The Eminence, Issue 23, September 2016

Issue 23- September 2016

CONTENTS Eminence Spotlight 8 Scarcity of Green Areas Takes a Toll on Addis’ Green Creed 12 MOCT: Receiving the New Budget Year with More Energy and Commitment.

16 Arts and Crafts: The need to support people with disabilities

Hospitality 3600

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18. EthioTrial: The New Dimension for Ethiopian Tourism Segment 20. Lake of Infrastructure Incentives Impeding Bale`s Tourist Potential

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22. Dreath of Competent Staff Deemed as Bottleneck to Hotel Growth

Cultural Panorama 26. The Valiant`s Last Word to England`s Queen

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28. Bahir Dar: The Pearl of the North 30. Traditionally Inspired Postcards Cornering The Holiday Gift Market

Made in Ethiopia 32. High School Graduation Bonanzas Have Parents Breaking the Bank 34. Yordanos Abera: Taking Inspiration From Crochet 36. BeMistre Home Accessories: Championing Locally Inspired and Sourced Interior Designs 38. Traditional Ethiopia New Year Celebrations Fading Away

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Reflections 40. On Acquiring Tourist Visas to Ethiopia 41. A Globetrotter’s Account of Ethiopia

Entertainment 43. Recipe and Tourist Corner http://www.theeminencemagazine.com

44. Classifieds

Asnake Amanuel ( Founder ) aamanuel@eminence-se.com Dawit Kebede (CEO) Dkebede@eminence-se.com

EDITOR’S NOTE

Managing Editor Tsewaye Muluneh tmuluneh@eminence-se.com Editor-in- Chief Frehiwot Gebrewold fgebrewold@eminence-se.com Lideta s.c Woreda 04 H. No 175

It was 3,000 years ago that the Ethiopian Queen of Sheba, Makda, went to Jerusalem to visit King Solomon. As historians cite in history, the queen took many luxurious gifts to the king. When the queen returned to Ethiopia, her elder countrymen offered her jewels known as enku as a welcome gesture.

Starting then, that day marks the Ethiopian New Year which is called Enkutatash means “Gift of Jewels.” Ethiopia celebrates New Year on the 11th or 12th of September. The country follows the Julian calendar which is seven and half years behind the Gregorian calendar, making it the year 2009 in Ethiopia.

Ethiopians celebrate holidays in a splendid way and many people give special attention to Enkutatash as it is a new beginning. Every Ethiopian prepares a traditional Ethiopian meal called Doro Wot, a delicious spicy chicken stew. The food preparation usually starts on the eve of the New Year; however, people start purchasing ingredients and some items for the holiday weeks before the celebration.

Difo Dabo, which is a traditional homemade bread, is baked in almost every household. The bread is prepared with wheat flour. Traditionally, this bread is baked on a round clay sheet and the dough is wrapped with fresh enset leaves. Firewood and dried animal dung is used as the fuel. The yeast and the spices added with the smell of the smoke creates a very fragrant aroma not only in the house where the bread is baking but in the the entire neighborhood as well.

and light torches made out of dry leaves, twigs and wood. They sing a variety of songs that celebrate the coming of the spring season and the end of the rainy season.

It is customary to wake up very early on New Year’s day and take a shower to wash off the past. Many Ethiopians also take a spoonful of a spice called Feto which they believe will cure them from all diseases.

Most family members start the New Year by going to church. Then they dine and have Ethiopian coffee with neighbors. The girls sing New Year’s songs and go door to door and receive money for singing. In return they give Adey Abeba, the yellow daisy flower of the season, and fresh grass and wish the households a prosperous year. The boys, on the other hand, sell pictures of the New Year and Saints that they have drew.

Though these are some of the unique ways of celebrating New Year to Ethiopians, it is not practical in the modern days. Instead of going to neighbors to wish a Happy New Year, today many people send text messages; baking the traditional bread is now done with an electric stove, and many families do not brew the homemade beer called tella; instead they buy beer or soft drinks. It is not common to see children going door to door and singing New Year songs or boys delivering their drawings. Instead of sending bouquets of flowers that have been part of the Ethiopian customs for ages, many people now send greeting cards and gifts.

Most of the meal preparation is done by the mothers. Girls, on the other hand, spend the eve of the celebration braiding their hair in a special way; decorating their hands and feet with a red-brown color from a root plant called ensosela in Amharic.

It is similar to the Middle Eastern Henna.

It is understandable that the modern lifestyle may not allow people to celebrate holidays in the traditional ways. However, it is important to pass the culture and the knowledge to the next generation.

Knowing the culture may help preserve it. For a country like Ethiopia with more than 3,000 years of history, preserving its culture should not be optional.

On New Year’s Eve night, family members gather

Happy Ethiopian New Year!

Deputy Editor-in- Chief Fasika Tadesse ftadesse@eminence-se.com Nifas Silk Laphto s.c Woreda 12 H. No 747 Reporter Lucy Kassa lucykassa6@gmail.com Michael Gebremedhin gebremedhinmichael@gmail.com Contributors Brook Abdu Sanjeev Midha Editor Samson Haileyesus samsonfikre@gmail.com Copy Editor Carolyn Curti cutyrmc@yahoo.com Graphics and Layout Design Yohannes Seyfe vecxelgrafix@gmail.com Website Administrator Samson Tegegn Photographer Sentayehu Bekele Sbekele@eminence-se.com Front page picture Keremela Photography Finance and Administration Tizita Paulos Distribution Tariku Tessema Editorial Address: Tel. +251-118-678-187 Mob. +251-939-858-724 P.O Box 794 code 1110 contact@eminence-se.com/ social@eminence-se.com Web:www.theeminencemagazine.com www.eminencemagazine.com Bole s.c Namibia Street, Behind Edna Mall, Adika Bldg 5th Floor This edition is printed at Central PP Kirkos Subcity, Woreda 03 H.No 414 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

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Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 5

News Highlights August

Ministry of Culture and Tourism had of 4 days meetings with its 7 subordinate institutions and the 8 regional and two city administrations culture and tourism bureaus. The meeting was held at Ghion Hotel from August 31- September 3, 2016 to analyze the performance of the cultural and tourism sector in 2015/16. They also discussed with the plans of the ministry for the current fiscal year of 2016/17.

Ethiopia, which launched its new tourism brand, land of Origins, targeted to collect revenue of 4.2 billion dollar from 1.147 million tourists during the current fiscal year of 2016/17. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism also targeted the contribution of tourism sector to the national GDP to 3.75 percent with a total cash flow of 6 billion dollars during the year.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced among the 365 hotels which deemed to be included in the hotel star rating at the national level, 158 of them received their ratings. Additional 105 hotels were rated but did not received their ratings as they are expected to meet some standards.

And 102 of them failed to be included in the ratings.

Ethiopian Airlines received its second Airbus A350 XWB, which arrived at Addis Ababa Bole International Airport on August 16, 2016. On June 30, 2016 ET received the Africa’s First Ethiopian A350 dubbed “Simien Mountains”. Ethiopian has 12 remaining orders of the A350, which are expected to be delivered within this fiscal year. The latest addition of A350 increased Ethiopian fleet to 80.

An Ethiopian Diaspora entrepreneur Habtamu Tadesse launched a software which is named as ZayRide that facilitate the use of taxis in Addis Ababa. Habtamu designed the software which resembles Uber. Habtamu’s software, which is named after the clan in Ziway named Zay and the word Ride, uses tech to connect drivers with riders through phone call, text message or email.

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Ashenda/Shadey/ Ashendye and Buhe were colorfully celebrated in the month of August at the different parts of the country. Ashenda which is celebrated to mark the ending of 15 days fasting season called Filseta by Ethiopian Orthodox church laity’s, was celebrated between August 21 and 29, 2016.

The other Ethiopian traditional holiday Buhe, a holiday to memorize the revelation of Jesus in the mountain of Debre Tabor to his disciples in between Moses and Elias, was celebrated on August 19, 2016.

Ethiopia and China have expressed their keen interest to cooperate on the development of tourism sector in the East African country. The Chinese Embassy in Ethiopia on August 19, 2016 organized a half-day Dialogue on China-Ethiopia Tourism Industry Cooperation on its premise in the capital Addis Ababa, to explore ways of collaboration between Ethiopians and the Chinese in the industry.

Events Sep./Oct.

Event: Conference of the African Association of Agricultural Economist Date: 23-26 Sep 2016 Venue: United Nations Conference Centre, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Event: Ethio-Con Date: 21-25 Sep 2016 Venue: Addis Ababa Exhibition Center Ethio-Con is a 5 day event being held from 21st September to the 25th September 2016 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. This event will feature solutions, new Technologies and improved materials related to the Building & Construction Sectors from Ethiopia and Africa Countries.

Event: African Rift Geothermal Conference Date: 25 Sep 2016 Venue: United Nations Conference Centre, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia Organized by the African Union Commission, the conference will take place on the 25th of September, 2016 at the United Nations Conference Centre. The conference will cover areas like attracting private developers to geothermal development, reduce lead times in developing geothermal projects, effectively develop, construct, and operate successful geothermal power plants.

Event: Africa Sourcing & Fashion Week (ASFW) 2016 Date: 4-7 Oct 2016 Venue: Millennium Hall, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia ASFW is an event and an on-going effort dedicated to improving African Cotton, Textile and Apparel trade. The event is profiled to raise the awareness of Africa as a place to do business, sourcing destination, changing perceptions and to make the value chain in the continent more visible as a source of supply of cotton, textile and apparel products for the domestic, regional and international buyers.

The Conference is organized by the African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE) and will take place from 23rd September to the 26th September, 2016 at the United Nations Conference Centre. During the conference different presentations regarding agricultural economy will be presented in oral or visual forms.

Event: East African Global Music Campus Date: 13-26 Sep 2016 Venue: Don Bosco Center Mekanissa From September 13-26, 2016, Global Music Academy (Berlin) together with Jazzamba School of Music and Goethe-Institute will host the East African Global Music Campus in Addis Ababa. They host a training program with the aim to develop a two-year East African music curriculum.

Event: Africa Fashion Reception Date: 13- 15 Sep 2016 Venue: African Union The event features designers from 30 African countries. It is organized with a partnership of Africa Magic, Design, Essentials, Motherland Beckons, Atunda Entertainment, Ovation International, Femaz Micro Finance Bnak, Amina Megazine, AIT, Ben Tv, Planet Tv, Busy minds Entertainment, Europa Regina, Goge Africa & African Kingdoms Federation. The 3 days event will present the 1st African Fashion Business Summit.

Event: So You Think You Can Speak Competition Date: 17 Sep 2016 Venue: Addis Ababa University Institute of Technology

The event is an annual speech contest, which is organized with the collaboration of toastmasters clubs in Addis Ababa. Since 2012, this event invites the best speakers of each clubs and non-toastmaster contestant to deliver their prepared speeches in front of a group of judges and audience.

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 7

Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia and Africa, is currently experiencing a construction boom. But building owners of the city are not considering incorporating green areas with their new buildings. This is mainly due to scarce land resources and lack of awareness by the owners regarding the importance of having green areas and the impact it has on environmental conservation, which is beyond mere aesthetics. Others also mention that the government is soft on enforcing having mandatory green areas. That is another reason that the city is facing a dearth of green areas reports The Eminence’s LUCY KASSA.

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Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

Eminence Spotlight: Ethio- Topical

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Samson Abera, 32, owns a mobile shop in the Gulf Aziz Building, located off Africa Avenue next to Friendship International Hotel. He is one of the people who suffers from high temperatures caused by the glass of the building. This also causes a suffocating feeling during peak work times due to lack of fresh air.

Samson told The Eminence, that he feels dizzy the whole day in his shop because he does not get any green area nearby if he wants to relax and take a breath of fresh air.

“I go outside sometimes but it is too sunny so my only option to get fresh air, is just to travel out of the city,” he says.

“Sometimes I go to areas like Sululta and Entoto on the weekends to get pure and natural air that I cannot get in the middle of Bole,” Samson said.

Just l i k e Samson there are many other people striving for fresh air. Mesert Mengestu, a worker at Free Choice Style, a boutique in Getu Commercial Center is another person who feels the shortage of scarce green area in Addis Ababa. Until the age of 13 she grew up in a rural area and now she cannot feel happy with crowded buildings that do not have any green space to spend outdoors.

“The mirrors of the buildings have bad reflections. This is worsened by the lack of plants that can bring pure oxygen,” Mesert said explaining she travels to her rural neighborhoods to escape the heat during her free time.

This is all happening in the “concrete jungle” which is the right term to describe Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. The city is undergoing massive construction projects at this time. One can see many types of construction, from skyscrapers to condos and roadways. Addis is undergoing a major construction boom and the skyline suddenly has more halfway-completed high-rise buildings than ever before, and new hotels are being built at breakneck

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speed.

In addition it is common to see the raw materials for construction that are narrowing the pedestrian roadways.

According to the Addis Ababa City Administration Construction Permit & Control Authority, during the 2014/15 fiscal year only 9,316 construction permits had been issued excluding temporary permits which account for 1,189 projects. Following the mandatory standard some of the buildings include parking lots. While almost none considered a little green space.

This scenario begs the question, why is this happening in the country which is active in environmental protection and global warming issues as witnessed by Ethiopia’s active participation in the Paris’s Cop21 meeting and other major global warming issues.

One of the buildings which completely used its land for construction without considering green space is Getu Commercial Center (GCC) that is located on Africa Avenue. Masresha Weldesellasie, general manager of GCC, points his hand at the government saying property developers are not considering green space because of the lack of an obligatory legal framework from the government.

Despite that Masresha believes that malls with cafés and restaurants should be the Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 9

“Most of the building owners calculate the profit from renting space rather than having a green area,” said Fozia Yasin, general manager of Gulf Aziz Mall, located in Bole area around Edna Mall.

The mall has few plants in plastic containers which is an attempt to mitigate the lack of green space around its location, according to Fozia.

Others say the blame should not fully lie on owners, rather it should be on the architects and contractors. Asfaw Kidane, general manager for Human Resource and Facility Management of Mega Building, which is located on the African Avenue, said the reason why they do not have a little space for green space is because of the architect and contractor who worked on their building some 18 years ago.

Not only were the previous professionals, but also the current ones are irresponsible in considering green space in the buildings, according to Asfaw. “Owners are always led by their architects and contractors. So it is the architects who should convince the owners,” Asfaw noted.

But the owners of the building did not keep silent, saying that they missed the chance to reserve green space in their building so they planted 500 trees inside their printing factory located at Gerji. According to Asfaw after cultivating these trees, dust from the surrounding factory and the temperature has dipped lower, so workers of the company gather around the trees and eat their lunch taking in fresh air.

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After all, the nonexistence of green areas in the city starts boiling down its effect on the habitats of the city.

Asfaw did not hide the fact that they were challenged by the community when they planted the 500 trees. “Many of the people questioned why we were doing that while we can use the plot for construction or other business related purposes,” he recalls. He also admits they still receive comments to cut down the trees and use the place for other purposes.

