Ethiopians "Say Yes" to their future

"Don't forget us… we are the leaders of the future."

Say Yes celebration.

Organizing the Say Yes for Children campaign in a country like Ethiopia poses a great many challenges. Conducting a nation-wide poll in a country with limited infrastructure and the majority of the population living in remote rural areas is a formidable undertaking. Most small villages lack access to telephones or other modern communication means, let alone access to the Internet.

For UNICEF staff in Addis Ababa, overcoming these challenges has proved to be an unexpected opportunity as new and creative means of taking the "Say Yes" campaign to the people have been, and continue to be, devised. UNICEF Ethiopia has taken advantage of the campaign as a social mobilization and advocacy platform to promote a variety of local issues.

The launch

Musician Sileshie Demissie, who teamed up with UNICEF.

The Say Yes for Children campaign started on June 1 in the eastern town of Dire Dawa. The campaign was officially launched by a 12-year-old schoolboy who made a strong appeal to parents and adults to put children first in every possible way. "Don't forget us," he proclaimed. "We are the leaders of the future."

The event took place in the public circle in front of the historic train station. More than 7,000 people gathered to listen to Sileshie Demissie, a popular Ethiopian singer and social and environmental activist. Demissie, together with artists from the Circus Dire Dawa and drama groups from local high schools, gave a lively performance.

Young people make their voices heard

In the weeks following the launch, UNICEF organized a series of events throughout the country in collaboration with government agencies, NGOs and local partners, including World Vision and the African Network for the Prevention of and Protection Against Child Abuse and Neglect (ANPPCAN). Poetry recitals, musical shows and theatrical performances by students and circus groups attracted large crowds.

Following the Say Yes launch, hundreds of young people took part in clean-up activities in Dire Dawa.

These events provided a unique opportunity to encourage young people to take action and speak out on issues such as HIV\AIDS prevention, female circumcision and the environment. In Dire Dawa, for example, a strong call was made to the children and young people to become more active in protecting the environment and ensuring environmental sanitation. The following day, several hundred young people took up this call by taking part in clean-up activities throughout the city.

At another Say Yes event in the city of Wolaita, a young woman living with the HIVAIDS virus told the crowd: "We are not enemies of the society, please do not abandon us." This was courageous testimony in a country where the stigma associated with the AIDS pandemic remains particularly strong.

Sophia Aytenew, a child representative, spoke on behalf of Ethiopian children on the Day of the African Child.

The Day of the African Child on 16 June was a good opportunity to reach out to children and encourage them to participate in the decision-making processes that affect their lives. This year's theme, "Child Protection Against Abuse and Exploitation," proved to be an appropriate entry point for introducing Say Yes issues to people in the capital, Addis Ababa.

Sophia Aytenew, a young UNICEF representative who attended the preparatory meetings for the Special Session on Children in Nairobi and Cairo, spoke on behalf of Ethiopian children. She invited the Ethiopian Parliament to consider the creation of a children's parliament to facilitate child participation in policy formulation and decision-making on issues concerning children.