Horn Relief
Changing the way people think about and deliver aid.
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Decolonizing Aid
Adeso’s aim is to help build a Global South that does not depend on foreign aid, but rather is self-determining and emboldened to utilize resources and skills from within.
There are barriers to change that are political and these require focused and strategic efforts at influencing International Nongovernmental Organizations, philanthropy and bi-lateral donors.
Recognizing the large role International Nongovernmental Organizations (INGOs) play in humanitarian aid and development assistance– and their ability to take immediate action and affect large-scale change – Adeso convened the leaders of a set of large INGOs and challenged them to re-imagine their roles through the lens of a paradigm shift in how global aid operates.
Since early 2021, the leaders of the Pledge for Change coalition have worked to develop a series of public commitments in three key areas – Equitable Partnerships, Authentic Storytelling and Influencing Wider Change – to move toward a decolonial and anti-racist sy
Saxonsaxo (slcr)
Saxansaxo is a term used by locals in Somalia to describe the sweet smell that lingers in the air, and the feeling of the light wind in the moments just as the first raindrops hit the ground after a long period of dryness.
As an approach to delivering aid, sclr/saxansaxo, acknowledges communities as local responders and seeks to build on local capacity, and knowledge systems, rather than disempowering them and viewing them as helpless, and unconnected victims with no power to organize themselves. The approach recognises communities’ power to develop solutions that are tailored to meet the actual needs of the most vulnerable in their localities. By doing so, this approach removes aid dependency syndrome which has characterized humanitarian settings in most developing countries. Sclr builds on the foundations of community and collective compassion whilst rejecting the notion of individualism.
The approach was developed in a consultative design process, including a design workshop condu
KujaLink
KujaLink is a vital piece of infrastructure, an online platform, connecting civil society organizations in countries receiving development and humanitarian assistance to funders around the world. Improved connections made on the platform will lead to the increased direct transfer of resources and support to organizations to meet the most pressing humanitarian and development needs in their communities.
‘Kuja’ is a Swahili word that means “to come” and the concept resonates with funders and CSOs who prioritize coming together to support the communities in which they work. KujaLink makes it easier for funders and organizations to find each other, successfully navigate the due diligence process, and collaborate on funding activities.
Where we work
Awards
Goldman Environmental Prize 2002
Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund
Buffett Award for Leadership in African Conservation 2008
Howard G. Buffett Foundation
Affiliations & memberships
InterAction - Member 2012
External reviews
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
As a humanitarian and development organization working within Africa, the problems we encounter are not unique. The way we work is.
Adeso takes a boldly different approach to development in Africa. Different, because we believe that it is African communities who must lead the development of Africa, not external agencies. This is why we prefer to use cash transfers above many other forms of aid. And why we don’t decide on how best to develop communities from the confines of our Nairobi or Washington offices, but from working and living in the field with local communities.
Regardless of where we work, our approach is the same: we help vulnerable communities through partnerships and shared decision-making. Our field teams hold regular community meetings, and find a way for every group to have a voice. This sometimes means creating venues for women, and often calls for perseverance to capture the concerns and thoughts of local minorities. It’s not the easiest way, but in our experience, it’s the best.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Adeso embraces community-based strategies during programming so as to assist affected communities take action to prevent and respond to humanitarian issues that affect them. Appropriate and effective community-based programming includes actively recognizing the role of communities in their own development, working together with CBOs and local NGOs to strengthen their capacity to respond to community-identified priorities and needs; integrating a community-based intervention approach into the assessment, design, implementation and monitoring phases across programmes in all sectors and contexts and; ensuring that staff engaged in participatory processes are appropriately trained in facilitation skills. This approach aligns with the organization’s values, while also providing an element of protection for staff in a fluid and quickly-changing security environment.
Adeso also adopts the livelihood strategy to save lives, protect assets and spur livelihood development. This strategy aims to build Economic and Livelihood programming in line with Adeso’s vision and mandate in which communities are dependent on resourcefulness and capabilities of their people by addressing emergency, recovery needs and building capacities for resilience restoration. The overall goal is improved living conditions and strengthened resilience of target communities in (Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan).
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
One of Adeso’s capabilities is our long standing presence in the regions we work and our strategic employment of locals. This has cultivated and further enhanced lasting relationships with our partner communities making it possible to penetrate areas that are not easily accessible to others.
Cash based transfers are one of Adeso’s flagship approaches to emergency and development work, because we believe that cash offers several advantages over other forms of aid. Adeso was the first NGO to pioneer cash transfer programs in East Africa and the Horn of Africa, implementing the first unconditional cash transfer in 2002 in Somalia. Cash transfers are slowly becoming a tool of choice for Adeso and an increasing number of other humanitarian agencies. Cash transfers represent a power shift from the agency and the donor to the local market and beneficiary. Adeso plays a leadership role in this area, and advocates for the use of cash transfers among humanitarian players throughout Africa. Adeso also holds regular cash based response trainings for humanitarian and development workers throughout Africa. The training curriculum is based on our own experience of cash programming in Somalia, Kenya and South Sudan. The trainings aim to develop the capacity of participants to assess when cash based responses are appropriate, and to provide them with practical knowledge and skills in the implementation of cash transfer programs. Adeso has also developed a “Practical Guide to Cash Based Responses”, which follows the same order as the project cycle, covering assessments and feasibility of cash based responses, planning and design, setting grant sizes, risk mitigation, implementation, monitoring and standards.
The Inclusive Community Based Targeting (ICBT) approach is a unique methodology developed and used by Adeso to target communities in a participatory manner. This approach is perhaps Adeso’s most notable strength and capability when considering all aspects of programming. This is guided by a focus on participatory programming that facilitates community-led program interventions. Through targeting the most vulnerable populations, prioritizing actions in the most vulnerable areas, analysis of environments and opportunities and collaborative actions with local government and stakeholders, Adeso delivers comprehensive needs-based livelihoods programming where it matters the most.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
Adeso has registered enormous progress and continues to work with communities to co-create programs that are appropriate for them and the environment in which they live. We have equipped people with skills for life and work to enable them so that they may live useful, productive and self sufficient lives. We have also helped strengthen local economies and build people’s resilience. We have also delivered responsive and efficient humanitarian aid, especially when people’s needs have been urgent, and we have ensured that the interests and voices of African communities are heard and considered at the highest levels.
We are conscious about the evolving need for development interventions in the areas in which we work and are putting strategies in place to balance our current emergency approach with a focus on longer term development. We are aware that there is a need to promote more recovery activities among our emergency responses and are taking steps to connect more with national governments for program sustainability. We also recognize the need to foster stronger relationships with our communities and we shall do this by increasing our direct intervention initiatives and continue with components within emergency responses that are building/supporting community structures. We plan on consolidating and replicating the gains made in our current areas of intervention as we venture into wider Africa with the aim of achieving our ultimate goal i.e. promoting an Africa that is not dependant on aid but on the resourcefulness of its people.
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Horn Relief
Board of directorsas of 11/29/2022
Ms. Abdia Mohamed
World Bank
Degan Ali
Adeso
Leslie Fields
Sierra Club
David Shinn
George Washington University
Fatima Jibrell
Adeso
Sandra Brock Jibrell
Mohamood Abdi Noor
Faiza Abdalla Mohamed
Abukar Arman
Fanta Toure
World Bank
Fowsiya Warsame
Cambridge Associates, LLC
Kassim Farrah
Sida/SIRAC
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? No -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? No -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? No -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? No -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data