When establishing Addis Jemari, we believed in order to make the biggest impact we needed to teach our #AJGirls five core values. In doing so, we could achieve our mission of educating, encouraging and empowering the girls who come through our doors and subsequently the families of Addis Ababa. UNICEF’s most current statistics report there are 4.5 million orphans in Ethiopia, with roughly two-thirds of these children becoming orphans due to the poverty many parents endure, leading them to abandon children they can’t afford to raise. Without a doubt, we knew to have the most significant impact on our girls, their future and the community one of our core values needed to be financial literacy. We assist every #AJGirl with opening up a bank account and showing her how to save money and the importance of financial security for a rainy day, which we all know will come. We also provide a set amount each month and put it in their bank accounts, which we believe will help with security and sustainability in their futures. We hope that they will take this new-found knowledge to not only improve their lives, but the lives of their community as well. What could be more empowering to the women of Ethiopia than knowing they have the financial literacy that will enable them to provide for themselves and their futures. #LoveBig#GiveBack #AJFamily
