Awra Amba is all about social innovation and creativity. Today we can say that we are a relatively prosperous community, but the road that brought us here was long and full of obstacles.
We have established a new work culture. In Awra Amba, community members pay more attention to cooperative activities than to their personal benefits.
We have a culture of hard work. We work day and night by doing different jobs, helping each other in a peaceful and cooperative way.
A long journey to economic justice
Until we returned to Awra Amba from exile, our lives were based on agriculture. However, due to the scarcity of land, we soon discovered that it was not possible to make a living from agriculture.
To solve this problem, we turned to traditional weaving. This was done with the simplest and most traditional loom. It produced 60-70 cm wide garments with only one pattern. But even this work was not profitable to support the life of the community. As a result, we could not feed ourselves.
The other activity we tried to do to earn money was pottery and repairing things made of iron. But these activities were not profitable because we could not find materials for repairing and suitable clay for making pots, dishes, etc. So we had to stop doing those kinds of work.
In this way, we tried our best to find means of income by doing other kinds of work even though we didn’t know how to do them. But the income we got was not satisfactory. We understood that it could never be even close to what we needed. As a result, the economic problems became worse.
We were not trained for modern technical professions and we did not have enough money to cover the costs of training to learn such professions. Therefore, we realized that we needed help from some benefactor.
Training, training, training
In 2002, the Small Scale Enterprise Agency sponsored us to train some of our members in better weaving and spinning techniques.
This training enabled us to make different patterns of garments with a width of 85-95 cm. It was a big step forward compared to the traditional weaving technique we used before.
During the training, Zumra Nuru carefully examined the looms used in the classes and later replicated them using locally available materials.
After the training, Zumra motivated the community members to continue weaving by providing them with his handmade looms.
After that the training was completed, Zumra motivated the community members to continue weaving by providing them his manually made looms.
Then the trained community members trained other members so that most of our members could benefit from this better weaving technique. Eventually, we were able to produce different types of garments such as shirts, blankets, scarves, bedspreads, pants, etc. As a result, the income of the cooperative increased to some extent.
In 2005, Action Aid sponsored us to train some of our members in another improved weaving technique to produce garments up to 1.8 meters wide. Our income took another leap forward.
So, step by step, mistake by mistake, lesson by lesson, we have been able to grow and start all the activities and facilities that you can find in the Awra Amba community today.
Equality for women
The community has abolished all traditional harmful practices, such as the notion of male and female work roles. In the community, the division of labor is not based on gender, but on personal ability. All kinds of work belong to both women and men.
The tasks that men cannot share with women are pregnancy, childbirth and lactation, which are acquired by nature. Both men and women participate equally in household chores and outside work, according to their abilities. Men bake injera and cook wat (local food), fetch water, nurse children, and perform all activities traditionally reserved for women.
Women do farming, weaving, and other activities traditionally reserved for men. Doing tasks regardless of gender encourages independence. Women are able to work independently of men; men are able to work independently of women.
As a result, tasks are completed and not left undone when dependent on a particular gender role. Equality in Awra Amba is manifested not only in the areas of work, but also in the management of assets, decision making, and participation in committees.
Fostering innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship
We pay great attention to innovation and creativity. Through the cooperative, our trading company, the microfinance bank, many initiatives and training opportunities, the Awra Amba community encourages, supports and finances entrepreneurship.
Tips from Zumra to our students and community members:
«Creative people practice and improve what they have learned. They became smart engineers, doctors, professors, artists, whatever… all by practicing and innovating.
So, if you can show us your innovations, then the time you spent on your Ph.D. will make sense. But if you don’t have any innovation to show us, what’s the point of your education?
And as for the future, once you graduate, it is not sustainable to put all your eggs in one basket. What do I mean by that? I mean that it is not sustainable to expect employment only from the government after school.
Can the government employ the entire population? If your answer is yes, and all the government offices are full, what will be your future? And if the government employs all the people, who will produce bread
Therefore, in your studies and daily activities, you should also focus on practical things and improve your creativity. As a result, you will become independent. If the government wants to employ you, fine, it will employ you. If it does not employ you, you can create your career through innovation.
In this way, after your education, you will have the means to support yourself, to help your parents, and to build a career that will benefit other people. You will also be able to help your country through your own creativity and entrepreneurship.
So in your studies, you should always pursue your own innovation and use it for your career. If you do not make your own innovation and only read about the works of those who are creative and enterprising, you will have no value.
It will also be a good thing if, in your spare time, you form some kind of cooperative in which a large number of people can generate a lot of different ideas. These ideas can help you support and encourage creativity in your community.
And remember…when you try to create new things, your children will be watching you. So they will do their best to practice what they have observed.
You may or may not create new things from your efforts. But this leads to your children creating new things. In this way, you can lead your children where they need to go.»
