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Annual Report 2025
www.hospiceethiopia.org.uk
Introduction
As Chair of Hospice Ethiopia UK, I am delighted to write the introduction to this annual report to share with our donors and supporters the significant work of Hospice Ethiopia UK in 2025. Without the support and help of our volunteers, we would not be able to make a difference to the lives of many in Ethiopia.
“Hospice Ethiopia UK” (HEUK, registered charity no. 1171781) became a registered UK charity in February 2017. Our mission is to promote the provision of palliative care in order to relieve the suffering of the terminally ill in Ethiopia by providing financial, educational and practical support.
Hospice Ethiopia (HE) is an Ethiopian non-government organisation (NGO) in Addis Ababa that provides home-based care for the terminally ill and palliative care education to a range of health care professionals in Ethiopia. It receives almost no funding from within the country. Ethiopia’s population is now estimated to be 133 million (the second most populous country in Africa).
There were 9 Trustees during 2025: Sue Mumford (Chair), Marion Bryce, Jill Morgan (Secretary), Jamie Mumford, Rebecca Gascoyne-Richards (Treasurer), Tim Morgan, Riel Karmy-Jones, Frederika Collins and Alice Ingram. During the year Frederika Collins stepped down as a trustee but will continue to be involved in supporting the work of Hospice Ethiopia. The trustees work in close partnership with Ephrem Abathun, the Executive Director of Hospice Ethiopia.
The trustees of HEUK held six meetings during the year when we reviewed our work to inform our planning for the future and reviewed and updated our policies (which are available on our website). We keep in regular touch with our supporters through a monthly online newsletter. We are enormously grateful to Alice Roberts for editing and formatting these newsletters.
HEUK could not have achieved all that it has in 2025 without many hours of help from regular and one-off supporters, who freely gave their time and expertise to raise funds for those desperately needing palliative care in Ethiopia. As a small charity we have very low costs: we do not employ anyone, rent offices, or charge for our travel. This allows us to send almost all money raised to Ethiopia where it is so badly needed. Our thanks go to A J Cooper Builders for funding our administration costs. Thanks also must go to those supporters who have helped the trustees of HEUK with our website, social media, and publicity.
Hospice Ethiopia UK is delighted that our Chair, Sue Mumford, was made an MBE in the New Years Honours list in recognition of her services to palliative care in Ethiopia. Sue said “I am deeply honoured to receive this recognition, but this MBE is not just for me – it represents the incredible dedication of everyone at Hospice Ethiopia UK and our partners in Ethiopia.” She went to Windsor Castle with her husband and 3 daughters in July to receive her award from Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal.
Sue Mumford receives her MBE
Fundraising
As Hospice Ethiopia UK’s accounts show, 2025 has been another great year for raising funds with a total income of £72,952. We’ve held a number of events, almost one event per month, which we could not have done without the generous help of so many volunteers. With a varied programme of events from cake stalls and teas to a Bridge event, we’ve tried to appeal to different audiences. In July, we held our third Jane Austen event. A volunteer wrote a script for dramatised readings from Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice which proved very popular and raised over £2,500 in an afternoon.
The cast for Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice
A particular mention should be made of individuals who raised funds: Matt Roberts and Ian Napier’s sponsored cycle ride raised over £2,000. Hospice Ethiopia UK are very grateful to Godfrey Pratt and the metal detecting club: Norfolk Heritage Recovery for raising £1,800 to support the work of Hospice Ethiopia. Our thanks also go to landowners, Michael Harrold and Robert Gurney who generously gave permission to them to spend a day on their fields. Among their exciting finds was a 18[th] century Brazilian 2000 Reis gold coin and a medieval bronze apothecary's scoop.
We were pleased to be accepted to take part again in The Big Give Christmas Challenge, a national fundraising campaign run annually at the beginning of December. Our “project” in 2025 was to raise £10,200 to fund 3 Hospice Ethiopia nurses’ salaries in 2026. Hospice Ethiopia has worked hard to support and train a highly skilled workforce, and to continue to attract and retain staff they need to pay their programme staff a wage that keeps pace with inflation.
To raise £10,200, we needed our donors to give £5,100, which was then matched to raise £10,200 in total. In fact, with Gift Aid the total raised was over £11,500: a fantastic result!
We are also extremely grateful to those donors who give a monthly donation via a standing order. This really helps with our financial planning and ensures we have regular money to support the work of HE in these difficult times. It is easy to set up a standing order: please contact HEUK via info@hospiceethiopia.org.uk for more information.