Leniency in considering green space is also observed from the city administration side in addition to the property developers. The city administration is not forcing building owners to consider green areas while constructing their buildings. Even more it is not reserving plots in the prime locations to develop public green areas. In fact there are only a few green areas being developed by the government including areas at Summit and Olympia.

Rather than expanding public green areas, Addis Ababa City Government Sanitation, Beautification & Parks Development Agency is spending 30 million birr yearly to plant trees. In doing so the Agency increased the number of saplings planted annually from 70,000 before 2010 to 800,000 this time, according to Dereje Dibaba, deputy director of the Agency.

But for Asfaw this activity is simply a waste of resources, rather the government should invest and follow up on the cultivated plants. He claims that the trees that were planted with the campaign are not growing because of a lack

Despite this, the City Administration is reluctant to require building owners to include green areas in their compounds. This, according to Nebyu Getachew, coordinator of construction permit team at the City Administration, is because the City Master plan Institute only considers green areas on a city level.

“It reserves areas for greenery at the Kebele level. But it is difficult to put green areas as a mandatory standard in individual buildings considering the scarcity and high price of land,” Nebyu said.

The impact of this is that, the country in general and Addis Ababa in particular does not meet the per capita distribution of green space set by the World Health Organization which is seven square meters per person in African urban areas. According to the website of Forum for Social Studies (FSS), Ethiopia’s distribution is only at 0.3 percent. At a city level Addis Ababa needs to develop an additional 2,700 hectares to reach the WHO standard.

According to Gebeyehu Ayenew. Environmental expert at Addis Ababa University, the lack of strong enforcement of the Local Development Plan (LDP) and poor land use management are the reasons behind the City Government’s failure to achieve its 2003 plan of developing 40 percent of the city with greenery and to finally balance the concrete jungle with nature (Brook Abdu contributed to this story)

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

of strong follow through.

He also believes that the city government should issue a policy that obliges every mall owner to plant trees with a strong fine for those who fail to do so as a solution.

ones that must consider green spaces rather than malls with different businesses since the purpose of green space is to bring beauty to the area.

Not only Masresha, but other property developers lack awareness on the benefits of green space, so they are prioritizing business profits over the environment.

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

Eminence Spotlight: Interview

How do you evaluate the performances of the tourism and culture sector of the country during the 2015/16 fiscal year?

As the past fiscal year was the first year of the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP II) which has 17 strategic areas and five goals, our Ministry received its mandates and targets. And we cascaded these plans to the regional states and subordinate institutions to undertake their own roles and activities.

So I can say that as a Ministry we performed better last year in achieving the stated goals. But there are some works we did with a sense of urgency while the end of the fiscal year came closer to closure. So that, those activities might not be concluded but I can still say the Ministry was successful in achieving its planned targets for the year. When we see the performance of institutions in figures it lies between 93 percent and 97 percent of the targeted plan.

What were the major achievements of MoCT during 2016/17?

To mention few, last year was the year which we managed to conclude and solve the cases which had been rolling from year to year and were major sources of grievances from the people and industry operators and challenges of the sector. For instance we managed to provide a nationwide recognition with a ceremony that took place at a national palace for the 250 committee members for the return of the Axum Obelisk.

This issue has been pending for years after the obelisk has already been returned.

The other case is the reinstatement of the Abune Petros Statue to its former location as it is. This case was a source of disappointment for the past three years as many people assumed the development activity in the city is damaging the heritages of the country.

In addition we renovated Maitre Artist World Laureate Afework Tekle’s house.

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The other major achievement was the launching of the new tourism brand of Ethiopia i.e Land of Origins, which represents Ethiopia well and can potentially attract more tourists to the country.

We launched the five years Tourism Marketing Strategy and Brand for the country. We also designed and launched a Sustainable Tourism Master Plan.

The country successfully served a number of international conferences which builds its image. We also signed collaboration agreements with different countries cultural and tourism institutions such as with Israel, Mozambique and China.

What are the effects seen in the Ethiopian hospitality and tourism sectors after the hotel star rating was made?

The hotel grading left major impacts on the Ministry and the hospitality and tourism sector. As it is a new phenomenon for the country and the sector, it taught us a lot in designing the standards

with the help from the United Nations World Tourism Organization. We enhanced our capacity by making our experts to be efficient in grading independently for the next time. For that matter Ethiopia was invited by Mozambique to share its knowledge being a best model.

When we see its effect in the hospitality industry, it gave a chance to the country to know how many star rated hotels it has. It has also corrected the causal trend by hoteliers in crowning their hotels with their desired star levels. The rating also taught the hoteliers to deeply know what criteria star level hotels should have, which forced them to consider in fulfilling the requirements, such as hygiene, sanitation and human resource development.

The grading also helped professionals in the sector to get recognition and value. During the past year hotel owners were hiring people who are not professionals.

But following the grading they started to hire professionals as the

MOCT:

Receiving the New Budget Year with More Synergy and Commitment.

The past fiscal year can be said to have fared well for the Ministry of Culture and Tourism (MoCT), which managed to achieve larger portion of its targets. The Ministry, which saw ministries reshuffle during the same year, contributed 3.5 billion dollar for the country’s economy from the revenue it got from the 910,000 tourists who flocked to the country. The Eminence’s FASIKA TADESSE took time with the new minister for culture and tourism Ayisha Mohammed (Eng.), to discuss on the last year’s performance of the Ministry and its plan for the current fiscal year and generally about the hospitality and tourism industry of the country. Excerpts: criteria of the rating demands that.

The other major impact is that it has created a competition among hotels which will help the sector to reach to its best service level.

The rating also helped the government to set incentives for the investors joining the hotel business.

The Ethiopian Investment Commission offers different incentives such as tax exemptions for the investors who wish to open hotels depending on the star levels they want to develop.

What were the major challenges the Ministry encountered last year and how did it manage to cope with them?

Our major challenge was gaps in implementing our plans because there was a reshuffle of high level officials at the Ministry so it took a little time to adjust and become familiar for the new officials. The other challenge for us was lack of inputs such as offices, human resource and vehicles. High staff turnover was also our challenge which forced duties to be done

with limited number of workers which created a gap in quality of works.

In some areas we also faced challenges to work effectively because of the legal frameworks and policies which are pending in ratification and amendment processes.

That happened mainly drafting legal frameworks have a long process. But after all we tried to utilize all of our resources and capacity to mitigate these challenges and we managed to perform relatively better as per our plan of the year.

It is said by many, the MoCT gives more attention and focuses the tourism sector than culture and also reports show that tourism is performing better than culture. Why is that happening?

It is not because the culture sector achieved less, rather the perception toward the cultural sector is less compared with the tourism sector. We do not know that, tourist flow is increasing because of the cultural sites and heritages of

the country. Regarding language, culture and heritage, we did several researches and achieved a lot.

But what it missed is linking these achievements with their effect to the economy.

Even if, when we deeply looked into the performance report of the Ministry, culture performed better than the tourism sector.

Among our seven subordinate institutions the majority or four of them are for the culture sector. So the achievements of these institutions are not calculated in terms of money as we did for the tourism sector. That is why it seems that the culture sector of the country is overshadowed by the tourism industry but not because the Ministry gave lesser focus for the cultural sector of the country.

I strongly believe that the tourism sector is registering these achievements with the support from the emerging cultural sector. So this shows that we need to make researches and show where the cultural sector stands in contributing to the GDP of the country.

In general what makes 2008 E.C (2016/17) the best year for Ethiopia’s culture and tourism sectors?

There are many reasons to say 2015/16 fiscal year was a best year. To mention few, it was the year which the tourist flow and revenue from these tourists has increased; this happened while our neighboring countries were victims of terrorism which decreased their tourist flows. 2008 E.C was also a year which we launched our new brand, a year we can manage to register Fichee Chembelala under UNESCO and a year which we standardized hotels with grading.

The MoCT itself and its institutions under it mention that they are facing challenges regarding policies and legal frameworks. So in order to solve these problems and foster the tourism and culture of the country, does the Ministry have plans to make some policy adjustments for the current fiscal year?

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Eminence Spotlight: Interview

Yes, we have, especially regarding wildlife we have several directives and proclamations that are expected to be amended and ratified during the current fiscal year, when the parliament resumes from recession. The amendments will be done on changing the structure of the Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA), regarding identifying and reserving park areas, and establishing Wildlife Fund under the EWCA. We expect the film policy, language, music and painting polices to be ratified the coming year.

It is mentioned by the regional culture and tourism offices that they forward points of improvement for the ministry during meetings but they claim they are not seeing improvements so that they are mentioning same problems time and time again. Why is that happening?

Most of the challenges they mention emanate from legal frameworks which are not their mandate, but they wish them to be theirs. Even if those mandates are not their mandates, they are still the implementers of those activities under the Ministry. So we need to integrate our plans with them. That is why we are working on integrating regional plans with federal ones. But regarding the legal framework we cannot do anything until the legal frameworks are amended or ratified.

And it is true that the regional states raise the same questions time and time again, but it is not answered because of MoCT reluctance rather as I alluded previously, solving these issues are related with the legal frameworks and take time.

So to integrate our plans and have strong attachments with the regional culture and tourism bureaus and subordinate, we have quarterly, semiannual and annual meetings with them. We also

meet with them twice in a year for supervision in addition to the different trainings and panel discussions.

What are the major targets of the Ministry for the current fiscal year of 2016/17, in terms of tourist flow, revenue, promoting the country’s culture and other detail targets for the sector?

According to the GTP plan we targeted to increase annual tourist flow by 20 percent. So in line with that we targeted to receive 1.147 million tourists by 2016/17 fiscal year up from 910,000 tourists flow during the past fiscal year. And we plan to earn 4.2 billion dollar from the tourism sector during this fiscal year. To achieve this, we are working aggressively in advertising our new brand to the world using Ethiopian Airlines offices, embassies and council offices across the globe.

At the same time we are also targeted to work on the development of tourist destinations. In the previous years, we have been working more on infrastructure development not on investments.

But now we are working on motivating and giving incentives to the private businesses to invest on destination development. We are approaching international donors and the government itself to invest on destination development in order to attract more tourists and make their stay enjoyable.

Regarding cultural development, we dedicated this year towards magnifying the effect of culture toward the contribution of the country’s economy. It is a fact that culture is contributing a lot for the nation’s economy, but we do not have an exact figure to show its effect. So we are planning to make researches on that which can show the exact contribution of culture to the country’s GDP. For instance if we see a finished traditional dress, it has a long value

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chain star ting from the farmer who cultivated the cotton until the weaver who made it. Same is true for the film industry, which its business starts form the one who wrote the script until the cinemas who screen the movie. All subsectors in the cultural sector have along value chain that has a great impact for the country’s economy which is not researched well until now.

Another major target is making the tourism and culture sector the second top employer sector.

Globally next to agriculture, culture and tourism in the second biggest sector which absorbs huge amounts of employees especially women and youth. According to researches out of the total population of Ethiopia, 15 million of them have skills related to culture starting from hair dressing to making clothes which all seem small but have a great impact towards the national economy.

The other thing which is mentioned as a failure of the ministry is its communication and cooperation gap with its seven subordinate federal institutions.

What does the communication and cooperation of the MoCT with these institutions look?

Totally under the MoCT, there are seven institutions which four of them are for cultural sector and the remaining three are for tourism sector. We are having a strong

communication with them.

I and the two state ministers have a ministerial forum every week. We have also a meeting with heads of these subordinate institutions every 15 days to evaluate our progress. If there have burning issues we do not wait for the 15 days interval we could have meeting immediately.

So this shows that with these institutions, we are working closely and in collaboration. We have strengthened work on supervisions, in analyzing performance and plans. We even go to the parliament to present and defend our budget.

But that does not mean we involve in their daily activities, but if they need our support in strategic areas we are the one who flag their problems until it is solved.

So I can say that we have a good cooperation and collaboration with them. Our major task is coordinating the activities of these institutions.

But still there might be some gaps; all the institutions don’t have well organized and uniform structures. But now it seems the structure is getting some form of shape

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Arts and Crafts:

The Need To Support People With Disabilities

People with leprosy and disabilities had been marginalized in the Ethiopian society and were subjected to discrimination. This led them to stay away from the community and live alone. But these days, people with disabilities are being better accepted by society and even more they are organizing in associations and producing handmade clothes, shoes, and house materials. The Eminence’s LUCY KASSA, visited these society to report this.

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Other than blocks for medical purposes within the compound of Alert Hospital, a medical center specializing in Hansen’s disease, also known as leprosy, there is a building block which is devoted to handicraft works. Since it was established in the 1970s, this is where the handicraft workshops and the shops are located. It is serving as a hub of employment for the leprosy affected people by producing and selling different kinds of handicraft skills.

One of those handicapped people is Mekoyet Wale, a 60 year old woman with no children.

Twenty five years ago this woman was afflicted with leprosy, leaving her with no means to support herself other than begging in streets.

Her sickness, which is considered by the community as a curse from God, contributed to her decision of seeking alms. But later, she got a chance to be treated at Alert Hospital.

It was not only treatment that she received at the time. After being treated for many days the then-volunteer doctors at the hospital organized her and all the other people with leprosy in the hospital. After forming a team, the doctors trained Mekoyet and fellow patients with ways of making various kinds of traditional handicrafts.

In addition to Mekoyet, many other handicapped persons are in the workshop. Most of them are leprosy victims. Even though they were treated for their sickness many years ago, the disease left them with permanent injuries on their hands and feet.

But this did not prevent them from making a variety of attractive handicrafts. This can be proven by looking into the traditional clothes, sofa covers, bed covers, carpets, scarves, belts, bags and home accessories made from different kinds of wood and designed to go with the modern lifestyle, made by the former patients.

Despite their acquisition of new skills and designs, these people do not lead an easy life.

Ayalnesh Engeda, 63 and mother of eight, is an example. With the income she gets from making such clothes, she earn anything beyond feeding herself and her children. To make things worse she and her co-workers are growing older and their energy is waning.

Normally it takes only 15 days to make a traditional cotton table cloth, but this does not happen in the case of Ayalnesh. “By its nature the work hurts the ability to see as well as needing fast fingers to make the covering but

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

Eminence Spotlight: Society

Some of hand made leather products made by handicaped members of Alemayehu Awraris & Friends Association

currently with my age it takes me a month to make such a covering,” Ayalnesh told The Eminence.

In addition to Alert, there are also associations of handicapped craftspeople at Entoto. One of these associations is Alemayehu Awraris and Friends Association. Unlike the Alert Hospital’s handicraft people, the Association`s members at Entoto are handicapped from different reasons including accidents or war injuries rather than leprosy.

Almaze Tadesse is a chairwoman of the Alemayehu Awraris and Friends Association. She herself is disabled. She joined the organization after she failed to pass the national exam of grade 12. When The Eminence met her in the workshop, she was making women’s traditional Habesha dresses.

According to Almaze being organized under a smaller and micro enterprise association has several advantages for people with disabilities like her. Being a member of the Association, she received various handicraft training on how to design and renovate traditional clothes with a modern sense which is very essential to fill the skill constraints of other members. This is in addition to the benefits of obtaining loans, a manufacturing place and other technical supports that has allowed Almaze and her peers to ply their trade.

