Since 2015, the Salesian Sisters have been operating in Gubrye, in the Guraghe zone southwest of Addis Ababa, promoting education and female empowerment. Every month, over 600 children and young people (55% girls) participate in extracurricular activities such as English courses, leadership training, sports, and games. During the holidays, Summer Camps involve up to 560 participants. The center also offers sewing courses for women and manages a community center with a restaurant, bakery, and water point, which serves hundreds of people, particularly women. A leather goods workshop with local sales is also active. However, the unstable electricity supply represents a serious threat to the continuity of services. Frequent blackouts compromise educational, productive, and social activities, limiting development opportunities. Furthermore, the existing transformer was no longer adequate to support the energy load required by the center's activities, making its replacement urgent.
The main critical issues caused by the lack of electricity include:
Special supports arise to respond to urgent and specific needs that emerge in the communities we work with. These are targeted interventions—such as medical supplies, means of transport, school equipment, or support in emergency situations—that allow concrete difficulties to be addressed immediately. These special projects complement our educational and social work, ensuring timely and high-impact responses. Every extraordinary help is a gesture that brings immediate relief and strengthens the hope of those living in vulnerable conditions.
Direct beneficiaries: Approximately 2,000 people, who regularly use the services offered by the Maria Nostra Madre mission.
Indirect beneficiaries: 7,000 people
Gubrye is a town in the Gurage region, southwest of Addis Ababa, surrounded by densely populated rural villages. The area is known for agriculture, particularly the cultivation of enset (false banana), which forms the basis of the local diet. The population is distinguished by its resourcefulness and spirit of cooperation, but economic resources remain limited and poverty is widespread. Schools often lack space, teachers, and materials, which reduces children's educational opportunities. Despite the challenges, Gubrye is a vibrant social context, with strongly united communities capable of facing daily difficulties together.
With the goal of supporting basic education and vocational training, the Foundation invests in infrastructure and initiatives addressing educational challenges such as the empowerment of girls and women.
Each project is developed in collaboration with local communities and aims to promote education, personal growth, and sustainable development.
Support the mission of the Foundation
The Nuovo Fiore in Africa Foundation is recognized as a public utility organization, registered with the Federal Supervisory Authority, and all donations made are tax-deductible.
