IOM, with the local government authorities in Amhara, Oromia, and
Tigray National Regional States of Ethiopia, is staging a forum
theater entitled “Mutach” (The Last One). The
production is aimed at creating awareness of the negative
consequences of irregular migration in rural Ethiopia.

The staging of the show has already started in the rural
villages and will continue through mid-October. The performance, in
three local languages, Oromifa, Tigrigna and Amharic, is expected
to reach out to 50,000 community members in about 55 rural villages
in the three Regional States. It will also be staged in refugee
camps hosting Eritreans in Northern Ethiopia.

The play tells the story of a father's predicament as he
considers sending his youngest daughter to work in the Middle East.
His dilemma is based on the fact that he has been without news from
one of his daughters who was smuggled out of Ethiopia a year
earlier.

Since March this year, IOM in Ethiopia has also trained close to
500 peer educators and community conversation facilitators to
involve grassroots level activists in Amhara, Oromia and
Tigray.

“Campaign activities such as forum theaters, together with
the activities of peer educators and community dialogue
facilitators, provide much needed information to communities about
irregular migration. With adequate information, community members
can make informed decisions about migrating and may choose other,
equally viable options at home,” says IOM project coordinator
Tagel Solomon.

Irregular migration continues to be a serious concern in
Ethiopia. Many migrants still undergo perilous journeys through
different border corridors and often robbed, abused or abandoned by
smugglers. To avert this problem, IOM in Ethiopia is working with
different media platforms and community-based discussion forums to
mainstream the risks of irregular migration.

IOM is also building the capacity of government partners at
different levels, while providing alternative livelihood
opportunities to communities prone to irregular migration.

The project is supported by the US State Department’s
Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) and the Swiss
Development Cooperation (SDC).

For more information please contact

Demissew Bizuwerk

IOM Addis Ababa

Tel. +251 911 652 102

Email: "mailto:bdemissew@iom.int">bdemissew@iom.int