The 30,000 inhabitants of Nono Selle were literally cut off. Only a dangerous path connected them to the outside world: a rickety suspension bridge of woven liana and willow branches over the Ganschi River. It was a bridge that scared the wits out of them every day. Fear of death. Women on their way to the market, children on their way to school, fathers bringing their sick babies to the doctor - with considerable trepidation they all had to cross the wretched suspension bridge. They slowly worked their way along it above the raging torrent. Each step caused it to tremble even more - and the courage of the people dwindled.

Repeatedly the river took its toll: goods that slipped out of the hands of the people, cattle and even human beings fell in the river. When Almaz and Karlheinz Böhm visited the Nono Selle District they spontaneously decided to build a sturdy bridge that would lay the foundation for a better future. The new link over the Ganschi River was to be a so-called Bailey bridge, named after the inventor of safe, temporary bridges. The framework of the bridge is made of steel and can be assembled from individual components which are no heavier than 300 kilograms each - a critical factor in a region where building material had to be carried up hill and down dale. "In the whole world there's hardly another local community that has to cross a suspension bridge like wild animals", says official Tarekegn Lemma. "That's why the Menschen für Menschen method of bridge building is of historic significance for us."

Support the people of Ethiopia on their way to a self-determined future. With your donation!