The Story
In the beautiful country of Ethiopia, home to more than 100 million residents, more than 11% of the 40 million children live as orphans. In the city of Harar, the magnitude of this crisis can be seen in the streets by locals and visitors alike, through the more than 7000 children wandering within the city, merely hoping for a brighter future. For many of these children, their favorite times of the year come once every month, when night falls and the full moon is visible. It is this time that they are able to gather amongst themselves to organize and run an intense soccer match, aided by visibility thanks to the light of the full moon combined with the absence of noise pollution. When the sun begins to rise the following morning and bring light to the city of Harar, its symbolism is absent for the orphans of Harar, as it replaces their enjoyable night with a worrisome day.
Shortly before the passing away of his father, Uncle Kemal Abubaker—a respected elder in the wider Harari community and founder of Amasila—was moved by the dire situation of the orphans of Harar. Driven by the beautiful teachings of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ, he began the journey of establishing an all-inclusive, self-sustaining orphanage to meet the needs of the 1000s of orphans in the city.
The first step to beginning Amasila was to secure the land on which the operations would be built and run. While the initial goal was to obtain 6 hectares of land, it was only possible to secure 2 hectares, a third of the initial goal. Thereafter, a great extent of resources was put into clearing the land to allow for the construction of foundations. In order to develop Amasila into a self-sustaining organization—which would be necessary for the quality and longevity of the establishment—the directors of Amasila identified three important revenue-generating programs: a clinic, a bakery/restaurant, and a guest house—all of which would be serviced for a fee for guests, with the exception of orphans and those in need.
By the Mercy of Allah, the Exalted, Amasila has been operating since June 2011, and has since supported 250 orphans through home-based programs. Not only has it cleared land for the allocated project site, it has already constructed two buildings for a clinic and bakery. Furthermore, in response to the water shortage in the surrounding communities, it has constructed two deep well water supply systems. Within the coming years, Amasila hopes to fulfil its mission and vision it was founded on: “to provide support for the educational, health, shelter and family needs of children toward their well-being”, and “to eradicate the suffering of orphaned children and children in general globally by providing support that will enable them, with Allah’s help, to be good, self-sufficient citizens of the world”. By the Will of Allah, the Most High, and by the efforts of those who strive in helping their community, the orphans of Harar can hope to have a brighter future.
Prior to concluding the story of Amasila, it is imperative that two benefactors be recognized and appreciated for their unconditional support to Amalisa’s orphanage project. Firstly, Brother Aziz Dhanani—cofounder of Amasila and good friend of Uncle Kemal Abubaker—has been a pillar in establishing the organization and providing crucial monetary and managerial support. His involvement in various projects across several countries did not prevent him from actively engaging in and supporting the demanding project Amasila kickstarted. Last, but not least, the Harari Regional Government has cordially provided critical support that allowed for the development of the Amasila project, and whenever assistance was sought by Amasila for services, the Harari Regional Government was there to help.
And for their invaluable, critical support, a special recognition and thanks to Brother Aziz Dhanani and the Harari Regional Government for their support on this project.