Project in Rural Ethiopia Will Build Income, Nutrition for 19,000 Families

Glimmer is launching a new project with support from The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to reduce poverty and improve long-term wellbeing for a community of 19,000 families in rural Ethiopia. The project will support income growth, food security and better opportunities for women and girls in Oda Bultum, Oromia.

Glimmer’s integrated approach will build family income through loans and trainings, and address the essential needs of clean water, nutrition, health care and education. “We are so grateful to work in collaboration with Helmsley and the people of Oromia,” said Donna Berber, Glimmer founder and CEO. “Together, we will strengthen the entire community and relieve the incredible burden of poverty.”

Oda Bultum is an extremely poor community where families face long-term food shortages and a lack of resources. Families do not have access to the basic life necessity of clean water, and local health centers and schools are overcrowded and under-resourced.

The $8 million award will fund the first three years of the project and build on Helmsley’s first grant to Glimmer in 2018 for a project in the Amhara region. “We are honored that Helmsley deeply believes in our model and our shared vision for Ethiopia,” said Berber. “With the support of Helmsley, Glimmer is expanding to touch the lives of 95,000 people in Oda Bultum—an incredible opportunity for us and, most importantly, the people of Ethiopia.”

“Glimmer shares Helmsley’s approach of breaking the cycle of poverty through holistic, community-led solutions. We’re continuing our partnership to address multiple challenges that prevent families in rural Ethiopia from thriving, and to build lasting impact in the region,” said Walter Panzirer, Trustee of the Helmsley Charitable Trust.

The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust aspires to improve lives by supporting exceptional efforts in the U.S. and around the world in health and select place-based initiatives. Since beginning its active grantmaking in 2008, Helmsley has committed more than $2 billion for a wide range of charitable purposes. Helmsley’s Vulnerable Children in Sub-Saharan Africa Program is dedicated to ensuring the overall health and well-being of children by ensuring the health of their parents and by strengthening community resilience. For more information, visit www.helmsleytrust.org.