But his injuries did not allow him to continue in the construction sector. Hence he joined Alemayehu Awraris and Friends Association and took trainings in shoe making. Now he is capable of making women’s and men’s shoes, bags and other leather products. For him the biggest thing he gets from the association is not an increased income rather skills.

“Even though the short term courses which I got have helped me improve my skill of making different fine leather products there is less income here than at my earlier job,” he told The Eminence.

The major problem people with disabilities raise is the absence of a regular salary. Members of Alemayehu Awraris and Friends Association and all other handicapped craftspeople in Alert Hospital only get paid when their products are sold. This major problem occurs as the organizations are challenged in finding markets for their products.

Moreover there are days when they are interrupted from doing their work because of delays in accessing raw materials.

To sell the products of these people, Alert workshop organizes a bazaar every month, but on the casual days the crafts are sold very But Alemayhu Kendane, a 45 year rarely, according to Elsa Mola, old handicapped member in the saleswoman at the Alert Hospital organization, whose legs were in- Workshop. jured during the Ethio-Eritrea war, “As you can see, the handicraft is not satisfied with the benefits he products made by the people afis getting as a member of the Asso- flicted with leprosy are amazing ciation. Before the war, and a little both in terms of design and quality while after the war he worked as a compared to those made by people building contractor. without a handicap. But there are

no local buyers except some foreigners and tourists,” she told The Eminence. are making all kinds of traditional But when it is compared to Alert clothes adding value to the usual Hospital, the Entoto handicraft designs and colors. But the probmakers have better access to mar- lem lies, according to him, in the ket. These participants receive lack of promotion for their prodorders from the shops within the ucts. compound of the Gundush Meda “The handicraft products of these (a condominium site with a several handicapped are not recognized workshops of handicapped crafts- nor promoted well,” he commentpeople) and Shiro Meda, the larg- ed. est Ethiopian traditional products market. Their handmade products As a policy Small and Micro Enterare displayed for buyers in this prises (SME) somehow give a few privileges to handicapped memmarket. bers. One of the privileges is these Fikadu Belayneh is one of the buy- craftspeople will get a location not ers of these crafts and he sells them less than three percent of the total to variety of individuals, includ- place in every exhibition and baing foreigners. He also gives some zaars that is organized throughout specific orders including color and the year to create market access for design for the workers in the orga- SMEs. Other than this exclusive nizations. benefit, SMEs give exemption from According to Fikadu, giving an collateral when getting a loan and order for the making of tradition- other technical benefits and assisal clothes to handicapped persons tance to people with handicap. and persons without a handicap Other than this, there is no particmakes no difference to him, rather ular section for handicapped SME it is advantageous to order prod- members in the Federal SMEs ucts from the handicapped persons Agency. There is no separate data because they deliver on time. of the number of organizations “Unlike able-bodied workers the handicapped provide the traditional clothes on time as per the agreement. This is because they sit and work for longer hours than others,” Fekadu told The Eminence.

according to Zerihun Alemayehu, Marketing Development Director at the Agency.

“There might not be a convenient scenario for those handicapped members of SMEs engaged whethAnother buyer, Ayele Abeje, ad- er in handicraft or other areas. But mits that the skills of the disabled there are efforts and they are not are improving over time, and they out of focus though the efforts may not be successful,” Zerihun noted Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 17

Hospitality 3600: Hospi- Tourism

: l a i r T o i Eth

n for o i s n e m i D w The Ne ment g e S m s i r u o Ethiopian T

In Ethiopia the tourism subsectors which have been promoted widely were the holiday and leisure tourism while the Meeting, Incentive Travel, Conference and Exhibition (MICE) and sport tourism are focused on less. But these days the two sectors are getting more attention from both the government and the private sector. Run in Africa (RIA) is one of the private initiatives which is working on promoting sports tourism in Ethiopia.

The Eminence’s MICHAEL GEBREMEDHIN attended one of the RIA’s trail race held at Abijatta– Shalla National Park, and reports about the race and its contribution to the tourism industry of the country.

On the morning of Sunday, August 7, 2016 at nearly 6:00 a.m., a time when most people would be in bed or starting to prepare to welcome a new day, at Abijatta– Shalla National Park a little over 300 people gathered and were warming up and getting ready for a race despite the misty, cold weather of the park.

Shuttles from Simbo Langano Beach Resort and Haile resort Ziway/Batu had dropped off these people at the park. Most of them wore shorts and shirts, regardless of the weather conditions. The excitement could be witnessed on everybody’s face. It was indeed exciting to be part of the annual event held at the acacia adorned hills by Lake Shalla and Abijatta, the EthioTrail 2016.

Morf Haider, who has lived in Ethiopia for a year working at the Norwegian Embassy, was one of the racers who took part in the 2016’s third edition of EthioTrail race.

Haider who was attending the race for the first time was excited about being part of EthioTrail. “It was a very good run, a nice trail, well organized and beautiful scenery, I enjoyed it,” he summarizes his ex-

18 | The Eminence - Issue 23 - September 2016

perience.

The EthioTrail race, which Haider was one of the runners, is a unique international trail race that had been held in Ethiopia for the past two years. It is held in Abijatta-Shalla Lakes National Park, the beautiful park known for its diverse bird population. It is located 200 kilometers south of Addis Ababa, in the Central Rift Valley.

After watching trail races in Spain, where he had lived for many years, Kaleab Getaneh, CEO of Run in Africa (RIA), decided to introduce the event to his motherland.

He came back to Ethiopia to make his dream a reality and started his own company; RIA. Together with world-renowned Ethiopian athlete Gebreegzhiabher Gebremariam, they worked to see the dreams of the first international trail race in the country come to fruition.

The third round of the race was launched after the blessings from the local tribe leaders to lay a similar effect as the last two races. The local community, including those who have walked for about two hours to attend the event, stood in awe at

the corners of the race watching the participants who had been warming up and dancing to the music from the blasting speakers.

For the first two years, the race covered three distances (42 kilometers, 21 kilometers and 12 kilometers).

But this year, it covered the first two distances of 12 and 21 kilometers.

“We had the concern that the rain from the other night would not allow us to hold the 42 kilometers race. We came to the decision to cancel the long distance race after deliberations with our partners, judges and trail experts,” Gebreegziabher, co-founder of RIA, told The Eminence.

After the blessing and good wishes of the local elders and leaders, the third Ethio trail race started with Gebreegzhiabher’s firing the air horn. With the race being held under the volcano Mount Fike, and between the Abijata and Shalla lakes, it offered a unique opportunity for people to connect with nature. Going up and down hills in the wilderness, the challenge of running through the sand and rocks while embracing the serene

Photo by: Run in Africa (RIA)

green land embedded by birds chirping, truly gives one a moment of tranquility to refresh the body and soul.

Dawud Mume, director general of Ethiopian Wildlife Conservation Authority (EWCA).

In addition to the 12 and 21 kilometers races, another impressive race that took place on that day was the one kilometer race by the local children. The race was significant for bringing up future professional athletes for Ethiopia, from Oromia, one of the origins of renowned runners.

Abijatta Shalla National Park is one of the most vulnerable parks in Ethiopia. It is heavily encroached on by the growing number of human and livestock populations, which outnumber the large wild mammals in the park. The woodland has also been reduced due to agricultural activities and widespread charcoal production inside the park.

The race also aimed to support the area locals, as the prize medals for the winners of each race were handmade by children from the area. Organizers appreciated the local community and encouraged them to sell food and beverages during the event.

These have a purpose to generate additional revenues to benefit the local community in and around the park. The EthioTrail organizers have also invested 20 percent of the race registration fee to support three schools in the park by providing books and sport materials and support conservation of the park.

Beyond its main target of promoting sport tourism in Ethiopia and changing the lives of the society in the areas, the race has a great advantage in awakening the society to develop a sense of ownership and conservaion of community towards the park, according to

This great initiative is playing its role in conserving the park and promoting sports tourism in the country. In organizing this adventurous and inspirational race, RIA Ethiopia partnered with the EWCA, the Ethiopian Tourism Organization (ETO) and Great Run Ethiopia.

And it seems it is achieving its target of promoting the country to foreigners.

Additionally, because of various human activities and climate change the amount of water is also shrinking. Due to all these reasons over time the park is losing its precious animals and plants.

According to Dawud, holding the trail race at the park is aimed at supporting as well as promoting other rehabilitation and conservation efforts by the authority.

Christina Notsef, a tour operator company owner in Denmark, can be a witness for this assertion.

Notsef was in Ethiopia for the first time to attend the race with three clients who are going back to Denmark to promote the race.

In addition to this, RIA also organized the first of its kind children mountain race at the Born Free Park in the outskirts of Addis Ababa, Holeta in June 2016. The race was held with the aim of raising funds for the development of Born Free Park, an environmental protection center. In addition to its athletics related target, the race raised around 50,000 birr for the park from the 350 participants and their parents.

Solomon Tadesse, CEO of ETO, strongly believes that EthioTrail plays a great role in promoting the country and its tourist attractions. “Among ETO’s other strategies, the major ones are Meeting, Incentive Travel, Conference and Exhibition (MICE) and sports tourism which we believe in them having a great potential,” Solomon told The Eminence.

“It’s a very good experience to be, and run in the land of runners,” Notsef spoke with excitement to The Eminence.

“So we are working to push these areas to contribute to our tourism

industry by developing our landscapes at the same time strengthening public-private partnerships with private businesses like RIA,” Solomon added.

Ethiopia is a country consecrated with abundant natural resources and attractions. But there is still a lot to be done in exploiting these blessings to the fullest. The role such events as the Ethio Trail race play in promoting these attractions and impacting the tourism and hospitality sector is undeniably remarkable.

The event is an eye opener for stakeholders engaged in the sector showcasing the opportunities and potential on the ground. It also proves the vital effect sport, specifically athletics, has in tourism along with events like the Great Ethiopian Run. Using what Ethiopians know and have shined at in the face of the world is the best way to attract those who have been impressed by them.

Ethiopia indeed is the land of origins and the land of runners.

Harnessing our potential with global experiences can create similar platforms that we can greatly benefit from and revitalize our resources. In this regard Organizers of Ethio Trail could be good example for others

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 19

Hospitality 3600: Facilities and Accommodation

Bale is one of the zones within the Oromia Regional states of Ethiopia. The town was named after the former kingdom of Bale, which used to dwelled in approximately the same area. Bale is also known for its many natural resources, including Bale Mountains National Park, Sof Omar Caves and other attractions for local and international tourists to enjoy. But there is a major problem in the area. The town’s hospitality facilities for tourists are not up to standards. The Eminence’s LUCK KASSA traveled to the town and analyzed the quality and standard of the services in the town and tells us what stakeholders are doing to change this face of Bale.

The moving cave of Sof Omar, the prominent Oromo Gada system, the magnificent Islamic home of Dire Sheik Hussein, the rich wildlife of Bale Mountains National Park all originate at 430 kilometer southeast of Addis Ababa in the Bale Zone.

number of tourists coming to the town, standard hotels and other services for visitors in this zone is moving at a very slow pace. This is even worsened when one takes a visit to tourist destinations like Sof Omar Cave and Dire Sheik Hussein.

Abundant natural and historical heritages surround Bale. Bale is the home of two endemic mammals, the Nyala and Ethiopian wolves. The second tallest mountain range after the Simien Mountains, the Sanate Plateau which is 4,377 meters above sea level is located in this zone. Historically this zone is the home of several Islamic shrines as well as the Gada system.

There are around 100 hotels in the zone, but they do not meet the tourist standards.

Relatively speaking, only three of the 100 hotels are deemed to have an adequate standard to accommodate tourists. The bigest hotel in Bale totally have only 74 rooms. The largest hotel among them is the Wabi Sheble Hotel.

But having all these natural resources, Bale is not taking advantage of the benefits that it could to draw tourists to the region because it lacks sufficient hotel facilities that can hold both local and international tourists coming to the area to visit the attractions.

During the just ended fiscal year of 2015/16 around 98,960 international and 286,450 domestic tourists have visited Bale. Of the 910,000 international tourists who visited Ethiopia, only 10 percent of them travelled to Bale. Looking at the

20 | The Eminence - Issue 23 - September 2016

In addition to not having enough quality hotels, Bale also lacks tour and travel companies, which can help tourists to have a smooth visit.

The Bale Zone Culture and Tourism Bureau and private investors say the main reason that has prevented them from balancing the tourist flow and the hospitality sector development in the zone is, lack of infrastructure.

Abadama Hotel is one of the hotels that provide accommodation service in the town of Bale Robe. The hotel has evolved after the construction of the 16 kilometer

road in the city, which is the only asphalt road of the town.

“The infrastructure is not attractive for investors and there aren’t incentives given to hoteliers in the zone,” Engdashet Woldeamanuel, general manager of the hotel, told The Eminence. He also added that training and service qualification oversight for the hospitality industry is rare in Bale.

Both officials from Bale Zone Culture and Tourism Bureau as well as the Oromia Regional State recognize the lack of infrastructure as obstacles in attracting private business people to invest towards hotel development projects in the zone.

According to Abader Jeylan, Support and Supervision Head at the Culture & Tourism Bureau of the Bale zone, the absence of adequate water & power supply, and power and network interruptions as well as the difficult road infrastructure has barred the expansion of investments in the hotel sector. He also noted that the zone has limitations in promoting its natural and cultural heritages.

“Lack of basic infrastructures and promotion are our main challenges,” Abader admits.

Despite these the zone is not taking actions towards solving these limitations. Abader said these infrastructural limitations will be solved progressively.

In addition to the Bale Zone, the Oromia Regional State’s Culture and Tourism Bureau also recognized that the Bale Zone is in short of facilities to accommodate tourists traveling to the area especially around the tourist attraction sites. For this reason the tourist’s length of stay in the zone is not more than three days.

According to Getu Weyasa, head of the Oromia Regional State Culture and Tourism Bureau, in order to resolve such infrastructural challenges the regional state is working to restructure the airport facility at the City of Bale Robe and undertaking promotional works.

While the infrastructural limitations are the main obstacles raised by officials and investors; tourism experts, who have done research on the zone’s tourism facilities raise many other barriers.

One of these barriers is the instable condition of the zone. According to Engdashet, hoteliers fear that their property will not be safe due to the political unrest that happens occa-

sionally in the zone.

“Let alone investors from other regions, the local ones are shifting their investment preference to other big cities like Adama, Hawassa and Addis Ababa because of the instability.

This is worsening by the poor infrastructures in the zone. The roads are not convenient for tourists to visit, the power is interrupted three to four times a day, and the water supply works in shifts,” Engdashet complained.

Zemene Guade, a tourism management department lecturer at Meda Welabu University who recently did research on tourist facilities of the Bale Zone, agrees with the assertion of Engdashet.

But he also raised another challenge that he believes is prominently limiting the development of adequate facilities in the hospitality sector -- the contraband business which is pervasive in the zone.

