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ActionAid Ethiopia believes that good governance enables poor and excluded people to participate effectively in the affairs of the state and exercise their citizenship roles. It works towards ensuring good governance with a view to help effect protection and fulfilment of rights and the space to negotiate and ensure mutual accountability. Inherent in governance engagement is the fight against corruption, abuse of power and misuse of public resources.
In recent years there has been significant rise in corruption among public officials and the business sector. AAE recognizes that widening the enabling space for grass root actors, CSOs and media will facilitate the fight against corruption and poor governance and ensures the realization of human right and democracy. Hence, AAE intends to engage in anti-corruption activities, budget tracking and analysis, debt cancellation, aid and aid effectiveness.
At grass-root level, participatory poverty assessment, organizing communities, working with local governments on strategic planning, participatory budgeting, local service access monitoring, and activities related to enabling space at national level are some of the areas of interest for Actionaid Ethiopia. It also gives technical and financial support to organizations working in human rights and governance issues and democratization process.
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ActionAid Ethiopia organized and mobilized the 2004 Addis Ababa University Students Campaign in collaboration with the Addis Ababa Youth Association. The campaign was great eye-opener to many of the people in Addis Abeba, Bahir Dar, Dessie and Awassa. By taking the concepts of good governance, democracy, human rights and justice down to the people particularly to those poor and excluded people, the campaigners made tremendous impact on peoples perception and attitude towards these issues. More importantly, they opened the space in which citizens and state institutions interact
Campaigners used all kinds of opportunities to meet people and facilitate discussions and dialogues. School compounds, sport places, neighbourhood coffee ceremonies, social gatherings, prisons, factories and market areas were some of spaces campaigners used to accomplish their objective of educating the people. They reached over 150,000 people of different age groups, professions, sex and ethnic origins.
In general the campaign helped to:
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Encourage people to freely discuss issues they previously considered beyond their reach.
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See the importance of solving their problems through discussions
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Foster positive relations among the community and university students
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Enhance students ability to express their views and to facilitate discussions as well as develop their leadership qualities
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Initiate and strengthen team spirit among students
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Stir a sense of voluntarism among campaigners
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Inform target groups on their rights and responsibilities
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Apply campaigners theoretical learning in real situation.
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