We wish to extend many thanks to all our supporters who gave their time to help with organising and running events as well as making generous donations. Without your help Hospice Ethiopia would not be able to continue its vital work.
Reserves
The Trustees have agreed to allocate £30,000 to the Reserve Fund, which equates to nine month’s funding of Hospice Ethiopia by HEUK, as a general reserve for emergency funding for Hospice Ethiopia.
The financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out in the notes to the accounts and comply with the charity’s governing document, the Charities Act 2011, and the Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard for Small Entities, published July 2014.
Transfer of funds
During 2025, £64,102 was transferred to HE which included £40,000 for running costs. A grant of £5,000 funded a 5 day palliative care training course at Jijiga Sheik Yabarre Comprehensive Specialised Hospital. We are grateful to The Carmela and Ronnie Pignatelli Foundation for providing £2,500 towards the Tewolde Medhane Comfort Fund and over £13,000 was spent on employing and training an additional nurse and new social worker.
In addition, Hospice Ethiopia UK has funded 4 Ethiopian physicians (2 starting in April 2025 and 2 starting in April 2026) to undertake a one year Global Fellowship in Palliative Care with Pallium India. This involves an online course plus one month’s clinical experience. This type of training is unavailable in Ethiopia although the hope is to set up a similar course at St Paul’s Millenium Medical School in Addis Adaba within the next 2 years.
Due to the success of our fundraising and in line with HE’s 5 year strategic plan we now have a restricted fund for building premises for HE. This currently stands at £80,000. We also hold restricted funds for the Tewolde Medhane fund Comfort Fund, the administration fund (funded by Cooper’s Builders), the education fund and the Big Give Christmas Challenge projects.
The Chair of HEUK holds a monthly online Zoom call with Ephrem Abathun (Executive Director of HE) so that the two charities work closely to ensure the smooth running of HE. HEUK receives quarterly reports from the Hospice detailing such things as the number of patients being seen by HE, the training HE has delivered and budgetary information. This helps to ensure that all the money we transfer to HE is spent appropriately. The money that is transferred from HEUK is used to support patients like Almaz as they approach the end of life.
Almaz is a 43 year old female following the Christian Orthodox religion. She developed a left breast swelling and investigations at The Black Lion Hospital (BLH) revealed breast cancer. Initially she declined treatment as she had no funds (chemotherapy costs about £26 per 3 week cycle). When she worked washing laundry her monthly income was about £7.
She referred herself to Hospice Ethiopia 18 months previously after hearing about it from other patients at the BLH
Social history: She lives in a 1 room “house” (10 X 10 ft single room). She is divorced and is Illiterate. She lives with 1 son aged 17 who is still at school. She is unable to work due to health issues and is receiving a monthly grant from the Tewolde Medhane Comfort Fund and quarterly food support. Friends and neighbours have helped fund subsequent oncological treatment.
Physical problems: When she was first assessed by the nurse from HE, Almaz rated her pain over breast area as 4-5/5. This has now reduced to 1-2/5 by taking tramadol, diclofenac as required and bisacodyl when needed. She is also prescribed tamoxifen. She had recently had her third cycle of chemotherapy and takes Ondansetron for chemotherapy induced nausea.
Spirituality: Almaz is aware of her diagnosis and its implications. She feels at peace with the world and with God. She takes Holy Water and is a frequent church attender (she can walk unaided).
When asked by nurse Abenezer if she had any questions for us. She replied, “remember me”.
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Almaz
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Making a difference
Not only is HEUK making a difference for patients like Almaz described above but we are particularly pleased to report that in 2025 there has been continued expansion of palliative care services both in and beyond the capital Addis Ababa. There are now palliative care
services in a number of hospitals and health centres in Addis Ababa and in hospitals around the country including Jimma, Hawassa, Harar, Bahir Dar, Dessie and Jijiga. Therefore, HEUK is directly making an impact on people’s lives and without these funds the work of HE would be severely reduced.
We are also influencing palliative care policy in Ethiopia through the development of the national palliative care training course with the Federal Ministry of Health. Training and mentorship will significantly increase the number of skilled and supported health workers.
Trustee visit
Four of HEUK’s trustees, Jamie and Sue Mumford, Tim and Jill Morgan visited Hospice Ethiopia in Addis Ababa on behalf of HEUK in October 2025. Supplies (which were all donated by supporters) of colostomy bags (unavailable in Ethiopia), a range of dressings and incontinent pads were gratefully received by HE. The busy visit involved meetings with the Executive Director and Finance Officer at HE, visits to patients receiving homecare along with one of HE’s nurses, meetings with previous contacts and Health Care Professionals with an interest in palliative care for example at St Paul’s Hospital in Addis Adaba.
