Basic information
Adoption of children in Ethiopia programme
The programme works thanks to our cooperation with our partner — the Salesian centre Don Bosco Gambela, which was founded in 2002. Today it is an important educational and social centre in the region. This institution, rooted in the Salesian mission of serving young people — especially the disadvantaged — has grown over the years and become a beacon of hope for hundreds of children, young people and their families.
Why we help at Don Bosco Gambela
The children and young people who come here every day for an education live in extreme poverty; many are refugees who have fled the conflict and instability in neighbouring South Sudan. Many of the pupils cannot afford to pay school fees and school supplies, including textbooks and writing materials. Many children arrive at school hungry, which makes it hard for them to concentrate. Ensuring proper nutrition for all students and access to a quality education is one of the priorities at Don Bosco Gambela. Every child, regardless of background, deserves a chance at a better future — that is also the core mission of our partner school.
I want to get involved and help
More information about the programme.
Registration form for the Adoption of children in Ethiopia programme.
Adoption of children in Ethiopia programme
The programme works thanks to our cooperation with our partner — the Salesian centre Don Bosco Gambela, which was founded in 2002. Today it is an important educational and social centre in the region. This institution, rooted in the Salesian mission of serving young people — especially the disadvantaged — has grown over the years and become a beacon of hope for hundreds of children, young people and their families.
Why we help at Don Bosco Gambela
The children and young people who come here every day for an education live in extreme poverty; many are refugees who have fled the conflict and instability in neighbouring South Sudan. Many of the pupils cannot afford to pay school fees and school supplies, including textbooks and writing materials. Many children arrive at school hungry, which makes it hard for them to concentrate. Ensuring proper nutrition for all students and access to a quality education is one of the priorities at Don Bosco Gambela. Every child, regardless of background, deserves a chance at a better future — that is also the core mission of our partner school.
I want to get involved and help
More information about the programme.
Registration form for the Adoption of children in Ethiopia programme.
Academic education and technical training
The Don Bosco Gambela school offers academic education and technical training, ensuring that young people receive a well-rounded education that prepares them for life.
Combined primary and secondary school
The school has 11 grades, attended by roughly 845 pupils and students. They come from a range of backgrounds, including many from poor families and refugee communities. The school follows the national curriculum while also integrating Salesian values, ensuring that students receive not only an intellectual education but also moral guidance.
Vocational secondary school
The vocational school prepares its students for specific professions such as welding, IT, plumbing, mobile-device maintenance, car mechanics, agriculture, poultry farming and hairdressing. In addition, the school also offers short-term courses. These programmes aim to equip young people with practical skills, increasing their chances of finding employment or starting small businesses.
WHO ARE THE PUPILS AND STUDENTS AT DON BOSCO GAMBELA?
The children and young people the school educates are among the most vulnerable in the region. Many come from families living in extreme poverty, while others are refugees who have fled the conflict and instability in neighbouring South Sudan. Despite these challenges, the students of Don Bosco Gambela show remarkable resilience and a strong desire to learn and improve their lives.
In addition to the lessons themselves, the school provides — in support of their education:
▸ school supplies for those who cannot afford them
▸ tuition-fee waivers for students who cannot afford them
▸ counselling and mentoring, so that students can cope with trauma and build their self-confidence
The aim is not only to educate the mind, but also to form the heart — to shape young people who are responsible, compassionate and ready to make a positive contribution to their communities.
CHALLENGES THE SCHOOL FACES
The Salesian school in Gambela faces challenges that are closely tied to the problems of the wider region in western Ethiopia.
Limited resources: Many pupils and students do not have basic school materials such as books, pens and uniforms. The school itself needs constant support for teaching aids, didactic resources and technology.
Poverty and hunger: Some students arrive at school on an empty stomach, which makes it hard for them to concentrate. Ensuring proper nutrition is a constant struggle.
Access to quality education: Gambela is one of the regions with a shortage of qualified teachers, overcrowded classrooms and limited resources.
Support for refugee children: A significant share of the students are refugees whose education has often been disrupted by conflict and subsequent displacement. The Don Bosco Gambela school tries to offer them stability and hope through basic and vocational education that will help them make their way in life.
Despite all the obstacles, the Salesian school in Gambela believes in — and works to fulfil — the mission that every child, regardless of background, should have the opportunity for an education and a better future.
The regular-support programme Adoption of children in Ethiopia helps the school and specific children from poor backgrounds on their journey to an education.
The Child Adoption programme in Ethiopia focuses on providing education to the most vulnerable children and young people at Don Bosco Gambela, regardless of their origin or social background. Our main mission is to support pupils and students whose families cannot afford to pay school fees or provide school supplies. At the same time, we work to improve the equipment of the classrooms with new desks, books and teaching aids.
