Dear friends and supporters of the Eritrean Development Foundation:

Thanks to your generosity, the Eritrean Development Foundation (EDF) was able to send US$151,000 in cash to Eritrea for emergency food relief this year. The funds allowed for the purchase of 357 tons of a locally produced food supplement for Eritrean children, expecting mothers and lactating mothers. Eighty-five percent of the money was raised as part of EDF�s May 22, 2003 Benefit Dinner. During the same period, EDF has sent nearly $1.5 million of material aid in the form of medicine for drought affected women and children and books for elementary, middle and high school students.

The extremely limited resources we had to do our part in helping to address Eritrea�s emergency food situation have now been depleted. There is little left to deal with future needs and far greater resources will be required this year due to a worsening humanitarian situation.

Here are a few sobering facts:

• An estimated 1.7 million people (out of 3.5 million total population) are unlikely to be able to feed themselves in Eritrea in 2004, and will face a humanitarian catastrophe unless they receive assistance.
   

• Only 57% of the humanitarian food assistance requested by Eritrea in 2003 has been committed.
   

• Eritrea�s crop production this year is less than 35% of its national food need.
   

• Eritrean children remain at high developmental risk due to increasing levels of malnutrition, particularly children under age 5.
   

• Eritrean children walk 3-5 hours each day in search of drinking water.

As the Holiday season is approaching, please remember the less fortunate people in Eritrea and make a generous donation to help alleviate their suffering. We, at the Eritrean Development Foundation, are confident that EDF will meet the challenges that lie ahead on Eritrea�s path to recovery because of the many caring individuals that support our work.

Please make your tax-deductible donation online at www.edfonline.org or send your check or money order to:
Eritrean Development Foundation
1012 14th Street, NW
Suite 1030
Washington, DC 20005

USDA Donates Wheat to Eritrea

USDA will donate 32,610 metric tons of wheat to the government of Eritrea. The government of Eritrea will sell the wheat and use the proceeds to promote agricultural development and create rural employment. The projects funded will benefit about 16,000 households and will include implementation of an integrated farm program, expansion and development of community dairies, and introduction of small-scale irrigation practices. The donation will be made under USDA's Food for Progress program, administered by the Foreign Agricultural Service. The supply period for this donation is fiscal year 2003.

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ALL EYE ON ME
By: Tekle Gebrehiwet
6/30/2003 7:31:00 AM
To take all the precious gift
The precious in all its measurement in my belly
Enemies planned me to be theirs
Bomb fired on an innocent people
Some villages completely burned, destroyed
But, do you think that it would be easy to catch me?
Martyrs are the national resources
Who have sucrificed their precious lives
Being a century to protect me
Giving a way to death because of me was the only choice
Dreaming to see me peace full was the only thing
As a result i got the holly destiny
I remain so strong so respected
Still having all i need
My owners got the way they were fighting
The fight to keep me so safe
To stay with them no lasting
To be forever settled owners
Right i am ready to pay them back
Now is the time of education, development
Time to face poverty,to overcome with great wealth
Time all about working hard
Me the LAND!!!
 

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EDRC Lottery to Help Drought Affected Eritreans

For Additional info visit http://dehai.org/edrc

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Don't forget Africa - Food needs in Eritrea - July 2003 (OXFAM