“It is a well known fact that the road infrastructure to Sof Omar or Meda Welabu (the origin of Geda System) is very difficult. It is also a known fact that there is network and power interruption in the zone, but what is killing the zone’s tourism development beyond all these challenges is the ille-

gal import and the safety issue in the zone,” Zemene told The Eminence.

According to Zemene there is a perception in the minds of the investors that traveling 430 kilometer from Addis Ababa, to invest in the hospitality sector in Bale is considered a waste of time and money when they could earn more profits by engaging in illegal trade. Hence the contraband has minimized the number of investors that engage in the hospitality sector, but that is not only limited to hotel investments. According to Zemene it has also weakened the Small and Micro Enterprises in the zone. In his research he also raised safety and security issues of the zone as a barrier to tourism development.

“The government has to control the contraband trade activities in the zone in order to enhance investment in hotel business in Bale,” Zemene recommended.

In his research which is entitled ‘Empirical Review on Ethiopia Tourism, a case study on Bale,’ he also discussed less conservation of tourism heritages, less community involvement in tourism, shortage of skilled manpower and lack of budget as other challenges that hinder the growth of the tourism sector in the zone

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 21

Hospitality 3600: E-Depth

Dreath of

Competent Staff

Deemed as Bottleneck to Hotel Growth The expansion of hotel facilities and human capital within the sector in Ethiopia has been mismatched for the past couple of years. So hoteliers are experiencing challenges in getting high caliber staff. Fresh graduates from institutes such as the CCTI are not well qualified because they lack sufficient practical training to meet the growing demands of the industry, according to LUCY KASSA, The Eminence’s staff writer. She talked with hoteliers, training schools and experts to explore where the problem is and what could be done to solve it. resource demand is fulfilled by skilled manpower. Most of the graduates from tourism and hotel management schools are not qualified to effectively survive in the hotel industry as they lack practical and industry wise knowledge.

Seeing this progress, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism in collaboration with World Tourism Organization (WTO) embarked on a hotel grading system last year. To rank hotels into different stars, It puts the presence of qualified human resources in the hotels as one criterion for the grading system.

Among the hotels that are suffering from this shortage of qualified human resource is Hotel Siyonat, a three star hotel which is located around Bole Medhanialem. According to Eshet Fantahunegn, general manager of Siyonat, they have been receiving fresh interns who are graduate professionals to work as front desk officers. They expected the students to have adequate practical experience, but according to the manager they do not have the skills and it costs them their business.

The grading was done in a country where the hotel industry is facing shortages of trained human resource in contrast to its thriving infrastructure.

This is the scenario where thousands of students are graduating from hotel management and tourism related courses from various universities and colleges annually.

Currently there are around 100 technical and vocational schools, eight universities and 17 private colleges in the country that train students in hotel and tourism profession. But according to some data, only 23 percent of industry’s human

“Our customers come here expecting quality service. They do not care whether the waitpersons are interns or not. What they care about is the quality of service they get. That’s why our hotel is now afraid to put interns and fresh graduates at the front desk because it has a negative impact on our services. Yet we cannot also reject them because we expect a shortage of human resource in the near future,” Eshet told The Eminence, adding the industry is suffering from the limited number of qualified professionals.

“We hire employees with relatively better experience from less star hotels or guest houses.

Then after they get some experience in our hotel the five star hotels take them by adding to their salaries,” Eshet said explaining the high turnover of professionals in the hospitality sector which is cause by a scarcity of qualified human resource.

22 | The Eminence - Issue 23 - September 2016

The other three star hotel which does not hire fresh graduates as a front desk officer is Monarch Hotel. The management of the hotel claims that front desk interns have gaps in knowing the steps to serve a guest mainly because they lack practical knowledge, so they disappoint their customers.

“The hotel industry is very sensitive. For hotels, the main thing is not a luxury building or rooms rather it is satisfying their customers with good service. So if the hotel fails in doing that the customer will opt to go to competitor hotels with better services,” said Dereje Ebesa, human resource manager of Monarch Hotel.

Fresh graduates are not active enough to understand the needs to meet their customers’ satisfaction, especially foreign visitors. That is why existing hotels are apprehensive in hiring and bringing interns to the front desks according to many hotel managers. Little awareness for the hotel industry, system software and their attitude is also another problem.

This is happening while hotel jobs need overall and practical knowledge of the hotel services starting from cooking to reception. But the usual attitude of the new employees is that once they graduate in hotel management they want to be hired in managerial positions so they are reluctant to learn other tasks, according to the hoteliers.

The other gap these managers raise is lack of service-based supply on the part of the academic in-

Photo by: CCTI

With the boost in tourist flow as well as international conferences to the country, many brands are now eyeing the Ethiopian hotel industry as a promising investment alternative. Constituting 4.1 percent of the total Gross Domestic Product (GDP) the revenue Ethiopia earns from the tourism sector has now reached 3.4 billion birr.

stitutes. For Eshet just like the cabin crew (flight hostess) in airlines the hotel industry requires employees with presentable physical attributes especially those who work at the front desk.

Beyond that, hotel professionals need actual engagement from the workers and they do not accept mistakes. Despite this, the trend for institutes is to have too much focus to the theory rather than practical experience.

Hailemariam Walem, a 2016 graduating student of Catering and Tourism Training Institute (CTTI) under a degree program in preparation of foreign dishes, is one of the professionals who got confused while he went out for internship.

After he attended his class at CTTI, the 47 year old tourism institute that trains 15.8 percent of the existing hotel employees in the country, he went out for a two month internship at Ethiopian Airlines catering service department. He was also taking practical trainings at the institute. But what he observed was quite strange for him.

“What I have been learning and practicing at school was how to cook a dish for a maximum of three guests on one stove. But during my internship I used advanced cooking machines that can make dishes from 1,000 to 1,500 people,” said Hailemariam.

For him the practical courses in the institute were not adequate to make him a confident professional because many of the classes were missed due to delays in providing food ingredients and cooking materials.

Another hotel supervision graduate of CTTI, Getahun Gutema, was also unsatisfied with the practical trainings he got from CTTI because there were not enough facilities for practical trainings and missed classes because of teachers’ absences.

As a temporary solution some hoteliers are giving short-term trainings for their new employees.

In addition they are not assigning them to front desks. Even more most of the hotels, including the hotels mentioned above, are not willing to hire fresh graduates except as a last resort.

solution and they recommend that the institutes give focus on practical trainings.

“In order to give internships to fresh graduates and students, we have to make sure that these students have completed their overall training before they get hired. This could be done through establishing a training hotel along with the training institute.

In doing that customers will not be disappointed as they will understand it as a training hotel. In addition to this, the institutes should shape the attitude of the students as most of them do not love the profession other than consider it as a means of livelihood,” Eshet suggested.

Lud Abey, general manager of Addis Ababa Hotel Owners Association (AHA), shares Eshet’s suggestion. According to Lud, the biggest role for the institutes includes practice facilities for students just like what is done in case of medical trainings.

Currently AHA is giving an on-the-job training for employees of its member hotels as well as a crash course to fresh graduates in cooperation with PUM Netherland Experts.

“The training hotel in one hand will be a source of income for the institutes and at the same time will help the students to become efficient,” Lud told The Eminence.

Establishing a model hotel is also among the longterm plans of CTTI. It targets to secure 580 million birr from the government for the construction of a five star model hotel in the ruins of Genet Hotel which is located at Mexico.

tional standards with its model hotel. But this is for the long term which might take a couple of years while the scarcity of high caliber human resources in the industry is a burning issue. The institute is still considering internship in hotels to solve this problem.

“Our short term plan still relies on the help of the hotels. The institute cannot supply full-fledged graduates to the industry and this kind of expectation from hoteliers is wrong. We have started some activities last year to avoid such perceptions and signed a partnership agreement with AHA to create awareness to the hoteliers,” Ashebir Tekle director of CTTI explained.

But according to experts like Yonas Moges, managing partner of Calibra Hospitality & Consultancy, to solve the challenge of skilled human resource, focusing on the skills of the lecturers is a key. According to him lecturers themselves should have international hotel experience. And also the government must incentivize hoteliers to have an exclusive training department.

In addition, he recommends restructuring the academic curriculum is essential. According to Yonas the curriculum must focus on training students from the lower tasks of a hotel operation to the managerial level as the profession starts from a bottom. He also recommends creating awareness o n the common perception of the community who believe hotel job is a source of income rather than a profession

In its 10 years road map which was launched in June 2016 the institute aspires to be a center of excellence and graduate internationally competitive professionals. It also plans to increase project oriented trainings fulfilling interna-

But most hoteliers do not consider this as a final

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 23

ASFW The Largest apparel expo of Africa

According to the United Nations’ projections, sub Saharan Africa will have the highest growth in working age population anywhere else in the world over the next 20 years. By 2035, the working age population in the region is expected to be as large as China’s today- more than 900 million people. This massive labor pool is capturing the attention of several industries, including apparel.

Additionally, Ethiopia has low electricity cost prices. The country has a strong hydroelectric power potential, and while the power grid is not the most reliable, the Ethiopian government is building a separate grid for new industrial zones currently under development.

Within sub-Saharan Africa countries- especially Ethiopia and Kenya and to a lesser extent Uganda and Tanzania- are of interest to apparel buyers.

The governments of both Ethiopia and Kenya are taking steps to develop their domestic textile and garment industries.

AFRICA SOURCING AND FASHION WEEK (ASFW) is the largest trade show for the textile, apparel and technology industry and the best platform for the sourcing solution in Africa.

In the past two years, a number of European companies- among them, H&M, Primark, and Tesco have began sourcing some of their garments from Ethiopia. The rest of the apparel industry took notice- since 2013, there has been rising interest in not just Ethiopia but also other East African countries as potential sourcing destinations for apparel. Also contributing to the interest is the renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), which gives certain countries in Sub Saharan Africa duty free access to the US market.

ETHIOPIA

Apparel buyers today are sourcing basic, large volume items from Ethiopia: T-shirts have accounted for 46 percent of the country’s exports to the European Union-15 and trousers 31 percent.

Ethiopia’s wages for garment workers are among the lowest globally; at below 60 dollar per month, and work-permit costs for foreign workers are less than one tenth those in neighboring Kenya.

AFRICA´S LARGEST EVENT FOR THE TEXTILE & APPAREL INDUSTRY

The Event

The event will take place from October 4, 2016 to October 7, 2016 at the Millenium Hall in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. ASFW is an event and an on-going effort dedicated to improving African Cotton, Textile and Apparel trade. The event is profiled to raise the awareness of Africa as a place to do business, sourcing destination, changing perceptions, and to make the value chain in the continent more visible as a source of supply of cotton, textile and apparel products for the domestic, regional and international buyers.

International buyers and sourcing companies will meet with regional producers at the ASFWEXHIBITION. Through the professional ASFWMATCHMAKING PROGRAM and B2B meetings, both parties have the opportunity for detailed talks. The matchmaking will be organized through an upfront meeting request. Current situation and future scenarios will be discussed at the high level ASFW-CONFERENCE with special international experts and governments. Future designs will be shown at special show areas called FASHION ISLANDS.

A FACTORY TOUR is organized for the 7th October 2016 to various high end factories within Ethiopia.

FOR QUESTION, please info@asfw-online.com More information on www.asfw-online.com

Cultural Panorama : History and Diplomacy

The Valiant`s Last Word to England`s Queen Ethiopia and Great Britain (England) have had a long lasting historical and diplomatic relationship which is growing stronger. One of the evidence for this assertion is the Emperor Tewodros II’s last letter written to Queen Victoria of Great Britain. This letter is registered as a World Literal Heritage by UNESCO. The Eminence’s LUCY KASSA, looks into this letter with expert to explore the detail content of the letter and its message.

Among the great Ethiopian leaders who are always mentioned for their bravery and the ground breaker is Emperor Tewodros II. Even though the Emperor is characterized as a rigid and a one who lacks a diplomatic skill, he is associated with Ethiopian unification and modernization because it was he who ended the disintegrated and darkest era of Ethiopia, the Zemene Mesafint or ‘The Era of Princes’.

as well as taken the Emperor’s son Alemayhu Tewodros (who died at his 18th birthday) to England who grew up under the protection of Queen Victoria. Due to this most of the historical documents of this great Ethiopian King have disappeared. But the last word of the Emperor which is a letter written to Queen Victoria of Great Britain, has been kept from disappearance.

This dark era lasted from 1769 to 1855 until Emperor Tewodros came to power. The era was marked as an era which the regional lords were so powerful to control their own affairs and characterized by the absence of a strong centralized government. Declaring himself as the ‘King of Kings’ Emperor Tewodros saved the country from this chaos in 1855 by subjugating the authoritative landlords to his power.

Tewodros’s letter to Queen Victoria is now registered as the World Literal Heritages by the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). One of the most special things in this last letter of the king is that, it is written by the Emperor under a critical situation. Having a long standing diplomatic relation with Great Britain and especially with the then Queen Victoria, previous to this letter Emperor Tewodros had send two letters to the Queen.

After the down fall of this great Emperor’s reign, the British army which came as an expeditionary force to Ethiopia in 1869 is said to plunder countless treasures of the country

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Historically the Emperor had an ambitious plan to modernize his army and establish a

unified Ethiopia with a strong monarchical central government. The Emperor’s and the Queen’s diplomatic friendship emanates from this effort of the Emperor in looking for a European country that can assist him in fulfilling his plans. But unfortunately he did not get the support he had expected from the Queen despite the case that he sent a proposal for a joint expedition to Jerusalem. The Queen even refused to send him a response to his letter forcing the Emperor to be angry and imprison British nationals in his land.

Hence the last letter of the Emperor is written during the Battle of Magdala in 1868, that took place between the Emperor and a British army which came to rescue the imprisoned British citizens after Emperor Tewodros refused to release them rejecting the Queen’s letter that requested the Emperor for their release.

The letter was written on parchment, locally named Birana, a material made from processed animal skin and used for writing on.

to the challenges he was facing from external invaders, he was also facing revolts against him from local kings. The revolts in one hand came from the landlords who refused to accept his power. On the other hand his policies of reforming the church order by imposing tax on them and reducing their lands instigated the revolt.

Photo by: National Archive & Library Agency

Later, this forced the Emperor to commit suicide with his own bullet rather than surrender. But in his last letter he made clear that, even before his last suicide act he had made a previous attempt to kill himself in the same way. The Emperor wrote in his dispatch letter to the Queen that, feeling very sad by the betrayal of his people; he attempted to shoot himself by his gun, but the bullets did not come out and he was saved.

It has a round seal that puts the Emperor’s name and his position. Tewodros started his letter with a most prominent phrase used by Orthodox Christian Church, ‘Beseme Abe Weweld Wemenfes Kidus Ahadu Amlak’ (in the name of Father, his son and of the Holy Spirit). This is followed by a greeting to the Queen.

But he omitted to mention the Queen’s name for security purpose.

In this letter the Emperor mentioned that he had disappointed the Queen and her country by the previous two letters. He also mentioned his reason for doing that as his people have troubled him. He is quoted in the letter, “As my people could not hear me even if I killed and punish them. So I get mad and jealous.”

