Debre Berhan is located130 km from Addis Ababa. It is the capital town of North Shoa Zone in Amhara Region with an estimated population of 94,829, of which 50,259 (53%) are female. Many ex-soldiers and displaced people from the north settled in the town following the war to overthrow the Derg regime. Many families are headed by women who lost their husbands in the war. Average incomes in the area are very low, often no more than 500 Bir ($25 CDN) per month.