June 23, 2026
Photo: Ethiopia
The Amhara and Oromia regions of Ethiopia are prominent points of departure for irregular migration driven by high levels of poverty, unemployment, and ongoing civil conflict. Each year, countless people, youth and women especially, choose to migrate using what is known as the Eastern Route: crossing the Djibouti desert on foot and the Red Sea in unsafe boats before travelling north through Yemen toward the heavily monitored border of Saudi Arabia.
Drowning, rape, and physical abuse are common. Some manage to reach their destinations and secure employment. Their risk of exploitation and abuse remains extremely high, but they are often able to send money back home to their families. When others see this, they are encouraged to send their own children abroad, often by selling their assets and paying a trafficker to facilitate the journey.
Those who make the perilous trip are not informed of the challenges and risks, only the opportunities. And so, the cycle continues.
Two of Kinvia’s local partners — Emmanuel Development Association (EDA) and Organization for Child Development and Transformation (CHADET) — have been working together as part of the Peacebuilding, Livelihood Support, and Resettlement in Amhara project to raise awareness of the risks of irregular migration and offer people alternatives.
Sara feeding the chickens
Sara and Tsehay, both from Amhara, are two of the young women who have participated in the project.
Like so many unemployed youth in the area, Sara had lost hope and believed that migration was the only pathway to a better future. She said she “dreamt of working in Saudi Arabia because I grew up watching girls from my village migrate and support their families. I believed that was the only way I could change my life.”
Like Sara, Tsehay faced persistent unemployment, limited economic opportunities, and peer pressure to migrate. She and three of her friends were in the final stages of their plan to travel to Saudi Arabia through the dangerous route locally known as "Bokokesa" when Tsehay was identified as eligible to participate in EDA’s livelihood program.
Sara and Tsehay were offered a different choice: instead of migrating, they could enroll in basic business skills training and learn how to set up and manage a small business. Each chose poultry production to earn a stable and sustainable income.
Through CHADET, Sara received start-up funding, supplies, and targeted training on poultry management, including how to construct proper shelters for chicks, feed them, and maintain their health.
Today, Sara says she has developed confidence in her ability to sustain herself and support her family and now looks ahead to the time she can use the income she’s earning to re-invest in her business and become economically independent. She wants to be an example for other young women in her community to reconsider their decision to migrate and instead pursue income-generating opportunities at home.
This support changed my attitude and showed me that I can work, earn income, and help my family in my own country.
Tsehay, who joined the EDA program with little confidence and almost no hope for change, soon realized that the project offered more than financial benefits: it offered safety, social support, and a new perspective.
"I had never thought deeply about my future before the training. But after attending the life skills and business skills training, I started thinking critically about my life, my future, and the consequences of illegal migration. I began asking myself important questions: Why should I risk my life leaving my country? Why not work and grow where I am? What opportunities do I already have around me? The training completely changed my way of thinking,” Tsehay said.
Tsehay received a loan of 15,000 Ethiopian birr (ETB) from the Village Savings and Loans Association (VSLA) that she joined. With her newly-acquired knowledge and that capital, she started a poultry business.
Within just a few months, 11 chickens became 33, which now produce 23 eggs per day, selling for about 460 ETB.
The training, the VSLA group, and the start-up loan completely changed my life.
With a regular income, Tsehay can now contribute to household expenses and has enough to reinvest in her business. She says the VSLA’s supportive environment, where members regularly save together, share experiences, encourage one another, and jointly solve challenges, has been a big factor in her newfound hope and confidence.
"Today, I am no longer thinking about illegal migration. I am full of hope, vision, and self-confidence. I believe I can build my future here in my own community,” she said.
Neither woman knows exactly what the future will bring but today, both Sara and Tsehay see opportunities where they once saw only obstacles, and both are choosing to build their futures in the communities they call home.
The initiatives described in this article are generously funded by The Slaight Family Foundation's NGO Emergency Support Initiative. We are grateful for their support.
