For over fifty years, the aim of the Atse Teklegiorgis Catholic School, located in a district of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia, has been to enable pupils to escape poverty through education.
The main aim of the "We'll go wherever you want" project was to renovate the school's classrooms and toilets.

A project turned upside down by a 'green zone'

"We have not been able to keep to the original plan to renovate seven classrooms: the government has told us that it needs the school land to create a green zone and that it will be demolished in June 2023... It's a great sadness and heartbreak...". Sr Tigist

Some of the funds raised were not used for the project as originally planned.

A revised and adapted project to help pupils as much as possible before the school is demolished

- The classrooms that were to be destroyed were not renovated, but the renovation funds were used to buy food for the pupils: most of the pupils come from very poor families and arrive at school without breakfast or lunch because their parents cannot afford to feed them. The economic situation is sometimes very difficult. Everything is very expensive in the shops.
"Every day, our compound is full of people begging for food, including our own students. We therefore decided to prioritise the purchase of food so that students could have a meal at school from Monday to Friday. If the food was not available, the students would not go to school and would turn to begging on the streets. Providing food is an important support for school attendance. Last year, many pupils dropped out of school because of hunger; this year, there were very few." Sr Tigist

- The medicines budget was not used and was providentially added to the food budget. 
"We thank God that none of our pupils were ill and needed medication. Instead, we were able to buy food!" Sr Tigist

- The sisters were unable to buy the new textbooks as originally planned because they were not available.
"The curriculum was changed, but the government didn't publish the new textbooks for the pupils. So we used the budget for stationery: all year long we bought A4 paper and provided copies of books for pupils and teachers, which is very expensive." Sr Tigist

- Support and tutoring classes took place. They were aimed at pupils who needed particular help, as well as pupils in Years 6 and 8, who have to sit regional and national exams in June.

Positive results and an uncertain future

The Atse Teklegiorgis Catholic School has helped the lives of many pupils in a variety of ways. In the Kechene region, there are many orphaned children who are voiceless and suffer in silence because of family problems.
The Rosalie project has had a positive impact on the lives of the pupils. The school has provided them with free food support and clean drinking water, which has contributed to better health. The mobile WiFi network, library and computer room have made it easy for pupils to do their homework.

"Mekdes is one of our pupils whose life has changed thanks to the donors. She comes from a very poor, orphaned family, and the school has provided her with free lunch, school materials, uniforms, hygiene products and, from time to time, rice and flour, which she can take home and share with her brothers and sisters back home. The teachers are very happy with her!" Sr Tigist

The situation remains complicated because the sisters have little visibility over the future of their pupils. They try to send as many as possible to the Catholic school Sainte Marie, a partner school.

"We thank God and good people like you who have supported our school over the past fifty-two years.
We are very grateful for the journey you have taken with us to support our school children.
May God reward you all with good health and peace of mind.
Keep us in your prayers during this period of painful transition,
for it is not easy for us to see our students scattered and suffering." Sr Tigist