Call for Expression of Interest

Water seems to be a common denominator for some of the most difficult national challenges we face in days.
SAFE Environmental Protection Service (SAFE) is newly established in Borana, South Oromia, where problems of water, health and education are often highly localized, to undertake activities connected with water, energy and gas. Recently, SAFE entered public-private partnership agreement with Yabello Town Municipality to develop ecological buildings that serve as landmarks in the community on a total land size of more than 2000 sq. Meters in Yabello-Borana. One of the landmarks is establishing One-stop Shopping Center.
The scarcity of alternative brands responsive to customers’ need in the highest current standard and the selling prices of products especially edible items are considerably higher than its prices at the gate of producers that make life difficult to pastoralists. The artificial imbalance of demand and supply cropped up by rent scammers results day to day flux of selling prices. We observed that the poor quality of services, unfair prices and products that do not meet customers’ standards for quality and their expectations for value.
One-stop shopping centre is built firmly on the philosophy of customer centeredness and aiming to:
provide Optimum Customer Service Satisfaction by offering superior brands, quality environments, quality services, fair prices, consistent, variety, real value and total shopping convenience
link up producers directly with their regulars to set the standard for excellence in the trade practice and consumers’ protection
create healthy competition by forcing existing retailers in the area to improve their services
operate the best retailing businesses possible where shopping and working are always a pleasure and the customers are always provided with real value
In order to attain our set goals, we are searching for potential producers with attractive brands to work with.
In this regard, we would like to invite potential producers or suppliers of any items that respond to customer’s need in the highest current standard here in Borana can represent our company as Primary or Secondary Sales Representative. Therefore, we are grateful to you for your willingness to outreach your products to the end users of Borana being partnership wish us.
FYI: Our center sells products either by prices (including our commission) set by producers/suppliers if our company is their Primary Sales Representative or by selling prices of producers at their gate adding 9% – 14% (wholesale) and 15% – 30% (retail or walk-in) profit mark-up plus actual incurred expenses while collecting products to our stores if our company is Secondary Sales Representative.

Community-based Multiservice Library

Lack of information can impair the efficiency and competitiveness of businesses, whether those of subsistence farmers or more ambitious entrepreneurs. It can limit a community’s cultural life, leading to poverty of experience and narrowness of vision. Perhaps most significant of all, it can prevent individuals from taking control of their daily lives, their health and their well-being, as well as from exercising their rights as citizens. The importance of information has grown in recent years with the transition to knowledge- and information-based communities. This is a phenomenon that can be seen all over the world. The development of these information-based societies holds out the prospect of economic growth and social improvement but, all too often, it produces within the overall population disadvantaged groups who are excluded because they lack access to information. Societies are becoming polarized into those who have access to information-the information haves, and those who do not-the have-nots. This situation is usually compounded by a digital divide where people lack access to the technology that, increasingly, is required in order to obtain and use information.
The more individuals, communities and whole societies depend on information and the associated technologies, the greater is the social exclusion that is experienced by those who do not have access to the technology and the ability to use it. As if this were not bad enough, matters are made worse by the tendency for educated people and those with skills to leave the disadvantaged communities and move to the cities. In effect, this increases the social and technological exclusion for those who remain.
Therefore, there is a great deal to be said for any attempt to reduce the level of inequality in people’s access to information that is the establishment of community based multiservice library in disadvantaged, Borana pastoral communities that is designed to provide people with access to information. People need information to develop their potential through education and training, to succeed in business, to enrich their cultural experience, and to take control of their daily lives. Information is a key contributor to the development of individuals and communities. The first attempts to improve access to information involved establishing multiservice community library with collections of books and printed materials.
The basic aim of community library is to support the development of literacy skills and to supplement the formal education provision. Its focus is, therefore, usually on children and young people. Increasingly, however, it’s also played an important role in maintaining literacy skills among adults. The service is essentially passive: it relied on people coming to it to use the collections of information. Most, however, undertake some form of outreach and promotional activities, but these were aimed at attracting potential users to come to the collection. The building is, therefore, of considerable importance. A considerable amount of capital is invested in the initial collection of books and other materials and in the building to house the collection. Running costs also tend to be high as staffs are required to manage and, in some case, to safeguard the collection. Further, the initial value of the collection deteriorates quite quickly if new material is not acquired to refresh the stock and to replace materials that become worn out. If, however, the building is attractive, and the quality of the book stock is good, the service tends to be heavily used, particularly by children and young people, and to play an important role in the community. Further, the existence of community library often serves as a catalyst for more wide-ranging information based activities. The network of community library with national and international libraries has developed into an educational and cultural movement that incorporates literacy activities, local language publications, reading and learning.
Perhaps because of the relatively high capital costs involve, the library collections is developed by the communities themselves, by individuals pooling resources and then supplemented by external funding. In such cases, the management and control of the services remains with the community. Multi-lateral aid agencies do much to support the development of community library.
The community library serves as the community information centre that is concerned with the collection and provision of information besides the management of collections of books. Its focus is on acquiring, processing, storing and disseminating the information that is needed by the community that it serves. Some of the services emphasize the importance of collecting, analyzing, recording and storing oral information, and taking the information to the people who need it most. This reflects recognition of the importance of oral information to pass on cultural experiences to future generation in pastoral communities. Multiservice community library serves also as information desk centre for tourists and development stakeholders. The information centre that reflects the importance of information and communication technology in creating, storing, transmitting and communicating information is furnished with technologies: PCs, telephones, fax machines, photocopiers, duplicators, printers, scanners, storage devices and modems for internet connection. The library equipped with ICT facilitates to:
end up young people’s hunger for knowledge, opportunity, good jobs and the future that they seek
have endeavours that make a difference, particularly to our young people
try to match reality and actions with the aspirations and SAFEs of young people across the world
see young adults in remote villages and towns huddling around the computer watching videotaped lessons, and to expand access to information and learning materials like never before
promote affordable internet access in pastoral communities in order to have leveraged the creativity and innovation, for greater impacts on global issues
lower geographic, economic, and even gender based barriers to learning; anyone with access to the internet will be able to read, download, and print these open materials for free or adapt a copy that meets the local needs of their classrooms or education systems
bring scientific knowledge and innovation to the people of today
harness the connective power of technology to give as many people as possible access to the highest quality learning materials
create connections students with institutions or universities for free online textbooks, learning materials, licensing for everyone to use, adapt and share, and save students money in their studies.