According to HailemichealGetahun, Ancient Literature & Heritages Expert at the National Archive & Library Agency under the Ministry of Culture & Tourism, this letter makes evident that how Ethiopia had a prominent diplomatic acceptance from Great Britain during that time.

“While the rest of African countries did not have the level of engagement Ethiopia had during that time, this letter shows that Ethiopian government was honorable, graceful and accepted in its diplomacy by the time,” Hailemicheal told The Eminence.

When the letter was written to the Queen, Great Britain already had an upper military hand in the war and the Emperor already lost his means to prevent his failure. In addition

“I repeatedly shot at myself but no bullets came out during my attempt of committing suicide, my soldiers arrived and rescued me. But when they tried to rescue me the bullets came out. Surprisingly I was saved,” the letter reads. According to the Emperor his rescue was because God did not allow him to die.

He asks the Queen to allow him to mourn the death of his beloved solider, Fetawerari Gebrye who at that time was already scarified during the Battle of Magdala.

“When I write this letter I did not think we will be seen with each other in earth, rather in heaven. But if I am still alive let me mourn for my beloved friend Fetawerari Gebrye because I decided to bury our dead bodies together with the belief that I would have died too,” The Emperor said in his letter.

According to Hailemicheal the intention behind the letter

could be interpreted in various ways. For him it seems to depict that the Emperor has regretted disappointing his long time diplomatic partner, Great Britain and it seems to ask a kind of apology by mentioning the internal reasons that drove him to make the bad decisions. On the other hand thinking their past friendship he seems to beg the Queen for a peaceful negotiation by asking her to allow him to mourn for his friend.

Other than the historical value and its rarity aspect written in times of war, the calligraphy of the letter has also an input in the registration of the letter by UNESCO, according to Hailemicheal.The letter shows the development of Amharic language to a better stage.

Started to be in use in 1270 after the coming of Yukuno Amalak, the founder of the Solomonic Dynasty in Ethiopia, Amharic language was previously under developed.

This is in addition to the length of the letter and the fact that it does not disappear which are all grounds that make it very priceless.

The registration of the letter under UNESCO’s world literal heritages is not without impact. According to Hailemicheal, historian tourists that flow from different parts of the world to Ethiopia came to the National Archives to refer the letter which has a positive contribution in increasing the tourism revenue of the country.

“In addition to the revenue benefits, the registration of the letter has also a positive side in building the image of the country as well as towards conserving the heritage because if it is not conserved well its registration could be canceled,” Hailemicheal noted

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Cultural Panorama : Traveling Ethiopia

Bahir Dar: The Pearl of the North

Tourism in Bahir Dar, a city which is known for its natural beauty and its cultural and historical sites, is on the rise. As a result the number of tourists and revenues generated has been increasing. Previously the city has been known as a major destination for leisure tourism, but these days the city is enjoying increased tourists visits and revenues from conference and sport tourists. The Eminence’s contributor BROOK ABDU travelled to this city and offers this report.

Bahir Dar directly translates to “shores of the sea.” It earned its name because the metropolitan area is located on the shores of the Lake Tana, Ethiopia’s largest lake and the principal reservoir of the Nile River.

The city is divided into two by the River Nile, and is a place where one never gets bored while staying there, whether alone or with a company.

Photo by: wordpress.com

Bahir Dar is well known for its wide, clean avenues lined with palm trees and a variety of colorful flowers.

It is also known for Lake Tana, the Blue Nile Falls, and ancient monasteries on islands of Lake Tana including a monastery that many believe to have housed the Ark of the Covenant for centuries.

Set on the epicenter of the tourist attraction sites of Ethiopia, especially on the northern historic and cultural routes of the country, no one wants to miss the fragrance and the breezy weather of Bahir Dar. Lake Tana spreads proudly through the middle of the city like a pendant of Bahir Dar’s necklace chained to the River Nile.

Having about 400,000 dwellers and many local and international tourists arriving in the city every day, the city of Bahir Dar is a very comfortable place to stay.

The number of both local and international tourists flocking to the c i t y has reached

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more than 269,489 in only a year. Surprisingly, the number of local tourist flooding the city exceeds international tourists because of several reasons including religious pilgrimages and the new stadium which has a capacity to hold up to 60,000 spectators and host international events.

One of the major reasons to travel to Bahir Dar is to visit Lake Tana, which spans 3,670 square kilometers and has a maximum depth of 45 meters. It is home to hippos as well as fresh water fish. The famous Zege Peninsula is located on the southern shore of Lake Tana and it houses several monasteries. Prominent among them is the Ura Kidane Mehret Church. Sitting on the side of the lake, There are a couple of lodges dwelled surrounding the lake offering a relaxing feeling.

One can also take one of the boats that make frequent trips to the 37 nearby islands scattered across the lake and enjoy the religious and cultural sites. Out of these islands, more than 20 are home to churches and monasteries.

Visitors can also watch young boys fishing on their ‘‘Tankwas,” papyrus reed canoes, throwing their nets on the lake and collecting it when they catch fish.

Traveling on the boat gives the visitor a feeling of total isolation from the earthly life and give a person a nostalgic feeling.

For some, travel on the lake in an open boat could cause nausea, but a person can safely travel as far as the closest Monastery - Kebran Gebriel without concern. At some of the monasteries, women are not allowed inside because of the church’s rules.

With its increasing suitability and attraction, Bahir Dar is becoming a center for different local and international conferences and forums, adding impetus for increasing conference tourism to the city’s longstanding cultural and historical attractions.

Among the recognized conferences in the city includes, the Tana High Level Forum on Security in Africa which is held annually on the banks of Lake Tana with the board chairmanship of Olusegun Obasanjo and vice chairmanship of Andreas Eshete (Prof.).

This Forum brings high level officials from the African continent to discuss security issues across the continent and has been held for the past five years.

Other sizeable local and international conferences that have been held in Bahir Dar include the Ethiopian National Diaspora Day, the Conference on Africa Textile Industry and several United Nations meetings on health.

The city that grew in a recent past is also a place much commended for its bicycles. The city’s roads and avenues are suitable of cycling. However, this attraction is losing some of its appeal with the growing number of threewheeled

rickshaws known as Bajajs, a brand name for Indian-made motorcycles and three wheelers. Still anyone can cycle around the city by renting a bicycle at the Ghion Hotel.

Bahir Dar. In addition, two car rental companies that are operating in the city can take tourists to the major tourist attractions and help visitors to discover the hidden treasures in the city.

In many ways Bahir Dar has many attractions to offer tourists. The city view from the east of Bahir Dar is stunning, and the closed palace of Haile Sellasie I is something not to miss when visiting Bahir Dar.

By any measure, Bahir Dar stands out as one of the country’s tourist attractions, as the place known for ample fish and the amazing view of Blue Nile Falls.

Visitors can sit at the side of Lake Tana and watch pelicans swimming on the lake. It is a breathtaking moment.

With all these attractions and major reasons the city is reaping fruit from the tourism industry. In the 2009/10 fiscal year, a total of 37,166 local and foreign tourists visited the city, which helped generate revenues of 55.85 million birr for the city. Five years later in the 2014/15 fiscal year, 269,489 tourists visited the city and the revenue Bahir Dar earned from these tourists reached 332.8 million birr.

At the same time, the number of accommodations in the city is also on the rise. Currently there are 22 star-level hotels in the city which can serve both local and international tourists. Among these hotels the major ones include Home Land, Jacaranda, Papyrus, Avanti, Delano, Kuriftu Resort and Spa and Grand Resort and Spa. The night life in Bahir Dar also adds another flavor to the city life; both traditional and contemporary clubs give their best to visitors. Balageru Cultural Club and Amsale Miteke Cultural Club, owned by well-known traditional singer Amsale Miteke, are places to be mentioned here. Both are located in the middle of the city.

Six privately-owned and three association-owned tour and travel agencies are available to help tourists while visiting

Even with all these attractions and cleanness of the city with the stunning views including palm trees that line the middle of the roads, it is disappointing to see some people dumping trash by the roadside. This had been a point of departure for many that promote the development of the city and its beauty.

The rainy season which starts in June and extended until the end of August brings its own special way of beautifying the city as the surrounding farmlands turn vivid shades of green with the new crops that grow along the road to Bahir Dar. For those who drive, another memory for the travelers is the endless field in Debre Markos where cattle graze and children look after their flock.

Once you decided to travel to Bahir Dar, one of the easiest ways to get there is to fly on Ethiopian Airlines which has six daily flights to this precious city. In addition, Trans National Airways flies to this city twice a week. Many buses travel to Bahir Dar daily. Additionally other transport companies including Sky Bus, Selam Bus, Ethio Bus and Ethio Postal Bus travel to this area on a daily basis

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 29

Cultural Panorama : Art and Literature

d

spire n I y l l a n o i t i Trad

S D R A C T S PO The Holiday Cornering

t e k r a M Gift ck were ue and livesto Difo dabo, areq e er given as items which w the major gift . But recently ns ia any Ethiop m by to fts gi ay holid anging the gifts neration is ch e ge th r e ge or un rm yo he e th stcards. Furt po e tiv ch ac tr hi w at cards small but ers to exchange ef pr n gs tio tin ra in ne pa young ge Ethiopian itionally with for are made trad result business a s A script. t, ke ar m l and Ethiopian ca lo surging in the these cards is ntributor e Eminence’s co according to th U. BROOK ABD

Ethiopians are known for exchanging cultural and traditional gifts with their closest friends and family for holidays. In the past relatives, families, neighbors and friends celebrated major Ethiopian holidays by exchanging gifts such as Ethiopian homemade bread (difo dabo), areque (home-distilled alcohol) and livestock including goats and sheep.

But these days following the effect of globalization, many people dropped this trend and have adopted western culture of exchanging simple gifts for holidays especially postcards that have different works of art on them. They adopted this trend for different reasons including costing less and adopting a simpler way of lifestyle.

On special occasions, urbanites, especially people living in Addis Ababa, prefer to exchange postcards, which have a traditional feel to them. The cards that they prefer include postcards with different designs of traditional paintings with Ethiopian script and numbers and pictures of Ethiopian tourist destinations

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and major attractions .

Ethiopian Christmas, Ethiopian New Year, Meskel (finding the true cross), Epiphany and Ethiopian Easter are popular holidays when people exchange cards in addition to special occasions such as birthdays, graduations, engagements, weddings and anniversaries. And now during this New Year season many people exchange cards among colleagues, family members, co-workers and loved ones.

The demand for these greeting cards and postcards is creating a booming business for printing companies that print these cards.

One of the printers who is enjoying the business printing traditional cards is Color Zone Advertising & Printing Press that has been in business since 2001.

In addition to the printing of postcards, Color Zone also designs and prints banners, stickers, outdoor signs and billboards, flyers, books, magazines, brochures and different invitation and business cards.

“The change in the demand for the traditionally made cards, especially wedding invitations, is dynamically increasing compared to the past,” observed Henok Tesfaye, manager of Color Zone.

Not only individuals but corporations have also started giving traditionally made greeting cards and postcards, according to Master Printing Press Plc, which was established in 1983. Since then the company has seen many changes in the printing industry and its employees have grown from 20 to 150.

According to Master’s deputy manager Rahel Antwan, their corporate clients including insurance companies and banks come with ideas with traditional designs for their cards or they order the designing and printing of their cards in traditional ways.

“As printing technology was undeveloped in the past and the types of paper imported to the country were of less quality, the postcards that have been printed in the country were in

low demand and the cards were not a priority,” says Rahel.

8 birr to 20 birr and the bigger ones that are printed on A4 size papers come with envelopes as well.

But now because of the improved quality of paper imported to the country and the increased printing technology, the improved quality of printing and use of local photos the paper became issues for consideration. Hence, the demand for local designs of postcards increased, according to Henok and Rahel.

Henok sees that the demand for the traditional cards has brought two activities in the industry; the producers of the postcard have started commissioning drawings and the downloaded designs from abroad are customized to meet the local demand.

In the past, even though the cards were made to reflect the local culture they were written in Amharic but the pictures of people, children or flowers were taken from the internet. Now, designs are made showing local events like New Year, Timket and Meskel celebrations.

“These holidays are local and we need to provide locally-inspired cards and we did,” Henok told The Eminence.

Following this, printers responded to the demand from users and commissioned designers, cartoonists and visual artists to draw pictures of local events to be printed on the postcards.

“We provide our clients with creative ideas or designs with pictures drawn by professionals to meet their demands,” Rahel said.

The same is true for Henok who identifies two markets for which the cards are made. He makes the cards for the masses with traditional and popular designs, and he makes customized designs for corporate clients.

“We commission painters to provide us pictures that depict traditional practices and we diversify drawings to avoid redundancy,” he asserted.

“Because of the demand for the traditional cards, the market has also become competitive.”

The cards in the market range from

For the drawing of a single design picture, Henok says he pays up to 3,500 birr.

In addition to creating business opportunities for artists and cartoonists, this trend has another major advantage for the country as well, according to Rahel. As the demand for the localized cards increases, the money that the country spends on importing postcards from aboard will be saved.

The price of locally-made cards and imported postcards do not have a significant difference, but it cannot be said that the locally-made cards can fully compete with the imported ones in quality.

“We still cannot say that we are competing with the imported ones as we still have technological constraints and expertise in machine operation,” Rahel admitted. “As there is initiation and the demand, it will not be long to make the cards as they are made abroad,” she adds.

But, the sellers and distributers in Merkato say that the majority of the cards they hold for the market are imported, not local cards. Endale Tadelle is one of card sellers in Merkato Card Tera, he moved from selling magazines and newspapers to selling cards. Currently he also sells stickers and other small printed papers.

Endale says the peak times for the sale of postcards are September and December for the Ethiopian New Year and Christmas holidays. “Currently there is a huge difference both in the demand and the quality of the production of the local cards,” he observed.

The bulk of cards are sold through retail shops in the different corners of the city, where a person can buy cards from the Merkato, ranging from cents to ten birr according to him.

Although there are many who go to the card sellers in Merkato to buy single cards, the majority of the buyers buy in bulk either for retail or for their companies. He said buyers prefer the locally-made cards because of their closeness to the people’s thoughts and their familiarity to them. They are also expressive as they are made according to the Ethiopian culture.

Bezawit Nure, a small stationery shop owner, agrees. Her collection of postcards range from best wishes for holidays to newlywed brides to welcoming new babies. She says the texts on the cards and some of the pictures are expressive and reflect the sense of the subjects they are used for.

A group of three friends, who came to visit a shop in Arat Kilo to buy a card for their friend that give birth in a recent days, also shared the same thought as the others regarding the locally-made cards.

“The [locally-made] cards are more impressive when they are seen and their contents are more expressive than the imported ones as many cards that are imported from abroad have texts written only in English,” says Tizita Zewde, one of the friends.

For other occasions like holidays, she and her friends choose cards with local content and like its local flavor.

“The move towards the choice of locally-made cards is a very important move as it helps to teach our children about the occasions, holidays or other events,” Rahel says. “At least our children will not be like the foreign children that do not know about Christmas but celebrate it,” she adds.

