Selam! Your Winter 2026 Update

Read all the latest news from our project partners in Ethiopia and see the incredible impact your support has made in the past six months.

Inside this edition:

• Global Update: Needless deaths from USAID Freeze
• Uddo's Journey
• In memory of the man who revolutionized philanthropy

 

Read a message from the CEO below

As we venture into 2026, I want to thank you for standing with Ethiopia through what has been a year of both progress and challenge.

Across the country, we’ve seen incredible resilience in the face of uncertainty. As you’ll read in the news recap on the following page, Ethiopia is navigating a complex landscape, from renewed tensions in Tigray, to ongoing food insecurity, to the devastating effects of the USAID funding freeze.

Yet amid these difficulties – and with your continued support – our partners continue to deliver life-changing work. Thank you for standing with them and giving with such heart and compassion.

The final months of last year were especially busy. I travelled to Ethiopia to monitor and evaluate the local projects you support, and I also met with our Ethiopiaid offices in the UK and Canada. I often speak of us as “Ethiopiaid Canada” but, really, we’re a global organization, with branches in four different

countries – all coming together with a shared vision to help the most vulnerableand end poverty in what is still one of the poorest countries on Earth.

As our late UK founder Sir Alec Reed once said, “You can’t do a thing about the length of your life, but you can do things about the width. I’ve definitely doubled the width of my life through philanthropy.”

With the compassion you show for women, girls and communities in Ethiopia, I can safely say that the width of your life must be doubled too. I hope you enjoy these updates.

 

Sharon Elliott
CEO
Ethiopiaid Canada