Project Mission Overview
Our vision is to renew the heart of a nation… specifically the nation of Ethiopia. From our holistic and integrated community development efforts, healthy and morally strong families, farmers, entrepreneurs, engineers, teachers, nurses, doctors, community elders, and responsible leaders will rise up to make Ethiopia a thriving nation. The scope of what we are tackling is significant. At the same time, we are strongly encouraged by the results thus far as people in communities where we serve are changing the way they think, work and come together to solve problems, face challenges and thrive. Today, in a country with a population of ninety million people, less than half are literate, and for women that number is less than one-third; it is estimated that there is one doctor for every 40,000 people in Ethiopia...but in rural villages, the ratio is more like one doctor for several hundred-thousand people. An estimated 85% of Ethiopians who live in rural villages may never see a doctor…ever. Illnesses, lack of adequate medical care and proper nutrition claim the lives of 68 out of 1,000 babies before age five. An additional 40% of Ethiopians live their entire lives with the effects of under-development as a result of malnutrition and under-nutrition as children. Millions of Ethiopians live without clean water, and children grow up without ever having tasted a glass of milk. The solution to these problems isn’t hand-outs and donations…but rather, building local capabilities so that Ethiopians can develop sustainable solutions for Ethiopians. The key to this journey is to understand and tackle the root cause. There is one root cause to all these challenges - it is poverty! We strongly believe that in order to fight poverty, we have to attack it from many different directions and then pluck it out. We cannot just educate children if the only outcome is to make them discontented with limited job opportunities. We cannot just treat symptoms of malnutrition in the clinic if we don’t improve food security and agriculture production. We cannot just teach good hygiene practices if people still need to bathe and drink from the same contaminated water supply. Ultimately, we miss the opportunity to renew the heart of the nation through God’s love if we don’t also bring the transforming knowledge of Jesus Christ to the community. In nearly four decades of Project Mercy’s operation, the past 23 years primarily focused in Ethiopia, we have learned that a community equipped with knowledge, health and character is strong enough to pluck out poverty from its midst. Project Mercy has laid a foundation through the following: * a school (K-12) that is run and funded by the organization, educating 2,400+ students; * a health science college opening in Fall 2014 that will train Ethiopians in mid-wifery and anesthesia; * a 20,000 square-foot hospital, serving a community of 70,000 people * a children's institute currently housing more than 50 orphans * a Dairy Cattle Breeding Project cross-breeding cows that produce nearly four times the daily yield of indigenous cows for local small-holder farmers (providing nutritional and financial benefits of the milk for their families with excess taken to market for sale); * a water project that provides clean water access to over 30,000 people; and * vocational and adult literacy programs that have impacted the lives of rural families. As we look to the future, Project Mercy will be a leader in holistic community development and will propagate these best practices throughout Ethiopia and beyond. We welcome opportunities to share the lessons we have learned with other organizations and regions. In every community we serve, education, health care, child care and food security will take priority. Sustainability and scale are central to the longevity of Project Mercy as we aspire to fulfill our vision to “renew the heart of a nation.” Cornerstones to this work consist of strengthening existing partnerships and building new ones; reaching deeper to engage the community with our outreach programs; and building our organization’s own capabilities around talent and systems that are required to keep pace with future challenges.