With the same stance Rahel and Henok see a bright future for the market for locally-made cards. “It will grow and become a big industry,” Henock predicted

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 31

Made in Ethiopia : Life Style

High School

Graduation Bonanzas Have Parents Breaking the Bank beloved children when they finish milestones in their academic journey.

But most of the time the ceremony was celebrated when the children completed their higher education, not high schools like Sharon.

Even if this was the common phenomena, now completing 12th grade education is also receiving much pomp and ceremony within some segments of the community. This has mainly included students enrolled in private and international schools.

Even though the trend of celebrating 12th grade graduation has been happening for several years with only little celebrations, now it is holding new forms that copy Western culture.

Sharon and her peers who was graduated from Italian International School in July, 2016

Sharon Dejenu is one of the Ethiopian teenagers who has completed her high school and is ready to pursue her higher education at the university this year. She is one of the graduates from the Italian International School whose students celebrated their graduation ceremony in July 2016 at Hotel Momona, one of the largest hotels in Addis Ababa.

Graduation celebrations have a great place among the Ethiopian society as it relates to one’s educational achievement. Hence it is not a surprise to see parents hosting ceremonies for their

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Yeamlaknesh Tilahun, mother of Sharon, is one of the parents who was pleased to celebrate her child’s graduation ceremony. According to Yeamlaknesh, she was happier than her child to celebrate her daughter’s graduation because it was a moment for her to see her daughter’s efforts reaching fruition.

“Their 12th grade graduation foreshadows their further educational journey.

So I believe the ceremony that was held for my daughter at a star rated hotel is worth the educational achievement of my daughter. It does not happen every year rather, after 12 years,” Yeamlaknesh told The Eminence.

The emerging trend of celebrating

high school graduations in the capital came from lifestyle changes of many Ethiopian urbanites. This is an effect of globalization and it has become hard to resist its influence. In addition, changes to many Ethiopian’s living standards is another factor for the emerging trend of high school graduation ceremonies.

Just like Yeamlaknesh, Fantahun Belayneh and Beletu Delamo also hosted a graduation ceremony for their son Natnaeal Fantahun, who attended high school at School of Tomorrow.

“As a turning point in their academic life the celebration is conducted in a pleasing and motivating culture which would be better if all schools adopt it,” said Natnaeal’s mother, Beletu. “The completion of their 12th grade also means the departure point of students from their family to join universities,” Beletu added.

Even though the celebrations create memories and acknowledge the student’s efforts, it also has some risks according to parents including the extravagant cost of the celebration and a fear regarding what could happen in the aftermath of the party.

At the end of the ceremonies when the parents are not present, there is a night the graduating teenagers spend exclusively with their classmates. Often there is a party where the students are free to drink alcohol. They are also allowed to take their parents’ vehicles which is a new trend for the students

Ethiopian urbanites are adopting several trends from the West including fashion, cuisine, lifestyle and other customs. One of the lifestyle customs Addis Ababians have adopted includes celebrating high school graduation ceremonies, which was previously common for university graduates. But in doing so, some families have concerns regarding effects on the students, reports, The Eminence’s staff writer LUCY KASSA. they previously had not been allowed to do so.

This fear has prevented Yeamlaknesh from allowing her daughter Sharon from going to an overnight party with her friends. Yeamlaknesh took her daughter home after the hotel dinner reception was concluded because she did not want Sharon to have a chance to get drunk and be exposed to other risks.

Sharon was disappointed by Yeamlaknesh`s action. She was very eager to attend the night party with her friends. “I really wanted to spend the night with my friends, whom I spent 12 years together, because we are not going to have such a time in the future. After all I had to respect mom’s decision,” Sharon told The Eminence.

The same fears were shared by Natnaeal’s family.

Beletu worried that the incidences that might occur during an overnight party may end the life of a teenager. “They drive after getting drunk at the party which could cost them their life. They could also bring other dangers like untimely pregnancy and diseases,” Beletu shared her anxieties.

Accidents are not the sole fear of these families, rather the unnecessary competition it has brought among the students which led their family to spend extravagantly is another source of disappointment for families of graduates. According to Beletu, parents with female graduates may spend over 10,000 birr for that day.

“The shoes and the fancy clothes are just like that of a bride. It gives an impression that this is the peak of her life. Some of them are almost naked which is odd according to our culture. To make it worst, these fancy things are not used after the party,” said Beletu.

During Natnaeal’s graduation party which was

held at Sheraton Addis Hotel in July 2016 Beletu went to the dinner reception wearing her office attire, refusing her neighbor’s advice to buy and wear a fancy dinner dress. But at the party she was the only one who was dressed in casual clothing which made her to feel ashamed when thinking of her son.

“In a scenario where the living standard of the people is very unbalanced this brings unfair competition and creates bad feeling among students with families who are not financially capable of celebrating the ceremonies for them. Not all wealthy families send their children to private schools but also some financially weak families send their children to private schools seeking better education,” Beletu said.

Other than the excessive costs for the ceremony, the time wasted is also another concern for Beletu. According to her, both the graduating students and their parents spend plenty of time selecting the fancy things which eats into their time for other things.

To solve these problems and sources of disappointment, parents recommend that the parties be arranged under the supervision of the schools.

For Yeamlaknesh conducting the ceremonies with the supervision of schools has two advantages. One, the students will not be stressed from organizing the event and two, the schools will be very careful in avoiding the risks that come after the graduation party.

This recommendation of parents seems viable looking into the experience of St. Joseph School, one of the reputable high school in Addis Ababa.

St. Joseph was established in 1959 and has been celebrating grade 12 graduations in its school compound. According to Belayneh Medhanit,

director of the school, the ceremonies are conducted to mark the brotherhood of the students.

“We celebrate it not with the sense of graduation rather to mark the memories during the 12 years stay of the students in our school, which is the longest academic journey. So we organize the ceremony to honor the brotherhood they built during these years,” Belayneh told The Eminence, adding that celebrating success is essential if it is not with the sense of an end for something.

During the ceremonies the management of the school invites public figures who are alumni of the school to make inspirational speeches.

Speeches are also delivered by model students and finally the school presents prizes to all graduating students. This, according to Belayneh, prevents the students from wasting their academic time in arranging events and also avoids extravagant spending.

But there are also some schools like British International School at Bole which do not give that much emphasis to celebrating 12th grade graduation. The School Activity Management head who wanted to stay anonymous gives his personal opinions saying celebrating the end of 12th grade have no inspirational input, but if the students want to celebrate it, they can.

“It is exposing the teenagers to unnecessary things. Instead we have an international day each year where every student celebrates in a much more secure way with the presence of their parents. In this day all students show their performances on stage and also involve themselves in other extra curricula activities like a charity.

Therefore they do not have to wait for the graduation moment to celebrate their friendship or brotherhood,” he concluded

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 33

Made in Ethiopia : Fashion

ordanos Abera: YTaking Inspiration From Crochet Ethiopian mothers used to be known for making handmade clothes, but these days it is very rare to see people wearing knitted sweaters or homemade clothes. Clothes made by knitting woolen yard using knitting needles or kirosh are among the handmade clothes that were common in Ethiopia, but now they have all but vanished. Designer Yordanos Abera is trying to revive this tradition by making clothes using crochet needles. The Eminence’s FASIKA TADESSE, talked with Yordanos to learn more about her designs.

In the old times Ethiopian mothers were known for knitting fiber to make clothes using knitting needles called Kirosh. Mainly they used to make outfits in their homes, but they also made piece of clothes called danteils (crochets), for table clothes, television covers, radio covers and other household items, which was found in many Ethiopian’s homes. But mostly they crocheted sweaters and other types of clothing.

But these days the trend of decorating household items with crocheted items has become something of the past. The once ubiquitous crochets that was very common among Ethiopian households has now all but been abandoned, but that does not mean it has totally over and done. Some mothers make clothes with crochet needles, but this once popular trend has become less popular.

However, the young and ambitious designer Yordanos Abera, owner of Yordi Design, came up with the idea of reviving this trend by making men’s and women’s outfits

out of crochet. She makes these clothes using handmade crochets and Shemma, a traditional Ethiopian garment which is made with handspun cotton and woven on hand looms, specifically blending it with Saba and Menen types of Shemma.

“I was inspired to make these clothes in order to enlighten the world that we Ethiopians are well known for making handmade clothes. In addition to that I want to retain this amazing culture of ours which was on the verge of vanishing, by making clothes out of crochet,” says Yordanos when explaining what inspired her to make these designs.

Inspired by the memories of her mother knitting woolen pieces at home, Yordanos currently produces seven types of designs made with crochet. She makes dresses (occasional, casual, summer and dinner dresses), blouses, pants and sweaters in different styles and models which all are available for sale at her own shop which is located inside Dembel City Center

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on Africa Avenue.

Even though she only started making traditional Ethiopian dresses with crochet blending with Shemma and different garments in the past one year Yordanos has been in the fashion industry for over 11 years, ever since she was a teenager. She started her career as a fashion designer in 2005 when the first Miss Ethiopia beauty contest was held.

At the time she was one of the organizers of the show in collaboration with Andy Abulime, president of Miss Universe-Ethiopia Organization and the Ethiopian Life Foundation. In addition to organizing that pageant, she also designed and made the clothes that were worn by the contestants during the show (event).

After that she joined Desta Designing and Sewing School to study Fashion Design and obtained her Diploma in Fashion Design. The next step for her was to open her own shop in 2008 at Dembel City Center. Since then she has been making a traditionally inspired,

modern clothing line and house decorations made from Ethiopian cotton.

Beyond making and selling these clothes for the local and international market, Yordanos has organized and participated in several beauty contests and in fashion shows. Among the shows she has taken part include, shows held at different hotels such as the Harmony, Capital, Friendship, and Hilton hotels. She also took part in shows took place at Millennium Hall, embassies including Italian Embassy and at schools such as Lycée Guebre-Mariam.

She also participated in different national and international bazaars and exhibitions. She has participated in major shows including Hub of Africa Fashion Week and Origin Africa/Africa Sourcing and Fashion Week (ASFW) exhibitions which both took place at the Millennium Hall.

She enhanced her potential and skills in the fashion industry by training on marketing, sewing, spinning and traditional woven.

To make clothes she just outsources professionals to make her the crochete, as she does not have a place to hire people who know how to knit wools to work with her.

“If I am able to get a working place I have a plan to hire elderly people, people with HIV/AIDS and people with handicaps to make the crochet as it is an easy job for them. At the same time it will enable me to help those people to generate income by themselves rather than to be dependent on others,” said Yordanos.

Photo by: Yordi Design

Yordanos, who is an active member of Ethiopian Fashion Designers Association, hopes the government will provide the Association with land which they had requested for the purpose that Yordanos described.

She has also worked on embroidering handmade designs on Shemma which is locally called ‘tilf ’. She also took training on how to make traditional Ethiopian wedding dresses called ‘Mokashe’, which Ethiopians are known for since Emperor Haile Sellasie’s regime. And Yordanos is working aggressively in promoting Mokashe to the market.

Women’s dresses made from crochet could cost someone from 3,000 birr to 10,000 birr depending on the type of the cloth while she sells men’s clothing that are made from handmade knitted wool from 3,000 birr to 3,500 birr.

According to Yordanos the price of the clothes may seem a bit expensive but they take more time and materials during production.

In addition to all these, as a new line of designing, she is aggressively working on designing crocheted clothes that are made for both genders. She makes these clothes depending on the preferences and desires of her customers. She makes dresses, blouses, and pants for women and sweaters, pants and shirts for men.

“The price varies depending on the type and amount of wool used to make the crochet, as the price of wool we used for the clothes is a bit expensive,” Yordanos explains.

Yordi design’s handmade knitted woven clothes, were published in continental and international magazines including BHS Africa Magazine, Africa Fashion Week,

and most importantly in the leading global fashion magazine Vogue, in its Italian edition Vogue Italia.

Vogue Italia magazine selected the works of 15 designers across the world to publish in their magazine. Among the 15 designers five of them were from Africa while two of them were from Ethiopia. Yordanos and Mahlet Afework (Mafi) were the two Ethiopian designers who showcased their designs in the magazine.

Yordanos also showcased these clothes at the Hub of Africa Fashion Show and at the Zoma Hair’s Fashion Show, the first human hair fashion show that was held in July 2016.

Even if most of her Shemma clothes are preferred by Ethiopian artists such as Azeb Worku, Yosef Gebre and Samson Mamo, her crocheted made clothes are in demand by foreigners, according to Yordanos who is currently limited to selling her clothes only at her own store.

The crocheted clothes are not the only unique costumes of this young designer, rather she designs new clothes blending Ethiopian Shemma with precious stones such as Opals and Emeralds, which are not yet available for market but she finalized the sample designs and is displaying the clothes in her shop.

Yordanos currently plans to export her unique clothes to the global market, shifting from her existing marketing chain that only sells her designs to foreigners who visit her shop. Rather she wants to export the clothes to different countries by promoting the clothes aggressively through social media

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 35

Made in Ethiopia : Architecture and int. design

e r t s i BeM

Home Accessories:

Championing Locally Inspired and Sourced Interior Designs Ethiopia has long been well known for its unique architectural designs and craftsmanship. But recently construction and design trends have changed by adopting western styles and importing home accessories from abroad and also hiring foreigner interior designers to decorate houses.

But for young entrepreneurs like Mistre Gossaye, owner of BeMistre Home Accessories, is striving to maintain the Ethiopian way of architectural and interior designs as well as the use of home accessories by infusing traditional touches, according to The Eminence’s FASIKA TADESSE.

Photo by: Sintayehu Bekele

Going inside the showroom of BeMistre Home Accessories, which is located on Snap Plaza on African Avenue next to Millennium Hall, anyone would feel that they are inside a modern house but decorated with accessories that are made by Ethiopian cultural items in a simple and modern way.

The walls of the showroom are decorated by paintings that are made from the giant African gourd tree (qile in Amharic) recycled plastic bags, recycled electric wires, piece of metals, broken glass and animal horns. In the room there are also handmade home accessories such as vases, wall mirrors, bowls, branches made with electric wires, wall hooks, pen holders and other items used to decorate homes.

by profession makes all sorts of home accessories and interior design and decoration items by passion and after a year long training she took after she joined the business.

Mistre attended her primary and high school at Nazareth Girls’ School and studied computer science at HiLCoE School of Computer Science and Technology College.

She joined the business mainly because of her drive, talent and passion unlike many who work as interior designers and painters after getting training from art and architectural design training schools.

Prior of joining the business, she had worked on office jobs until she decided to quit her job and start working on painting and designing These items are made by Mistre home accessories in 2012. When Gossaye founder and owner of Be- she started working on painting Mistre Home Accessories. Mistre and interior decoration, she had no | The 23 expert - September 2016on the ground.

36who training is Eminence a computer- Issue science

“The feedback I got from people on my works at the time motivated and pushed me to go forward without regretting quitting my job,” Mistre told The Eminence.

tical uses. The company reflects Ethiopian culture through its crafted and handmade work, which makes them a good fit for both cultural and modern interiors.

