In northeastern Ethiopia, 675 returnees have received electronic vouchers worth the equivalent of US$500 per person, which they are using for livelihood improvement initiatives. Women account for 72% of beneficiaries, supporting progress in gender-responsive recovery.
UNDP is implementing an electronic voucher program for returnees who have come back to their communities after the conflict, including in Abala Woreda, Afar Region, with support from the Government of Japan's TICAD package. The returnees are using the electronic vouchers to invest in livelihood improvement activities as they rebuild local sources of income.
A total of 675 people in Afar, Amhara and Tigray regions are eligible and have received vouchers worth approximately US$500 per person in local-currency terms. Each recipient is directing the funds toward a livelihood improvement activity of their choice, supporting such activities as livestock rearing and small-scale processing. Women account for 72% of beneficiaries, and in Abala Woreda, 204 of the 230 eligible people are reportedly women.
One individual example is Mahasin Abdulqadir (マハシン・アブドゥルカディル), who joined a group shifting the family's source of income to goat rearing while raising 6 daughters. The group purchased 30 female goats and began breeding them. It plans eventually to improve the children's nutrition by selling male kids and using the goats' milk and butter. A support system for operating the digital vouchers has also been established, with NEC providing training for businesses and woreda officials.
The initiative is said to promote both the recovery of livelihoods for conflict-affected households and the revitalization of local markets, contributing to the development of sustainable livelihoods and stronger community resilience. All stakeholders are working together to build a foundation for moving beyond recovery.