Virtual Eritrea

Yesterday evening we ate traditional food in a local restaurant together with a woman from Norway, who is working with an aid-project to help blind people in Eritrea. The food was good and cost us just 100 birr (14 dollar) for all of us.

This morning we have been to Eritcom, the organization that helps refugees and former fighters to get a job and to come back to a normal life. Jacob Woldecristo welcomed us with open arms and told us all we wanted to know. Here comes a brief summary of what he said:
 

Almost half of the population had to leave the country as refugees during the war. 500.000 went to the neighbor country Sudan, 75 000 to the Middle East and 25 000 to Europe and North America. 100 000 have returned to Eritrea so far.

The refugees in Sudan have big difficulties to return because there is a war between Eritrea and Sudan going on.

Eritcom tries to educate the refugees so they can get a job or start a firm.
It is very difficult for the refugees from for instance Sweden because they are not skilled for jobs suitable in Eritrea. If you have a good and realistic plan for starting up some business or handicraft you can get a loan from the state at a very low rate.

 

Every Eritrean is supposed to contribute to the country's welfare with labor, money or giving things to the state.
The students after secondary school use one summer month to work with ex. road repairing or educating the grownup illiterate people. For this they get some pocket money.

All young boys do military service for 6 months and work for the common benefit for one year.

Eritrea is very damaged by the war and is not able to feed the people. 50 % of the food is imported. Just now they actually import wheat from Sweden.

The main export products are salt, fish and leather handicraft.
Every one that earn money pay tax to the state, even if you just earn 5 birr. The more you earn, the more you pay.

Our second visit for the day was to Rädda Barnen, the Swedish Save the Children. We met Gerd Sävenstedt and she told us about her work.

After the war there were 100 000 children without parents. Most of them are now taken care of by relatives. The government has given those families a little help to earn money.

Many young people are  organized to make a better life for themselves and other youth. The last project they had was to make their own radio programs. They have also started a theatre group that writes plays and performs for others. These performances are ground for discussions with the audience afterwards.

The poorest of the children in Asmara are helped by the possibility to sell newspapers twice a week. The money they can get from this makes it possible for them to go to school.
 
 In the afternoon, we took a ride with Cecilia (The women from Norway) in her car. We took the Massawa road. When you came outside Asmara the houses were much smaller and the people
looked poorer. They lived in small huts just by the road. The first part of the road was edged with big cactuses. They look like the cactuses we have in our windows, but much (much) bigger!

Then we saw a sight we never will forget. The road went snake-liked down the escarpment. The view was wonderful! With drops of hundreds of meters down in the valley with small cottages
climbing up the steep mountain sides. Because the rain period is just over, everything was green.

Trucks full with soldiers, students on bikes and other vehicles went down the steep road with full
speed...  So now we have seen some of the African nature. And we are out of words...
 
Greetings from Mats, Kerstin, Ida, Maria, Fredrik and David