilience into reality.
For Acure, hope didn’t come with the rain. It came with knowledge, opportunity, and determination. Today, she dreams bigger: “I want to buy more goats and move to intensive production.” Her journey proves that when women lead, families thrive—and communities transform.
PEACE BUILDING
Case Stories
…The participation of women groups in the project created a marvelous opportunity for women such as Sadia Taro in Dillo to grasp basic knowledge about women’s contribution to a culture of peace, gender equality, community engagement, and how to influence change in our community…
Wako Kanchora, is 70 years old Borana elder who currently lives in Dillo town on the Ethiopian side of the border say: “Historically the relationship of the Borana of Ethiopia and the Gabra of Kenya has been characterized both by relative peace and dispute. Looking back to the historical causes of conflicts among Borana and Gabra, in the past, both communities have gone to war due to competition over natural resources such as pasture and water; over disputes among individuals from both groups triggering attacks and revenge attacks; livestock raiding; and killing for fame (to be considered as hero by fellow community members-particularly by women)”.
According to residents of both Dambala Saden and Tula Wayyu residents, the efforts to bring sustainable peace to their villages by community elders and local government officials usually end up in temporary solutions without addressing root causes of conflicts.
A local conflict resolution and peace building intervention started in 2014 by the Oromia Pastoralist Association (OPA) through the financial and technical support from CAFOD, SCIAF, and Trocãire (CST)-Ethiopia Joint Office and GIZ-CPS has created an opportunity for the various traditionally rivalry community groups to come together under joint peace committees (representing key traditional leaders, youth and women from both sides), which have consequently forged dialogue among the community members.
…Jile, on her return home discussed about the Women’s appeal from the three clans and their idea of joining hands to stop the frequent clan disputes affecting their lives and livelihoods with her husband, Dambala Sarite. Damballa who is already also tired of the situation has fully accepted her and that of the other women’s move to mobilize themselves to bring peace to their villages promising to do his part to persuade other village elders to support the women’s efforts. A week late, around 64 women from the three clans gathered in March 2015 at a Guji locality. The news of this gathering of women from the three clans spread like a wildfire throughout the villages and communities living in Dambala Saden and Tula Wayyu are surprised by the news they have heard of women from the traditionally conflicting groups coming together to talk about peace while expected the other way round…
Women & girls empowerment
Case Stories
Empowering Women Through Literacy:
“…Among them was Tume, a 45-year-old woman from a family of ten. “No girl in my family ever went to school,” she says. “Like most girls in our area, I grew up without formal education. My parents couldn’t afford to send me to schools that were far from our village.”
Tume’s realization of the importance of education came later in life, after she got married and tried to run a small business. “Living without education made everything harder,” she explains. “I had to rely on others just to search for a name on my phone, record my sales, or count money. I never imagined I’d get the chance to learn how to read and write at my age…”
Journey to Empowerment
“…When explaining her role in the social interactions in her locality, Kure expresses, “I have never participated in any major gathering that involved public engagements and groups as such a role was for my husband. I have heard both in our Kebele and in those surrounding Kebeles that some women organize themselves in groups to improve their lives. However, I could not get that chance even if I wanted to because of the change in my behavior since 2020 as I become an alcohol addict and excluded from such opportunities…”
Empowerment in action:
“…According to Handhura, the cash she earned through her small businesses have not only improved her income and cover some basic family needs such as food, clothing and health-care, previously covered by her partner, but also earned her the respect she was looking for from Malicha, who gradually started to consult with her on important family matters before making key decisions.
In Handhura’s words:
“My increased ability to bring in more cash to my family created a conducive environment to develop a culture of discussion and better decision-making over the income with my partner, Malicha. Unlike past experiences when such decisions were up to him, it has changed now and both of us openly discuss on issues related to income and expenditure as well as other family related matters.”
Journey to Empowerment
“…Dhaki Kanchoro is one of the project target women who never learned how to read or write as she never had the chance to go to school. She spent her childhood helping her mother at home, until the age of 16, when she was married off to her husband Kanchoro. Today, Dhaki is a 27-year-old mother of three. Currently she is one of the 91 women who are receiving FAL through the project. As someone who never went to school, Dhaki treasures the opportunity to learn through the programme and to pass on to others what she has learned. “The nice thing about being part of the programme is that I am not the only one who learns, but my family learn too….”
LIVELIHOODS
Case Stories
Protecting the environment, revitalizing livelihoods:
“...Both Dima and Lula are very certain that the rangeland rehabilitation activity
initiated by APCfC and kick-started by the full participation of their community will have a long-term impact and is only the beginning as the interest and willingness of the community is behind this initiative. Dima and Lula expect that after full recovery of the delineated and fenced land and proactive protection and management by their community-based natural resource management committee, fodder production will be the next plan of action to ensure that their livestock production system will be sustained even during drought situations.
“Empowering Women, transforming families”
“…As members, they began holding weekly meetings and saving 15 Birr each. With the project’s support, they received training in self-help group management and savings.
Soon, the project encouraged members to explore small business opportunities. Galmo chose the shoat (sheep and goat) trade. “The training provided by the project was invaluable,” she says. “I learned so much about the production and marketing of shoat trading and petty trade…”
Breaking Barriers: Loko Liban’s Journey from Silence to Strength
Loko’s story began with a simple idea—saving just 5 ETB per week with her group. What seemed small at first grew into something remarkable. Over time, their collective savings, combined with project contributions and interest, reached an impressive 142,650 ETB. This financial foundation opened doors for Loko to transform her life through strategic borrowing and entrepreneurship.
disaster response
Case Stories
Beyond saving lives:
“... According to Wario, he had experienced several moments in his life that gave him a tough time. The moment he and his family had experienced in the last two years, however, had brought him to the brink of separation of his family to survive the situation which was the worst life experience for him and his family to go through hadn’t been for assistance offered by APCfC and DCA that allowed him not only to stop the separation of his family, but also gave him a hope for recovery…”
“From Desperation to Inspiration”:
“…Dabo Galgalo, secretary of the “Kayoo Omoree” Self-Help Group says, “The prolonged drought that hit our area among other things had left the community with an acute water shortage. The situation was more difficult for women like me and for children who had to walk long distances to fetch water, which was not only time-consuming but also physically exhausting. …”
“Building hope and resilience”:
“…Kura is a founding member of Garee Jallisii Kaadhim, a community-based group formed in 2020 by 20 members (12 women and 8 men). Initially focused on small-scale agriculture using irrigation ponds, the group had to suspend its activities due to the drought. Still, they remained active in supporting their neighbors. “Even when we had little, we helped rebuild homes and shared food and money with families who lost everything—including my own,” Kura recalls. …”
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