The cremation ceremony of the artist Tarhiku Birhanu (Baba) was held at the National Theatre

On her way to a monastery in the northern part of Ethiopia in her mid-40s, Dr Abebech saw people dying of hunger during a period of devastating famine in Ethiopia in the 1980s. Speaking in retrospect, she describes the moment as one that changed her entire life. When she travelled back to Addis Ababa, Abebech was not alone – with her were two children that lost their parents to the drought. Despite the resistance from her own family about taking in these orphans, Abebech continued supporting abandoned children by setting up one of the oldest orphanages in Ethiopia. Today, it’s a place where many call home and gradually leave after finishing school to start their own lives.

On her way to a monastery in the northern part of Ethiopia in her mid-40s, Dr Abebech saw people dying of hunger during a period of devastating famine in Ethiopia in the 1980s. Speaking in retrospect, she describes the moment as one that changed her entire life. When she travelled back to Addis Ababa, Abebech was not alone – with her were two children that lost their parents to the drought. Despite the resistance from her own family about taking in these orphans, Abebech continued supporting abandoned children by setting up one of the oldest orphanages in Ethiopia. Today, it’s a place where many call home and gradually leave after finishing school to start their own lives.