During the visit Tim Morgan interviewed and recorded several patients and staff members from HE about their thoughts about Hospice Ethiopia (with their permission). We are indebted to our supporter Alan Miller who has edited these and these are available to listen to on HEUK’s You Tube channel.
Jamie and Sue accompanied and Wengi Yared (Programme Manger) to visit the newly established palliative care department at Jijiga Sheik Yabarre Comprehensive Specialised Hospital (in Eastern Ethiopia) and were highly impressed with the care that the department was providing.
Sue and Jamie Mumford and HE’s Programme Manager meet with the Chief Clinical Director and Palliative Care Lead at Jijiga Sheik Yabarre Comprehensive Specialised Hospital
Education Fund
Two of Hospice Ethiopia’s nurses have been able to start further education in Palliative Care in 2025. Aylsham and District Rotary Club are kindly paying the fees for Nurse Kalkidan to study at Nairobi Hospice for her Diploma in Palliative Care. Nurse Filagot has finally been able to start studying for her Masters in Palliative Care at Hospice Africa Uganda and Makerere University in Kampala. The funds for this 2 years course were raised through the Big Give Christmas Challenge in 2022. However, it has taken 2 ½ years for Nurse Filagot’s application to be processed by the university and Uganda’s national education department.
We are extremely grateful to The Band Aid Charitable Trust who provided funding for a 5 day palliative care training course at Jijiga Sheik Yabarre Comprehensive Specialised Hospital. The staff from HE delivered the training in June and provided follow up mentorship and support. In October two of HEUK’s trustees visited the hospital to measure the impact of the training. The results have been impressive. There is now a palliative care team providing inpatient and outpatient care. The number of patients with their pain well controlled has risen from 23%-83%. There are plans for further palliative care training to be delivered by HE at the hospital in early 2026.
Graph demonstrating the improvement in pain control for patients
National and International Links
Sue and Jamie Mumford attended the 8th International African Palliative Care Association (APCA) conference in Gaborone, Botswana. Two colleagues from Hospice Ethiopia, Executive Director Ephrem Abathun and Programme Manager Wengel Yared joined them
there. Dr Nuhamin from Ethiopia attended as did Professor Nicola Ayers (who has worked as a volunteer advising the Ethiopian MOH over the last few years).
Speakers at this 3-day conference came from across Africa and beyond; presentations described the delivery of palliative care services in a wide range of settings. Sue gave a presentation about an audit carried out by Frederika Collins assessing the symptom burden of Hospice Ethiopia’s patients.
The key take away messages from the conference were the importance of collaboration and learning from others. One of the essential factors in developing palliative care services is the involvement and commitment from governments to develop policies and provide budgets to enable palliative care to be integrated into Universal Health Coverage. Another key message is that new and developing digital technologies will aid patient access to palliative care. High-tech technologies will improve the low-tech discipline of palliative care. The procurement, supply and access of essential medicines in palliative care remains a huge issue across the African continent.
Nicola Ayers, Nuhamin Tekle, Wengi Yared, Ephrem Abathun, Jamie Mumford, Sue Mumford at the APCA conference
Sue and Jamie Mumford also attended the annual Palliative Care Works (PCW) conference themed Palliative Care – Past, Present Future. What can we do? There were over 100 international delegates from across the world, some in person and some online which generated lively discussions.
HEUK has also continued the link with another UK charity, Ethiopiaid, which has provided financial support to a range of projects in Ethiopia for more than 30 years and continues to be HE’s largest funder.
HEUK has maintained links with a group of small UK charities working in Ethiopia via regular Zoom meetings. Our group, called “Small but Significant”, enables mutual support and
information sharing about Ethiopia, charity regulations, and working with non-governmental organisations.
The trustees of HEUK have continued holding international video calls with supporters of HE across the world, particularly Ireland, Uganda, Sweden, and the USA. In particular we are pleased to work with Ethiopian Hospice Care (EHC) which is a newly established nonprofit 501(c)(3) organisation in the United States, dedicated to advancing hospice and palliative care in Ethiopia. HEUK has been in contact with many of the Board members over the last few years.
