INVITATION TO BID – Ethiopian Center for Disability and Development (ECDD)

“ECDD envisions an inclusive Ethiopia, where persons with disabilities exercise the same rights and have access to the same services and opportunities enjoyed by other citizens”.

In 2005 several individuals in Ethiopia came together to discuss how to address the challenge of more effectively meeting the needs of persons with disabilities in Ethiopia, and ensuring their access to mainstream service delivery as well as development programs. They decided to create a new type of Ethiopian organization, one that would promote and facilitate disability inclusion, but not by providing disability or rehabilitation services to individuals. They decided to create an organization that would reflect, in its structure and programs, certain core values: majority governance by persons with disabilities and family members, gender equality, and positive bias (affirmative action) in the employment of staff. Finally, rather than create a membership organization of persons with disabilities, they decided to create an association composed of prominent individuals, both professionals with and without disabilities, 50% women, reflecting different aspects of society.

Thus the Ethiopian Center for Disability and Development (ECDD) was born and registered with the Ministry of Justice in December 2005. Following the Charities and Societies Proclamation of 2009, ECDD was re-registered by the Charities and Societies Agency on 6 December 2012, as an Ethiopian Residents Charity, Registration No. 0321. By 2012 ECDD Association membership had grown to over 60 members and its staff had increased to 18 full-time employees, over half of whom are persons with disabilities.Today ECDD has a staff of 42 persons with branch offices in Mekele, Tigray Region and in Hawassa in Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’ Regional State, and Local Disability Advisors in Afar, Somali and Oromo Regional States.

ECDD works collaboratively with other organizations to promote and facilitate “disability inclusive development” in Ethiopia – the inclusion of disability issues and persons with disabilities in mainstream government and non-governmental service delivery and development programs.

  ECDD action reflects the following core, cross-cutting organizational and operational principles and values:

1. Disability Rights: Fundamental human rights of persons with disabilities, as specified in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities

2. Non-discrimination: Non-discrimination on the basis of disability, age, gender, religion, ethnicity, or any other basis in its membership, staff, and programs

3. Equal opportunity: Affirmative action, for qualified persons with disabilities and women, in recruitment, training, advancement and retention of staff

4. Inclusion: Accessible premises, events, information and communications in all its action

5. Integrity: Accountability and transparency in its program activities and finances

6. Professionalism: Commitment to staff development and the competence and excellence of its full-time and part-time staff, and interns and volunteers

7. Stewardship: Safe-guarding of community resources on behalf of those it serves

8. Learning: Commitment to knowledge, learning and change as an organization in collaboration with its partners

9. Family: Team spirit and sense of belonging among its personnel