After two years of working on painting and home accessories in 2014, she went to Enlightenment Art Academy (EAA), an art school which was founded in 2006, to take a yearlong training on water print and sketching to enhance her skills. After that in 2015 she opened her current shop BeMistre Home Accessories on 2nd floor of Snap Plaza and started working on painting, making home accessories for home, office and business area, furniture, interior design and decoration.

In joining painting and interior design business and establishing her company, Mistre mentions her main three motives. To expand the trend of locally produced items to be used as decoration material by replacing the imported ones, to utilize the ample cultural items of the country to decorate interiors of several houses and buildings, and to show the world that Ethiopians can produced finished products rather than exporting unfinished raw materials, according to Mistre.

Her company BeMistre Home Accessories designs and produces readymade and custom home accessories and furniture that can be used for both decorative and prac-

“Our ancestors used to known for making different architectural works that are amazing and still exist now such as the Lalibela churches, Axum Obelisks and the castle of Faslides. In addition to that Ethi-

opians were known for handmade household items. Now these all are forgotten by the community and we are fully importing home accessories and hiring interior designers from abroad with expensive costs which always concerned and motivated me to work on resuming this culture,” said Mistre.

In her shop Mistre sells paintings made with different recycled materials such as plastic bags, electric wires, piece of metals and broken mirrors. She also displayed lamps that are made in the form of Amharic Alphabets, coat hangers made from horn, traditionally made roofing that is made by wood, home/ office furniture which are made maintaining the natural temperament of the woods.

At her design studio different handmade home accessories with traditional elements are on exhibit. Artistically made, one of the accessories is a traditional cotton thread on a bird nest showing the traditional Habesha cloth decorated by butterflies. Wall accessories that reflect the traditional baskets, Sefed [a large round piece of wicker made from straw that slides under the injera], horns and different pottery are also seen at her studio and all have a sense of modernity.

She renovates the items to go with modern furnishing styles and home styles just using color and some decorating items. One cannot simply identify most of the materials on her accessories are Ethiopian cultural items such Likakit, traditionally cotton made threads, and Enzirte, an Ethiopian material which is used to make Likakit.

These designs of hers are preferred by many people, business and hotels and she has managed to sell her products for some prominent business in the city. She sold paintings to Kategna Traditional Restaurant, home accessories and paintings to Ramada Addis Hotel, Stockholm Elegance Lounge & Restaurant, Venetian Hotel Apartment and Snap Plaza office. She also provided interior designs, decoration and consultancy services for different households.

In addition to the organic materials and recycled materials she goes to different places to source her raw materials such as Addis Ababa Abattoirs Enterprise to buy animal horns, Merkato, the largest Ethiopian open market, specifically Minaleshe Tera, a place where used items such as metals, wires and plastic materials are sold.

She also buys the raw materials from different handcraft people and does the finishing herself. She has dealings with potters in Kechene, a village where pottery is common.

She crafts her own design and gives orders

to the potters to make her the items.

As she uses recycled and waste products as a raw material her products are Eco-Friendly.

The products she uses cause pollution to the air, water and soil if they are thrown in the environment.

“To make a painting with plastic bag, I use 10-100 plastic bags which will have intensive damage on the soil and environment if they were thrown in the surrounding,” said Mistre.

Regarding interior designing she provides consultancy services; prepares paintings which can fit with the interior look of the house as well as paintings that can replace wall papers and supplying decoration materials. In addition to working on the interior design she also supplies accessories for homes, offices and hotels. Her interior design type falls under modern and simple type of interior designs.

If someone wants to hire Mistre as an interior designer a minimum cots one has to pay her is 40,000 birr and it can go up depending on the quality and quantity of products the client demands for a specific design, according to Mistre. In addition to that she sells her paintings starting from 700 birr to 40,000 birr while she sells home accessories with a starting price of 300 birr.

“We are economical and cater to the purchasing power of any customers,” said Mistre who also offers products as small gifts.

To market she caters to is vast, Mistre has participated in different exhibitions and bazaars including Hotel Show Africa, a couple of art fairs and NGO bazaars. But beyond that she aspires to sell her products abroad especially her home accessories which are made from locally sourced materials.

But still she faces several challenges such as sourcing raw material, low level of perception of people towards handmade products while in abroad handmade products are expensive and valuable. The other main challenge she mention is shortage of trained human resource.

Resisting these challenges Mistre still dreams big. Her long term plan is to play a significant role in interior design and improve and make changes in the interior design arena of the country, to minimize the use of imported home accessories while the country has ample cultural items to decorate homes and to promote the Ethiopian cultural and traditional items. She also aspires to dominate the market which is currently dominated by the foreign interior Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 37 designers

Made in Ethiopia: Unique Ethiopia

Traditional

Ethiopia

New Year

Celebrations Fading Away A little before and after the month of September, Ethiopian urban and rural lands are always filled with a seasonal yellow daisy flower named ‘Adey Abeba’ which is also a sign to declare the coming of the Ethiopian New Year. The New Year is celebrated with different rituals like Abebayehush, a song by young girls, bonfire, and cultural meals prepared for the holiday. But according to LUCY KASSA, Eminence’s staff writer, this culture seems fading away in the urban areas and is getting lesser attention from the government to be registered by UNESCO.

Even if the Gregorian calendar marks the first of January as the beginning of a New Year, the eleventh or twelveth of September, the bright and ornamental month, is the date for Ethiopians the beginning of the New Year which is commonly known Enkutatash.

Ethiopians undertake many rituals to rejoice the coming of New Year which have both religious and historical roots.

For instance according to historian the famous New Year festivity, Abebayehush, was started 3,000 years ago with the visit of Queen Sheba (Makeda in her Ethiopian name) to King Solomon of Israel. In this festivity young girls gather around wearing their cotton traditional clothes and go to each households in their neighborhood singing songs holding Adey Abeba with green grass in their hands. Most of the messages of their songs proclaim the coming of a cheerful and greener year.

The word EnquLetatash literally defines as ‘precious jewels for your staffs or blessing’. According to historians the word started to be in used after the return of Queen Sheba from her Israel visit. It is said that when she went to visit the wise king Solomon, she presented him with many precious gifts accom-

38

panied with her 500 maids. Upon returning to her native country she found out that she was pregnant with the child of the king, she used to tell her maids about the King’s greatness and the time she spent with him. Hence the girls present her precious jewels for her blessing and sang songs of her greatness.

Other historians claim that it is the king who presented her precious jewels and her maids seeing this sung for her saying ‘Enqu Le Tatash’. But all historians agree that the time when she returned to Ethiopia was in September and it was the time which was marked up as the starting of celebrating Abebayehush.

The other line of argument for the start of Ethiopian New Year originates with the Noah’s history in bible. Those historians claim that when Noah was saved from the water a dove comes holding green grass in her mouth to declare that the rain is clearing and that the families of Noah can start a new life. According to them the time when Noah was saved from the flood was on September.

According to the historians the girls that sing Abebayhush represent the bird that made the first announcement of a new era to Noah.

The same as the dove, the girls declare the ending of the darkest time (summer heavy rains) and the coming of New Year to the households. That is why they hold green grass and flower in their hands which is to represent that the rain is clearing and the gloomy season has ended.

“When the rainy season ends the lands get bright and green. Abebayhush represents this new and bright year and the giving of green grass as a gift originates from the Noah history,” said Abba Bisrateab Getachew Ethiopian Ancient literature and Heritages expert at the

Ministry of Culture and Tourism’s National Archives and Library Agency.

Ethiopian New Year ceremonies are not limited to Abebayhush. Before New Year approaches teenage boys of ages around 15 years old go from door to door and sing Hoya Hoye, a song which is celebrated in August to commemorate the Transfiguration of Jesus on Mount Tabor the festivity is usually named as Buhe. For the boys home baked breads are offered as gifts. The bread those are given as a gift are named Defo Dabo and Mulmul Dabo, which is oval bread exclusively baked for New Year and Buhe to be given as gifts for children who sing Hoya Hoye.

Even if a culture of giving Mulmul Dabo is fading

away it is still practiced by some people like Amarch Mengestu. The 65 years old lady, who was born and raised in Addis at the neighborhood of Olympia, was celebrating Ethiopian New Year practicing all the rituals which her neighbors were doing. This year she will also practice some of the ceremonies including baking Mulmul Dabo for her grandchildren.

For Buhe which took place weeks back Amarch also practiced this ritual. “I baked 40 Mulmul Dabo for my grandchildren and my neighbors’ children for the Buhe,” she said. The Mulmul Dabo is different from Defo Dabo or other breads because it is baked in a different stove and one can bake 40 or more loaves of bread. It is given to

boys who sing Hoya Hoye.

For Amarch the New Year is a big holiday and the meals to celebrate the day should all be prepared earlier. Among these involve Tela, traditional beer, Defo Dabo, traditional bread and Doro Wot, a traditional chicken stew. On the eve there will be a bonfire in the neighborhood and the people express their wishes for the holiday accompanied by the dances and songs of Hoya Hoye by boys.

“But these days the culture is disappearing. I used to feel very happy when the girls say Abebayhush.

It is the expression of happiness to welcome and to honor New Year. Now it is rare because most people do not live in a neighborhood and there is less communal life,” Amarch said.

In addition to leaving away these cultures the people are mixing New Year celebration rituals with other holidays. For instance Hoya Hoye, the bonfire, the Mulmul Dabo are separate celebrations from New Year but most people now celebrate them associating with New Year according to Aba Bisratab. These rituals are meant to celebrate another religious event called Debre Tabor (Buhe), a holiday to commemorate the revelation of Jesus in the mountain of Debre Tabor to his disciples standing in between Moses and Elijah.

Having this religious and historical aspect, the Ethiopian New Year celebration particularly Abebayhush have also a cultural aspect. Traditionally this festival is only practiced by virgin girls.

The girls should not be married but those close in age to get married. Outside its purpose of honoring the New Year, the occasion is also a chance for the girls to have contact with men to scout for their future husband.

“When they sing Abebayhush they visit many households and get dressed very nice with traditional clothes and walk being beautiful. It seems to imply that as Queen Sheba gets a partner (Solomon), they will also find a marriage partner,” Aba Bisratabe said adding that the occasion is also an occasion for the girls to get outside and be free.

But in urban areas using Abebayhush as a means of searching for marriage partner is not observed rather they simply celebrated it as one of the holiday festivals. Example of this is, Tigist Seyfu a 14 years old girl who lives in Olympia. She and her neighborhood girls have already selected their group members for the festivity of Abebayhush which their number could extend from five to 15 girls.

“We arrange traditional clothes and jewelries for Abebayhush.

During the eve and in the holiday we go to each house singing and the households give us food or money,” Tigist said.

Having these cultural, historical and religious implications the Ethiopian New Year celebration is not yet registered under United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) because of the need for further research. The Authority for Research and Conservation of Cultural Heritages (ARCCH) has also paid less attention for the holiday in making further research and studies about the holiday

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 39

Reflection: Legal Corner

On Acquiring

Tourist Visas

to Ethiopia A total of 910,128 tourists coming from various countries of the world have visited Ethiopia during the past fiscal year and this has generated a total amount of 3.4 billion USD with an increase of 117,251 USD from the last fiscal year (2015).

the internet adding the name of the home country where the tourist resides. In the respective Ethiopian mission website all the information regarding how to process the visa and including the mount of payment is sited.

The payment for up to 30 days stay is 50 USD and if the day extends to 90 the fee will be 70 USD. The visa time line can be extended when there are exceptional reasonsdeemed acceptable bymain department for Immigration and Nationality Affairs.

The majority of visitors came from Europe and Asia. These tourists visited the country to see the different cultural and natural heritages of the country as the country has nine tangible and two intangible world heritages that are registered by UNESCO.

Citizens and permanent residents of countries that are considered to be tourist generating countries likeArgentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China (People’s Rep.), Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea (Dem. People’s Rep.), Korea (Rep.), Kuwait, Luxemburg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russian Fed., Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, UK and USA would have an opportunity to get a tourist visa upon arrival at only the Addis Ababa Bole International airport. If applying for a tourist visa on arrival, visitors are requiredto submit two passport sized photographs.

After securing the visa the tourist needs to have a valid ticket for travel and enough money to sustain during his/herstay here in Ethiopia.

Once the tourist arrives here just like any other country there is an immigration entry point where the visa would be reviewed for entrance to the country

In order to visit a county, the basic mandatory thing a tourist needs is a visa to that specific country. Proclamation No.154/2003 and Immigration Council of Ministers Regulation114/2015 are the relevant legal documents of Ethiopia to refer to in order to know more about tourist visas in Ethiopia.

Accordingly the very first thing a tourist would need to have is a travel document that is valid at least for six month. Then processing the tourist visa will take place. This is done by checking whether the tourist has an Ethiopian mission in his/her home country. This can be checked by searching Ethiopian missions on

Djiboutian and Kenyan citizens are not required to have a tourist visa to enter to the country for up to three month.

40 | The Eminence - Issue 23 - September 2016

Reflection: Dear Ethiopia

A Globetrotter’s Account of BIO

Sanjeev Midha, 54, is a financial engineer who owns his own company in the USA. He was in Addis Ababa from September to October 2015. He has travelled to over 115 countries across the globe including 14 countries in Africa including Ethiopia. Midha is married and a father of two.

This was Midha’s second trip to Ethiopia.

I am a perpetual traveler and have been to over 115 countries. I love to explore countries; the cities, the nature, hikes, cycling, driving and water activities excite me. But the most important thing for me is to meet people. I like to get to know them and talk to them about their culture and exchange knowledge about the world.

In September 2015, I had decided to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania, so I decided to fly from Florida to Addis Ababa for one week before heading to Tanzania to acclimate my body to high altitudes.

I had been to Addis once before with my wife and had enjoyed it. This time I wanted to explore many more of the Ethiopian locations.

After a long flight via Frankfurt on the wonderful Ethiopian Airlines, I landed in Addis and settled in Atlas Hotel. It was early in the morning but the hotel staff was happy to check me in right away. It was a blessing for me because I was able to sleep for a few hours.

Just a short walk from the hotel, I was able to exchange currency. A little bit of extra walk Ethiotelecom sold me a local SIM card. That’s all you need in a new country nowadays to get started and feel like a local.

I took part in the Ethiopian New Year celebration. Similar to Halloween, groups of kids and teenagers go house to house and stop to sing.

They dress in traditional Ethiopian dresses and look very charming. I saw this all over.

Also, throughout the town, I saw coffee ceremonies being held. It is such a wonderful phenomenon in this culturally rich country.

A traditionally dressed lady sitting in the center with hundreds of small coffee cups placed around in a very attractive way. She would brew very dark coffee beans sending up a fabulous aroma. They kept offering me coffee ev-

erywhere and I kept accepting their offers. It gave me opportunities to talk with people and exchange experiences.

I continued my typical exploration of the city by walking everywhere in the next few days. I also played golf. It is an average golf course but offered wonderful hospitality which is beyond description. From the taxi driver to the shop receptionist and from the restaurant manager and hostesses to the wonderful caddie, these were pleasurable experiences.

