OUR STORY

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The Eritrean Relief Committee formed in the US as the sister organization to the Eritrean Relief Association (ERA). ERA was founded in 1975 and was organized and operated in the fields of liberated Eritrea. Historically ERA was created as a Cross Border Operation  (CBO) one of the first and highly structured organizations in all of Africa.

The area of land that was to be covered and administered by ERA extended over 90% of the farmer’s Italian Colony.

 

The patriots, Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), operated in their stronghold as a humanitarian effort to help Eritrea's people to be food secure and self-reliant under the zones of its control. These remarkable people embodied true egalitarian positions with clear goals that exist today and is the backbone of policy that remains in all verity and in principle the bedrock of Eritrea’s worldview.

 

The Eritrean Relief Committee (ERC), is ERA’s sister organization in the US. At the height of the organization had over 23 chapters in America. Each chapter was responsible for public awareness and fundraising for the emergency needs of the people. 

 

In 1999 ERC changed its name and shifted its focus strictly to development projects in Eritrea. That is when it became the Eritrean Development Foundation (EDF) and remains to this day.

 

EDF would be remiss if it did not mention the dedicated people involved and the many people who gave tremendously to the efforts of the organization's mission.

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One such person is the late Dr. Nerayo Teklemichael. He will be remembered as one of the chief architects of this behemoth organization. In addition, he was a physician in the field during the many years of the struggle for independence as a chief medical officer under the EPLF. He traveled the world in search of resources and materials that were necessary for most of the humanitarian needs of the people. Dr. Nerayo sadly passed away on March 16, 2016. He will be missed but never forgotten.

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