A Dream Kept Alive

Having grown up in Lalibela Amhara State in Northern Ethiopia, Mihret, a 39-year-old mother of three, learned from an early age what it meant to make difficult choices. At just ten years old, she left home for Addis Ababa city, hoping to continue her education and build a better future. Instead, she found herself selling coffee and tea on the streets to help make ends meet. 

For Mihret, education was something she continued to reach for, even when circumstances made it difficult. After long days of work, she enrolled in evening classes and continued her studies whenever she could. As she grew older though, she became a mother and later separated from her partner, taking on the responsibility of raising her child while still trying to find a path towards a more secure future. She returned to Lalibela, leaving her daughter in the care of her family before going back to Addis Ababa. There, she continued her night-school education up to Grade 7 while training in hairdressing, gradually developing a skill that she hoped would one day help her support herself and her child. 

“There were moments I wondered if my dreams would always remain vague dreams. Every time I tried to move forward, life seemed to push me back. But I refused to let my child inherit my struggles. I wanted her to inherit my determination,” she recalls. 

A modest beginning 

After years of working and saving, Mihret returned to Lalibela and took a chance on the skill she had developed over time. She rented a small container near the town’s bus terminal, bought a few essential materials, and began offering hairdressing services. It was not much, but it gave Mihret something she had worked towards for years, an income she could earn herself and a business she could gradually build. Then conflict reached northern Ethiopia. Lalibela town was experiencing persistent tensions and sporadic clashes as part of the broader conflict in Ethiopia's Amhara region between federal government forces and non-state Fano militias. 

The war disrupted daily life, businesses closed, electricity was unavailable for months, and customers disappeared. For Mihret, whose livelihood depended on people coming to her salon, the impact was immediate. The small business she had worked so hard to establish struggled to survive. At the same time, her family was growing. With two additional younger daughters now depending on her, the responsibility of keeping her family secure became even greater. 

An opportunity to rebuild 

During this difficult period, Mihret joined the Family Strengthening and Child Development Project in Lalibela, implemented by SOS Children’s Villages in Ethiopia with the support of SOS Children’s Villages in Switzerland. The support came at a time when Mihret was trying to rebuild on several fronts. She received training in positive parenting, child protection, hygiene and sanitation, financial literacy, savings, and small business development. 

For Mihret, these were not simply lessons to complete. They offered practical ways to manage the pressures she was facing. Learning about budgeting and saving helped her think more carefully about how she used the income from her salon and how to plan for her family's needs. Business training gave her a stronger understanding of how to manage and grow what she had already started. Parenting sessions encouraged her to listen more closely to her children and involve them in decisions affecting their lives, while learning about hygiene and sanitation helped her pay greater attention to the cleanliness and safety of both her home and salon. Her children also received school supplies, helping ease some of the costs of keeping them engaged in their education, while her youngest daughter benefited from monthly nutritional support. 

“The support I received was more than equipment or training. It restored my confidence, for the first time in many years, I felt that someone believed in my potential, and that gave me the courage to believe in myself again,” she says. 

The project also built on the skills Mihret already had. Recognizing her experience in hairdressing, she received essential salon equipment, including a hooded hair dryer, different hair products, rollers, styling irons, towels, and other professional tools. Seed money helped her build a veranda just outside her salon, creating a more comfortable space for customers. With the skills, equipment and confidence to strengthen what she had already started, Mihret returned to work. 

A growing business  

Today, the small salon near the bus terminal has become a more stable source of income for Mihret and her family. She has expanded her services to include cosmetic sales and built a loyal customer base. During holidays, when demand increases, she employs another hairdresser to help meet the needs of her customers. The changes have also reached her home. Her eldest daughter, now 20, has become a skilled hairdresser herself and hopes to work abroad.  

With a more stable income, Mihret is now able to think beyond meeting her family's immediate needs. She has purchased land on the outskirts of Lalibela, where she hopes to build a permanent family home, and is also contributing towards a condominium apartment in Addis Ababa. Her next dream is to move into a larger salon, creating a more comfortable space for customers and, eventually, opportunities for others to earn an income. 

About the project 

Mihret is one of the caregivers supported through the Family Strengthening and Child Development Project in Lalibela. The first phase of the project, implemented from 2023 to 2025, supported 900 children and 450 caregivers, connecting families with support in education, health, livelihoods and child protection. 

For families living with the effects of conflict and economic hardship, these areas of support are closely connected. Mihret’s journey shows that strengthening a family does not always begin with a single solution. Sometimes it starts with helping a caregiver build on a skill she already has, giving her the tools to manage it better, and supporting the wellbeing of the children whose future depends on it. 

*To respect the person's privacy, their real name has not been used