EHC’s mission is to “raise awareness and gather resources to ensure that everyone in Ethiopia has access to compassionate hospice and palliative care. We aim to inspire kindness and generosity, helping those nearing the end of their lives receive the care and dignity they deserve.” We look forward to continuing our partnership with them and HE.
We are immensely grateful to our many supporters for their generosity which enable and embolden us to do more to support the work of Hospice Ethiopia.
In Amharic 'āmeseginalehu'! (Thank you)
CHARITY COMMISSION FOR tNGLAND AND WALES Recelpts and payments accounts CC16a For th• p•rlod from 0110112025 3111212025 Section A Receipts and payments Unrn•trlctod fund• to th rn•r••t R•gtrlctod funds Endowmant fund• lo tlw rnw••t £ Total fund• la•t y•ar to th n•w••t £ to th rn•f••t £ to th Mff••t £ A1 R•c•S ts actfvltles CnI test Adntstrntfve (kThtk)n 2025 2024 38,471 34,774 4,479 34,774 4,479 650 7,672 4,726 10,650 3,153 7,672 4,726 6,850 3,153 8,642 (knts 3,800 750 1,716 es refuThded trtal(Gmss income forAR) 49,901 23,051 71952 60,878 A2 Ass•t and Inv•stm•nt sal•s, Sub total Total receipts 49,901 23,051 71952 60.878 A3Pa ents FlJrEtBsvJ of ttr6 to sell 539 $39 Tr to Etlyma 997 70 90 90 276 977 Funds used by Ftstxce Ett 500 477 EdtK traini (¥ants Sub total 53,449 28,308 81,757 61.886 A4 Asset and Investment purchases. (see table) Sub total Totalpayments 53,449 28,308 81,757 61,886 Net of receipts/(payments) A5 Transfer5 betw••n funds A6 Cash funds last year end Cash funds thls year end 3,548 154 91,748 88,046 5,257 8,805 1,008 49,034 140.782 131,977 43,931 1,008 Section B Ststement of assets and liabilities at the end of the period Un restricted funds to n•ar•st £ Restricted funds Endowment funds to rrt £ to raar••t £ B1 Cash funds Qjfrent 8ccaJnt 3,204 Saviros account 81,191 41931 Total cash funds 84,395 43,931 CCXX R1 a(fA)unts (SS) (•Jee wlth Iwnwd
Unrn8trfct fund8 R•8trfct•d fund• Endowm•nt funds to £ Detalls to rn•r••t £ B2 (Xher monetary assets Fwxl to wNch as••t Detalls (W10n) C4ffr•rt val Fuxl to whlch a8s•t Cwr•rt valu• Details CL*t (1(1> B4 Assets retained for the charity's own uso Furyl to wNch Ilablllty r•lats• Details (1(1) B5 Liatxlities z3•e Sgned by one or tm) trustees on behalf of all the trustees Print Name SwJnature Date of approval Susan Munrford Rebecca GaScoyne-Rhards plslz CCXX R2 acAX)unts (SS)
CHARITY COMMISSION FOR ENGLAND AND WALES Independent examinerfs report on the accounts Section A Independent Examiner's Report Report to the trusteesl membfrrs of Hospice Ethiopia UK On accounts for the year ended 3108cember 2025 Charfty no (If any) 1171781 Set out on pages 3and4 I report to the trustees on my examination of the accounts of the above charity <e TNst°) for the year ended 31 D•c•mbor 2025 R•spon$lbllltle$ and As the tharity trustees of the Trust, you are responslble for the preparation basls of report of the accounts in accordance with the requirements of the Charitr8s Act 2011 (Ihe Act.). I report In respect of my examination of the Trust's accounts rried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in carry¢ng out my examination, I have followed the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145(51{b) of the Act. I have completed my examination. I confimi that no material matters hal come to my attention (other than that disclosed b81ow ') in connecb'on with the examination whith gives me cause to belleve that In, any material respect.. accountlng reCoS were not kept in accordan ryth section 130 of the Act or the aCunts do not accord with the accounting records Independent examinefs stat•m•nt I have no concems and have come across no other mattérs in connection with th8 examination to which attention should be drawn in order to enab58 a proper understanding of the acLx)unts to be reathed. . Please delete the words in the brnck8ts rfth8y do not apply. Slgned: Iq Is126 Name: Keith Brian Shorten Relevant professlonal quallfkallon($) ¢x body (If any): FCCA Addross". 40 Broadland Drlve Thon)e End Norwich Norfolk NR13 SBT IER October 2018