One evening, with three Ethiopian friends we went to a wonderful “typical” Ethiopian cuisine restaurant named Yod Abyssinia. The dinner was also accompanied by live dances from Ethiopian regions.

In fact Ethiopia does lack good hotels and affordable taxi transportation.

I also made great friends with an expat couple who were offering cycle tours in the city.

They took me to the home of a very well established Indian couple in Addis. This couple was so gracious and humble that in their mansion-like home, they offered us home cooked food and we had a pleasant evening.

Then I went on to climb Mount Kilimanjaro.

After that I visited Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. But I had loved Ethiopia so much that I returned to Addis once again in October.

I wanted to go to Hawassa independently driving a rented car. This was getting to be a difficult task. Many car rental agencies I talked to were more interested in sending a chauffeur with me and, of course, with high charges.

But I found a gentleman whom I met through a social media friend. He offered to drive me to any place of my choice in his private car. But suddenly, another social media contact who is a bank manager, through her boyfriend,

loaned me her car which was full of gas. They didn’t ask me anything at all.

On my way to Hawassa it got very late while trying to get out of crowded Addis roads, so I stopped over at Lake Ziway area and stayed at a wonderful resort complemented with wonderful hospitality. Their chef stayed back very late in the night to make fresh food for me.

In the morning, I woke up to see a great variety of birds in the lake right from the room. This was very refreshing. After a few hours of walking in that rustic village-like town, I observed some kind of weekend festivities. Then my next stop was at Hawassa which I had heard so much about. My resort was on the lake and near a university. After spending two nights there and making few friends I decided to drive back to Addis.

I enjoyed many interesting scenes on the highway, which, I think, could be called a bit weird.

Sometimes, all of a sudden, young kids would come in front of the car dancing and disrupting the drive. On the way I stopped at another wonderful resort on the lake with a nice beach in the Lonagano area. After a sumptuous lunch with the finest of views and a wonderful walk on the beach, I headed back to Addis.

Only in Ethiopia, could I see such a display of trust and sense of giving. Since then, I have come across few more such incidents where Ethiopians have helped other travelers in similar fashion in different ways.

I watched with my own eyes and continue to follow their progress. I saw big and ambitious Chinese projects everywhere; ranging from city overhead trains to power production to housing developments to inter-city and inter-country railway and many more.

I think Ethiopia is gearing towards competing with the best of the best in the long term Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 41

With more than 20 top Box Office selections every week The Jungle Book Freeheld The Adderall Diaries High Strung Irrational Man Criminal Blackaway Jane Got a Gun Regression and more‌

ETB/Movie only

Rent from the comfort of your couch

42 | The Eminence - Issue 23 - September 2016

Now Available on DStv

Food Recipe: Quanta Firfir Needed ingredients • • • • • •

http://thespiceisland.blogspot.com

• • • •

2 medium onions, chopped 1/4 cup vegetable oil 6 cloves garlic 2 TBSP berbere (red pepper) 2 cups water 2-3 ounces beef jerky, chopped into 1/4-inch pieces (use only plain jerky; not anything flavored, like teriyaki) 1 tsp salt 3 big handfuls fully-dried injera that has been torn up into bite-size pieces A couple hard-boiled eggs, peeled (optional) Fresh injera for serving

Direction •

Heat a dry saucepan over medium heat. Add onions and sweat them, without any oil, until they become translucent, about 5 minutes.

•

Add oil and saute another couple minutes. Add half the garlic and saute yet another couple minutes.

•

Add berbere and continue to sauté. The mixture will start to stick. When it does, add a couple TBSP of the water. Repeat this process until you only have 3/4 of a cup of water left. Then add the water, the rest of the garlic, beef jerky, and salt and immediately remove the pan from the heat and let rest for 60 seconds.

•

Now stir in the injera chips VERY GENTLY, so as not to break them. Continue to stir gently until all the liquid is absorbed. The injera should be pretty spongy, so if it isn’t, stir in a bit more water.

•

Serve with the eggs on top and, well, more injera (fresh injera this time).

Enjoy!

Sudoku

Tourist Corner Name: Kfith Jackson Age: 34 I am from: Canada I have been in Ethiopia: for 13 days I am in Ethiopia: to visit historical places like Gonder, Bahirdar and the Omo Valley.

An Ethiopian concept or way of thinking that you do not understand: The time is quite strange for me, the day starting and the hours. The other thing is a raw meat. I am really surprised when I see people eating a raw meat.

Something that is hard to find here but easy to find in Canada: Snack foods and chocolates.

Something that is easy to find here but hard to find in Canada: I really do not like it. But Khat is everywhere here and not in Canada.

Your favorite thing about Ethiopia: Its beautiful nature Your least favorite thing about Ethiopia: The transportation facilities; the buses and the road.

Your favorite Ethiopian dish: Shiro Wot

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 43

ENTERTAINMENT: CLASSIFIED Best Halls in Addis Ababa Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) Available Rooms: 12 Accommodates: From 30 - 500 People African Union (AU) Available Rooms: 40 Accommodates: From 35 -2, 500 People Sheraton Addis Hotel Available Rooms: 9 Accommodates: From 40 -450 People Hilton Addis Ababa Available Rooms: 8 Accommodates: From 20 -650 People Radission Blu Addis Ababa Available Rooms: 2 Accommodates: From 12 -120 People

Places for Retreat Kurifitu Resort & Spa Location: Bishoftu (Debrezeit) Things to do: Restaurant & Bar, Swimming, Kayaking, Spa, Rooms Kurifitu Resort & Spa Location: Bahir Dar Things to do: Restaurants, Rooms with Lake Tana View, Fireplace, Swimming, Spa Adulala Resort Location: Bishoftu (Debrezeit) Things to do: Restaurants & bar, Spa & Gym, Bungalows, Horse riding, fishing at Babo Gaya Lake & much more African Vacation Club Location: Langanoo Things to do: Restaurant & bar, Swimming, Kayaking, Spa, Rooms, Horse ridding, Game Zone and Different Beach Games Yaya Village Location: Sululeta Things to do: Restaurant & bar, Horse Riding, Rooms & High Attitude training Liesake Resort and Spa Avanti Blue Nile Hotel Location: Bahir Dar Things to do: Bar and Restaurant, Rooms with overall city view, massage

Immerse yourself in Ethiopian Music and Dance Fendika Location: Kazanchis Time: from 7:00 PM- Mid night 2000 Habesha Location: Bole Time: from 7:00 PM- Mid night

Location: Piassa Holy Trinity Cathedral Location: Arat Kilo

Beautiful Scenic and Wildlife in Ethiopia

National Museum Location: Amist Kilo

Caribo Resturants Location: Mekinisa Specialty: Caribbean and African cuisine

Park (Anebesa Gebi) Location: Sidist Kilo

Panoramic view of Addis from Entoto Location: Entoto

Hangout Spots Edna Mall/ Bob and Bongos Things to do: Watch box office movies, Skating, basket ball, cafés, 7D movies Lafto Mall Things to do: Read your favorite books & enjoy hot drinks Balageru Coffee Things to do: Read your favorite books & enjoy hot drinks Bilos Café Things to do: Some of the best pastries in town

Night Life in Addis Gaslight Night Club Location: Sheraton Addis Club Illusion Location: Next to Ambassador Theater Black Rose Location: On Boston Building Champion Bar Location: On Boston Building Liquid Lounge Location: Next to Intercontinental Addis Hotel

Simien Mountains National Park Location: Semien Gondar Zone of the Amhara Region Some of the animals that can be found: Gelada baboon, Simien fox & Walia Ibex Nechisar National Park Location: SNNPR Some of the animals that can be found: Burchell’s Zebra, Grant’s gazelle, Guenther’s Dik-dik, Anubis Baboon & Grey Duiker.

Awash National Park Location: Southern part of Afar Region and northeastern of Oromia Region Some of the animals that can be found: Beisa oryx, Hamadryas Swaync’s Hartebeet Omo National Park Location: SNNPR Some of the animals that can be found: Burchell’s Zebra, Gerenuk & Kudu Mago National Park Location: SNNPR Some of the animals that can be found: buffalo, cheetah, elephant, giraffe, hartebeest, leopard, lion and zebra

Bale Mountains National Park Location: Oromia Region Some of the animals that can be found: Topi, Lelwel Hartebeest, Bustards, Hornbills, Weavers & Starlings

Suba Lounge Location: Wollo Sefer on Ethio-China road

Your Home Away from Home for Your

What to see in Addis Ababa?

Ethiopian Korean War Veterans Association Location: Afincho Ber The largest open market in Africa Location: Merkato The gold jewelry market

44 | The Eminence - Issue 23 - September 2016

Chez Fasil Restaurant and Bar Location: Meskel Flower Specialty: Specialized in Nouvelle & Fusion Cuisine German Restaurant Location: Near Japan Embassy Specialty: German food and beer Kuriftu Diplomat Restaurant Location: On Boston Building Specialty: “The ultimate global cuisine” Hahn Khuh Restaurant Location: Atlas Specialty: Korean Aladdin Location: Near Japan Embassy Specialty: Middle Eastern

Some of the best Coffee house Tomoca Coffee Abissiynia Coffee Alem Bunna

Abijatta-Shalla Lakes National Park Location: Oromia Region Some of the animals that can be found: Great White Pelicans and Flamingo Yangudi Rassa National Park Location: Afar Region Some of the animals that can be found: Beisa Oryx, Dorcas gazelle, gerenuk and Gravy’s zebra

Fendika Club Location: Kasanchis

Castelli Location: Piassa Specialty: Italian Restaurant

Gambella National Park Location: Gambella Region Some of the animals that can be found: Nile Lechwe,White-Eared Kob, Roan Antelope, and Whale-headed Stork

Club H2O Location: On Yolly Building, “Chichiniya”

Gravity Lounge Location: Next to Bole Medihanialem Church

Al Mendi Location: Meskel Flower Specialty: Arabian Restaurants

Four Seasons Location: Bisrat Gabriel Specialty: Japanese, Thai and Indian

Ethnological Museum Location: Sidist Kilo

Ethiopian traditional clothes and jewelry market Location: Shiro Meda

International Cuisines in Addis

Extended Stay Beer Garden Inn (Guest House) Total Rooms: 21 Location: Bole Medhanialem Road near Edna mall GT Guest House (Guest House) Total Rooms: 13 Location: Kirkos kifle ketema, 200m in from Dashen Bank on Sierra Leone Street Yeka Guest House (Guest House) Total Rooms: 14 Location: British Embassy across the street from the Bio-Diversity Institute Addis Guest House (Guest House) Total Rooms: 12 Location: Bole road 5 minutes from Bole International Airport

“Please let it be noted neither the editorial team nor the company is liable for any errors or mistakes on the sources of information. The list is in no specific order”.

PHONE SERVICE Toll Free Information Service Federal Police Commission National Operator Fault Report Dial Up Internet Pre Paid Mobile Service/Bill Inquiry/Lost Mobile Registration/ Number Change Information Broad Band Customer Service PSTN Service Voice Mail

PRIVATE HOSPITALS 997 916 998 994 900 994 980 980 908

COURRIER SERVICE DHL EMS(Ethiopia) Federal Express TNT Skypok UPS Trans Express Ethiopia

011 662 16 00 011 515 20 72 011 618 63 83 011 551 41 54 011 662 13 09 011 551 41 54

UN United Nations Development Program United Nations Children Education Fund United Nations Economic Commission for Africa

011 663 35 82 011 518 40 00 011 551 72 00

BANK Abay Bank Addis International Bank Awash International Bank Bank of Abyssina Berhan International Bank Buna International Bank Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) Construction and Business Bank Cooperative Bank of Oromia Dashen Bank Debub Global Bank Development Bank of Ethiopia Enat Bank Lion International Bank Nib International Bank Oromia International Bank United Bank Wegagen Bank Zemen Bank

011 552 88 51 011 557 0502 011 557 00 00 011 551 41 30 011 618 57 32 011 158 08 67 011 122 87 55 011 551 23 00 011 552 27 59 011 467 18 03 011 467 40 87 011 551 11 88 011 550 49 48 011 662 60 00 011 550 32 88 011 557 21 13 011 465 52 22 011 552 38 00 011 550 11 11

AIRLINES British Midland (BMI) Egypt Air Ethiopian Airlines Emirates Kenya Airways K.L.M Royal Dutch Lufthansa Saudi Airline Yemen Airways

011 665 04 94 011 156 44 93 011 665 66 66 011 518 18 18 011 551 42 58 011 552 55 41 011 551 56 66 011 663 81 37 011 551 50 76

FIRE BRIGADE Station Menilik II square Station Addisu Kera Station Mekanisa Station Nifas Silk Station Akaki Station Megenagna Station Bole

011 156 70 40 011 466 34 20 011 276 91 46 011 442 55 63 011 434 00 96 011 663 03 73 011 664 85 80

POLICE STATION Police Information Federal Police Commission AA Police Commission

Addis Cardiac Hospital Addis Hiwot Hospital Bete Zata Hospital Landmark Hospital Hayat Hospital Kadisco Hospital Broad Band Customer Service PSTN Service Voice Mail

011 663 47 20 011 618 04 49 011 551 41 41 011 552 62 29 011 662 44 88 011 629 89 04 980 980 908

COURRIER SERVICE DHL EMS(Ethiopia) Federal Express TNT Skypok UPS Trans Express Ethiopia

011 662 16 00 011 515 20 72 011 618 63 83 011 551 41 54 011 662 13 09 011 551 41 54

PUBLIC HOSPITALS Black Lion (Tikur Anbessa) Hospital Menilik II Hospital Ras Desta Hospital

011 551 12 11 011 123 42 72 011 155 33 99

LIBRARY Academy of Ethiopian Languages Addis Ababa Municipality Library Alliance Ethio-Française British Council Economic Commission for Africa library German Cultural Institute Italian Cultural Institute J.F Kennedy (A.A.U) National Libraries & Archives

011 551 59 26 011 155 01 11 011 155 02 13 011 155 00 22 011 551 72 00 011 155 28 88 011 111 34 27 011 111 04 33 011 551 62 47

ART GALLERY Asni Gallery Ersas Art Studio Goshu Art Gallery Gigi’s Afro Asian Design& Fine Interiors Makush Gallery

011 123 32 44 0913 66 02 30 011 661 03 97 0912 20 43 37 011 552 68 48

Sudoku Answer

TOUR AND TRAVEL Eminence Social Entrepreneurs Koreb Tour Operators Kibran Tours Plc Rainbow Car Rental and Tour Services

011 823 71 82 011 662 3179 011 662 62 14 011 371 79 40

PHARMACY Abader Pharmacy Bata Pharmacy Ethio German Pharmacy

011 662 43 97 011 655 21 34 0911 20 94 88

ONLINE CLASSIFIED 2 Merkato Latest Ethiopian Tenders and Bids Buy and Sell ( Ethiopia) Gulit Online Market Mekina Online Car Market Kaymu Whats Out Addis?

www.2merkatos/ tenders buysellethio.com wwww.gulit.com www.mekina.ney et.kaymu.com Whatsoutaddis.com

991 916 011 157 21 21

Issue 23 - September 2016 - The Eminence | 45