1.     Introduction

This is the first quarterly report for ACFA project, implemented by HAPS Ethiopia / please browse www.an-group.org/x_haps.htm for general background /.

2.     Delay in Securing Approval of Government for ACFA Project  

The proposal for ACFA project had been submitted on December 6, 2004 to the government for its approval. However, the approval delayed until July 24, 2006 for the following reason.

a.      To fulfill the requirements of several government agencies to sign the agreement took long time.

b.      A clinic with shelter to conduct spay neuter activity is not available in the project area. HAPS is forced to have its own clinic with shelter for it’s spay neuter program in order to secure the agreement and these prolonged the process of signing the final agreement with the government.

c.      The financial implication of the delay in the project is discussed under paragraph six. 

3.  Project agreement with the Government

HAPS have signed a formal project agreement with the government to implement ACFA project on July 24, 2006.  This Animal welfare agreement with the government is the first of its kind and is a big achievement to HAPS, its donors, the community and the country at large.  

4. Purpose of the project  

The purpose of the project, as the dog shooting and poisoning has not been a solution for population and disease control though it has been implemented for the past several years; is to replace these cruel and relatively expensive methods with a humane and effective ones which is Animal Birth Control /ABC/ through Trap Neuter Release /TNR/ and provision of vaccination method awareness creation about animal welfare and pet handling is also among the main activities to be carried out in order to achieve its objectives. 

Under this general purpose the specific Objective of ACFA Project are the following;

            §         To carry out vaccination and sterilization program to a total of 600 homeless dogs. 

§         To carry out adoption of 100 homeless puppies.

§         To carry out emergency medical care for about 100 homeless dogs.

§         To provide 300 leads and chains to encourage dog owners to confine their dogs and keep them safe and out of trouble.

§         To promote awareness among the community for animal welfare, dog raising and promotion for dog adoption by distributing educational information and by giving advisory services to the community through the media. 

§         Negotiating with the local councils and the local community about proper solutions for disposing of left over from hotels, hospitals, markets and residential areas, which may be the center of attraction for stray dogs. 

§       To recruit 30 (from ages 15-18) and 400 volunteer school children, to be educators in their communities and schools about animal welfare and as part of information campaign respectively. 

§        To carry out awareness rising in the community in which 100,000 people would have benefited from the program.  

§         To provide on line counseling services for around 792 pet owners. 

§        To carry out base line survey of the pilot area with regard to the situation of homeless  dogs and the amount of the population in the project area. 

5. Activities carried out 

Awareness creation by on line and direct counseling by contacting in person 173 people who seek information about what to do with their pets when they get sick and about the stray dogs they came across in their neighborhood. They were also been given advises to take their pets to their nearby animal clinic for further treatment while HAPS handled the cases of stray dogs.  

Awareness raising is also been carried out to the general public in areas and occasions where many people found such as bus stations, squares and when trapping dogs by using HAPS educational advertisement car. This is done for about 24,850 people in the project area.   

Utilization of mass Medias is also one of the broad ways that the society used to disseminate its information through out the country. It has also helped to reach as much people as possible at once. HAPS did all its best the medias to come and see all the practical activities for them to be able to give a live image through their news.  

Distribution of educational leaflets and fixing signboards is also among the efforts made to inform the community and government about animal issues.   

A total of 133 dogs saved by HAPS out of this 74 dogs were spayed, neutered and vaccinated

	57 Adopted
	2  Euthanized, due to an irrecoverable sickness and sever car accident.
	2  puppies and 2 adult dogs found in the shelter at the moment
	70  Released to the area where they were caught

All the necessary documents are also submitted to donors inside and outside of the country for their general information about the current activities and achievements of our society and also to get support for the successfulness of ACFA project.     

Besides, due to our strong effort to show the importance of this project, the society managed to get attention by the US Embassy in Ethiopia and the official group from the Embassy has also visited spay neuter activities and discussed with the society’s management about the achievements and problems faced by taking a wider time, and finally promised to stand beside us for the successfulness of this project by arranging fund raising event and by organizing the staffs to help our project in any ways possible.

6. Problems encountered  

a.      Financial implication of the delay including formal agreement. 

The Ethiopian government demanded NGO’s to conclude a formal agreement with concerned governmental agencies before carrying a program activity. Having a license by itself is not sufficient to carry program and activities mentioned in the incorporation document of the organization. Before securing a formal agreement, concerned agencies certify the fulfillment of several requirements.  

HAPS to secure a formal agreement to ACFA project have to prepare a clinic with shelter /which is not available in private veterinary clinics/ by its own. This forced HAPS to use other project funds in order to commence the long awaited ACFA project. This unforeseen cost has reduced the project fund earmarked for ACFA project.  

b.    The project has faced a shortage of fund to carry out educational activities which are very important to implement the project. 

c.     For the general activities of HAPS including ACFA project we are facing constraints in administrative budget.  

d.      Increasing in project cost 

The first proposal submitted to the government which was the bases for our donors had a project cost of Eth. Birr 163,700.00. However, in the process of review by the government the project cost finally raised to Eth. Birr 299,664.78 because of the inclusion of some related important things for the practical implementation of the project.

e.     Delay in securing timely response from donors in and out side of the country even though the necessary update documents and great achievements were presented to them after the agreement. This also retarded the day to day activity of the society. 

7.     Conclusion  

To conclude if the problems faced the project get solved we believe with continuing effort of HAPS and its donors, this project which has an all round importance for the animals, community and the country as a whole will fulfill its objective of animal welfare. 

Signed 

Hana Kifle
Project Manager

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