Fill in the form in the Adopt a Child section and we will promptly send you a Pledge and further instructions by e-mail. The Pledge is concluded for at least one year, so that we can plan resources for Don Bosco Gambela more accurately. On the basis of the Pledge we will assign you a child and send you a photo of the child together with information about them.
The regular monthly contribution for one adopted child is EUR 25. This amount represents part of the monthly cost of school fees, school supplies and school meals for one pupil/student at Don Bosco Gambela. The contribution can be sent monthly, quarterly, half-yearly or annually. We are not able to combine partial contributions from different donors on our side. Groups or communities that are interested can agree on the adoption among themselves and contribute under a single name. If you like the Child Adoption programme in Ethiopia but cannot afford to contribute EUR 25 each month, you can support our work with a one-off gift or with a smaller regular gift. Every gift helps!
We renew the Pledge automatically when we cannot reach the donor by phone, post or e-mail and the donor’s contributions continue to arrive regularly on our account each month. We inform the donor about the renewal and they may cancel the Pledge at any time.
You can also make a Pledge to support a child in the Child Adoption programme in Ethiopia by phone. A SAVIO o. z. staff member will call you before the Pledge expires and you can arrange a renewal. The shortest possible renewal is for 1 year. After the renewal you will automatically receive an e-mail confirmation that it took place on the basis of the call. The e-mail will also contain the following information: the Pledge expiry date, the contribution amount, the IBAN and the variable symbol.
SAVIO o. z. reserves the right to cancel the Pledge if contributions for the adopted child stop arriving from the donor and the donor cannot be contacted. We will cancel such Pledges according to the schedule below and we will notify the donor by e-mail and post.
- 6-month grace period for regular monthly contributions
- 1-year grace period for regular quarterly and half-yearly contributions
- 1.5-year grace period for regular annual contributions
The financial contributions do not go directly to the child you support. The funds are sent once a year to the account of our partner, Don Bosco Gambela in the city of Gambela in Ethiopia, which then covers the costs of the pupils’ and students’ studies.
Don Bosco Gambela pays the school fees and school supplies for each child enrolled in the adoption programme. Your contribution is also used to buy the school supplies needed for lessons, the school uniform and to cover any school fees. We keep in regular contact with our partner at Don Bosco Gambela and we also monitor how the funds entrusted to them are used.
We use 15 % of the donors’ contributions to cover costs associated with running the Child Adoption programme in Ethiopia. This means that of the EUR 25 that arrives in our account, we use EUR 3.75 for communication with our partner organization, gathering information about the child, bank fees on money transfers, donor communication (sending letters, e-newsletters, photos), acquiring new contributors, accounting and updating the website. The remaining EUR 21.25 is sent to the account of our partner Don Bosco Gambela in Ethiopia.
We greatly appreciate your support and we respect any decision to end it on your part. However, in view of the issues that arise when a donor withdraws from a Pledge, we also expect a degree of loyalty from the donor. If a donor decides to end their support, they need to let us know at least one month in advance so that we can arrange a replacement donor.
You can adopt a child at any time of year. The minimum length of support for a child is one year, so that we can plan resources for Don Bosco Gambela more accurately. You can start supporting the child once the Pledge has been delivered and the child has been assigned to you.
We update the lists of children twice a year. Sometimes the child assigned to you leaves the school, moves with their family to a different location, completes their schooling, or — sadly — dies. We inform donors about the situation and offer them the option to adopt another child.
If the situation described in point 12 arises, the money you contributed for the child who can no longer be supported through our system will be credited to your new child.
By making the Pledge you give us consent to use your contact details to communicate with you about the Child Adoption programme and our other activities by an electronic newsletter. We will communicate with you about the Pledge, its renewal, changes of child and correspondence with the children. Each quarter we will send you Reports from the Salesian Missions by post.
Under normal circumstances the child writes a letter once a year, and at the same time we send you their school report together with a current photograph. Once a year we invite donors to write letters to the children, which are sent to Don Bosco Gambela together in electronic form. You can send a letter or a postcard by e-mail in English, and please use printed (not cursive) handwriting.
We do not send material gifts to the children, as it can cause jealousy and disagreements among the others.
We are not in a position to arrange donor trips to Don Bosco Gambela in Ethiopia. Visits to the children could also cause jealousy and disagreements among the others.
The school year in Ethiopia starts in September and ends in July. Children start school at the age of 7. Compulsory schooling lasts 6 years. Primary school is divided into a first cycle, covering grades 1 to 4, and a second cycle, covering grades 5 to 8. Secondary school is likewise divided into a lower secondary school, made up of grades 9 and 10, and an upper secondary school, made up of grades 11 and 12. After completion, students can go on to a vocational school or to university.