Our Story
Rooted in Ethiopia. Committed to the World. Advancing Equity, Dignity, and Opportunity.
Who We Are
Born from Conviction. Built on Two Decades of Community Trust.
Center of Concern began with a single, radical belief that children with disabilities in Ethiopia deserved the same chance at health, education, and dignity as any other child. From that grassroots conviction, we grew into a multisectoral humanitarian and development organization now operating across two continents, working alongside the communities the world too often overlooks.
Registered in both Ethiopia and the United States, CoC delivers integrated programs across health, education, child protection, disability inclusion, livelihoods, and humanitarian response. In over two decades, we have reached more than 35,000 children, youth, women, and families, not by working for communities, but with them, because we believe lasting dignity is never handed down from above.
Across our areas of operation, CoC works through more than 20 partnerships with local and federal governments, United Nations agencies, international NGOs, universities, and community-based organizations.
Our programs are evidence-based and accountability-driven, shaped continuously by community feedback and rigorous monitoring. With an expanding presence across East Africa and North America, we are growing because there are still communities waiting to be reached.
Our Mission
We believe dignity is not a privilege reserved for the fortunate. Center of Concern exists to ensure that vulnerable children, families, and people with disabilities, regardless of ability, gender, or circumstance, can access the health, education, protection, and opportunity they deserve. We don’t deliver aid to communities. We build futures with them.
Our Values
Equity & Inclusion
We go where others don't. Our programs are intentionally designed to reach the most marginalized, persons with disabilities, women and girls, displaced populations, and undeserved communities — because inclusion is not an add-on. It is the work.
Every person we serve has inherent worth that no circumstance can diminish. We design every interaction, every program, and every policy around that truth without exception.
We are guests in the communities where we work. Local people understand their contexts, their constraints, and their possibilities better than any outside actor ever will. We support, resource, and follow their lead.
We hold ourselves to the same standards we ask of others, responsible stewardship of resources, honest reporting of results, and open feedback mechanisms that give communities a genuine voice in how we operate.
We question what isn't working, adapt what can be improved, and hold firm to ethical standards that don't bend under pressure. Learning and integrity are not opposites they reinforce each other.
We are always looking for mission-driven professionals, field workers, researchers, and advocates who believe that no one should be left behind.
How We Work
Five principles guide everything we do. From program design in the field to decisions made at the institutional level, we strictly make sure our values and missions are at the forefront.
Community-Led Development
Communities are not just recipients of our programs, they help shape them. Local leaders, families, and community members take part in designing, running, and reviewing our work, because they understand their own situation better than anyone visiting from outside. This keeps our programs grounded in what people actually need, instead of what looks good on paper.
Integrated Programming Against Poverty
A child who cannot access healthcare often struggles in school, and a family without income cannot always keep its children safe. We design our programs around these connections rather than treating each issue as a separate problem. Health, education, protection, and livelihoods work together in our field operations, because that is how people actually live their daily lives.
Evidence-Based Data & Action
We collect data before, during, and after every program, not as a formality but because it tells us whether our work is actually helping. Baseline studies, regular monitoring, and direct feedback from communities all feed into how we adjust our approach over time. When something is not working, we change it. When something is working, we expand it.
Sustainable Partnerships
No single organization can take on poverty, exclusion, or disability alone, and we have never tried to. We work alongside governments, UN agencies, universities, donors, and local civil society groups, combining resources and expertise toward shared goals. These partnerships help our programs continue, adapt, and grow well beyond any single funding cycle or project timeline.
Long-Term Commitment
We do not arrive for a single project and move on once it closes out. Many of the communities we work with have been partners for years, and our local teams stay in place to maintain relationships and trust over time. Real change takes time, and we plan our work around that reality rather than around short funding windows.
Leadership
CoC is led by a multidisciplinary team of development professionals, field practitioners, and sector specialists united by one commitment: that dignity is non-negotiable. These are our people behind the mission.
Ato Abebe Bekele
Board Member
Ato Abebe Bekele
Board Member
Ato Abebe Bekele
Board Member
Ato Abebe Bekele
Board Member
Ato Abebe Bekele
Board Member
Get Involved
There are many ways to support communities in need. Join us in providing healthcare, education, and protection for all.
Your contribution helps fund essential healthcare, education, and protection programs for vulnerable communities.
Work alongside dedicated teams and support life-changing projects in communities around the world.
Help spread the message and inspire others to support life-changing programs and build resilience.
Our Partners
