The project, which began on 15 February, aims to promote the return of hundreds of people to villages and cities in the Tigray region in the north of the country. This is not a simple matter, first because many areas are still occupied militarily. Also, because even in free areas the conflict has left serious damage. “In most cases, the territories are still not free. But wherever possible, we want people to return to a normal life in their villages” explain the Salesians working in the area. The conflict has left the area with serious damage, "but we want people to return to a normal life in their villages explain the Salesians who work in the area.
To do this, one of the first challenges is to ensure the availability of food through improving the health and food security of families. The declaration of a famine emergency by the Ethiopian government and the authorities of the Tigray region, makes the fight against food insecurity a priority, while the vulnerability caused by the conflict and the climate crisis puts the lives of millions of people at risk.
Since the signing of a peace agreement in November 2022, the situation is slowly returning to normal, but it has left around a million people displaced and thousands of refugees in Sudan. "Many people want to return to their homes, but the reality is that most of them are destroyed, their agricultural land abandoned and they have lost all their assets" the Salesians explain.
The Salesians intend to work through the "Reconstruction and support for the return of people displaced by the conflict, especially women and girls, strengthening their resilience" project so that families who want to and can return to their homes, and communities in general, have adequate areas where they can live and have basic conditions of hygiene, health, protection and well-being. To this end, they say "we will rehabilitate homes and provide them with basic necessities for home and hygiene," explains Raquel Fuente, Coordinator of the International Cooperation area of the Spanish Salesian organisation.
Another of the project's objectives is to promote the food security of families through agricultural and livestock activities. The specific objective, in this sense, is to recover agricultural land – much of which was abandoned during and even after the war – and support people with the necessary training, seeds and tools.
"We will also work on the healing of traumas after the horrors of two years of open conflict and the losses suffered" they conclude from Misiones Salesianas. "This will increase individual resilience, but also social cohesion. Working for a culture of peace and reconciliation will be fundamental for the success of the restarting of the population and for the development of the region."
Source: Salesian Missions
