ECF is a non-governmental organization dedicated to helping those most vulnerable and least able to help themselves primarily children without parents.

ECF's flagship in Ethiopia is its Education & Development Programe in Aleltu (EDP) an innovative integrated establishment for the protection and development of highly disadvantaged children and their communities suffering from extreme poverty and social problems such as HIV/AIDS.

ECF's EDP seeks to provide a community-oriented solution to the challenge of orphans, while simultaneously serving as a catalyst and facilitator for sustainable community development. ECF believes that children need to belong and be a part of family and community life for their long-term emotional and psychological development.

ECF helps children at risk of neglect, abandonment and exploitation in the context of their families and neighborhoods, and developmental community outreach. It does so by providing essential services to children in the areas of early childhood development, good education, primary health care, food supplementation and life skills while fostering their community ties and requiring that they live with their nuclear or extended family or foster families. It also does so by supporting and facilitating community development through outreach programs in the areas of health and parental education - focused on HIV/AIDS prevention and positive child rearing practices - reproductive health, hygiene, environmental conservation, vocational training and entrepreneurship support.

ECF is based on values of civic duty, initiative, social responsibility, sustainability and partnership. ECF represents a humanitarian and development bridge between concerned individuals, the Diaspora, the business community, foundations, international philanthropists and highly disadvantaged children in Ethiopia.